New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1861-01-12
FEES or CoTNrY OrFrcRRs.

"t"'ViH nave oeeD maze 20 institute an iugulry
into the amount Of fees received, and the nature
Of the services performed therefor BY the Sheriff,
County Clerk, and Register Of this county. but
through the fundamentally OF certain Republi-
cans the inquiry has not been ordered. we OBJ
serve that Mr.. Graft, 10 the Assembly, has again
moved to require them to report their fees. It
ia generally belle, ed that the emOluments Of these
offices are enormous, how large few are really b
competent to state, save those who are directly
interested in keeping them from the public eye. !,
Officials long connected with the City Govern
ment quite incapable Of stating all the
Of revenue which the holders of these lu-
cratise positions enjoy, as every precau-
tiou is taken TO guard against disclosure.
Let us examine the Sberid's fees, 30 Ear as we
can learn anything about them. From tins
County be receives $40 panel for Grand Jurier.
of which there are sometimes three month for
the General Sessions, Special Term of the same,
and Oyer and Termner. For notifying petit
Jurors no charges $50 hundred and the num-
Der of petit jurors summoned in month often
exceeds three thousand. Summoning witnesses is
charged at the same rate. lie furnishes the Sec
rotary of State with record Of convictions In
the Criminal Courts, for which he gets 30 cents
head; for every prisoner sentenced in the Courts
of General and Special Sessions, he receyee 10
cents for removing the person to the Penlten-
tiary or the Tombs The annual bill OF
the Sheriff against the County exclusive
of the return OF convictions, is about S2O,OOO.
But the report Of criminal convictions is o "big
s'thing." The law of 1889 provides for return
of call the criminal convictions in Courts
"Of Record" to be made by the County
Clerk, Clerk of the Court or the Sheriff.
This return has been made for thIs
county from time immemorial almost, by MIR.
Vanderyoort, the Clerk Of the General Sessions.
He gives all the convictions and acquittals in tao
Courts of General and Special Sessions, and tho
Court of Oyer and Termner. The law provides
that for this he shall be paid ga reasonable COM
" pensation" by the Board of Supervisors. They
originally paid him $40 year, but some years
ago put it up to $50. In this county, at least,
this report has also been made for years past by
the County Clerk and the Sheriff. The latter
used to charge thousand dollars or 80 for tho
job, but Mr.. Kelly, and we believe at least one
of bis predecessors have taxed the county 90 cents
head for such reports; and in order to swell them
to enormous proportions, the present Sheriff has
been in the habit Of sending around to all the
prisons, and making transcripts of every petty con-
viction in the Police Courts, giving in tabular
form. one case in each line, mass Of useless in-
formation, at the rate OF 80 cents line, S25 for
the contents of every foOlscap sheet, thus draw
ing from the County Treasury from 10000 to
$40, eco year for work which Mr. Vandervoort
docs much better and more fully for $3.50.
The "term fees" are another great source Of
profit TO the Sheriff. For every cause on the
Calendar of the Supreme Court and its branches,
the Superior Court aud its branches the Court
of Common Pleas and its parts, and the Marine
Court, be taxes the litgants 50 cents term.
A cause may be entered on the calender and a
year elapse before it comes to trial. 1t is esti-
mated that there are 10000 causes year on tbs
calendars, and that the fees of the Sheriff there
from do not fall far short of $4,000. There are
a host of other fees of which few have any moro
than a vague idea. II is said that in executions
the same officer is put in possession Of half a
dozen places upon which leyies have been made.
drawing SO day from each, and so on to this
end of the chapter. The lowest estimate of the
Sherif's income at present is $4,000 year,
while some put it at $4,000. We must also
not overlook the fact that the pickings are so
plentiful that the SherifTs deputies usually grow
rich upon the proceeds Of office.
The County Clerk is paid salary of $1,000
year. and the fees received by him are paid into
the County Treasury. The average receipts for
fees from this Office are about $4,000 year
a sum considerably less than tue expense of con-
Quoting the Office. Originally, this was not
salaried Office, its fees being retained by the
Clegh, and its expenses paid by him out Of them.
When the Legislature made it a salaried Office,
the lawyers found it so difficult to get their
searches for judgments made that in 1883 they
pettioned the Legislature to allow the Clerk to
retain the fees for searches, and got law passed
to that effect. These fees are said to BIO in
themselves merely nominal; but by shrewd man
agement the emolumeDts have been sweed to
very heavy figure. Thus, lawyer wishes d
search made for judgments against certain in
diydual immediately The searcher says il can'e
be- done under thirty or sixty days, as there are
40 many searches TO be made previously. But
present of $40 or $780, according to the urgency
of the case. will induce the searcher to expedite
the matter, by working ''oyer hours" The re-
ceipts of this office By such means swelled to
$50, 600, some say $4,000 year. Mr. Richard
b. Connolly is said to have realized the latter
amount annually during the two terms for which
he held the Office.
The Registers Office is one of fees solely. Lee