The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-01-06

| on o constitutional basis, and without touching
the reserved rights of the States on this subject
| But if the excluded Southern States are to be
still excluded from Congress until this amend
ment shall have been declared ratified, Con-
gress should act at once, while the State Legis-
| latures are generally in session, SO that during
this winter the question may be settled. We
| think the excluded States are entitled to admis-
sion upon the terms laid down by the Pres-
dent; but if he is in favor of this proposed
amendment as compromise with Congress, and
as a new condition Of restoration, we are sure
that he is in favor of immediate action. If the
thing is to be tried it ought to be tried without
| loss of time.
Startling Revelations About Crime In
the City-Thc Causes and Remedy.
We published yesterday the annual'report OF
the Metropolitan Police Commissioners to the
| Governor of the State. Although prepared for
an unusually extensive budget of terminal Sta
| tistics, we confess that we are astonished and
startled at many Of the revelations contained
in the document II appears that the number
of arrests for offences of all grades amounted
to the enormous number of siXty-eight thou
! sand eight hundred and seventy-three, or about
fourteen thousand more than the previous year.
Crimes of violence toward the person have in
creased in a still greater ratio, the total num-
Der being nine hundred and ninety-fve, against
six hundred and twentyfour in 1864. The Sur
| geons' report, the Commissioners say, exposes
| the evils arising from overcrowded tenement
houses, badly constructed and managed slaugh-
ter houses, noxious fat boiling concerns, disgust
ing hide houses and poison generating sewers,
and ought to startle he people and the Legisa-
ture into earnest efforts TO protect public health
| The report shows that there are twelve hun
dred daughters of perlitionH in the concert
saloons, and that there exist in this city and
Brooklyn the fearful number of ten thousand
| places where Intoxicating drinks are sold, over
eight thousand Of which are unlicensed. The
License law and the Excise law are nearly in
! operative, for reasons explained, to which we
shall presently revert Bad and dangerous as
the tenement houses are for habitations, it ap-
pears there are others which are worse. In
| one precinct there are sixty places,
or dens where the wretched poor, the
criminals and depraved resort TO lodge,
paying from ten to fifteen cents per
night for miserable accommodations These
places are chiefly in cellars with naked
stone or brick walls, damp and decayed floors,
uisLeu. i,osr or hodaias ut FOR hurnrn bcingr.
These dens are filthy beyond description, over
flowing with vermiu and infested by rats. In
these hideous places are packed nightly an
average OF six hundred persons-men, women
-
miscuously together, without regard to family
relation, and exhibiting less OF the impulses Of
decency than the brute creation They consist
of drunken wrelches male and female beggars,
ragpickers of The poorer sort. sneak thieves.
Juvenile pimps. ragged and drunken prostitutes,
and others OF the same vile class.
In the conrse o. this revolving record of
crime, vice aud immortality we observe the
statement thst certain laws and ordinances are
not enforced because the justices are depend
eni for their places upon the very offenders
they are called upon 10 punish. The hackiuen
and carmen, for instance, are powerful body
Of men. In some districts, say The Commits
soaers. no police justice could be elected
against heir combinediopposition. Under such
circumstances, they reasonably infer. il is not
to he expected that such elective officers will
venture to ALLEVIATE thcir constituents by iirm
administration Of Justice. The Commissioners
state that The soandncss OF the principle th.
judges OF The criminal courts IN order 10 be- Just
90 the public. mus be independent of ,he
criminal CLASSES. i illustrated hy The insufficient
administration OF criminal Justice in the city Of
New York.
Now all this is true 50 Ear as II goes. But
the Police Commis sioueis would have lurhercd
the cnds ofiastice and commanded The undivided
attention and appreciation o. all respectable
citizens had they cone a step further, and pre-
scented the fountain heads whence issue these
polluted streams of vice ard ths contempt Of
Law aud ordnance. They should have conc TO
Tammany HAIL. TO Mozart Hall, and 90 the
other headquarters of the political parties aud
factions in this city. and shown VIVA, an aspeci
they exhibit few days prior to an election
Thcy nigh, have suggested The spectacle OF the
foul dens they mention vomiting forth their
pes,ilent inmates OF The masculine gender, bent
upon pilgrimage 10 the nearest polling booth
, They might there have learned how readily
vote can be purchased, and how The vote of an
honest, respectable and law-abdiur citizen can
be noutraiized by that OF a thief loaier, or
beggarly and abandoned wretch Of any sort
They might have shown how local politicians,
hascly treacherous 10 even their own candidates.
rake every place except heaven 10 find human
vehicles foul enough TO handle and unprinciplcd
enough TO deposit ballots. The political cliqucs
Of this city are responsible Tor this criminal
prostitution Of the elective franchise. To them
are the public indebted for the annual fresbct