New-York tribune., 1867-04-12
THE COURTHOUSE JOB.

When the County Court House is completed
-"oh woful whon"-it should bear the IN
| scripton, Erected "a a monument OF the cor
Eruption of the Board of Supervisors, the COM
"plicity of the Legislature in their crimes, ana
| % the miserics of the Tax payers of New-i ofk'
| With the money already expended on this un-
| finished pile three better buildings might
have been built. Its history is his
| tory of swindling and extravaganza In
| 1853 the Board of Supervisors were authorized
| by the Legislature to build new Court House,
at cost of S2jO000; In 1850. 100000 were
added, and in succeeding years. $4,000, S3OO,OOO
s65O,OOO. 100000, 100000, s5OO,OOO-a total of
g. 100000. or two millions, four hundred and
fifty thousands of dollars moro than the origi-
nal estimate Yet the Court-House is unfinished
and those who have for years watched the slow
process of ts erection may well won
der in what way the money raised
has been used. Far more has been spent out
of the building than in it. Five hundred thou-
sand dollars at least were wasted on an iron
contract, and about the same sum on contract
for marble both of which were made to suit the
purposes of the Court House Ring. Investiga-
tion into the proceedings of the Board was de-
feated by the Board, and to this day, while the
robbery is as notorious as any tried III the
Criminal Courts, the people have vainly sought
to put a stop to 1t.
Now another million is asked, and the County
Tax Levy bill, reported by Mr.. Abraham Lent
in the Senate, proposes to grant another million
Ii il coupled with the stipulation that nothing
shall he paid without the written ccrtlti-
cate of the Mayor that the claim Is Just
and properly authorized. This stipulation
is worthless as a protection. The Board
of Supervisors will properly authorize
what they please, and we do not think
the Mayor will keep up running fight with
the Board in defense of justice. Mr. Holman,
before he became Mayor, may have had SEN
tmental inclination to virtue, but he has GER
tainly not shown the energy necessary to restrain
the extravaganza of the other branches of the
Government. In some cascs-memOrably in the
appointment of Mr.. Peter b. Sweeney as City
Chamberlain, and the continuance of system
by which the City is robbed of hundreds of
thousands of dollars due TO il and not to the
Chamberlain-he has appeared as the ally OF
corruption, and the slave of the Ring. Nobody
will expect him to stop any stealing which
Tammany is to profit by. Were he never so
honest, and never SO resoute, 1t would
be absurd to hope that the organized
robberes of the Board of Supervisors
would be checked by his interference.
Mayor Gunther, in 1854 sent the Board IN
official message that the circumstances of the
iron contract Il" Indicated the preparation of
"gross fraud" and his communication was
treated with supreme contempt. There is,
therefore not the slightest security that the
fourth million will not be wasted, as were the
three millions already disposed of by the Board.
We are not surprised that Mr. Lent has reported
the 81 100000 in the Tax Levy. Elected on
pledges that he would advocate reform, he has
consistently used his influence to prevent 1t.
Knowing the dsgraceful delays III building
The County Court House, Mr.. Lent, at the pre-
ceding session of the Legislature, not only
voted against the proposition 10 take It's cree
ton from the Board, and give it to persons OF
more honesty but declared that the
SUPERVISORS were honorable men, and that
to take from them the control of
the work would greatly interfere with
the speedy and economical completion OF
the building! This is what Mr.. Lent said
in lsG8-the appropriation of another million Is
what he proposes in 1861 That proposal Is now
before the Legislature, and we repeat that no
MEMBER VINO uhucIstanus Ills uu'y anu u "lllhS
TO do it will vote to appropriate another dollar
to be expended by the Board of Supervisors.
Whoever shall so vote will subject himself to
the suspicion of being worse than Indifferent to
the interests Of this City. He must expect TO
bear the Odium of sharing with the Supervisors
the money which he aids them to take from
the treasury.
Mr. Alexander Delmar Director of the Bureau