New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-06-13
MESSAGE OF THE MAYOR
ro THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF NETWORK.
JUNE. 1871.
WITH ACCOMPANIES DOCUMENTS.
MESSAGE.

a from the Mayer and Reports from the City Depart
nts The intention OF the requirement is 10 furnish
information constituents as well as to afford ma
4eral for the practical cooperation of city officials
Comics Of these Annual Reports arc hereto annexed
They end as nearly 10 the close Of the municipal year
us7O AprD Il possible to conform their narrative
or statistics to period which best agrees Win ue .!
TEN OF work established by each Department for It's
convenience They are thorough in information anu
not need calculation explanation. ....,s
Before proceeding TO general comments &c" -
tics should lie promised NewYork isanu nae on :,
OF TWENTY-FIVE square miles and twentynlhe M .s
water front, about three-fourths OF Ni,'" ,.
along the Hudson and East Rivers anu no TT
one-fourth upon the Harlem River anu oP"' -
Co.. The streets roads and avenues measure lour
-, - e. Two hundred and nnety-one
IT. % thsse are paved; one hundred and sixty-hhe
miles are unpaved. Nineteen thousand gas-ilen's i
burned every night OF the FuDhe expense W nS'
areo water front and extent OF streets benea'n 'no
surface Of tho city there are three hundred anu iOiV
miles Of Croton waterpipes and two hundred ana sew
teve piles OF sewers II accept the last Federai
Cnnsus te number Of our constituents is nine hundred
and orty-two thousand two hundred and hfty-two Oc
thousand horse railway cars, two hundred ana SAY
seven omnibuses about twelve thousand hcenseu We
hicles and quite many more private vehicles eol'
ually traverse the thorouGhares, and subject teu "
;ncreos,pg wear 1t is claimed that forty Thousand
horses are constantly stabbed used within inc Guy
limits On the 10Th day OF May last relieving o0'sVi
the ordinance squad, stationed on Broadway ePP''o
the City Hail. were instructed to report the nuhor
vehicles that from seven o'clock o. M 70 seven oooN
n M passed and repassed and they reported 1910 OK
cInsIve Of omnibnses These specimen statistics imply
how Great city we have to for keep IN repair sus
tain by taxation protect by policemen nremeh UT san
iry regulations and make provision FOR IN respect 10
s more important future. During the ten nohthh pro-
cedinC May J. 1871 two hundred and eghty-four mloh
dollars worth Of foreign merchandise, exclusive OF spe
Gle was imported into tkis city, During the same Pc
Rod Nev-York City paid the Government one hundred
and twenty millions Of dollars for duties on imports
and the value Of exports exclusive of specie was TWO
hundred and fifty-one millions.
Certain peeuliartes of the city and its people may DO
be servieeably recalled New-York is the cosmopolitan
citv Of the globe People Of all nationalities, many
teaousies and diverse creeds inhabt It, every goou
and bad habit OF human nature Is nustraVea "ltHn 10
limits Every development OF misfortune poverty, VICE.
and ere is here 10 be found To the evil manifestations
rs well as the excellent ones OF our city lire every co
oontrl,utes II is misfortune to NewYOrk population
that contributed to- all parts of the world local
uride develops within our city under increasing
di0isulty Every other city seems to have its pulpit anu
its citizens more prone from motives OF local
not IN apoorze for or screen, at least to oct kindly
toyards the defects and faults OF feiow-e1ens anu
r,ers opocraphicay our city peculiar because u Is
1n aud narrow and lacks circumference or lniedatc
r1,ral suburbs Tie suburbs are really tributary 0i'
divided from New-YOrk by wide rivers Nearly siAy
Of daily business lnbdnlldntS VI
own or rent their residences in the ADJOINING country
,d while their wives and children practically under
tbe government OF other cities and counties ana even
e,.a the business interests and security OF person ana
,onertv of the family men are practically under inc
,ovarnmeut OF New-York City, and they are more IN
rssed tn blame where they have no domestic interests
rbrs while the city possesses, will be inferred from
many OF the foregoing references great advantages o
development OF commerce and wealth. other references
,mply how difficult it TO frame, and how vexatous
is for rulers to try and develop perfect OF
acceptable municipal government
After a quarter century Of legislative experiments
unon the government OF this city-all of which have
been from time TO time complained about and referred
10 In annual messages Of Mayors Of both pares-he OK
istnR municipal system went into operation one year
nro We simply returned then TO the original FORM Vi
our CITY government. It's system Is almost idenucai
NTH that which prevails fourths of the cities in the
Union But we had been so long accustomed 10 sOh'e
thing else that this return has been actually received III
some quarters as innovation. 1t has become III some
artisan directions cant to call the government
Of Ney-York despOtism. What is this eystemt Inc
Comp,ouay elect the Mayor. Executive duties are ais
4rbpted and classified among many departments Inc
Mayor appoints the heads Of departments Ihese
heads appoint their subordinates. The Common Couhcl
or legislative department is filed by election Inc ouese
legal tribuna-the Court Of Common Pleass Court Oh
Impeaohment, before which the Common Couneh may
prefer charges against the Mayor or the Mayor IN MS
turn rrepare charges against the city departments HOW
these departments operate and what SUBJECTS they ap
propriately take charge Of will be discovered III ne "
ports Some Of these departments are cohuOiieu ny
boards and Commissioners. and comment continues to
he made upon the alleged inconsistency OF maintaining
Boards and Commissions after as is averred the adVo
Gates for independent City government denounced Them
Ru no one ever did denounce Boards and Commissions
per Sc They have always existed within our local gov
eminent. The opposition was only to the cehtranzeu
mode OF appointing at Albany Boards and Commissions
nth yoie "
local officers or constituency in the appointment
Illogical and erroneous comments have been made
upon the recently authorized land what Is supposed 10
be novel; mode of estimating. apportioniDS and levy
ing by tax the city and county expenditures Dspas-
sonata examination however cOnynces that the system
Il customary one. New-York City always held, In this
respeet an anomalous position Everywhere else local
oA3cias made up estimates and reported them to the
boards of supervisors and thereupon the latter levied
taxes to meet those estimates Heretofore the Legs
ture made up our budgets II is true the local au
tbortes attempted make and did submit estimates 10
ALBANY But these comparatively disregarded
And II came 10 pass each session that when tax levy
oDneored IL was accompanied by horde Of obbers and
claimants who turned aside by the local authorities
soueht TO land sometimes did impose upon iynformed
rural legislators.
When the Metropolitan Police law was enacted us5O
oDe of s provisions createdfa Board Of Apportonmeut
consisting Of the Mayors and Comprolers OF New-York
and Brooklyn and the Commissioners Of Police who met
estimated and fixed the expenditures for police purposes
in each ensuing year. They reported this amount ana
IT was levied by the Supervisors The Court OF Appeals
held the whole law be constitutional The provision
was found seryceable and accepted by the press ana
public OtLer Metropolitan Departments (Health' Cen
trail Park and FIRE. pursued similar course FOR them
selves in fixing estimates and taxes In the Charter OF
1910 the like provision applied to the Municipal De-
partnents OF Police, Health, Fire, Buildings, WORKS.
Parks and Charities and Correction. When the Legisa
tre aseuhlcd an January last only the Expenditures