New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-02-28

following OIL, anu feComueHu its PaSo"S0'
viz:
An act entitled an act providing for the
registration and payment of State warrants
and certificates OF indebtedness, and Great
ing fund for the payment of the same;
also, abOlishing the redemption OF the State
debt fund and the free school fund, and
making provisions for the State to meet its
obligations to the last named fund abol-
ished; also, prescribing fine against the
State Treasurer for a failure to perform bis
duties. and for other purposes.
THOMAS ONG,
Chairman;
j. w. QUINN,
MORTIMER CARR,
CHARLES S. ABEL,
L. J. SOUER,
DAVID YOUNG.
C. d. TATMAN.
House bill No. Arc, reported by the COM
mittee, was read second time.
The Committee on Metropolitan Police,
by consent, submitted the following report !:
To the Honorable Speaker and Members of the
House of Representatives:
!. The undersigned members of the Com
mittee on Metropolitan Police. herewith
submit the following report: We have ex-
amined the books and accounts OF the
Board of Metropolitan Police Commission
ers. and also the annual report of the board,
submitted to the Governor under date of
December a. 1871. 1t is with great pleasure
that we are enabled to state that the annual
report is correct transcript from the books
and accounts, which are kept in conformity
with the requirements OF the act approved
March 8, 1869. We find all the books and
accounts are accurately aud neatly kept;
in short we are of opinion that the Board of
Commissioners, and the officers under them
are entitled to great credit for the way
in which their business is conducted.
We are pleased to be able to state that
the board very cheerfully and promptly
gave us every assistance in their power.
Further. that a subcommittee of the Com
mittee of Fifty -One, about the latter end OF
December called upon the Board of Police
Commissioners and asked to be permitted
10 examine the books and papers OF the of
flee. which request was cheertully granted:
and that for nearly month very capable
and competent book-keeper and accountant
was so engaged; at the end of which time,
having failed to find any errors, or any
thing that might be complained of, he closed
his abors and expressed himself well salts
fed with the condition in which he found
them 1t will be noticed that the Commit
tee of Fifty-One, in their printed reports.
admit that they found everything correct,
and properly managed; and they dismiss
is an expensive institution.
We turned our attention to this branch
Of the subject, and, from the examination
that we have made, We must say we are
not Of that opinion.
The records of the City Hall show that
before the establishment Of the Metropoli-
tan Police the cost of the police for the
four districts of the city was in the neigh
borhood Of 100000 per annum; there was
in oHl Iorr NQnIaH
yearly for salaries, rent repairs, furniture,
contingent expenses, telegraph, stationery
and printing, which did not appear as part
of the police expenses.
On the other hand, the police of the city
of New Orleans now includes what was
formerly Jefferson City, all the way w to
the lower line OF Carrollton, and also
Algiers. There is also charged into the ac-
count, as now kept, many things that were
not formerly charged as part of the cost
of the police OF the city, such as the sala-
ries of two surgeons at $1,000 year each,
who do all the work that used to be done by
four city physicians at the cost of $4,000
each, making a saving OF $4,000 year to
the city the cost of the fire alarm tele-
graph, the purchase of new instruments,
and all needful repairs, including the dam
age by storms to private buildings oyer
which the telegraph wires pass; also the
cost of keeping steam police boat, which
saves to the merchants of the city many
times its cost every year, by putting a
check to the extensive stealing which used
to be carried on on the river and levee.
Then again, before the creation OF the
Metropolitan Police force, it was exceeding
ly rare to find policeman in the rear of
Claiborne street, while now there is force
ed, who do duty in the rear OF the
city. and very valuable service they
render. too, for before they were mounted
the amount of stealing in the rear of the
city was immense, and in consequence of
the streets being so imperfectly lighted it
was very rare that policeman could catch
thief. When all these things are taken
into account, we think we can safely say
that, comparatively, the present police force
is as cheap as any that existed here before
its organization. That the present police
force is by far the best that ever existed ia
this city. we think there can be no doubt:
they are a tine body of men and well disci-
plined The great cry about the cost OF
the police force we think arises from this
cause: Before the establishment of the
present police force the cost Of the police
was never accurately known; many of the
items were covered up or concealed, IS
we have shown above, and what was
shown was hid away in the half
yearly reports of the Controller, which
not one citizen in a thousand saw or
knew anything about, and the money that
was spent was taken out of the general tax
of the city. Under the present law, the
police commissioners make an estimate of
the cost, one year in advance, which esti-
mate is published for ten days in the news
papers, and the city authorities levy sepa-
rate tax for police purposes. SO that with
the publication il the papers, and the levy
ing Ut separate tax, everybody knows the
cost of the police. We think the feature a
good one 1t is not so likely that the public
money Will BE wasted where there is such
publicity given, as in the matter OF the
police 1t is much more likely to occur
under tie old system where things are con-
cealed and jumbled up together.
There is no doubt but that the expense
of the Metropolitan Police during the first
year or two was much larger than it ought
to have been. but that was caused by the
large amount of litigation and the conduct
OF the city authorities. Neither the system
nor the police board were to blame for that.
Had the city authorities performed their
duty as required by law, and provided the
money to pay the police, as heretofore, III
cash, there would have been a saving in
two years of a quarter of million of dol
lars, instead of which they pursued a
course which led to litigation, and many
fI,ousauda Of dollars nf 1aw oh orroa was