The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1873-01-08

The Comptroller and the Chamber
Iain-More Treasury Piums for MIR.
Green's Lawyer.
Comptroller Green is again indulging in
litigation at the expense of the city. His ap-
pointment or attempted appointment, of John
Foley as Deputy Chamberlain, is to 60 to the
Courts, and the bills of the contestant, who OF
course employs Mr.. Green's counsel, will be
promptly paid by the Comptroller. The
Comptroller claims that the charter OF 1870
gives him the power to appoint and remove all
the employees in the Chamberlain's office and
to fix their salaries He bases this claim upon
the following facts:-First, that the charter
makes the Chamberlain Office bureau in
the Finance Department; second that 1t gives
tho heads of all departments the power to ap-
point and remove all chiefs OF bureaus "except
the Chamberlain, as also all clerks, officers,
employees and subordinates in their re-
spectve Departmental third, that it repeats
all acts or parts of acts Inconsistent with
the provisions of the said charter. The
Comptroller cannot appoint or remove the
appoint and remove the deputy and oil the
clerks and subordinates in the Chamberlain's
bureau, who are also deputy, clerks and SUBJ
ordinates in the Finance Department. of
which the Comptroller is the head. Comp
troller Green's lawyer backs up this opinion, as
matter of course but he may discover that
the practice in New York is not exactly tb..,
same as the practice in Glasgow.
We believe the claim of Comptrolle'r Green
to be wholly without legal foup''. .ation, and
that his appointment of Mr.. John Foley,
while it seeks to provide yet r..nother deserving
reformer with woll-paid Office, is as desti-
tute of authority as it is ilI-4:med r Is trna
that the charter Of .7o ,no,,o. tho chomber-
iai" Oh" 10 q bureau in the Finance Depart
"c-nt, but it neglects to define the powers and
duties Of the Chamberlain for the very
reason that those powers and duties are
already defined in the law of 1860
law not inconsistent with the charter
for the very reason that the charter specially
exempts the Chamberlain from the authority
of the Comptroller, and hence not repealed by
the repeating clause The only provision in
regard to the Chamberlain in the charter Of
1870, except those which make his Office q
bureau In the FinaIce Department, and spe-
cially exempt its chief officer from the au-
thority OF the Comptfoi.er, is found in section
SO, which provides that the Chamberlain
shall keep books showing the amounts r raid on
account of the several appropriations, and
that vacancies in the Office shall be filed by
the Mayor. BY the charter of 1870, there
fore, we have no knowledge whatever of the
amount of bonds required of the Chamber
lain, of his duty in regard to the deposits of
the public moneys. of his powers in regard to
his deputy, or of the manner in which the ex-
penses of his Office are to be paid. If we had
only that charter to rely upon the Chamber
lain would be entirely unrestricted by law in
his disposal of the public deposits.
The law of 1866 is, then, still in existence,
and this law clearly defines the powers and
duties of the Chamberlain. 1t empowers him
to name the depository bank, and requires him
to equalize the deposits among three or more
banks, by transfer. 1t gives him special
authority to appoint and remove his deputy
and provides how the expenses of his Office
shall be paid. In fact it creates the Office and
puts it in motion. Comptroller Green has
himself recognized the existence Of the law of
1885, by calling the attention of the Chamber
lain to certain of its provisions and by acting
under that law himself in signing warrants of
transfer and in other ways. He has taken the
Chamberlain to task, indeed, for alleged viola
tons Of the spirit Of the law which
he now claims has no existence,
in not fairly equalizing the deposits.
The law of 1866 is therefore not repealed by
the charter of 1870 but on the contrary, the
charter recognizes and endorses the principle
of that law, which is to make the Chamber
lain's Office wholly separate from and indie
pendent Of the Comptroller, by specially ex-
empting the Chamberlain, and no other chief
of bureau, from appointment or removal by
the head Of the Finance Department. Hence
the suit now brought on the city by Mr.. Green
will probably be profitable only to his fortu-
nate lawyer; but under any circumstances the
action of the Comptroller in involving the
city in new litigation when the whole munich
pal government is on the point of being recon-
structed, is unwise and reprehensible.
The CREDIT MoB1IER INFAMY.-The Credit
Mobilier scandal continues to excite the poll
ticans at Washington and to disgust all hon.
orable men. Yesterday there was a scene of
rowdyism in the committee room between
Alley and McComb and Vice President Col
fax ''made an explanation" of his connection
with the 'good and safe investment SO lib
orally offered to congressman by Cakes Ames