The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-06-28
4 New Surprise from the Funny
Mayor.


That funny old gentleman, Mayor Have
meyer, we are informed. has new surprise
in store for the people of New York. If the
information did not come from reliable
source We should be disposed to treat the re-
port as a hoax, Notwithstanding the we'll
known eccentricity and unscrupulousness of
the venerable joker. The story is that the
two Police Commissioners who have been con-
victed Of a wilful violation OF the Election law
and fined for the offence, and who yesterday
resigned their offices, have already been or are
tomorrow morning to be reapponted by the
Mayor, who, thanks to Mr. Gardeners friends
has the power to fill a.vacancy without the
confirmation of the Board OF Aldermen. In
other words, an attempt is to be made to
cheat the law, which imposes the penalty of n
forfeiture of Office for the offence of which
Messrs Gardner and Charlick have been
found guilty, by the acceptance of their resig-
nations and their reappointment before the
formal notice OF the existence of the vacan-
cies caused by the conviction il received from
Governor Dix.
No person is surprised to find the reform
ranters striving to excuse the offence of which
these men have been convicted. One Of them
is at the head of political organization that
has been boisterous in its professions of indig-
nation against ballot box stuffing and cleo
ton frauds, and that has claimed especial
credit for having passed al election law calcu-
lated to secure an honest vote and q fair
canvass. 1t has an awkward look, the specta-
Gle of the Chairman of the Republican Central
Committee standing at the bar of a criminal
court to receive sentence for the first viola
ton of this very law. 1t is natural that the
whole reform pack should join in the cry that
the offence was only Technical and should
seek to make it appear that guilt is not guilt,
despite the verdict of jury. All this the
people can endure with entire good
nature. But if the Mayor of the city,
cover up gross frauds and malfeasances in an
other department of the city government
should make ON effort to cheat the law by
keeping in the Police Board, through a trick
two convicted Commissioners, the public pa
tience would be exhausted, and the Mayor
Office. Besides, the disgraceful juggle would
ANONYMOUSLY fail Messrs. Charlick and
Gardner have not the power to resign, since
they were out of Office the moment the verdict
of guilty was rendered against them. The
conviction works forfeiture of Office, and the
notice of the existence of the vacancy.
Neither could the convicted men, under any
circumstances, be reappointed. The law says
they shall forfeit their Office and reappoint-
ment for the same term to the came Office
would not be forfeiture at all, and would be
in clear violation OF the law.
Should the rumored indecent attempt to
thrust Messrs. Gardner and Charlick upon the
community be persisted in, it can only lead to
unpleasant criticism of their whole Official
conduct. Many acts of questionable legality
have been done by the Police Board which no
one will care now to discuss, provided we are
well rid of the old commission. There is
great doubt as to the power of the Board to
give out contracts to friends and favorites at
their will, without inviting proposals as re-
quired by the charter, where the amounts in
volved are over thousand dollars. Under
the old law such power may have existed SO
far as the street cleaning is concerned; but
the charter takes away the regulating" of the
street cleaning from the Police Board and
gives it to the Common Council and hence
the general limitation as to expenditures
without inviting bids seems to apply to the
street cleaning as well as 10 oil other work.
AT oil events, the people would not look with
favor upon the giving out of building job to
the amount of seven or eight thousand dollars
without even the formality OF formal order
of the Board, especially when the recipient of
the favor is the son-in-law of one of the Com
missioners. Mayor Havemeyer had better re-
consider his intended surprise, and let the
law take its course with the convicted Police
Commissioners.
W.