New-York tribune., 1874-03-06
ALBANY.
A QUESTION OF MUNICIPAL CONTROL.
LoNa AND FRUTrLEss DEBATE IN TIE SENATE o
THE AUTHORITY THAT SHOULD CONTROL til

| lfRoh riiE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE rRIBUSEl
ALBANY. March 5-The Senate occupied the entire
session again to-day in discussing the bill to provide
Tor tho completion of tho work on Riverside-ave.
and adjourned without taking any action. The
pending question was on the motion of Mr.. Ledwitb,
10 amend the bill as to give to the Common Council
the selection of the Department that should do the
| work. In other words, to restore tho bill to its
original shape, as introduced in the Assembly
by Mr.. DAILY. Senator Fox opened tho dis
cussion by announcing himself in favor
| or tho amendment, which caused some
| surprise, as 1T had been supposed from certain
! lntlmatlons thrown out by him the other day when
the bill was under discussion that he was in favor
OF giving the work to the Department of Public
| Works, AZ reported by the Senate Committee. He
SAID that this work involved the expenditure of
| very large sum of money, which to be drawn
from the taxpayers of New-York, and it ought to
be left to the local legislature of that city to say
who should do the work There was q principle
involved in this questionable principle of local
government-and he believed il about time
to go back to this sound Democratic principle in tho
government of New-YOrk City. Ever since 1857
that city had had imposed upon it by the Legs
lature variety Of forms of government all
| of which experience had shown to bo unsatisfactory
They had failed to provide the city with either an
honest or an economical administration OF its affairs
conclusion that the government of the city should
be placed in tho hands of officers elected by them
selves aud made responsible directly TO them. So
far as this amendment was concerned tho dominant
party in New York could not be accused of PARTISAN
ship in asking that tho control of the work should
be placed Ill the Common Council for The Ropubli
cans claimed majority in both branches and they
also had the Mayor and the Commissioner of Public
Works, aud majority of the Park Commission. 80
ho. ylf olc tn
d , the work. it would he done by Republicans
Mr.. Ganson said that he approved Of the principle
of local self government advocated by the Senator
from the INth but that Senator had not shown
himself consistent in his opposition to special
legislation as to warrant following his lead on this
occasion So far as ho had been able to inform him
self on The facts connected with the work to be dono
under this bill he was Of the opinion that it properly
belonged to the Park Commission.
Senator King advocated tho Park Commission as
the proper department TO do the work, and laid
great stress the point that the work, by wbomsO
ever DONE should be done by contract. and given to
the lowest bidder. He offered amendment TO this
effect.
Mr. Woodin closed the discussion by very elabo-
rate speech, in which he advocated the passage Of
the bill as reported from the Committee Cities,
! giving the work to the Commissioner of Public
Works. lie said that this very Common Council TO
whom it was proposed, by this amendment, to give
! the control Of this work had already unanimously
adopted resolution directing the Commissioner Of
Public Works to do it; but it returned without
| the Mayors approval, not because the Mayor OBJ
ectcd to the work being done by that official, but
because the provisions of the charter touching the
subject were 50 ambiguous that tho Mayor was
afraid that, whoever did tho work, it might be de-
clared by the courts illegal and thus upset all the
| assessments that had been made for the improve
ment. 1t was because of this uncertainty as
| to who had power under the law to do tho
work that the present bill was before the Legisla-
! ture 1t had been limited by the Senator from the
| XIIth Parmenter) that there was g big job' IN
this bill. There no job" at all in it, or about
it, but ii simply bill torclcve the city OF New
! York from the trouble under which it labored by
reason of the uncertainty and ambiguity of existing
laws. 1t had been stated that the bill transferred
the construction of fifteen miles of streets from the
| Department Of Parks TO the Commissioner of Public
| Works. 1t did nothing of the kind 1t transferred
| no powers whatever from the Park Commission.
and affected the construction of less than three miles
of streets all told In conclusion, he said that In
addition to the resolution Of the Common Council di-
| recting the Commissioner of Public Works to do the
work. the West eide Association. composed of prop
crty-owners on the line of the work had asked that
| it be done by that official the only way to have
! if done thoroughly and with dispatch. With refer
| ence TO the amendment proposed by Mr.. King, that
The work should be done by contract, he would an
swer il bv reading from the report of distinguished
| tnancer who was high authority with many people
| in New York. Mr.. Woodin then read extracts from
report of Andrew H. Green, made when he was a
Park Commissioner, IN which he discusses in detail
| tho policy of doing public work under the contract
system and condemns itin unmeasured terms as be-
ing in the end moro expensive, and in all respects
| inferior to work done by the day.
Al the close of Mr. Woodin's speech the Senate ad-
iourned without taking any action OH the bill, or
making it special order for future day.
! CURRENT TOPICS AT THE STATE CAPITAL.
| THE PROTECTION or FACTORY CHILDRES-THK Ex-
| HMPrIoN OF BONDS AND MORTGAGES FROM TAX
| ATIoN-Gov. DIX AND GEN. sHALER-THE EVEN
| ING SESSION OF THE ASSEMBLY.
| IRON Tue REGULAR CORRESPONDENCE OF THE TnIBUssl
ALBANY, March 5.-The Assembly discussed,
in Committee of the Whole to-day, the bill for the pro
lection OF factory children. which advanced The
same bill passed the Senate but with material amend
| ments The first section. however was retained and
this is tho section chiefly discussed in the As
| semby to-day Itwas opposed by Mr.. Alvord and Mr.
Griffin as too sweeping but large majority Of the men,
| bers favor it. The following is the section
No child under the age of 10 years shall be employed
for hire in any mandatory or mechanical shop. or at
| any manufacturing work within TINS ntate, uhder
penalty of IS for every day during any part oi whiGn
any such child shall be so employed To be PAID by ths
| employer. Any parent guardian or other person
authorizing such employment, or making false return
OF the age OF child with view 70 such eupIoymehI
shall be liable TO q penalty OF s21
Tho Senate Judiciary Committee heard arguments this
| evening from Edward Matthews, Isaac Sherman and
Wheeler H. Peckham. In favor Of the bill to exempt
bonds and mortgages from taxation Messrs Matthews