The New York herald., 1874-07-23

ment sufficient expiation OF Mr.. Dockrays
rashness in visiting the rebel camp merely
from a spirit OF adventure
Corporation Opintons-s'Thcre Amt
Nothing Like 'Em Anoat or Ashore"
The legal opinions of the Assistant Counsel
to the Corporation appear to be better cal
culated to accommodate the views of those at
to stand the test of law. The famous
Police Con missioner opinion may forfeit
Mayor Havemeyer his place, and has, at
all events, cost him what little reputation re-
mained to him before his unfortunate and
futile attempt to force the convicted Com
missioners back into their old positions.
Nevertheless, it no doubt pleased the Mayor
at the time it Was delivered, and, probably,
that is all it was intended to accomplish. In
deed, these legal opinions on municipal
affairs are generally of the Bunsby order. 1t
would be awkward nowadays for the captain
Of the municipal ship to be without his oracle.
And it is surprising how closely our modern
Bunsbys come up to the original both in the
adaptability and profundity of their opinions.
once, 1here you are: a man Of mind and man as
can give an opinion"
accord. and quite independent OF himself as If he
e. were possessed 1ss,s by by a @ @grua spirit
Whereby" proceeded the voice, ''why
not' not. So what Odds Can any man say other
When 1t had pursued its train OF argument to
this point the voice stopped and rested. 1t then
proceeded very slowly thus
i skIpper ST. stands out 6y SEN csorses channel,
The Goodwlns. He ISM: forced to run upon the
Goodwins, but he may. The bearings OF this oh.
serwation lays IN the application on it. That amt
no part OF NV duty. Awast, then, keep bright
lookout lorard, and good luck to you"
The last opinion from the Assistant Corpo-
ration Counsel is on the powers of the Board
of Apportionment, and the right of the Park
Department to pay salaries out of the pro-
ceeds of bonds issued for park improvements
and added to the funded debt of the city. The
Board Of Apportionment, we are told, has the
power to determine how much money raised
by taxation shall be annually expended for the
public business Of the city, but has no con-
Germ with the question of how much money
shall be raised by the issue of bonds author
lied by special acts of the Legislature, nor
with the question how such money shall be
expended. But in law passed in 1873,
known as the New York City Charter, it is
provided that the Board Of Apportionment
''may," from time to time, ''by the afirma-
tive vote of three members authorize the
issue of the whole or any portion of any stock
or bonds which are by low author
lied to be issued. This seems in
conflict with the statement of the 'opinion''
that the Board of Apportionment has no con-
Germ with the question of how much money
shall be raised by the issue of bonds author
lied by law. Indeed, such bonds cannot be
issued at all without the asserting vote of
majority Of the Board. The charter also pro-
vides that the estimate to be made by the
Board of Apportionment for taxation shall in
clude 'he amounts required to pay the cx-
penses OF conducting the public business of
the city ard county in each department and
branch thereof for the ensuing fiscal year,
and the departments are required to send in
their own estimates in detail as basis for
the work Of the Board, and to state therein
the salaries Of every one of their officers
clerks, employees and subordinates. This
would seem to all minds not SO profound as
that of the oracular Bunsby to mean that the
ordinary expenses of conducting the city gov
ernment, including all salaries Of every descrip-
ton, shall be passed upon by the Board of
Apportonment and paid out of the years
taxation.
The ''opinion," however, quotes the law
relating to the Department Of Docks, in which
oil the expenses are paid out of the proceeds of
bonds, and wants to know why the same rule
should not apply to the Park Department?
"Wby not? If so, what odds? Can any
man say otherwise? No! Awast, then -
But the Dock law expressly provides that
1.-The expenses and compensation of said
Board, its -ents, the compensation of its ap-
pointees, and ell other expenses
and disbursements necessarily incurred in
carrying out the said provisions of this act,
shall be paid out of the proceeds of the bonds
authorized by the law to be issued. This very
fact proves that the laws authorizing the issue
of bonds for construction and improvement of
the parks, which do not contain anv such
provisions are not intended to authorize the
payment Of salaries out of the proceeds of such
bonds; otherwise they would have been as
explicit in their provisions to that effect as is
the law in relation to the Dock Department
Then there is another little provision of the
charter which restricts the aggregate expenses
for salaries, &c, in every department to the
amounts appropriated by the Board of Appor-
tionment. 1t is true the opinion disposes
of this by stating that it relates only to the
amounts to be raised by taxation and does
not prevent an increase in the aggregate
expenses, provided the money to meet such
increase is raised by bonds. But this orgu-
ment is not worth reply. ''The bearings OF