The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-03-23
The Fifth Avenue Pavement Bill
and the Assembly Investig ton.


The action of the State Assembly in rela-
ton to the Fifth Avenue Pavement bill IN
vestigation will not improve the reputation of
that body. After the bill in question had
been reported favorably by the Committee on
Cities and placed on the files of the members
in its regular order, to be considered at the
proper time in Committee of the Whole
House. it was removed and destroyed and an
altered and fraudulent bill was put in its
place. This substituted bill bore upon its
face all the marks of genuineness 1t was
printed by the legislative printers, in the
regular form and with the regular type; it
bore upon it the number, marks and refer
ences of the original bill, and forged IN
dorsement of the favorable report and recon-
mendation of the standing committee by
which it had been considered. The alteration
from the true bill consisted of the insertion Of
three lines which, if the forgery had not
been detected and the bill had be-
come a law, would have added two
hundred and sixty thousand dollars to the
cost Of the work authorized by the bill,
and hence to the profits of the parties in
terested therein. The legislative printer adj
mitted that he had printed the fraudulent bill,
with all the genuine marks and notes upon it,
for an outside and unauthorized person. The
best defence that could be offered by the
Clerk of the Assembly, who is responsible for
the filing of the bills, was that he had made
some Endorsement on one of the fraudulent
bills, which Endorsement had been mutllated
and made to read like an order to place the
bill on the files The Sergeant-at-Arms and
others in authority disclaimed all knowledge
of the matter. The act of the substitution of
the altered for the genuine bill must be
placed on some ones shoulders, and was at
tributed to youth who had no position in
the Legislature and no authority to touch any
file or any document belonging to the Assem-
bly,. Yet this youth, who is said to have been
in the employment of the promoters of the
BILL was not subpenaed or examined by the
Committee of Investigation.
In the face of these facts the majority Of
the committee reported that while irregular
and improper means had been used to get
the fraudulent bill placed on the files there
was nothing whatever to show that such action
was induced by improper motives, or was
known to the officers OF the House or the per-
sons interested in the bill A large majority
of the Assembly accepted and Endorsed this
scandalous report. If irregular and improper
means" were used to place false bill on the
files of the members certainly some blame for
inefficiency or wiful neglect of duty must
attach to the Clerk of the House, the Sergeant
alarms and their assistants. II, as is alleged
the boy Walters succeeded in making the
change by his own act or through his
own instructions, all the regular officers
of the House must have been culpa-
bly, remiss or incapable. How can
the committee and the House fail TO find
improper motives for fraudulent altera-
ton of bill by means of which over quar-
ter Of a million dollars would be put into the
pockets OF the persons interested in its pro-
visions? How can they ac1uit these persons
of any knowledge of the attempted fraud when
they declare that boy in their employ was
the guilty party, and especially when the boy
in question has not been made to testify
before the committee2 How can they find no
officials to blame when the legislative printer
printed the altered bill, giving it all the marks
Of genuineness, and thus admittedly aided the
impostionf We leave the Assembly tc