The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-07-05
The Firemen's Pay-Shan tho DIM-
Guilty BE Renewed!


The wrangling between Mayor Wickham
and Comptroller Green for the past four or
five months has been discreditable to those
officials and dsgraceful to the city; but it
resulted in no positive evil until it blocked
the payment of the fremen's salaries, When
the Comptroller, through malice, and the
Mayor through stubbornness, risked the de-
moralization of this important branch of the
city government it was time for the people to
insist that such puerile squabbles should
cease. The abandonment by Mr.. Green of
his ill-judged attempt to return to the cum
brous single-warrant system in paying q
force of eight hundred or a thousand men,
would, it was hoped, finally end this partic-
ular cont roversy and restore decent show of
harmony and official courtesy to the. city gov
eminent. Mayor Wic1hams letter acknowl-
edging the receipt Of the company payrolls
seemed to court a truce He corlgratulates
and thanks the Comptroller for bis conces-
sion, invites a conference with him in refer
ence to these matters and promises cheerful
cooperation with that officer in every reason
able effort to secure efficiency ID. the public
service. This advance was the smore becom-
ing on the part of the Mayor since
he was the first to- commence
the quarrel when, in his inauf nral Message
to the Common Council he charged tho
Finance Department with inefi cheney and OBJ
structiveness. We regret to, see that the
Comptroller does not meet tie Mayors over
lures in a friendly spirit. 'On the contrary,
in letter addressed to another subordinate
officer of the city government, Mr.. Green
discourteously accuses theiMayor Of emitting
to perform his duty and, OF studying his
own personal comfort and convenience.at the
expense of the Fire Department, and con-
veys an intimation that the payment of the
men in money by company rolls will only be
made this tune ''to avoid further delay
There is, therefore, some reason to fear
an immediate renewal of the contention be-
tween the wrangling officials over the June
payrolls of the Fire Department If the
mems June. money, new overdue, is kept
from them it will be moro serious. incon-
veniSnce than the DELAY that has taken
place in the payment of their May salaries,
for the reason that portion of the money
some of them received on Saturday last
was no doubt used in celebrating the
Fourth, and they will have all the greater
need of their June pay. But should the late
difficulty between the Mayor and Comptroller
be renewed the latter will clearly be COM
PEELED to bear the responsibility The fire.
mons pay for June was overdue on Saturday
last as well as their pay for May; and the
Comptroller, when he drew tina company
payrols for the one month, could have drawn
them for the other as we'll The Mayor urged
him to do SO. The quarrelsome officials could
then have snarled at each other for whole
month over the course to be pursued in the
future without injuring or annoying the fire
men. As Mr.. Green neglected to pay the
overdue June payrolls in the same manner
aud at the same time as the May payrolls h'
cannot now renew his attempt to change the