The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1875-10-13
The Board Of Excise and It's Opin-
ions Upon Whiskey.
BEST LIQUOR TO DRINK.
Suggestions About the Regu
lation Of Licenses.
CRUELTY OF POLICE COURTS


Campbell MCGOWAN, Hess and Dessar.
James Cox public accountant, stated that he re-
Gently engaged with two assistants for months IN
examining De in the clerks Office Of General
Sessions and the Court OF Oyer and Termner and pre-
scented to the committee the following statement OF
dctments found in the city and county of New York
from January to June 80, 1875 and of proceedings
under such indictments
STATISTICS.
Total number Of indictments found, 7,l47. In max
ing up the total number of indictments witness discov
cred that every batch of indictments the
time against the individual is counted one in
dctment only.
Abandoned indictments-Not arrested, 1872 notte
prosequt, al otherwise discharged without trial. $50;
number of arrests 79s; number of balls 1o73;
forfeited since January 1873, las; amount Of bail,
$1S6 GOO judgments entered forfeited recognzances
24S amount $3ls,3oO; paid, 8; amount, s., 600; va
Gated AS amount $42 400; satisfied without payment
order OF court apparent 16; amount $40 5o0
tons to Sheriff not comprising the year 1873, ascer
tanned only since January l. 1874 issued 1913; amount
800; made, 2; amount, $3l o. total number of
trials 1906 dsagreements Of jury III acquittas 712
convictions, TIC; total number of pleas of guilty ac-
cepted, 2977; of attempts. 1927; of minor offences
1141 OF offences charged, 500; total number of sen
fences, Soil; Imprisonment in State Prison. 2,096 in
Penentiary, l26 in House of Refuge and other pro-
tecores 200 suspended, o9;. total number of fines
posed, 80; amount IS $50; paid, s; amount, $685.
mittcd, 5; amount So 45o pending &C. amount ST. 235
Summary-Total number of indictments found since
January 1873, and pending 1885, missing from clerks
Office, 106l; on Ole in office of Clerk OF General Ses-
sons and Oyer and Terminer without indication of dis
posa 22s; bail taken since January l. 1873 and out
standing without forfeiture disposal of case 1872
amount not ascertained
LOTTERY POLICIES.
John T. Simmons testified that he assisted Mr. Cox in
the work of investigating the clerks office of General
Sessions and the Court of oyer and Termner and that
he found the minute book the clerks Office entries
of number of indictments amounting ia in lottery
policies, and the District Attorney on being applied to-
made return ofl22 being on file in his Office and not
disposed or
WORKINGS THE EXCISE BOARD.
D. d. T. Marshall Excise Commissioner, stated that
be acted in the Board of Excise The duties
of an Excise Commissioner he considered to be to
anime into the applications for licenses that
the applicants OF good moral character.
Counsel-Do you think every selling liquor In
New York is Of good moral characterS
Witness-No sir when we find out that man is
not revoke his license when the evidence is clear
against him. in is brothe granted license
sell liquor whenever representation is made the
Board of anybody holding license who is not at to
have it there is revocation Of the license.
Counsel-Do you take a mans money before granting
him licensos
Witness-Yes, sir; the money is taken until we have
an opportunity OF examining into the CASE that is the
course VIC thought advisable; have had mans
money six months before deciding his case; took
advice from counsel the matter and while he told
there no law allowing US to take the money in
tom as a sort of convenience all PARTIES witness had
no doubt that mistakes had been made in granting
licenses; in regard to what he considered "a good
moral character" for place. the Commissioners de-
termined it by the absence Of any police complaints
against IT, witness knew of no instance where one man
kept than single public house. and the Board Of
Excise did not grant more than one license TO one
man.
Counsel intimated that he should furnish witness
with many instances Of the kind.
Witness knew Of only two instances In two years of
infringement of the excise The
he always got in the District Attorneys Office for
not being brought TO trial was that they had too much
OF other business on hand.
A DISCOURSE on wHIsKEY.
In regard to the measures that should be taken to
suppress the sale Of bad liquor he begged to say that
great popular prevailed as to where bad liquor
was Sold and he had information that good whiskey
might be had certain places in the Five Points at
the Fifth Avenue Hotel The chemists Of the Board
OF Health who had made analyses of all the liquors in
New York he thought, could supply the committee
10 be opened until it had license He believed pure
rye and Bourbon whiskey tho best form Of liquor
drunk The trouble in New York is that half the liquors
produced from the one basis of French spirits
Fusel oil belongs to all whskey not properly recied.
SUGGESTIONS EXCISE REFORM.
William II. Stiner Commissioner OF Excise, suggested
amendment to the Excise law that every place. good
bad or indifferent should be licensed He would also
suggest doing away with arbitrary arrest and have
irregular places enoined in Of justice and closed
up He would like TO the business of local licensing
carried on the same as it is by the United States He
ke q n n al SAY
he had faith in checking the sale Of liquor by APP
plying tests for the sale of good liquor or by appointing
board of examining chemists. He did not think there
was so much deleterious whiskey sold as people
thought Highwines are made out Of gram and are sold
at about 81 gallon II colored with burnt sugar,
which harmless and made to sell for gin or bourbon
or rum. Tho liquor is Of low grade, but he did not
think it was poisonous
He deemed the Excise law as IL stands poor one
he did not believe in the right Of policeman TO arrest
liquor seller who has license. II he violate the
law let him be proceeded against by civil process He
knew Of law that authorized the Board to take the
money OF liquor dealers before granting them licenses
There was broad discretion given the Board The
amount Of money allowed them by the Board Of Ap-
portionment for the year &47, 500 The amount
received from licenses since May about $500 600
This money WAS turned over to the City Chamberlain
BY the law Of last year the money goes TO the charta
BILE institutions Of the city. The salaries of the Com
missoners paid out of the proceeds OF licenses
but Comptroller Green got an opinion from counsel that
all OF the proceeds should go to the charities In regard
60 the raids made on panel houses' and concert
saloons last summer the persons then arrested were
put under bail the principals ST. 900 and the others
In 800 The police have always cheerfully aided the
Board in their these concert saloons that sell
liquor without license Hc did not think any Of the
people arrested had returned the practice OF selling
liquor without license.
A CASH GREAT HARDSHIP.
Clcmentina Corbn a young coored woman with a
baby in arms testified that she was aundress by
occupation and that she engaged to do the wash
for Miss Hattie Leland, who keeps bagnio IN Thirty
first street, witness put the washed linen on line and
went elsewhere but when she returned II all gone
and Mss Leland had her arrested for stealing IL; she
was taken TO the Central Station and subsequently TO
Jefferson Market where she put In cell and
kept there for three weeks without ever being exam
lined with her accuser one day as Justice
Kbreth proceeding through the YARD OF the prison
was TO DO kept there he inquired what she was in for
and she replied false charge Of stealing linen he
went and looked the books and then discharged
her; all this time she Was deprived oil her baby, though
she repeatedly asked to have II sent for; y was
nursing and the woman IL left with neglected
il so that when she got Of Jail she found il quito