The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1875-09-15
TIE INCREASE OF CRIME.
INTERESTING TESTIMONY OF THE
DISTRICT ATTORNEY.

ou,to hear what District Attorney Phelps had
SAY. Mr.. Hess, Of the committee, wished to
correct an impression that the Commits toners
Of Police had violated the law in appointing TO
onice men who bad not been residents Of the
city for six consecutive months. There had
been law requiring that term OF rcsid ,nce, tut
Il had been repealed 10y supplementary act Of
the Legislature. which made 1T necessary only
Tor a person t. have been twelve months in the
STATE.
Mr.. Phelps after arranging a large pile OF
documents said that he had been out ~ town
during two previous sessions Of the committee
but from the reports there seemed to MN 10
have been testimony taken that reflected u"-
justly ON the administration OF hi ONO nc
facilities 81 the Office were totally ina ePuA'v 10
the demand. upon No. Since tNc ONCE "' l'''.
trict Attorney mad been created the ''N n'i
grown enormously la population. and rrlme hau
increased CORE pondinsly. ont the District At
torncy'- onicc remained almost rs hrst consti-
tuted Next year the Court Of General Sessions
would bc divided into two pats and there
would hc nn additional Judge. The prosecution
Of criminals could then be carried on with
rrettcr despatch and less confusion. During
nj. nrst two wears of Office there were $3.50 IN
dictmcn'- fuuni aud iUS convictions.
lie found o. desirable to concentrate the cncr-
Gle. ~ the office on the higher grad Of crime.
uprts tIfilN leaving M some INSTANCES minor
class " offences In arrears Some LOTTERY cases
mad been uassed over, owing to the flct that Mt
tentipn was being given to crimes OF greater
magnitude that could not be neglected.
Among the C lscs that had been represented
unfavotahy to che committee WAS that of Ltin-
bert. who had been arrested for having IN his
possession a stolen bond, and who mad been di
The cause II Lamhert's discharge was that he
tthe District Attorney had received letter
from detective sampson To the effect that al
though, he the detectivel believed Lambert to
he 20 Ver' bad man, and to have dealt In securi-
ties knowing them To have been stolen. IL could
not be shown that he had anything To g. win
stealing them. Mr.. sampson. therefore, advised
that Ilmbert be discharged
In regard to the report from the District At
torueN' Office to the Warden Of the city urisun.
that Lambert had been convicted. MIR. Phelps
said that such an error might easily be made oy
clerk accident ly entering amark against
prisoners name under the wrong heading. The
return amer was merely voucher for the OH
Ger taking prisoners from the Toubs to tie
aule 10 account for them to the W. rden. II had
NO other oilicial Importance.
In tne case II " Rat" Riley, MIR. Phelps ex-
planned that he had peen guilty, not Of ieloni-
assault with intent to Kill. AS ALLEGED bet re
the committee, bat of simple assault. ana of
that offence he was convicted. The officer
whom he assaulted had so the District AT r
ney was told. asked that lcniency be shown.
TIE public would tie safe from Riley, however.
for some time TO come, AZ he was recently tled
Tor burglary. and sentenced to ten ycata tupfls-
oument
The Chairman, Mr. Campbell, said that at the
the bureaus + the city request Tor access to
Their papsrs, having NJ right 10 dem 1i such
access. Favorable answers we're received from
all the bureaus except that Of the District At
torney.
Nr Phelps-T told you in a letter that under
the OATH imposed ON me tei "a had u" no
eftv to give unrc~i trained access to any one who
bad no ,mcim right to SUCH access hut that l
would be happy 10 furnish any informal on
wanted. The counsel for the committee has
visited my onice ON several occasions, and been
accorded every facility.
II ving Teen sw, IN as a witness. Mr. Phelps
testified tlnt he had no power to compel the
judge ut the Court Of General sessions TO hold
Especial { rm. The Judges had the power to
appoint a special term at the request OF tue Dis
trict Attorney. There had been four or i've
special terms since the witness took the Office.
The law providing for specal terms had been
passed since 1873 aud the number OF Assistant
District Attorneys had been increased since
that year.
By Mr.. Townsend In the case 81 Lambert.
stolen bonds were found In his possession.
was awning more required 10 put hiim On ms
defencef A.-More Was required. J he bonds
had been stolen long before TO put him on his
defence possession soon after the robbery
would he required. ! did not know that l. IN
bert was indicted for arson fifteen years ago.
Q.-lias there been deficiency Of funds to
work no ctscsf A.-lhere has.
Q-You have a right to call on the county TO
pay the expenses Of hunting down crimet A
! do not understand that 70 be the view taken
10y the Financial Department or by the Courts.
The Board OF Audit provides Tor the expenses
OF the Office, and contingent fund is set apart
by them, and the view OF the Comptroer sus-
tanned by the Courts. Is that he Is not required
TO pay any such expense except from the con-
Q.-IIave you ever asked him for money that
he has refused to paw AIN order to settle
the question. when an officer VINO had been sent
to California in pursuit of a criminal presented
his account, | endorsed IL as a proper claim
against the county Mr.. Green said that ne
would not pay him, and there has been litga-
ti0n about It.
Q-Does such a charge not come within the
statute providing that all necessary expenses in
prosecuting crime shall be paid by the county +
Al know nothing that would put it out Of the
In the case Of the bond forcers, Andrew L.
Roberts and Valentine Gleason, considerable
sum of money was raised In Wall street TO pay
the exp nses Of obtaining evidence and tracing
out that conspiracy, conspiracy, as l said in
my letter to certain Wall street gentlemen, not
surpassed 10y any against the Bank Of England
Not cent Of that money came into my hands,
but 1t was deposited IN accordance with my re-
quest with the Cashier OF the Bank Of Com
mercc Henry +. Vail, who paid II out under my
orders. some Of the money has not yet been
I'd.
Inerc arc number Of persons indicted In
CONNECTION with those forgeries, but Valentine
and Gleason are the Chi, Is ia the conspiracy.
Q.-Dld you not send, at considerable ex-
pense, 70 Europe for stephen RVmondt Aud
doubt whether 1t i desirable or proper that
should disclose what Raymond has said. lie
made statement aud admitted his own COM
LhcltY. lie was in the T0mos for many months.
do not know where he Il now.
Q.-Ilave you heard that he Is walking up and
down broadway Al do not Know IT,. lie
Wa taken '.,n TO- Gaemung county on wTit Of
writ had several letters from Well-Lnown citi-
zens, one - which produce.
a letter was read ASKING Mr.. Phelps to delay
the trial Of Raymond until after he had testified
m Chemung county. IL Was signed IF. Ma
Ruire.'
MIR. Pheps-I suppose the District Attorney
OF Cnemung county to be Responsible for Raw
mOnd. 1t Is over two months since he was
taken there, AMI l have not heard from him
since.
The number persons convicted Of forgery
during my term - nlucty-siX.
1t may he well Tor me to give sketch OF the
great forgery conspiracy which mas so occupied
my attention for two years past. Late IN the
summer of 1913 very ext nsiye scheme OF for
gerry e tme To hight In this cit IL consisted Of
the forging Of millions Of securities, chiefly rail-
road honda, New York Central, BunalO, New
York and Eric, one Of the Pacific Railroads
Il think, Union Picihc-Wester Union
Telegraph. ana other corporations not so
wen known. The forgeries we're so nearly
ierlect thai In many instances the forged
securities were taken 10 the Offices OF the corpo-
fatiuus that mad issued the genuine ana not de-
tectcd there until aft close * animation. In
one case a railroad officer recognized forgery
81 his own signature AS genuine. Large sums Of
money were obtained, and when the crime >
came to light there was much excitement
among business men. some II the pcTspLs in-
terrstcd eMi loved private detectives TO hunt
ont tue criminals, number Of arrests were
mlde. found ON ex mination that an erec-
i've Prosecution % the ConspiratOrs would in
Nulye a very riose, extensive, ana prolonged in