The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-03-13
PAYING SlO,5OO,OOO A YEAR.
MR DAVID Dudley EThLD Oy OFFICIAL
SALARIES ~ rms CITY.

Is the Gu Record ol Jan. 81. 1879 purporting to
contain list Of the officers and subordnntes
IN the departments of Tia" city aud county Gov
eminent with their salaries aud residences.
together with the judges. forks. AMI attendants
OF the several courts hrd therein" Il here Np-
pears that the amount paid in 1873 Tor services
in the Police Department WINS 90 3l5 9ls; in the
Fire Department. 81 O23. 55710; Public Works.
1913 lO0jls Public Parks. t3lO.7ll.40: Docks.
t20S 1912 Finance. 1885 .S9l. so; Charities and
Correction. s3l07s2: Taxes and Assessments.
100000 Health. slO4055 Law slOl $50; Leg
isative. tlO7 900; Executive. s37 200; Building.
t64 1922 EX'sr scoops; District Attorneys
ofilcr Sos. 3ll20: County Clerk $ Office SO 725;
Coroncrs' Office 500 500: for other misccllane-
Gus services. $4,000: and for the courts.
81 069 600 This is exclusive Of fees paid to the
Sheriff Register. and City Marshals. The sum
paid for salaries IN the Department Of Educa-
hon 10 not included IN the list Taking rs
guide the sum paid in 1871. we may infer that
The payment for salaries in 1873 was about
81 800 OOO. and that tho whole cost " tho de-
partment was about ty5O000O. These figures
would make the total amount paid in this city
and county for Official servi rs in 1878 to he
SIC. $40. 1921 or in round numberst ten millions
and n half
You will have observed that this list embraces
Judges. sitting in New York. Tho other State
officers are not mentioned. nor the Federal
officers. It is computed that there are a hun
drel thousand Federal officials in the country.
Taking our whole population to be- As 900 900.
and that Of New York one-uinth. the proportion
OF Federal nfnr1hodcrs In this State would be
1000 Of whom nj least 1000 must be in this
city. The State has perhaps a thousand officials
here. and the city from eight to ten thousand.
The total number of persons here drawing puy
from the public treasures. Federal. State. and
municipal or from the people in the shape Of
fees. may be roughly estimated ut seventeen
thousand. exclusive OF notaries. referees. and
Comm issioners. whose numbers can only be
guessed At. but they must be at least three
thousand These figures give n total nt twenty
thousand y 'rSOus In the city of New York oc-
cupying IN 1al pos tons AMI receiving official
cumprnsuiI on. or about one IN every fifty per
sons. count ~ men, women. and children.
This is the present outcome OF our institu-
for gov"inmrnt Whit d. w. e.t for il? Do we
get good governments We know that We do not
Let us examine particularly the several de-
pnrimrnis legislative. Judicial. AMI executive.
The legislative department Of tue city consists
OF twenty two Aldermen who are pnlI sSg 900
Their work certainly il not well done. The ju-
dcial department consists ot more persons for
the population, and j. paid more in th aggrr
gnts than me CORES pouding service iu England
or Fran rr. the two countries with which We are
most .ady g. con pare ourselves. The highest
IuEiiSU Judges eve l4fEtT stlhflfS tnAu are
pald IN inns "ouniry. but interior judges less.
md the aggregate OF all. high ard low. is less
What do W. g't for what "" payy Go into one
OF our courts N %" morning ami you Will prob
ably see the Judge taxing ms scat "a quarter or
nail hour after tn" time fixed. Keeping
counsel. sultors. and jurors waiting. aud vast
ing time MS valuable us his own and when he
takes his s"ut YOU will So, the cases POSTPONED
o'tener thar tried. or tried long after and some
Times n year or two after they were ready. Need
add that when tried and appealed. they are
hall thr time sent back for retra
a rfVR 4
apollce, under which teggars iuirsi the streets
which Is required To- clean these streets. aud
does not clean them: under which gray" can
be drspuil.i in a churrhyard on u frrluented
corner. and bank vault robbed IN broad day
light department OF public works. watch.
without any fault II Us head leaves the streets
scnndulously pnNri; a department of buildings.
under winch AN expert de'lur,s that We build
10 burn; AMI q department of chrrites and
correction. which has IA charge IL 600 persons.
criminal aud dependent, whom It cares Tor in
such manner ~ 10 make the state Charities Aid
misery
1t is not. however. so much the manner in
which the service is performed us the comppn-
sutton Tor Il. thut | Am To discuss Assuming
that all the work rrquir"I IS done. and well
Done II may stu c0si too much. ana that il now
the question. The following APPEAR to me to be-
good rules Tor determining the Just compensa-
]. The h'si men should be employed.
z; Enough Of them only should be employed
8. Th"y should have d.ilnit. terms Of service.
4. They shout have "a fixed compensation
D. IhFY should receive no lees.
q. They should receive only such cOmpensa-
ton Ms they could rtt in other employm .nts.
Inc prsl men. eyeryhoiy VIII admit. shoul III
arue they nre nntenlp Dyed The public ser.
vice IL mainly in the hands u an Inferior class
o.; o. men rhmrnt It as W. may. it Is idle 70 deny
the iact There are EXCEPT ons. no doubt. and
mhny OF them. In all departments there are
men OF nigh ori"r. and some oi the highest
rrdtr. OF qualities intellectual anu moral That.
however II not the con. mon COURSE. the aver
age Is m.dlor.iy; an umrusiyr. noisy medi-
ocrlty, which gets into office ami holds IT, partly
Dy chhhrr' parity ~ suis"rvirnfy. parity by
corruItion and AL 10y the ma h.nrry OF politl-
cal cau"us's and conventions, Conceal II. or
Try 10 conceal H. from ourselves or from others
As we choos', We ar" governed los an Office
holding class. which by low arts controls the
primaries. ana those control conventions. and
the people tlndiy vote rs the conventions tell
Them. Untll THIS system Is changed. W. cannot
have the b.st men. and the system Will never
Do changed 50 ipuS n W. submit to the dicta-
tion oi primaries and conventions. hut 1t can
anu VIII Pc rhHn@ru when IN" people see III 10
reform those bodies or refuse 10 BE- governed
The next rule is to employ on.y 50 many men
asked the head vi department. one Of the
best munuged n the "lty. whether. IL he were
nlnhelng IL rs u" Wpuld iihhhEt MS private
aHalrs, he '9uId not ~ along with twO-thirds
OF the force he had. After rejecting "A moment
he answered that he could. And why should
not his department be- managed as Ae would
manage his private affairs Should he not
s"rNr the pubu' who's officer he Is. NJ taith-
July us bee would serve h usrlf2 OF course
only one answer can br given 10 this question.
II on"-thlrl oftu" IN H'rS. now living upon the
pubic, werr dismiss If as they should be-for
they can ue spar"i-tar city would save ia
Salaries ami wages NOR" than three millions a
yehr, supp sin. that the same rate Of cInpen-
SAL loh mat NOW exists were 10 he maintained.
But u should not he maintained. The city
should, as "a RUE. lHy 60 It's servants only what
the same men could obtain IN otuer employ
nlents. Will explain more fully hereafter.
. A thlfu rue is To- XIV" lo all the servants OF
the city definite terms OF service So TAR AS pos
slDlr. III ruc wound tend to reduce the rate
Of compensate "a, BECAUSE ura VIII work TOR
less n they "hu b." sure Oi u durdbit service.
ana would also tend Ia maze the ulrn more at
ttntiy" To- Their dulles, ho ause relieved OF anX-
itty about want rs come.
hNrd rate OF comp u1atlOn is inconsistent
VIII! lees The -tstruI 81 compensation IN tnie
mode 10 injurious To- the service ana 10 the pub
nc ia several PARTICULARS. one ~ the truluta-
ton which II holds cut Ia rXurhltiut and op-
prrs~ivr charges. Tia" officer and the citizen
do not Wrrt hrr" ou rquHI terms. The hitter
must nav" the service; tur former vi ] not per-
form II without IN" irr. and there is no Judge
between them ~ hand. Submission is the only
alternative. The udhit of enforcing Il lee be-
gets "A lax INTERPRETATION OF the right. and this
leads. imp"rc"pllbly perhaps. to unlawful de-
nlhnds The ON r"r VINO II pad hy Ices Is both
claimant ana judge. a position thr most I'M
friendly 10 justice, the most tempting t. the
ON rr aud the most UNJUST 10 tho c.tizen. THIS
is not thr only evil Tor tne prartlrr OF l"e tax
Ing lruds t. ihr invent on ul cOutriNAn'rs Tor