The New York herald., 1879-02-05
MAYOR COOpER'S POLICY.
A VIEW IN FAVOR OF 1T.

A VIEW IN FAVOR OF IT.
To THE EDITOR HERALD
Your Complaint Book has been kindly open to
all your readers for the venting of grievances. Will
you permit lifelong reader to file his complaint
against tho HERALD? With surprise and regret read
Cooper's letter to Comptroller Kelly, giving his
for declining to sign the pay warrants OF the
city's employees before the end of the month. You
take issue with the Mayor and seem to think
that in this matter he was overpartcular.
Far be it from me to set myself for
ward the defender Of Mr.. Coopers acts.
He is capable Of taking care of himself What wish
to say is that great journal like yours should
courage, not condemn, strict compliance with the
law the part of every official. The great trouble
for years in the administration of local, State and
national affairs has been this very disposition the
part OF officers chosen by the people to carry out and
administer the laws. to evade the letter of the law
when convenience, self-interest or the demands Of
friends called for such action. At the last two meet
ings of the Board of Apportionment OF this
city, in reply to questions by Mayor Cooper
asking for information why certain things had
been done which III plain violation of the city's
it had been the custom to do these things. In ref
erence to these pay warrants the Comptroller says
again. cit has been the custom" to sign them days
before the end OF the month
"An audit is final or 1t Is nothing. It is the act
upon which. under the law. warrants authorized
TO be drawn and that act must be complete" These
arc the Mayor words and the people Of New York,
after many years of misrule, ought to feel glad
that the city has at last chief officer who
what the law is and has the courage that
the law he has to uphold is not disregarded.
We to-day the Sheriff. the County Clerk and the
Register of the City aud County of New York
arraigned before the people, the Register already
trial before the Governor of the State for just such
acts NAor Cooper declines to countcnance. These
officials have been constantly doing and permitting
Illegal acts. and the only they offer is that
il has been tho custom of their Office, of their
predecessors, to do what they plainly admit to be
Illegal.
submit. sir is it not good time to put stop to
this easy custom of evadng setting aside the law?
How long would an officer of any of our large
porations hold his place il he assumed the right 10
ignore the orders OF his superiors whenever he felt
it convenient? know nothing only from hcarsay of
the splendid system which has made the manage
ment of the HERALD example which other journals
glad to profit by, but doubt very much that
this success has been achieved by convenient
compliance with the law for the transaction of its
business laid down by it's enterprising proprietor
firmly believe all good citizens Will encourage
the Mayor in putting stop to the siipshod way Of
doing things which has so long prevailed. and 1t is
hard understand why the careful attention de-
tails which is essential to the of any large or
small business should not be given to public mat
ters where the peoples money aud interests at
stake. 1. seems to me the press, potent in all
things should uphold the Mayor in the work he has
inaugurated- 3.
SUNDAY. Feb. q. 1879.