New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-02-25
LICENSING VILE RESORTS.
EXTRAORDINARY ACTION OF THE EXCISE
BOARD.
GRANTING LICENSES TO SOME OF THE WORST
PLACES IN THE CIrY-A REMARKABLE LETTER
FROM AN ASSISTANT sTRICT-ATTORNEY.


FROM AN ASSISTANT DIsTRICT-ATTORNEY.
The Board of Excise and the District-Atto
ney about two years ago undertook close number Of
low resorts in the neighborhood Of sixth-ave. aud
Thirty -frst-st. Licenses were revoked in some In
stances, and prosecutions undertaken which
suited in sending few hardened lawbreakers to the PEN
entlary. Since that time these places have all been
opened, and apparently conducted under the proee
ton of the police the Excise Board and the DstrctA
torney. At least they not inerfered with.
TRIBUNE reporter called at the Office of the Excise
Board yesterday to learn whether these places
licensed of the most notorious Of these dens
Of vice is that kept by Eliza Parret known as the
French Madame" at No 81 West Thirty first st. When
inquiry was made Of Excise Commissioner Z. B. Hart
whether or not this place was licensed, he replied:
We issued license Eliza Parrot on December 3, at
the request OF Assistant Distrct-AttOrney John
oByne We reused to license this place for two years.
although inspector John Mcclure, reported that 1t
was an orderly house and entitled to license to sell
wine and liquor The house had a bad name, and we
did not comply with the recommendation OF the In
spector In November last again rejected an appli-
cation for license for the house. though made In
the name OF man against whom we could learn MOTH
ing. We satisfied, however that hs was be-
ing used merely a dummy and that Eliza Parret was
the real proprietor AT that time the inspector reported
that he had examined the place. and that II was orderly,
but women OF bad character resOrted there. he SAID
that Assistant Dlstr'ctAttorney OByrne nah tolu Nun
that complaint had been made against the house
However then refused to license It,"
"Were you Influenced In that decision by anything the
Parret said about not being able TO close her
house at M, the time required by law for licensed
houses to coseP
she did say that she could close her house at that
time the principal part OF her business was done after
that hour and in reply we said that we could not theh
grant license. Afterward Assistant Distrct-Atorney
ealla al az no EYpisa
and that would close her house according to law
II license granted to her. He represented that
she being prosecuted and that she had invested h
money in that house and ought to have license MI
Mitchell OF the Commissioners went ana Inspected
the house himself reported that he could see nothing
wrong there IL an ordinary French restaurant anu
cafe had the necessary spare beds to comply with
the hotel law requested Mr. Gdersleeve. secretary
OF Society for the Prevention OF Crime TO inspect the
house also which he did and said that he could see
nothing wrong there. After Mr.. OByrne was here ne
went to see Mr.. Whitney, chairman of the executive
committee OF the Society for the Prevention OF Cre
and he then sent us the following letter.
LAW OFFICES OF O'BYRNE & STEWART, !
TEMPLE COURT, NEw-YokK, Dec. g. 1882.
To the Commissioners OF Erctse
GENTLEMEN: again saw Dir. whitney or the society
for tue Prevention OF Crime, this morn bg He SAYS
tomrnnt, he mas 40 objection to Mrs.. Parret getting
eens Yours 0r yey ya .r Psr.er "a Vest s
Hart we granted license the next day to Mrs Parret
WHY OTHER VILE RESORTS WERE LICENSED.
as the Cremorne Garden In West Thirty -second-st
also a licensed hotel I"
"Yes Hughes who formerly kept the Garden, was
sent 70 the pententiary and for a considerable time
aterward. year more, we refused TO license tue
place. Ezra Dagsett then made an application TOT
license for the place there myself and looked at
the Garden aud II orderly and decent so far a.
could see John Mcclure. the inspector, reported In
favor licensing the house. In his written report ne
states that Captain Williams who Is In charge OF that
police precinct said that the Cremorne Gardenwa an
orderly lconducted place and that he 1.-THE Captain)
would personally appear before the Excise Board IN be-
half of licensing the place If necessary M Mcclure
also reported that a suit dsposscss the tenant because
he kept "A dlsordery house brought before Judge
McAdam who dismissed It, stating that sufficient evil
dence had produced u sustain the charge that
the place disordery one. We therefore granted
the License"
Are the Uaymarket and the Empire Garaen also
lcensedT
"Yes We refused for long time TO grant license to
the Haymarke but Captain Williams said that IL was an
orderly place, and we licensed It, The man VINO
formerly kept Empire when It was such notorious
place is not the one whom have issued license
We refused licenses this place well other like re-
sorts for "A long time but they kept open usual and
sod l1uor without licenses. No arrests were made.
The police did interfere. hut spoke favOraiy OF the
pctitlon for license signed hy great many respectable
people living In that neighborhood As the p3hce al
low ed uor TO be sold In these places without license
aud there apparently no good reasons longer 10 re-
iuse to license them. we granted the requests H.,
Are McUlOrys and Geoghegans notorious diVes
Also liCelhcd T. -.
the police allow them to DO kept open all the same
" flow many unlicensed liquor shops art There IN the
city g. ~, s,v,v % the Police Commissioners
recen y. There are probably more. Those are places
that have been reported to TINS Board as selling liquor
DO You md that the police cooperate with your Board
IN closing up these unlicensed runl-shoIst H..
I'm some precincts they do and In others they 40 not
The fact that is done eectualy III some OF the pre-
cncs shows that the police nave no trouble III ehorelng
the law Shen they want 20 do II. Now In captain
Alare's precinct in which McGlorys and Geoghegan's
notorious located you Will find great many
unlicensed places open"
law that has passed the Assembly," ,,,
think the three beds clause ought 10 be abolished
A 10 the transfer OF licenses. that clause VIII only permit
" nun with the sanction OF the Board. To remove his
nnn nor store from one place to another. which think
ought 10 ne allowed In some cases AS 10 preventing
w. witnut warrants that will make practical
banSc II does not Interfere with the arrests on sun
uy, au nF Scse laws They don't pretend to make
arrests Tor not closing according Ia law at Other tlues'
HOW THE CITY Is DEFRAUDED.
The reportcr next visited Charles f. Gdersleeye the
secretary OF the Society for the Prevention OF Crime TO
find ont II he recommended that license be granted to
the house kept by Eliza Parret
~ on't see" said Mr. Glderseeve. "why the Excise
Commissioners Always Wy u SA'''' 'no iN'P'"'''J ~
belongs 10 them for licensing these notoOasy dsrepu-
table places upon somebody else. made no suoh
recommendation, and do not believe Mr. whitney said
that ne would withdraw his opposition to licensing the
house of the French Madame went to the house to
see what kind OF place It but Of course as was
there in the daytime could not anything ont OF the
wov I have no doubt, however, that the house Is Il
VIGOROUSLY bad place We have done our best TO oppose
the Granting of licenses to these places. Tho Excise
Conu.sloners held out against Of them for about
year Int now understand they have all been licensed
again"
&" How many unlicensed liquor shops are there in the
ctyl"
"When we made mp our last annual report short
time ago. there 1862 places In the city when were
paying tax or license to the United states internal rev
cnue collectors AT the Il ne the Board OF Excise
- 49,. ....r.