New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-11-10
SOME USELESS CITY CLERKS.
MR.rwoMEY DOESN'T KNOW WHAT THEY Do
THEY COME AND &C AS TREY PLEASE AND SOME
TIMES DO NOT COME AT ALI.

TIMES DO NOT COME AT ALI.
The Senate Investigating Committee pulled
itself together for the first time since the election
yesterday, and held two sessions IN the Adermen.s
chamber Senator Gibbs presided ana ms associ
together with both Mr.. Strahan and Mr; Mllier
counsel Tho mechanical auXiarieS TO the COM
mittee consIstngof the stenographer the scrgo1uj
alarms the messenger and the
clork TO the chairman we're al'0 on h8nu'
The attendance was larEcr than usual Inc new
DR. Howard Crosby who had been summOheq as u
witness waited for some time and departed. jacob
Hess and General Blrnum dropped III fer snort
Tina. ID. J. Whitney of the Society Tor the re
ycntiOn of CRIME also responded 10 q su'n'hons
Superintcndenf Of Police Murray was recalled
aud questioned further respecting hIs Sunday VS.
its several weeks 10 certain uptown resorts IN
company with Inspector Steers, and their pTocW
ing whiskey at Roster Il Balls. Ahrendt and uqn-
Tiers Palm Garden, and the arrests then MADE
lie said he had not been sent for by the Exc
Commissioners The licenses in these cases na9
not vet been revoked, though Abrcndt had
that ne was going out of business
Inspector Henry V. Steers testified that ne was vas
the SAMPLER of the whlSkeY on the occasion OF the
visits He had called for 1t, drank IT ana Pall i9I
IT, He lad been before the Excise board on ne
Roster & Bal and Ahrendt eases Inc FORMER I Oh
tanned an adjournment to enable them 70 take fee
ease before The General Sessions Tor triiu. Ine
only kind of liquor they were willing 10 serIG WIS rs
apple whisSey, or CIDER wEiskey as they called II.
The witness was of the impress non that Gunther
had no license at all A.
Captain Thomas NJ. Ryan, OF the the
Twenty-frst Precinct, was sworn ihe
counsel presented three letters to him. which
he identified as havs GsTn reI S anS were
signed by w. p. Mitchell Excise Commissioner
The first read
My DEAR CAPTAIN: Hugh F. Farrell of 535 Third
ave- has this day made application for license ana IN
Beard is considering the same VIII you p'"'o ho us
turb him and oblge I
The witness said the Farrell referred to was
elected an Alderman last wcek. At the time the
letter was written he kept two liquor stores, ana
had not obtained license. The second Ie''er
was:
MY DEARsIR: Peter Herman, No. G63 second'ave
has this day made application fer license Hls case Is
now under consideration by the Board Give Ilm "uV
protection Is consistent.
Captain Ryan said Kiernan vas BARTENDER;
the store WAS ewned by Hugh +. Farrell. Under
The law n dealer conld not have more than one IL
cense. The third letterread thus:
To whom it may concern Mr.. Patrick Niece No;
G33 Frst-ave.. has made application for License ana
this Board ism considering the same He enu'edto
protection
The witness said ne showed the letters to the in
spector and was told to pay no attention to them,
but that the parties We're made to get their H.
oenses and he did So. He said however that III an
iIauor dealers would get an
adjournment for one week. Meanwhile they would
procure n license and upon reap2carlng would
submit that and receive their DISCHARGE, ,..
Superintendent Murray. again recalled. SAID that
if the Excise law was to be enforced sIlIs ~ court
should irnedIately foiloT arrests; otherwise the
police we're powereSs to effect punl> hment.
he signatures to the several letters were sussc-
oucntly Idcp flied by Alderman PcIIoy as beng IN
the hardwriting Of Mr.. MlJchcI.
The afternoon session was devoted to the hear
inc Of FroucIs J. Twomey clerk of the Board Of
s1or r He said that 0n each organization of
The Board caucus is held and a list OF names Is
submitted to him with Instructions to appoint those
mentioned thereon. The allowance for clerical
hire Is So. coo a year. of which by statute tho
c crk is entitled 20 $1,000. Last year however be
would not have been enough to 90 around. There
are in all sixteen clerks. The titles afford no injI
cation Of the service performed.
Glow much time do these men spend there A
cannot tell you. know how much they Ought to spend
there The hours are from 10 TO A. sometimes they
In aud 20 ont ana sometimes they 90 MOI come al
all Clerk UDger he goes to church on saturday
that hs for being way on that day Most OF
the elections. Tie Aldermen ask me to let
t tbTee IoS TS day in the Office Rchord + Mott the
first assistant clerk i the most valuable clerk have
Milan 9 MG0n 1eyi IS ne r se9sra 'eN anu
he the rest OF the timed Al would Ike
10 nave somebody answer that question His salary Is
81 500 Robert e wiegand is assistant recording clerk
$1,000. Michael McCloskt is an assistant messenger
o|is't it fact that the messengers arc loanS half
the tmel A.-Most messengers are u,,...,., 10
hS onHoW W. many book. are there the library a
Inever counted them. know there Is Dig CAineSe
oior Whit does the librarian do Ale hands down
bn1ks when anybody wants them.
0@Docs b, hand down the Chinese bible often! A.
e""what does the assistant librarian dol Ale
0,@isnt it library only in name, and isn't it
ereG lounging place! A-Wcl that IS probably true,
thonah Try to stop it, There are only few books OF
value there.
The names of other clerks were mentioned but
the witness could not tell what duties tEey per
formed, though they drew sa aries OF $500 ana
81 OGC each. Some were styled . index clerks
AID assistant iadex clerks but there were no in
dexey, he said and the names were only made TO
give tie mer titles lie was himself III favor OF
fewer clerks and of paving larger salaries to those
employed AID keeping them closely TO their work
In 1878 and 1874 there were only nine clerks, but
they received larger salaries and were better
He 5 I'D lie had never made az appointment since
he had been in the Office save by direction of the
Board Of Aldermen. The WORK OF reproducing
records. for which special appropriation was
asked was necessity. These clerks should do
the work in five years. There was
no necessity for keeping manuscript
records inasmuch since 1880 the records have
been printed and bound and stored away Still
+he custom Is maintained, because authority
has not been given to discontinue IT,
The committee will meet at 1890 to-day at the
Marion House, the Ademen's chamber having
been gwen over to the Board of Canvassers.
Ex-Controller Grant sent to the committee GER
fam written statements which were cons dcrcd in
executive session. lie has expressed a willingness
To purce himself of contempt and tc appear and
answer necessary questions. He will probably be