The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-04-15
EVICTIONS IN NEW YORK.
HOW DISPOSSESS PROCEEDINGS
MAY BE AND ARE DELAYED.

MAY BE AN II LEILA Ell.
Statutory PeculiaritieS That Apply to
All States-An Interview with a Fa-
NOUS Real Estate Lawyer-Interest-
inr Cases of Evasion-The Landlord
frequently Gets the Worst of 1t.
New YORK, April 14.-Evictions from
their miserable homes are what the Irish
complain of most bitterly, and the world is
called upon to:sympathize with the wretched
victims of the nonresident land owners
Pant there are more evietions in New York
every year than in Ireland; The sufferings
antailed are as great, in many instances at
1aast here as there, and no good reason ap-
pears why the oppressive landlord who
lives abroad is any greater iniic-
+ion than the one who resides
In the next ward. Yet we hear no
concert of mutations from the poor of New
York. And the laws under which dis
possess proceedings" are taken are pretty
much the same in nearly all the States of
the Union, SO that evictions in this land of
liberty are doubtless ten times as numer-
GUS as is down-trodden Ireland.
10 tenants, 6SpSCldl4y IuJoo WIN dIo pOOI
and ignorant of the possibility of defense
againt them, the "dispossess proceedings"
are terror that too many landlords EN-
NOV in the most merciless manner. I'm
happily. the season in which eviction is
hardest to bear, that of winter, is the time
when these proceedings are most frequent,
The year through they average not less than
200 per week in the eleven district courts
vxhere such actions are taken, and some
times, in cold weather, there are as many
as twenty in single morning in one court.
A person of experience recently appealed
to for advice by threatened tenant in sore
distress asked him:
You were served with the dispossess
warrant by a Marshal, were you notF
YES"
"Did he at the time of service show you
any other paper~
mo"
Good Just as / expected. That is one
point. When your landlord demanded his
rent from you how did he do it,"
He said, Iwant the rest of my rent and
want it d. quick, or else you'll have to
get out"
Good again. That's another point and
the one you had best use tomorrow. When
your case comes up you simply make an
swer that the demand for rent has not been
made upon you in proper legal form, and
upon your affidavit to that effect the case
will be dismissed. If the landlord or his
agent happens to be in court at the time and
smart enough to do So the demand may be
made upon you properly in the presence of
witnesses right then and there, but new pa
perS have to be made out and served upon
you to show cause at a future date. ., But
you need not wait TO have them made out.
1t is the Marshal's business to find you. And
see that the demand, if made by the land
lords agent, is made by him in exact legal
form as agent. Well, already you have
gained few days, and if there is a techni-
cal error in that public notice it will give
you few more days. Then the point of
improper service by the Marshal may, and
very probably will, come into service and
the proceedings will have to be all COM
menced anew.
when at length you have exhausted
those resources you put in general denial
and demand trial, for which you cannot
get your lawyer present and have your wit
nesses in readiness in less than four or five
days or possibly a week. Well, trial day
comes and then your lawyer, if you have
a smart one, can raise such an aurora
borealis of brilliant points ON the landlords
field of view as will make his hair stand up.
The slightest technical error will cause dis
missal of the proceedings, and your shrewd
lawyer will only catch on to one at time,
in the future, SO that the landlords hair will
not go up all at once, but just rise gradual
ly as the lurid prospect gradually uRfolds
before him. Each dismissal and renewal of
proceedings gives you a certain number of
days delay. Then there is such a thing as
adjournment now and then to accommo-
date an attorneys engagements. Even if
the worst comes to worst and the landlord
gets decision in his favor you can still find
way to influence the Marshal to delay exc
cution of his warrant for a week or ten
days. The landlord may kick, but it
will do him no good. Once the execution is
in the Marshals hands he is boss of the sit
uation. Yours is not the only one he has
to act upon, and he can take his own time
in getting around to you. In fact, he would
rather give you a few days. time to move
out yourself than do the unpleasant job
himself and be liable, with the landlord, as
he is, for any damage he or his helpers may
do to your stuff in putting it on the side
walk.