The record-union., 1891-06-11
The committee then adjourned unit
Saturday night.
IS IT PRUDENT 2
Mooney Not a Watchman-How the
County Treasury is Guarded.

Mooney Not q Watchman-How the
County Treasury is Guarded.
j. e. Mooney, janitor at the Hall of
Records, explains to the RECORD UNION
that he is rot employed as watchman.
His work is day labor in the building, but
he is required to sleep in the Treasurer's
office, and for it receives no special COM
pensation. He says he spends his even
ings as he pleases, and sometimes goes to
the theater. He is simply to come in at
bedtime and sleep in the building. He
lights the gas at p. NJ. and goes away, if
he chooses. If all the officers are out, he
locks the outer doors if any remain after
5 O'Clock, the last one out is expected to
lock up.
Tuesday evening he left the Treasurer
IN the building. and that gentleman for
got to lock the outer door or light the gas
when he left. Mooney adds that all the
officers have keys and can come into the
building at any hour. The front-door
key is a simple instrument and the lock
can be easily opened with skeleton key
or wire. The door into the Treasurer's s
public office, he says, is never locked
The steel or iron interior blinds have
never been closed, it being thought best
to leave them up with the gas lighted
As to the open windows, Mooney says he
leaves them open for ventilation.
So the care OF this public building and
treasure at night amounts to this: that it
is open to WhomSOeYer chooses TO enter,
and the security of the treasury is wholly
dependent upon the vault and safes, and
the safety of the records upon the inner
upper door. The RECORD UNION sub
1nits to the Supervisors that this is not
prudential; that it is exceedingly loose
and unbuSinesS-like; that where watch
man IS not on duty no public building
should be so easy OF access at night.
The city manages very much better at
the Art Gallery, for instance, where the
custodian before he leaves sees to it that
the building is securely locked, all the
iron blinds closed, and that the watch
man, who also closes all entrances, re-
ports to him for duty at the last door, and
| tastens over it the outer iron doors with q
burglar-proof paddock, and then takes up
his watch for the night.
The county does not exercise any such
diligence as this, if the practice Mooney
reports obtains at caunly buildings. 1t
! is well to have a fine, strong vault and all
that; it is also well to secure outer doors
and the windows by more than ordinary
| locks, that the approach to the vault may
be more difficult. The truth is, that for
the Courthouse, Hall Of Records and Jail,
with It's seventy inmates, there should be
night patrOlman- The fact that the
janit0r sleeps in the Hall of Records is CT
no value whatever; it simply exposes
him TO danger, and is no sort of protec-
ton to the property, especially if he is not
required to keep specific hours.
The matter is by no means the trifing
affair that it has been styled, and expert
enced officers are free to say that the sys-
tenn in vogue is unparalleled, and an open
invitation 20 burglars and thugs. to whom
the county adVertises the fact that for
some hours at night the building is liable
to be in a condition III which they could
work their business uninterruptedly.
1t is a fact that skilled safe and vault
crackers can enter the county vault and
safe, no matter how strong, i'll few
hours, if they have undisturDed posses
| sion of the building. If any one doubts
this, let him consult the records of safe
and vault cracking, with which records
all experienced police officials are IA
| niliar