The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1891-09-20
NOW FOR POLITICS.
The Newark Steal Works Located at
the City Hall-Hall,
Stout Wismer.

TurR now to the conduct of the pnblic
men OF the city. aud the record VIII be
seen to be equally dsgracefuL There
was at one time such a satnrnalia of
crime among the holders Of public places
of honor and trust that an observer, with
equal wit and truth. declared that the
Newark Steel Works had been moved to
tho City Hall. A nest OF officisl wicked
ness and corruption was uncovered When
Mayor FEEDERS message reporting the
prevalence of ''disquieting rumors" led
to an investigation a few years ago
Every department of the city govern
Offices were being treated on the theory
that they were private trusts with true
Republican allegiance to the principle
and the interest, too. But most OF the
rascals ESCAPED. Favorable Grand Juries
protected some; others had so skilifullv
covered their tracks that, while it was
palmer than daylight TO the lay con-
science That they had been guilty of gross
mafTeasauces, the law was unable TO take
hold of them. The virtue of the COM
munity was 50 easy that it failed to insist
upon some way being found for their
punishment. Some definition of crime
commit; there is always some way of get
ting NJ a nlalefaetor. and these public
offenders could all have been brought to
the bar of justice under one clause of the
Crimes Act If not under another: but
they had SO many guilty confederates.
and SO many other interests would have
been involved in their prosecution, that
they were allowed to go scot free.
A FEW scAPEGOATS.
But it would Deyer do TO let such expos
ures as were made 20 entirely unrepre-
sented on the criminal records of the
county. Somebody must bs punished to
appease the clamor of the '.over-F right
GUS" as they who had no interest IN the
thefts or in the thieves were contemtu-
onsly described, and sacrificial lamb or
two had to be led to the slaughter So
William A Hall was picked out, and,
chen, young Palmer Hail had managed
to get away with tritie of So, zoe;
Palmer with only few hundreds. Their
steallngs were not ankle high to the
monumental plundsrfngs of the gang;
aud they SO well knew that almost every
one else around them was a thief, that
they had not even put themselves 10 the
pains or hiding the evidences or their
sins on their books. They were punished
for their temerity with terms in the State
Prison.
The Court of Pardons, sitting as a Court
OF Parole, recently let Hall out on his
good behavior. Palmer had stolen 50
little as not to rise TO the dignity of one
deserving this exercise Of clemency, aud
he did not man &c to escape from his cell
till his term expired
These monumental frauds and larcenies
had been preceded by the defalcation of
Tax Receiver James Broadw he had
managed to dip mis- hands deep iuto the
citys cash box. But when his trial came
around he resorte1 to drama to excite the
public sympathy. Sudden sickness and
proStration Oyercame him, so that he had
TO be borne into court on the shoulders of
the tip-staves; aud when term in the
State Prison stared him in the face, DIR.
Hewlett. who has since been County
Physician, and DIR. Nichols certified that
confinement would kill him. Judge De-
pue and the Court let up on him, and he
escaped getting behind the bars.
Ihe sequel TO that dramatic little cpl
sode was. said the chronicler, who re-
called the case to my attention. ''fhat
BroadwelI became well after he had es-
capped Imprisonment, as suddenly as he
had become sick when he Was threatened
with Imprisonment, and he is living yet,
at 4 ripe old age, IN some other part OF the
land than this
Then there was ex-Alderman Krais. too.
he was another of the same kind The
people trusted him with their money, and
lie robbed them--not very big, however
lie had made the most of his opDortuni-
ties, but his opportunities were not large.
lie was only clerk ia dne Street Com
sioner's Office. He was not of enough
Importance TO 6e saved from disgrace,
and one morning he was taken from his
desk and marched to prison, aud for nil
know he may be there vet.
"A NICE OLD GENTLEMAN -
In marked contrast with poor Krais's
experience, aud showing how easily the
people of that community can condone an
offender II he polishes his boots occasion
ally and wears a collar, there's the case
OF ex-City Treasurer Stout. He was one
OF your nice, sleek old gentlemen He
knew the big men; he had mad business
dealings with them He went to church
regularly, and dressed in black broad
cloth after the manner OF dominic. But
the Investigations that were started dur
ing fiedier's incumbency turned up a
deficiency of 100000 or so in his books
Stout threw up his hands in horror, and
claimed with one breath that some
wicked clerk had put him In Il hole and
with the next, that there must be some
errorin his bookkeeping. Never a cent
or the clty's moneys had he had in his
wallet, he protested, with such .lugubrious
aud santtmonious solemnity that the peo-
pie thought it was too bad to punish such
nice old church pillar, and ne never saw
the inside Of a prison up to the day he
died.
The most characteristic bit Of public
robbery and concealment that has ever
been brought to public notice was that
which was recently laid bare in the
Water Department Here a young rascal
had been allowed to be twice a defaulter
and his folks had been permitted BY the
city officials to fix up both deficiencies
without anybody making a demand TOR
his punishment. He was q son of r. II.
Wismer. The elder Wismer was him
self one of the Water Board. Mayor
Haynes was another member of tx
ofiicio. Wismer's influence 1pon him
self and his fellow members was sufficient
TO provide his son with responsible
position in the department. A few
months ago old man Wisner dared the
fates by dismlssing n clerK from one OF
the department desks This clerk had
been Il chum Of young Wismer, and id
retaliation on the old man he coniided to
o newspaper reporter the fact that the
old mans son was dehcient in his ac-
counts. The reporter published the
story. The whole Water Board de-
nouuced 1t as a lie. Il was subsequently,
learned that at that very moment the
Water Board and the Mayor himself