The evening world., 1893-12-05

personally, I went before the Board
or Estimate and Apportionment and
SPOKE for nearly half an hour on The
ssaI'e Tono l informed that body of all We
with about everybody who had n signal
system. and did everything to find out
Wnat scheme would be the best. As n
chimes chimes 0 pu Gur up WORK pr ,h we had haii, several ma.
ofnce or the Chairman OF the Committee
oi supplies lMr. NoorhisI. showing the
WORKINGS of the systems. "
Wlthout having accepted any ono svs.
tenn, because we could do nothing until
We We got money, we asked the Board OF
estimate for the amount named. We
the Ro sn re NECESSITY OF the reform. ana
seemed to feel as we did. They gave us
SioWuW to start with.
Every month, for five or six months.
or that sum. until we had about $751; 0 or
soNVo In our hands. Then, in order to
further test the sign. lis. we determined
10 put some. of them in the streets-to
sue a practical test was made in the
olu iWenty' ninth. now the the Nine
teenth Precinct. The officers in the pre-
cinet were instructed how to use them.
ana they we're obliged to make reports
from time to time as to the manner OF
working.
This went along for several months.
! spent many, days In he police station
.EF 'N''f 80 eti NV III SoIIlI1llSklOltIS ~,
We tested for ourselves. and finally after
everything possible had been done, the
matter came up before the entire Board,
ana we decided that the Herzog system
why we decided upon hat system was
that Il was the only one which did not
REQUIRE a telephone. All other systems
pany was then charging about $3.50 a
year, and as we would require several
thousand telephones. we could not ac-
cept them; we had no money and no au.
thority. We also believed the Board Of
Estimate would never give us the money
that a telephone system would require.
Having finally agreed that the Herzog
system was the best, our Commissioner,
Fitz John Porter having recommended it.
his report was adopted.
Now. under the law. there is a section
(%section 63O which provides that in cases
consent OF the Board OF Estimate and
Apportionment-to declare whether or
not proper opportunity had been given
"Mr. Hewitt was Mayor then, having
succeeded Mr.. Grace. and Mr.. Myers
was still COMPTROLLER, and therefore a
member of the Board of Estimate and
ing of that Board. where the matter
was again brought before 1t. Herzog
was there with his counsel, ex-Judge
sioners, Representatives of all the
other signal companies were also there.
and a fight was made against Herzog.
wh hNiSStwSi n madsl as well ihe a. t s,at sIaa 6s
his OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES that we had
done everything in the way of offering
opportunities for a fair competition. the
Board of Estimate and Appointment
took the ground, that proper opportuni-
ties had not been given. then took the
floor myself. and for half an hour ex-
planned again in detail every move we
had made. l said we had spent all of
two vpa re on the question. and argued
that this matter was in the line of ma
terial progress, and that we. were behind
every other city. l also said then. as l
say nov that the signal system alone
would be worth more to the city than
the appointment Of one thousand adj
ditional men,. The decision was against
1.-The Board Of Police then decided to
have the question legally determined,
and we sent all the papers in the case
to the Corporation, Counsel, our legal ad-
or not we had the right to make the
contract with the Herzog Company. 1t
took him a long time to. arrive at a
decision. Finally he replied that we
Mr.. Myers. who now speaks of delay"
continued the Commissioner. was then
Comptroller, remember, and after the
the former asked us to return, to him
the money which we had in hand on ac-
count Of the 100000 appropriated. 1t
was 50 RETURNED.
mir. Herzog claims tina he has a valid
contract with the city; hat the reso!u-
ton of the Police Board accepting his
system makes one. He has. l believe.
the matter to the attention of the courts.
/ nave asked Mr.. Herzog more than once
why he has not taken the matter to the
courts. II seems to me that would be
the proper thing to do. He has not done
THE Board o, Police Commissioners.
however, recognize the absolute necessity
of getting a system-this system. or some
other system, and the patrol wagons. In
September last W. inserted 100000 IN our
estimates, asking the Board of Estimate
reform-to make Il beginning. We eX:
planned the difficulty OF the situation and
our embarrassments-the difficulty or tax
Ing wnmen from ore SIDE o. the cry yrh to
Evening Wor!d' has pointed out. Mayor
Gilroy took the ground that we ought to
have II: that he knew of nothing more
seriously needed. Mr.. Myers opposed It,
He talked back about that old 100000,
and why we had not used It, although
he well knew of our embarrassments un.
to it the Mayor suggested that We be
given $500, 900, and finally that sum was
given by a majority vote. Mr.. Myers vot-
ing against u.s.. Finally the Mayor ,sug-
into the city the original 100000, and
this was done. Ali this was by a ma.
jority vote, remember. Mr.. Myers
contended that his vote was a!sc
necessary. but the Mayor said
not on q provisional estimate. In order
to prevent entanglements. however. the
matter was afterwards withdrawn alto
gether.
II viii tell you a case in point, he
continued. ito demonstrate the absolute
necessity of a change in the present
system. / know where a woman, very
drunk, indeed. was arrested at Eighty.
fifth street and Columbus avenue. That
Is In the Twanty-fourth Precinct. and
the 3tation-house Is at SiXty-eighth street
and the Boulevard. The officer had tc
lug that woman to S'xty-eighth :treet
and from there to SiXty-seventh street
between Third aid Lexington avenues
because the laws says she must a
once be taken to a station-house where
there Is a matron. One wagon anC
signal system would have prevented al
this"
The Commissioner then went on to sa,
where from OF to two million dollars
and that stables would have to be bull
in every precirct. When asked II hi
entire statement had not resolved itsel
into an attack upon Comptroller Myer!
and Mayor Hewitt. he said:
u am attacking no public official.
am simply stating facts
What can be done now?' asked TIL
Nothing. absolutely nothing" crieC
the Commissioner. Mr.. Myers may fin
an unexpended balance In the, Depart
ment Of three or four thousand dollars
but what good would that be? II h
tG In nVn