The evening world., 1893-12-07

quoting the same section and putting
the. very opposite construction upon lt|
VIII he explain why IT is that the law
department OF this city has one law for
the signal system to prevent a contract
from being awarded to a successful com
petitor. and another law Tor every other
patentee or contractor? VIII ne say
why, under these very opinions. he
allows the city to drop behin1 every
other city in the country; that he insists
on policemen leaving their posts nn.
the streets: that he gives o"pportuniticS
for the commission Of murders and all
sorts Of crime? Win he explain even,
where is the politics OF II?
II might be n difficult matter TO. get
Mt the many opinions which Mr.. Clark
J has written in his time, but there Is one
can see for himself. 1t can be found in
the testimony taken before the Fassett
investigating Committee. and Is num-
bered Exhibit 3G, page 2,b52.
ing the purchase Of patented supplies,
under the very section which in the
opinion above set forth, he says can
only be purchased after the Board OF
Estimate and Apportionment has pre-
scribed the conditions. This purchase.
however. had been made by the Fire
Department. not the Police Department
and no obnoxious Herzos signal system
was at stake. Read this:
NEW YORK. March IL. 1890.
Law Department, ONCE Of the Counsel to the Cor
The Honorable Thee ". Myers. Comptroller.
sir: have received your letter OF the 9TH
Inent for proposal Tor furnishing tnbber-lined nre
hose. Maltese Cross brand, also Eureka fire. hose
brand You also asked whether, In view Of the
prOyislons Of section 90 Of the Consolidation act,
such articles can lawfully he purcbs sei without
conditions having hrst been prescribed by the
board OF Estimate and Appointment to secure
reasonable opportunity for competition. The see.
tiOn ~ Consolidation act TO which you refer pro-
Nldcs especially to patent pavemen,s and the re-
air thnFanf NIL mir ava hapn ulz
dressed to the Law Department on prior occl-
SONS, and II has. uniformly been held by my
predecessors hat the conditions prescribed In the
section named apply only to the purchase aud
repairing OF patented pavemen,s, and do not In.
among others. are the opinions 10 which | refer;
l. To Finance Department, Jan. 20. 1887 Jan.
e, 1876 Ss). In relation to the purchase OF patented
frc hydrants.
2. To the Commissioner OF Public Works. Nov.
80. 1877. In relation to patented ventilators.
.. To the Department Of Charities. Feb. ,. 1881.
in relation to patent valves and traps supplied
TO the new insane asylum.
4. To the Fire Department. Jan. -, 1873. In
relation TO patent hose.
6. To the board OF Education. July %. 1881.
In relation to patented furniture ana copyrighted
1t Will be observed that one OF the foregoing
opinions relates to the purchase OF patent hose
by the Fire Department, and IL therefore a dlreci
precedent for the purchase now proposed.
! am no; disposed to depart from the interpreta'
tion OF the section In which my predecessors
have uniformly concurred. | therefore adyis,
you that the lids IN question may be received
and the contract awarded without invoking III,
action OF the Board OF Estimate and ApportIon
meat. Yours respectfully.
WILLIAM II CLARK.
Counsel to the Corporation.
BY comparison OF the dates of the abov,
opinions 1t will lie foun" that the las
one was written long before he indorsel
Beekman's first View Of the signal sys,
TENS defeat. Mr.. Clark might say tina
he was even W ong on the opinion las
quoted, but even that loophole IL no
left for his escape. Since his opinion OF
the signal-systcm question he has writer
others, holding the same Interpretation
regarding Fire Department supplies.
shown to Commissioner McClave that TIN
latter held up his hands and said to al
Evening World' reporter:
81 know all about IL / ave seen tn,
opinions, but what are We TO do? Tn,
Corporation Council ~ the legal adviser o
the Police Board. and W. must take tn,
law from him"
II may be interesting to state her,
that Mr.. Clark has positively refused L
hear the Herzog side of the story. II,
has been written to a dozen times II
vain. He has delayed explaining ever
what the Board Of Police should do undeI
the circumstances. He has practically
deadlocked everything. even refusing t,
answer letters addressed to him.
Here Is the concluding paragraph of
letter written by +. Benedict Herzog
Feb. 20. 1891, requesting Corporation
Counsel Clark to grant him n hearing:
This opportunity becomes all the NOR