The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-11-01
BURNS BAD WORK
The Police Department Is
Degraded.
SHARP LETTER TO CROWLEY
Postmaster MCCoppin Calls the
Chief to Account.
FOR HE CANNOT BE lGNOR ANT.
The Law That Commissioners Daniel
M. Burns Has Violated-Evils
That Will Follow.
FOR HE CANNOT BE IGNORANT.


ment That law provides that the police
shall be appointed and ruled by = nom
partisan commission, and the Postmaster
and every one else who is not troubled with
mental infrmitv knows that this law is
being openly and fiagrantlv violated every
hour in the day and night by the very per
sons whose actions the law is supposed to
govern.
Yesterday he wrote the following open
letter TO the Chief OF Police:
An Open Letter to p Crowley Esq, Chtef
of Police San Francisco CdG.-DEAR SIR: 1t
Is charged and by some people believed that
the Police Department OF TINS Guy is Delne
drawn into politics. ms cannot be done WITH
out your personal knowledge, and should be
slow TO believe that you would cOuntenance
proceeding that would be go injurious 10 the
department of which you are the Chief. Prior
10 1878 the Police Department of this city was,
as you and l know. used politically by which
ever party happened TO control majority OF
The commission. In those days the Mayor, the
Judge Of the Police Court ana the Chief of Po-
lice constituted the commission. / had the
honor TO serve on the board with you In the
years 1S6S-69, and you Will bear witness TO the
fact that the TWO Democratic Commissioners
then on the board had 10 consider some 800
applications for the places held by the men then
on the police force. l thought then, ana l
think now, that The office of Mayor should be
wholly separated from the other office, but the
change was not effected by the Legislature
i
OF the act that created the present oTganiZa-
ton OF the Police Department of our city, and
took it out of the political gutter and placed 1t
upon nOn-parTisan footing, where you are eX-
pected 10 keep il. That act deVOlye0 upon the
Fourth, Twelfth and Fifteenth District Courts
the duty of appointing Police Commission and
defined its duties and responsibilities. lt pro-
vide fund out Of which the families OF men
who die in the service receive Immediately
$1,000 ana This fund has so grown as TO (noW)
constitute the basis OF pension fund out OF
which several men who served the prescribed
term of twenty years are now maintained. The
Commissioners are not eligible 10 any other
office during their term of service nor for one
wear thereafter. By this enactment the Legis-
lature meant to create a non partisan Police
Commission, which should not use It's power for
any selfish ends. The incentive TO manipulate
conventions for personal purposes was thus re-
moved. The Legislature that passed this act
was Democratic in both OF Its branches, and
the Governor Urwin) who approved il was also
Democrat. Two of the Judges that appointed
the commission were Democrats, and the COM
mission so created had the appointment of a
Chief OF Police, who by virtue of his office
became Commissioner, and they appointed
you, Republican, thus establishing poiit-
cal equilibrium in the board. For four
teen years the commission stood thus bal
anCed until death removed Major Hammond.
You know what followed. The Governor
OF the Slate seized the opportunity thus
afforded him to destroy the nOn-partisan char
acter of The board and make It what il is politi-
cally to-day. IL rests with you TO say whether
the commission as now constituted shall take
the course suggested by the action OF the Gov
ernor and turn the whole organization back
into The political degradation out of which il
was lifted sixteen years ago. The men-the
rank and he-haye most at stake IL TINS busl-
ness because aDy political misconduct by
which they should forfeit the respect and con-
ddence of the community would surely lead TO
The ultimate destruction of their organization.
The life insurance and pension fund would dts.
appear and they would be reduced to the shifty
conditions that enViroDed tie force all the
years prior TO 1873.
The last clause Of sections7 OF the act ap-
I a & follows:
mo member OF said Board of Police Com
missioueTs shall during his term OF office, be a
member OF any party convention the purpose
of which is TO nominate candidates Tor office.
Nor shall the officers, members or employees OF
said Police Department lake any part what
ever in any partisan convention held for the
purpose OF a political party. Nor shall any
member OF the said Board of Police Commits
soners, directly or indirectly attempt TO in
fueDce or control the action Of any member OF
said Police Department, or any emplOye there
of, 10 any primary or general election. Any
violation OF the provisions OF this section shall
be deemed mlsdemeanOr, and, on conviction,
punished accordingly" Respectfully yours,
FRANK MCCOPPIN.
Postmaster McCoppin readily responded
last night to a request that he enlarge
somewhat upon his letter to Chief Crow
ley. and in his Introductory remarks gave
an outline Of the experiences be b al under
gone while Mayor with applications for
positions on the police force and their
friends which led him. as he expressed IL,
to make up his MUD that he would cause a
change to be made in the laws then exist
ing relative to the Police Department if be
ever secured the chance,
Mr. McCoppin said that he did not know,
personally, of any violations of eXisring
laws by the Police Department. but that
the evidence came to him Indirectly. He
then went on TO give an outline of the
formation of the legislative committee to
investigate the Chinese troubles in this
community and the work accomplished
by il.
That committee" said he, had powers
of state to send for persons and papers
of a very wide scope, and It's investigations
disclosed a dcporabe condition of affairs
in the Chinese quarter. 1t developed the
existence OF a band of men there called
special police who were reaping a rich
harvest, making in some cases from S6O(
To $1,000 a month IN protecting, not the
public, but prostitution and gambling
THAT state of things suggested and in
spired the foundation and passage of the
act of 1873. which created the present Po-
lice Commission. 1t abolished absolutely
and forbid the employment Of special pc.
licemen in the Chinese quarter, provided
that the force should be rotated cOntinu.
ously in that quarter i'll order that long
continued service might not render the
men familiar with corrupt influences
Therefore there is NJ excuse for the re.
ported scandals that have grown up II
that district
@Prior to the passage of the act men
toned the paw of policemen in San Fran.
cisco was S175 month. Now it is SO:
under the act, the men receiving 500 il
hand and 50 month being retained, and
constituting originally a health and life
Insurance fund, of which the Mayor
Auditor and Treasurer were the custodian:
and from which tha families OF deceased
officers were paid $1,000.
The fund grew beyond the death rats
and accumulated so that by subsequent
legislation a pension fund was created, by
winch men who attain the age Of 60 years
ana Who have been twenty years on the
force are retired on three-fourths pay.
Inc taxpayers never objected to this ar
rangement and cheerfully contributed TO
that Innd, and will continue TO do so as
long as the department is conducted on a
n0n-partlsan basis. But just so soon as
IL becomes diverted into political chan
mel ana debanched by bossism the public
Will lose confidence init and will ultimate
ly destroy the organization as it is at pres
ent constituted and relegate it to where il
was before the passage Of the act OF 1873.
The interest l feel is that the act was
my work and L value myself as its au,Flor.
Very few people now living realize what
II cost to pass that act. Every corrupt an d
criminal Influence in this city was arrayed
against 1t and had their agents in the nails
OF legislation working for its defeat II
was only after the most stubborn legisla
tive contest of which | have any know.
ledge that ii at last got through, and then