The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-08-21
Think IT WAS UNFAIR.
Commissioners Blamed for Favor
ing Sergt Clark
The Other Dismissed Men viii
Fight for Reinstatement.
Exactly the Same IN idcnce of Brib-
cry Was Given Against Him.

/ The gallery performance" IL what an
cd poll" Official calls The police trials
now going on before tn. lour Police Com
4 mis- siuu't-
The Inconsistency Of the decision in
/ the case ~ the nv, Fourteenth Precinct
( scrgcaEts Is beginning to be appreciated
| ny tn UHlookcrH and comment is any
thing but hattering to the commissioners
who convicted four scTgeants and acqut-
( ted another on exactly the same testi-
mony, the only dinerenc" being that in
the ease Of the acquitted sergeant the
! testimony showed that he arranged the
scheme of bribery and shared it with
the rest
| Francis L. Wellman takes the whole
responsibility ON his own shoulders. He
says he recommended that old "Hughey"
/ Clark be permitted to retire on 81 900
year pension because OF his thirty
four years of service. his Gfty-eiEht
/ years OF age and his twenty-eght years
of clean record without charge
against him.
] But to convict Capt. Doherty Sergts.
! Lcbcrs, Jordan. Mckenna and Parker
son and Wari Men Meehan and Hook,
! the Commissioners had to believe Mrs.
Augusta Thurow and accept as Corrob-
Grafton of her story Of bribery the sta
| ton-huuse blotter, showing the arrests
, of the inmates Of her house and the ac-
cop:ancc OF her bond by the four SER
gehnts and the knowledge OF the cap
! tain.
MIS- 'rhurow's testimony included
S"rgt. Clark. The hlu,ter showed mat
lgg 90 hAT nd IA
woman testified that 1t was Svrgi. Glars
! wlO ~ Acting Captain IN Inc abscnCe
If capt. lloherty. made tac hrst over
lures. told her what sIe had got 10 do, 81
ard that she lcft h-r - roll on the shelf
for him as Tor the others.
Another Inconsistency Is pullted out
ass The law says that Wlen Il police
officer has served twenty years. no ma
ter wat ms age. II he applies Tor re
tiremcnt ON hair pay, the Boar II hO-
lice shall 50 retir" him. provided there
are no charges pending against him"
But since tn" LeNow Committee eN-
posure Of police corruption, the COM
m!ssion.rs have been 50 intensely viz
tuou5 that they have filed" every np-
, piication OF this Kind, with the remark
each time, that the Board has decided
not to retire any officers until the trials
are all over" although me law says
SCrgt. Clark had refused TO ask for
retirement, although advised to do 80
on account of his ilI-health with asthma
ago. when the other TOUR scrgean,s
were broken" S,rgt. Clark put in an
application for retirement.
OF course, nobody at Headquarters
has the falntcat idea who told lughey
| Clark TO file this application. but the
| application was granted rot only in the
| face of charges preferred" but In the
face of charges exactly like those
against the other four. and in proof of
which exactly the same witnesses had
testified to exactly the same thing
| Ia IL
any harm. but "A lot Il people are ask :
ing one another, Does Clark know
more than 1t would be healthy TO let
While Sergt. Hugh Clark Is allowed
to retire In the face of charges. Scrgt.
William Kass. of the Seventh Precinct,
faithfully, but thirty-iive years. and has
an unblemished record, applying for
retirement, is told to wait. Besides, ne
Is over sixty years old.
| Scrgt. Horace NJ. Wells. OF the Thir-
teenth Precinct, has served twcnty-siA
years, but his application for retire
men' Is also placed On til"." Sergt.
Charles H. pless;, of the second ana
Detective Sergt Edgar S. Slawson. of
the Central Office have beeu in harness
sinc" 1879 aud 1874 respectively, and
Sanitary Squad, since 1878. They have
applied for retirement. but their appli-
cations are hung up" by the Commis-
sion. although there Is no breath of
suspicion against either of them.
In connection II may be said that the
SUSPICION Is gaining ground that the
blanket verdict of guilty" rendered by
the Commissioners IN each of the cases
tried thus far win render 1t easy for III,
dismissed police officers tn get renstated
by the supreme Court.
The Court said Frederick u. House
will he apt to say. should they nld that
the highest Oiienss charged was not
properly proved, we cannot tell whether
the officer was dismissed for the hri,
duty. and therefore 1t is error"
Perhaps II IL the assurance of his coun.
sci that he VIII be reiustated that keeps
the deposed sergeant, George l.iebers,
He is quoted as saying that he was
sent for by one OF the Commissioners
and cautioned that n" must not accept
Mrs Thurow's bonds. and that ne
obeyed the warning No charges wer,
preferred then. and had not the Lexow
l'omntttee come along and stirred thing
up perhaps no charges ever would have
been preferred.
Commissioner Sheehan is OF opinion
that IN" taking Of Mrs. Thurow's bail
was no offence, that, on the contrary
bond, no matter what her character
provided she was otherwise qualified
and that is matter Of argument.
says that II the Court so decides il VIII
relrstate the four gnrEsants because
they are unable To disseCt the blanket
whether tn" sorGHuntS were uismiss-0
for bribery or acts Injurious to publ,
Neit"rt.
The Board never passed resolution
not to r"lir" any officers pending thrii
trials, said Major hiup to-day; "th,
Con wissipncTs have Informally - he
eilnl when an application has been IRE
scented, ana have t'cl tho "pp,icar"n.'
ANARCHIST BILL AGAIN.