The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1894-08-25
Uncle Matthew Breen Fails to
Keep His Relative in Office.
Attempt Made to Distort the New
Law Concerning Aliens.
is an axeman not an a1eman?
OF an axeman II the law stands

OF an axeman II the law stands
H. tt, way and you have an uncle with
politica! pull. That 10 the way that
eminent legal authority Matthew p.
Breen, counsel to the Department Of
Street Improvements at 5000 a year,
answers the question. g.
II Mr.. Breen had the making Of the
laws. chapter 622 of the Laws OF 1894
would probably not be on the statute
books now. Chapter go provides that
no allen laborer, mechanic or working
man shall be employed ON public works
of any kind. Mr.. Breen had imported
a nephew of his from ireland who comes
under the ban of this law. But II Mr..
Breen can't make laws, he can construe
and interpret them.
Nephew John J. Breeu was luckier
than most immigrants who land here,
Uncle Matt took care Of him at once and
provided him with a job as axeman at
400 day IN the Department OF Public
Works. When Uncle Matt learned that
John was marked for dismissal. in ac-
622 ne was not disturbed. Another
equally learned authority on law had
What's little thing Ike the constitu,
a mere act of the, Legislature? Mr..
Breen sat down and Thought with himself.
but for momnt only. In that instant
he declared that the Law, might be all
did not refer to Nephew John =
That idea was admirably carried out
by Mr.. Brcen. as will be seen by the
Public Works Mr.. Breen went. TO his
friend DAILY. the Commissioner Of Public
Works. who is paid 5000 to know
Mr. Daily a Suddenly an had his doasts ana
required legal opinion to settle them.
So he wrote to. Corporation Counsel
Clark for a decision; In his letter to
duties OF an axeman place him outside
OF inc classification of a mechanic"
Accompanying this document were
letters RS from as t, many
Is not an axeman. Here Is a sample OF
one of the letters
An axeman in this city performs. strictly
speaking. no manual labor and cannot be called
Is not appropriate, as he really isn't an aAeman.
His duties are. to a great extent technical. II
u.s. as II were. a preparatory school for promotion
to the higher grades OF the profession; p,ssr
Mr.. Risse is the Engineer of the De
partment of Street improvements. The
same opinions were given by Chief En-
gineer Birdsall, Of the Department OF
Farnum and f. Gutenberg, who are de
| scribed as heads OF bureaus Louis Half
| fen, Commissioner of the Department Of
| Street improvements, and NJ. A. Kel-
logg, Engineer of the Park Department.
This note, in Mr.. Breen's handwriting
and signed by him. accompanied, the
| foregoing:
"The inclosed expressions of opinion
were obtained by me without my having
disclosed the particular case In point
or without in any way attempting to
shape the judgments of these gentle.
| men. The question was put to them In
| perfectly fair way, that the answers
given may be relied upon as their best
| judgment"
| Mr.. Breen, when he wrote that letter
| probably did not think that 1t would ap
pear odd that all this expert. testimony
which was obtained without having dis
closed the case in. point was writer
| on letter heads of the Department Of
Street improvements, and on tho sam'
typewriter, and that all the letters Dor.
| the impress of the same master mind
The language varied little. The othei
letters are merely a pharaphrase Of tina
signed by Mr.. Risse. and in some In
stances the language Is identical.
But Mr.. Breen had all his trouble fol-
nothing. The assistant to whom thu
matter was referred by the Corporation
Counsel decided that an axeman wal
just, what his name implied in law ant
In fact. and that chapter 622 could moi
be circumvented by subterfuges.