Smyrna times., 1894-06-13
THE SMYRNA TIMES.
.SmIa'az0, DeI.,
Wednesday Afternoon, June 10, 1894
New YOrk's Police Sensation.

New York is deeply stirred, as we'll
as it may be, by the unsavory revela-
tions concerning the relations between
its policemen, its politicians and its
criminals that are being made before
the Lexow committee of investigation.
If one-half of what has been testified
before the committee within the past
week is true, the city of New York is
certainly in need of purging of its
police department. Several profess
sional law-breakers, whose occupation
it is to keep forbidden resorts, have
sworn positively to having been per-
sistently and Systematically black.
mailed by police captains and ward
politicians. They have named the
dates and places of payments, the sums
paid and the officials to whom paid
with so much circumstantiality that no
mere general denial will be sufficient
to refute their stories. The leading
newspapers of the city of both parties
agree in saying that the accused police
captains must clear their skirts by
something more conclusive than mere
general allegation that persons who
are admittedly criminals are not to be
believed.
Where, for example, the keeper of
criminal resort testifies that he carried
on his unlawful business for long
period under police protection, for
which he paid fixed tariff rate to the
police captain of the district. the court
records will at once show whether or
not during that time he was prosecuted.
And if he was not prosecuted, and the
place can be shown to have been no.
torious one, the burden will be thrown
upon the police captain to explain why.
The salary Of a New York police
captain is $2,750. Yet it is in evidence
that many of them have grown rich
enough to build and live in houses cost
ing $4,000. This in itself does not
prove anything, but it suggests a great
deal. These thrifty gentlemen may be
able to show how they have honestly
and legitimately acquired such ample
wealth, but until they do the public
are justified in drawing their own in =
ferences. Nor does it help to dispel
the general suspicion when it is OBJ
served that several witnesses who were
to testify against the police officials
have been threatened 10 such an extent
that some of them, after being served
with subpenas, have fed out of the
State rather than testify.
Rev. DIR. Parkhurst looms up largely
behind this assault upon the integrity
of "the finest police in the world" He
has long asserted that they are hand in
glove with the criminal resorts which
il is their duty to suppress. In public
letter addressed to the patrOlmen o
the city he appeals to them to come
forward and testify before the commit
tee. He says: 81 know the facts il
the case, first of all, because of wha
considerable numbers of patrOlmeI
, have told me-" The Reverend Doctor
has been widely criticised and sharpl!
censured for his aggressive methods il
probing the vice of the city and lhe re
lations of the police thereto. Never
theless the decent citizens of hOtl
: parties feel now that he has made Ou
! | a primG fdcie case, which the high OF
J ficials, who are accused of using thei
offices to encourage crime and CROWN,
rich with money extorted from law
breakers, must meet squarely or els
stand condemned .-BdltimOre S,tn.