The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-06-22
KINGS IN BLAoKmA1L1Ne.
Enormous sums Squeezed by the Po-
lice of New York.

: From the P1lladelphla Record
New York, June 13.-For sometime
! past a senatorial committee has been at
work Investigating the methods of the
/ police department of this city Senator
! Lexow is chairman, and the probe has
! been put in so deep rs TO show great cor
I ruptiOn among police commissioners. and
nearly all persons attached TO the force.
BlacEmail has been levied on everybody
that IL has been possible to get one cent
from. Including S5.139, 1854 for salaries.
the police of this city extOrt from the
people the enormous sum of about $l5,
100000.
The testimony brought out by the
LeXOw legislative investigating commit
tee, now in session here, shows that the
police, in addition to their salaries from
the city, have had an additional income
contributed by the keepers of disorderly
houses, saloons, gambling houses, mer-
chants and push-cart peddlers. This ex-
ira income is called paying protection
by those who pay. By the public
it is sometimes called blackmail.
The police probably called it perquisites.
SQUEEZING sALooNKEEPERs.
While an accurate estimate Of the in
come of the police from these sources is
impossible at this stage of the investiga-
ton, enough facts have been made public
are, as shown by the last annual re-
port of the board of excise, 1000 saloons
in this city. Most of them keep their
side doors open on Sunday, and after
legal hours at night. The price for pro-
lection for Sunday side-door opening va
ries according TO the location and amount
of business. The average is believed to
be SO a week for each saloon. Police
protection would, therefore, cost the $500
saloonkeepers, if only one-half the total
nun Der of saloons paid at this rate the
following large sums.
$500 saloons, $40 a week each. S35, 600.
$500 saloons. 50 weeks, S1s20,OOO.
FLEECING DIsoRDERLY HOUSES.
Assistant Chief Clerk Delamater of
the police department estimates that
there are about As, 600 abandoned women
in the city. Taking the United States
census estimate of five persons to a house,
the police estimate the number OF i'm
moral woman, As 900 shows that there
must be 5000 disorderly houses in the
city. According to the alleged police
schedule developed in the investigation,
So-called straight houses paid $500 initia-
ton fee, and fats $500. 1t is estimated
that the business is about equally dis
tributed between fats and houses, so
that the average initiation fee
is S400 or S3,6OO,O0O for openinp
VIZ AouoNSs 3ASNOAhlLE W blA6 bNlubuCb
before the LeXow committee, the keepers
of these houses are required to pay from
$50 to 500 a month, so that the average
monthly rate for police protection is SIS.
In addition to these fixed charges for the
protection" of disorderly houses, the
testimony before the Lexow committee
shows that there were numerous extra
charges, which varied according to cir
cumstances. Some times the ward man
wanted an extra $40 or S25 for some
special favor. Then the patrolman of the
post would occasionally want s. or $40.
The protection paid for seems TO have in
cluded an occasional raid, and when these
were made it was necessary to pay for
extras Of various kinds.
OTHER SOURCES OF INCOME.
The gam bling houses, in the days when
they fourished in the "Tenderloin" pre-
cinct and other sections of the city, are
reported to have contributed rather
literally to the aid of the police Then
there are the policy shops. These two
are estimated to be worth S1650OO. The
minor sources of extra income are numer-
Gus, but they are so diversified that no
specific or ad valorem rate of protection
can be fixed. Special rates are levied for
this Incidental protection according to
circumstances, the main circumstance
governing the amount demanded being
the necessity Of the victim and his will
ingness to pay for protection. Fifty
thousand dollars is put down as a low
total for the collections for sidewalk
privileges from merchants and peddlers.
Witnesses have testified that it costs
$500 to get on the police force. The ap-
pointments to the force will average 200
men a year. If they all pay the fee of
$500 for their appointment they add the
neat little sum of $50, 900 year to the in
come of somebody.
In addition to all this it is alleged that
some police captains and sergeants, etc,
have paid $4,000, S., 900 and s., 900 for ad-
vancement.
AN ENORMOUS TOTAL.
This brings up the total annual income
of the force close to SIS, O0O,00G divided
as follows
From the city for salaries ...s5, 1876. t47 "a
FROM saloons. ............. $50 900 90
From disorderly houses .......-... g. 100 O0J 90
From merchants and peddlers..... $4,000 90
Gambling houses ................... 165 900 90
Total Observation-Disclosures. PA 147 81
1t would seem better to be a policeman
on the ground floor than member of the
sugar trust
An Incorruptible Public Servant Speaks
III the gam bling houses of this town" said
the alderman from the 'Steenth ward, red
with righteous indignation, ARE held up by
the police authorities and those above them
TO the tune of $500 month, l say it's an in
fernal shamel The high officials who take
that money" he added, striking the desk
before him with eienched fist, must divvyl"