New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-04-13
THE DOCK DISCLOSURES.

on Thursday evening Mr.. Andrew j. Nhl'e III
dcatcd A willingness 10 have his attention called
to certain transactions Of the Dock Department
rs described by the new president of the Board,
and accordingly copy of Mr.. OBrien's state
nent was laid before him. That statement
showed that the city had Received several nun
Jrcd thousand dollars less for the use Of one Of
lis piers during a period of twenty years than II
might and should have received, said pier having
been sublet without authority at far higher
rental than the department charged. Mr. White
read the published report slowly ana carefully,
stoppipg ONLY once to remark that n good deal
"of this seems to have happened before ! was
horn" This observation did not explain the
matter. but tended rather to make II appear still
more peculiar. and if Mr. White had said moth
ing further, il would have been generally felt
that he had not done justice 10 his powers for
he is conceded to be a man of great dScernmcni.
Prior TO the last election for example. he diS-
cerncd the advantage of rcsigning Police Jus
tlceslip paving $1,000 a year. while the end OF
his term was vet afar off. for Dock Commits
sionership at a salary Of $1,000 year. with n
precarious tenure The tenure proved to be CON
siderably more precarious than he had Imagined
which doubtless disturbed his calculations and
caused frivolous persons To laugh. Bl' m "S'ap-
liShcd reputation for practical sagacity Is not
forfeited by a single error Of Judgment, anu Mr.
White is still regarded as man who knows a
| good thing when h. sees it
| To return from a slight DEPRESSION. Mr. White
| having read President O'Brien's statement
/ through attentlvey. added 10 his previous allu-
sion TO the date OF his birth this pregnant re
| mark: 1T is true there was a covenant IN the
| lease that provided that the Board should he
| Uniformed and give its consent before any sub
| "lease should be made. If there was any rrcgu-
| "larity, II was this on the part of the company
| eff the Board had known anything about ms
"subletting without permission, it would have
| "revoked the permit" This explanation CORE
spOnds TO the prevalent estimate OF MI White ;
acumen but having said so much II Is pity
he did not say a little more by way of showing
how IL happened that new members or the DOCK
Board were able within a few weeks AFTER thelr
appointment 10 ascertain so many interesting
facts which had escaped the yigilant scrutiny or
their predecessors year after year. This Is pre-
clsely where the people, being simple ana easily
| confused, run up against an obstacle which they
| can't surlnount They need assistance, ana Mr..
White really ought to put his superior abilities
at their service On the face Of things II seems
as if IL would have been possible Tor the DOCK
Department under previous administrations, and
especially after Mr.. White had been transferred
! from the bench TO the board, To obtain AT least
| n GLIMPSE Of the use which lcssccs were making
Of public property under It's charge. or course
II wasn't possible or officials Of such zeal, ca
pacity and experience would have known what
was going on
After all, on further reflection we are not sure
! but il Is lust as well that the new Dock Board,
having made this extraordinary discovery. should
be permitted to explain it. Perhaps Mr.. White
would not succeed, if he tried. He probably
doesn't understand public functionarics Of the
| OBrien type He has never been officially asso-
| ciated with such persons, and they must be
mystery TO him. Doubtless he could tell how he
| and his colleagues were batfied, but the people
have clcw TO their failure already. Besides, the
new Dock Commissioners are not AT tho end OF
| their investigation, and If Mr. White should once
! begin to explain he might have 10 keep on talk
| ing Indefinitely. and then never catch mp.