The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-03-03
nLAcKMAm As A HERITAGE.
The Cornerstone of Police Black
mail in New York Laid in Peter
Stuvvesant's Day.


From the Century Magazine
In stuyvesants time many abuses of
roOsr and assessment were grated upon
.ba eternal customs Of the town. Shortly
after his arrival he observed that "one
f,u forth part Of the city of New Amster-
dam have become bawdy houses for the
sale of ardent spirits. of tobacco and
tear." on some Of the business streets
this proportion still holds good. He inau-
elrated Sunday closing with the result
perpetuated to our time, of side-door
opening. Fines were established for this.
that, and the other infraction of regula-
rions which afforded the constables a legal
basis for making reprisals. In 1858 eight
men were constituted the rattle-watch,
and we're authorized to take lookup
money" and fees. which sums were to be
brought into the house Of the captain Of
the watch, and held for the benefit Of the
members. a "divy," as it is now called, oc-
curing four times a year.
Thus extortion was put, as it were, upon
a basis of police discretion and right; but
there was a rule against setting up a So
cial club on the proceeds. So the habit of
police collections, contracted as pleasure
able duty, has been handed down as a vast
and secret ''perquisite" of the guardians
Of the public peace; and it must not be
overlooked that from those days to these
the police of the city have been in the
personnel a continuing body. 1t was as
necessary then as now to admonish the
police not to use violence upon peaceful
burghers
"Burgher right" after the Dutch GUS
tom, was granted by StuyYesant to please
the citizens, and prevailed as a trading
and electoral qualification of "freemen''
into our own century Stuyvesant fixed
the fee of great burghers," from whom
municipal officers We're chosen, at fiftv
FORMS and of small burghers," quail
fed to pursue a trade or to keep shop, at
twenty-five fiorins. Partly from this acorn
has grown the Tammany oak of assess
ments and reprisals on merchants.
Followers Of shady callings in the early
days were the spoil of the autocratlc au-
thorities, just as they have been TODAY
Of equally irresponsible blackmailers
Some Of the earliest settlers were free
hooters from the Spanish main. Snug
Cling was as common as Indian cheating.
and Stuyvesant and other governors. Eng
lsh as well as Dutch, were openly charged
with sharing in the profits of Illicit trade
Subsequent to the Dutch governors piracy
found in Manhattan its chief emporium.
Even reputable merchants devised moral
and legal bubbles for engaging in sea.
poaching, usually under the cover of So
called privateering. The great William
Kidd was peculiarly a Manhattan product
Gov Fletcher in 1923 admitted that he had
exchanged presents" with the notorious
pirate Thomas Tew, but explained that
his chief desire in seeking his amusing
conversation" was ito reclaim him from
a vile habit of swearing parallels
the Tammany theory that a proper way to
reclaim indicators is TO appoint them to
public office In 1898 the Earl of Bellomont,
who had succeeded Fletcher as governor.
complained to the English lords of trade
that he had endeavored to place four mer-
chantmen, about to clear for Madagascar,
under bonds not to supply pirates at that
notorious trysting-place with supplies, and
bring their booty to Manhattan; but the
council, some Of them being concerned in
these ships, he writes, Unanimously op-
posed this method, as not prescribed by
law, and because it was never practieed
here before, so 1 was forced to discharge
the said ships"