The sun., 1897-10-31
Republican Benefits
to New York City.

lous than the ono to tho effect that the Repub-
lican Reform City Administration has been
efficient and economical. The following Is q list
OF the legislative benefits claimed. with the real
facts In each case brNcketcd in under zach
prcposterous statement OF good to bo placed 70
the credit OF Albany Republican ruie:
It passed tho New York charter in 1873.
tThis was part OF the roform work that wiped
out the Tweed ring, tho credit OF which can
never bo taken from the Democrats who did IL.
This simply calls attention TO the fact that Ro-
publican corruption in Albany made tho ring
robberies possible. The Republican Legislatures
that Tweed owned passed anything he wanted
and paid for.l
II secured the Constitutional amendments
with reference to city government.
III had delayed for years these and other re-
forms W ,ich the people wanted by preventing
the holding OF q Constitutional Convention for
fear the redistricting Of the State would deprive
in the country districts.l
1t gave to the city Of Brooklyn its now famous
charter.
land tinkered with II every year until II lose
almost all of its original fcatures.l
1t gave the metropolis tho Greater New York
charter.
land in so doing continued the discrimination
always shown against this end of tho State In
legislative representation
County Clerks Office.
Under which title companies and private cor
porations wax fat upon the fees which the pub
lie pays.l
1t passed the bill reforming the New York
Registers Office.
Under which measure the same benefits and
emoluments are enjoyed by corporations and
monopolies as in the County Clerks ofice.l
1t passed the bill reforming the New York
Sheriffs Office.
IA measure under which the liability Of the
Sheriff was transferred to the county and the
expenses to the taxpayers greatly increased.l
1t passed the ballot reform bills.
(which resulted in q cumbersome and OF.
travaRant system Of voting, the only good fea-
lures OF which were put in by the hardest kind
Of work by q Democratic Governor. David B.
HILL
1t exposed and fought corruption through the
Fassett Committee.
IA political investiga alton which produced I've
volumes and introduced one law, the latter boz
ing repealed at the very next session to the one
that passed il.
1t gavo the Mayor of New York the unrestrict-
ed power Of appointment.
(which Republican reform Mayor used to
appoint Public Works Commissioner from
Philadelphia, a Building Commissioner from
Philadelphia, a Police Commissioner from
| burg, Fire Commissioner from San Francis
| CO. Supervisor of the city Record from AL
| bany. and Street Cleaning Commissioner from
! Newport.l
Itprevented the present administration from
exceeding the constitutional limit OF indebted
| ness.
| This is the most unkindest cut of all. The
Republican. Reform administrations extrava-
eance is being daily raped by the Democratic
| ,i,par md hut of tha,v,
have given it SO hard hit as this
MAYOR sTRONG's COMMISSIONERS OF
ACCOUNTS
Have spent over TWO hundred and fifty thou
sand dollars in Investigations OF the City Depart
ments under the previous Democratic admi' is-
trations. 1t was a purely political inquiry,
! whose purpose was to justify, il possible, the
| campaign accusations and attacks on Tammany
| officials. The investigation was not without
result. In the expenditure OF two years OF time,
at the expense Of quarter of million dollars,
| the reform Commissioners Of Accounts uncov-
cred q deficiency amounting to $2.1O in the
| accounts Of q clerk in the Registers office.
Perhaps the fatigue and exhaustion following
| the arduous work of those two years will explain
| and excuse the way in which the Commissioners
Of Accounts and the attaches of their office have
performed their public duties since Jan. l. 1897.
of the attendance OF the Commissioners them.
selves. 1t covers so working days from January
| goth TO March 3lst, both inclusive, during
which, under the rules Of the office, the working
hours aggregated 314. Commissioner Terry's
record for this period is that he did noh
attend at the Office at all 27 out OF the
| SO days. In the remaining % days, the
time that he spent at his official desk
aggregated so hours and 90 minutes. or q
| le leaa fhan ixth nf inrr
The record of Commissioner Dennis shows that
he did not appear at tho Office at all lS days out
| Of the So but the time that he spent at his desk
does not aggregate as much as that of his fellow
Commissioner. being only 2S hours and so min-
utes.
FAvORING THE WEALTHY TAXPAYER.
Before the Republican. Reform combination
bamboozled the people OF New York into trust
ing them in 1894, they said that 1ammany ad-
ministrations had kept tho tax rate down BY
raising the assessed valuation OF real estate.
During the six years in which Mayors Grant
and Gilroy administered city affairs there was
an average advance of SOL l706.iT6 per apnum
In the assessed valuation OF taxable real estate.
Under the Republican Reform administration.
between 1894 and 1896, there was an advance
equal to $50 o25, ,7O4 per annun
| The "Reformcrs accepted oil the previous
advances and went seven and half millions
better.
But in one division OF the assessed valuations
| the "Reformers" have been very chary OF max
| ing advances.
| The Democratic adminst rat ions found tho
| valuation OF personal property at $3.50. ,552
| in 1889 and left it in 1894 NJ S390.274,3O2-an
advance Of Sl3e,G5OSJO in six years;
| The Reform administration could find only
1914, ,875 762 OF personal estate on which to levy
the taxes now being collccted-a decrease OF
Sl5, POS. $40 in two years:
The greater part of this amount represents
the assessments of railroads. trust ana insur-
ancc companies, miscellaneous corporations.
resident and nonresident, ,sharcholdeTo OF banks.
Ii is not generally believed that the wenli thus
represented in New York has decreased since
1894.
FALSE CLAIMS ABOUT THE DEATH RATE.
The Reformers" claim that they have greatly
rndncod the dcAth ratio by impIOYinH the snnltA-