The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-08-27
AN EXAM. FOR MCULLAGH.
CORPORATION COUNSEL SAYS HE
~ ONLY ACTING CHIEF.

Not LIKELY 70 have Successful Competitors In .
civil service CoRtest-The Entirs Rolioe
rorc. 10 ne RsmoseiIel During the Four
po,trs which ne IL Scheduled 70 Serve.
Police Chief Mccullash sat through his nrst
Ssv in Byrnes's chair uncovered In roaes. So
many flowers were sent In by friends from far
and near that they fairly filled the onlce. Tele-
grams and letters by the basketful were piled
upon tho new Chiefs desk. There was no time
20 do anything beyond reading them, and there
was nothing to do. By established custom the
office reserves for every new Chief his arst day
FOR holiday making. He has few enough after
that.
Along in the afternoon the first little drop OF
-all was distilled into the Chiefs cup Of JOY.
The Corporation Counsel decided that Nc.
Cullagh was not really Chief yet, that Is, not
wholly, 80 to speak, but at least legally Act
Ing Chief" and that the Civil Service law ruled
in his case, supcrscding the bipartisan law.
This was expected. There had seemed to DO q
noss;bility, a moro chance, that the board In
amounting him had made him full Chief a.
once, and it was willing that It should DO 20.
But that was not TO be. Corporation Counsel
Scott had been down to Police Headquarters
during the day. Along In the afternoon Mr..
Connolly, his assistant, sent o preliminary
opinion to Headquarters with the stAtemont
that 1t represented also Mr.. SCOTS views. The
body Of the opinion read as follows:
I'm answer to your communication 1 beg to
remind you that the rules for examinations
In your department, together with the question
as ~ what positions require examination be-
FORE they can be ll!ed, 10 before the State Civil
Service Board, which will meet on or about
Sept. 10 and determine under section I Of tho
civil Service law of 1897 whether or not ex-
t..,,zn nra ,rapti,obla fnr thya ,nl akhn-
positions IN your department, and. II p~racticA-
ole, whether they should DO competitive.
AS things stand now, and until action by the
State Board OF Civil Service Commissioners
no examination could be had, even II one were
deemed to be necessary.
In view OF tho circumstances, / advise you
that Mr.. McCullagh Is at least legally Acting
Chief under your resolution, and. therefore.
should conduct the affairs Of the department,
20 far as regards the uniformed force, until the
state Civil service Board ks met and acted on
The questions suggested.
III. when you receive the rules as approved
by tho state Board. you will communicate with
Nj, McCulaSh should act under the resolution
passed by your board"
Thus the new Chief is in all probability to
undergo examination. Into tho competition
may enter, any Captain, or Inspector, who
pleases, and also the Deputy Chief. The latter
fa.hion others I may decide to = follow. IT was
suggested that, II they did not SO decide, there
we're veterans whom the law gives the prece'
Civil ServiceIaw,, the rating Of tho candidates
for fitness, and they have already decided by
;ast :, sh Siis. that TbsIs u Sl ssSaar i ths n ifssit h5 IL man III.
hood OF his being disturbed SO long as the three
Commissioners stand together.
ms the powers Of an Acting Chief. No such
Office is mentioned In the bipartisan law, while
.s,,I Pep Ot ,S Ssiss; 's or 1Rs G II tse case x. Of he x AZ
all his power and functions. It is a sufficient
answer to this that the law directs lnat in The
Oiled BY appointment By resolution Of the board
II the result Is an Acting Chief, a. the Corpora
S hon G ,Ss sex seems ~ e oh h9 aSia se must Tns Of ! ne &c ssity
lin. who was Acting Chief FOR months, and exer
cised all the powers of transfer. detail. &C., L
It is not probable that it will take Mr.. Nc
CuliAgh long % mako up his mind what to do
s sGr he e, has ss no. .: s,l long to do it i in; Four @ar month NON b
deuonstrste his fitness 10 be the Chief of tn
detective force to DO reeass The Chief ane
Capt. O,Brien Dad q long talk yesterday after
"sG say. MhA It i likely ike s9 sIas S Mrt 5'B Tes E has e
ssas. SyATisa hss SunslsS the vRols desee
many men as Byrnes had at his command, h,
mas really not accomplished as much, ant
h SsA lace he n as et aSns Ees be esdn b tass III ,s sp2 nsr' b II
vanity. and his yindictiveness. which has be
SeRisd Of Eiy 5ssk. H HE s STls. %eG I R3lf ar at hin
he takcn iEoa the outside, out OF one OF the pre-
ctncts. so as to put new blood into the Office a
once.
There will also have to be some overhaulins
Of the stat " Inspectors, and it is very likely
ina, The change viii bs thorough. There Il
IN! one reai inspector, Mclaughlin; the other
hold acting rank. and can be moved and re
placed at short notice, or no notice. The ware
men are likely also 10 have their records lookeC
into. They were abolished as a body after III,
teXow exposures, and put back la. er. but they
have not done well. Much pull" has beef
worked through them, and 1t Is wholly prob
Ib.e that they Will be made to pay for 1t. 1
general moving round. a change OF personnel
may not be considered sufficient. 1t Is posi-
BILE that the whole institution may be ono,
more made to walk the plank. In any event
there are squally times ahead for the Captain
man.