The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-01-03

true of those departments whose admin
istration is confined to the county lines.
In this direction desire to call your at
tention to the fact that many of the pub
lie offices in that city are receiving lar
ger remuneration for their services than
that which is given to the President of
the United States. Your attention is
called to few instances of this charac-
ter. The sheriff of the county of New
York receives an annual salary of $780,
600, and one-half of the fees, which are
said to amount to 100000 per year more.
The claim has been made heretofore that
the sheriff takes great financial esponsi
bility, and is therefore entitled to addi
tional compensation. This is not now
true in effect, because he can at all times
demand bond of indemnity. and thus
save himself from all harm. 1t would
seem to me that salary of $20 900 would
be ample for this office. The same may
be said of the county clerk and the reg
istrar of the county of New York, whose
salaries are excessive. In the county of
Kings the combined salaries of the sheriff,
county clerk and registrar amount TO
$685. 900 per annum. This could be re-
duced by abolishing the fee system, and
ance to be paid into the treasury for the
purpose of reducing the taxes upon prop
erts,.
The Police Department of New York
City receives considerable attention in
the Governors message. Mr.. O'Dell is Of
the opinion that much of the difficulty now
existing in this department is due to
devided responsibility and lack of GEN.
:.
have We" he asks, "for this manifest
evil, which brought the police force of the
city of New York into such disrepute?
A State Constabulary has been suggested,
but the strong disinclination upon the
part of the other municipalities through
out the State to acquiesce in this solu-
ton renders this plan valueless. met
ropolitan police system is open to the
criticism that it is violation of the prin-
ciple of home rule guaranteed by the Con-
stitution. We are therefore brought to
face this proposition with no apparent
remedy as yet suggested. In my opinion
there should be a complete Capitalization
of power There is no necessity, it seems
to me, for commissioner who is not
in effect as well as in name the absolute
head of the police system of the City of
New York An efficient man, the choice
of the mayor, as a single headed COM
missioner, with all the powers now pos
sessed by the chief Of police, would at once
narrow down the responsibility and place
it within the power of the chief executive
of the State to hold accountable, the
mayor and the commissioner thus APP
pointed. This suggestion. il given effect
by legislative enactment, would in
my opinion, be no violation of the principle
of home rule"
The message recommends the entire
separation of the Bureau of Elections
from the Police Department of the City
of New York. and the creation of BIZ
partisan election bureau.
Among the novel features advocated
by the new Governor is the enactment of
an employers liability law, or the estab-
lishment of a system of forced insurance
of the employees by the employer, the OBJ
ject being to place the employees on the
same footing as the individuals not en-
ployed, in cases of injury or death to the
employee resulting from negligence on the
part of the employer.
The message further recommends ex-
empting mortgages from taxation, the
consolidation of the Forest Preserve
Board and the Forestry, Fish and Game
Commission and the improvement and en-
largement of the State Prison at Sing
Sir.