New-York tribune., 1902-04-11
SUPERVISORS SCARED.
THEY ARE EXPECTED to PCI
EY.MENBER.S OFF BOARD.
HOW THE WESTCHESTER PRiNll->"
is GIVEN OUT -1NSIGNlFlCANI
PAPERS OFTEN GET 1T.

Owing to the agitation started by The IT'D
une z general housecleaning in the adrnlhlslia d
ton Of westchester County affairs is peiiie
called fer A careful investigation shows that d
cl,oua which controls the Board of Supervisors
is responsible for the trouble. Though the noafd
is numerically Republican. it is asserted that
the organization and party IN no way control IL
On the contrary il is said that 1he members
who are loyal 10 the Republican party are al all
times working fer economy 1t was with them
that the salary BILL which will materially re-
duce expenses after June II, originated
John NJ Shinn of Pelham. chairman of the
Board Of Supervisors, al the first session or the
board issued message in favor of retrench-
lrlent and reform. Mr.. shinn and the Repubh-
can leader also tried to insure better condi-
tion Of affairs by placing on every committee at
least two conscientious men But the board
xas IN session only few weeks when the
CLIQUE composed of Democrats and nominal Re
publicans secured control and began running
things to suit itself At the same time MI
Shirn was taken i'll with appendicitis and was
forced to be absent from the meetings for many
weeks When he returned he found that the
clique had gained control in spite Of the more
conservative members and was running things
at an alarming pace.
These men have continued in power. rushing
Including propositions 20 establish three big
cemeteries in the county. These projects are
the Hickory Grove Cemetery, at Mamaroneck:
the Ferncliff Cemetery near Tarrytown. and
the Kensington in Mount Pleasant. All the
grants have passed the board. but are held up
by Law which the taxpayers got through the
legislature forbidding any more cemeteries to
he established in the county. II is understood
that the Hickory Grove and the Fernclif ceme-
terry promoters will contend that this law does
not Amply to them, because, they assert. their
applications for a grant were filed before the
law was adopted. Some Supervisors have said
10 The Tribune that their names have appeared
as voting for these grants. when as matter of
fact they were not present The results of the
ballots as given in The Tribune taken from
the official daily report issued by the Board Of
Supervisors
REHEARING on INJUNCTION REFUSED.
The opponents Of the Hickory Grove Gene
fery st Iarchnnont and Mamaroneck. are
1ubflant because, in addition the safeguards
which they put around their property by getting
the law forbiddng more cemeteries adopted and
by purchasing the mortgages against the tract
Of land where the Hickory Grove Cemetery As
sociation proposed TO put its burial ground. Jus
1ice Gaynor on Tuesday refused the application
Of their adversares for a rehearing on the
terry. This injunction obtained by
United States Senator Thomas W. Palmer, Of
Mamaroneck. and the papers were drawn prior
to the passage Of the anti-cemetery bill. because
it not certain at the time whether the bill
would be passed or not. Justice Gaynor made
the injunction permanent against the cemetery
but refused to make 1t permanent against the
Board Of Supervisors, saying: What harm can
the board do if they pass such franchise after
the passage Of the act
When the Supervisors meet on Monday it is
said that they will take up motion in relation
TO the ex-nembers who are still serving on the
board and vote put them off. There are four
or five Of these ex-nembers. Although none Of
them were reelected last fall they have all been
serving on the board. One Of them has been
helping the clerk and the others have been on
committees. members Of which they have
entered into NUMEROUS contracts for the county
Well known lawyers at White Plains say that
none Of these contracts would be binding If any
ore took the trouble 10 test their legality. All
OF the former members have been drawing good
pay. The temptation be a Supervisor seems
strong that men still cling to the office after
they beaten at the polls.
Regarding the newspaper meeting controversy
which the board has become involved in. Mr.
Stafford. attorney for John Holden the taxpayer
OF New Rochelle who began the proceedings
says that Justice Marean. in the Supreme Court.
has decided that the injunction prevent the
board from auditing about $4,000 in bills from
the county newspapers for printing town ac-
counts cannot hold because the innocent news
papers would be hurt. Thus 1t appears that
the work Of the Board Of Supervisors in involv-
ing the county in an expense of between So 600
and Sl5.oo0 for the current year must stand
But Mr.. Stafford says that such steps viii be
will ham
again.
The judicial committee Of the Supervisors in
defence OF the action Of the board. says that
while il may not have complied strictly with the
letter OF the law, still the action of the clerk In
giving the printing to newspapers in all parts
OF the county vas wise and proper. as such in
formation necessary for the taxpayers.
HOW THE PRINTING rs GIVEN OUT.
4 publisher cf westchester County in a letter
TO The Tribune. makes interesting state
rnents regarding the manner in which public
printing is given out by the Supervisors. There
are, he says, about thirty-hve newspapers in the
county. about fifteen Of which have circulations
OF more than thousand copies; the others
run from fifty copies up. The newspapers Of
the three Assembly districts each print the
abstracts of town accounts in their respective
districts. This printing is furnished by the
clerk OF the Board Of Supervisors and each Su-
pervisor works to have the paper in his town
have the printing. This. the writer says, fire.
getting IL. II is charged that this patronage is
also used reward for political support.
The grievance OF the writer is that public
money should be expended papers of the
smallest circulation. which charge the same
for the printing the papers which are
widely read. He says il is suspected that
some papers do net do the printing they charge
for. This suspicion is aroused because of the