New-York tribune., 1903-03-02
GREENE'S GOOD WORK.
TWo MONTHS CHANGES.
Mew Gomn'issio''e'- iStirs ZIP Officers
Defecfiues and WaFdnen.

In the opinion Of his subordinEtss in the Po-
lice Department, General Francis W Greene has
made more police history and has done more 10
frpruve the efficiency of the force in the two
nionshs since fhe was appointed commissioner
thzn any other head OF the department was
able to accomplish In a year. His celertty OF
action. ouickness Of Judgment and ability to
see what was necessary to be done promptly
have sstcniEhed the officers Of the department
and have won their admiration and respect.
SonTe Of them have declared that General
Greene's irst week In Office was record breaker.
Few heads OF departments do anything the nTst
week except take their bearings and seek infor-
nation about routine duties. General Greene,
by retaining Deputy Commissioners Piper ana
Ebstefn and consulting with them before ne look
once. was ready for action the day he took
command at Police Headquarters. His record
for January ] was az follows:
Appointed chief inspector. Moses W. CoTt-
right; appointed -orough inspectors, Patrick H.
Mclaughlin for Boroughs OF Brooklyn and
Queens; Nicholas Brooks for Boroughs Of Man.
haitian, The Bronx and Richmond.
Ordered offices of district inspectors to be
moved from No. 800 Mulberry-st., Manhattan,
and No 10 Smith-st.. Brooklyn. to precinct
st lions within the limits of their respective dis
tricts- Heretofore some Of the district inspec-
tors had Offices fifteen miles from their dis
Tricts.
Appointed W. s Coursey private secretary,
and John ]. CorkhiII formerly private secretary
complaint clerk.
Suspended all officers under charges and
awaiting trial.
The effect Of General Greenes order to sus-
pend all policemen. from inspector to patrol
man, Who were under charges has had the ef-
feet to hasten trials of several officers. and in
the two months of his term the commissioner
has dismissed one inspector and two captains
and has retired seven captains on their own
applications for pensions. He has been able
90 appoint one inspector. ten captains, four
teen sereeants and eighteen roundsmen.
On January General Greene struck blow
at the system OF police bIackmail by ren1anding
te patrol duty all the ''wardmen' in the city.
30G in number. Many of the detectives IN the
precincts had been doing duty i'm plain clothes
as confidential men. of the captains for ten or
twelve years
Before the end of the first week the COM
missioner issued an order directing all captains
10 keep Individual memorandum books. show
ing the exact nature OF the, patroling done by
Them Heretofore no recordNof this was kept,
except an entry in the blotter. Captain ---
on pstroI" One result Of this order is that
General Greene whenever he takes flying
trip in his automobile to q distant station is
able by an inspection Of the captains book to
Hnd out what work the captain has been doing.
General Greene began his second week at Po-
lice Headquarters by ordering reorganization
OF the detective service. He placed Inspector
Brooks in charge Of the entire service, with
two new captains I.angan in Manhattan and
Formoss in Brooklyn, to aid him in command
OF the two bureaus. Since then many of the
detective sergeants have been transferred or
remanded to patrol duty, and there have been
many changes among the patrOimen detailed
Of Increased efficiency Of the detective service
have been plentiful
The clsu1oring of patrolrnen for a return to
the three platoon system of patrol duty, which
was tried with disastrous results by Commits
sIoner Murphy and abandoned by Commissioner
Partridge. was stopped by General Greene when
he placed in operation six section system, un-
der which one-third Of the men are kept on
post and one-sixth in reserve at the stations at
all hours, day and night. Officers of the de-
partment not agreed that the present sys-
tenn is better than the two platoon system re-
vived by Colonel Partridge, but General Greene
has been able TO show an increase Of arrests
AZ an indication Of more police activity under
The practice of compelling patroimen to sub
scribe for presents to their superior officers
every time captain is transferred to a new
precinct or wants fancy club for parade oc-
cssiOns has been stopped by an imperative
order. Hereafter captains will not go to new
precincts attended by displays Of floral horse
shoes ten feet high. paid for by compulsory pO-
lce subscriptions.
General Greene lately began a reorganization
OF the police force in the Tenderloin. transfer
ring to other precincts in one day one-fourth
of all the patrOlmen and sending men from
distant stations to take their places. The re-
organisation Is to he continued. il is under
stood. until the policemen OF the precinct give
more determined aid To Captain Miles OReilly
in closing up gambling houses and dens Of
vice.
Reforms I'm police work iE preventing obstruc-
.ions to street traffic are being planned by the
commissioner Captain Piper. who is studying
tho problem in London. is expected upon his
return 60 give some valuable suggestions on
that subject.
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