New-York tribune., 1903-06-28
EGAN'SREPLYTOC CHARGES
FORTY DAYS TO DRAW TT
What Messrs. Burke and FIen,ing g
Can Tell About Dock Board.

Counsel Rives is trying to cancel on the ground
Of conspiracy and fraud yesterday put in an
answer to the complaint Of Mr.. Rives. His
counsel, Thomas C. O'Sullivan, used UP forty
days In framing simple general denial of the
charges in the complaint. In fact. it IS so sim
pie that 1t has aroused the suspicion in the Cor
! poration Counsers Office that Mr.. O'Sullivan
must have smiled to himself when he got from
Mr. Rives an extension of twenty days in which
to put in answer.
The complaint of the city alleged as follows:
That Joseph Egan, lessee of the bu1khead be-
tween Twenty-eighth and Twenty ninth sts,
conspired with others N the Dock Department
s57aooo aSs5soo Inc city |" TIE e''i4 'So 0Di'i "
That Egan was at the time. and is now, in
the employ of William H. Burke, who was sec
retary of the Dock Board.
That the Dock Board by resolution awarded
three year lease to Egan.
That Egan and others altered the official min
utes SO to make it appear that instead
of three year thirty year lease had been
awarded.
That Messrs. Cram and Meyer signed this al
legged fraudulent thirty year lease
That Egan and others changed the specified
rental In the alleged fraudulent thirty year
lease from $3.50 year TO $50 year
Mr.. Egan's answer is general denial of these
charges. He denies that he ever conspired with
any person to deprive the city OF its bulkhead;
denies that the minutes were altered for his ben
eft, that any resolution for that purpose was
resolution granting the lease was regularly
adopted on November s. 1901 and that in pur-
suance of the resolution he has been in possess
sion Of the bulkhead since. He denies that the
rent is grossly Inadequate, that it is fraudu-
lent or void or that it is worth $4,000 to $4,000
year.
SUBPGNAED FOR TOMORROW.
Ex-Police Magistrate William H. Burke, for
mer secretary Of the Murphy -Cram-M Meyer Dock
Board and John Fleming, junior partner OF the
firm Of Brown & Fleming, have been subp9naed
by Justice Mayer to an examination to begin to-
morrow at the Criminal Courts Building.
No two men. except the former Dock Corn1nis
sioners themselves, know more about the inside
workings of the old Dock Board than Messrs.
Burke and Fleming. It is charged in the COM
plant of the Corporation Counsel in the action
TO cancel the alleged fraudulent lease Of the
Tventy-ninth-st buIkhead that Joseph Egan.
the lessee was and still is in the employ of Mr..
Burke.
It became known that the Erie Railroad had
bought block of North River property at
Twenty-eighth and Twenty-ninth sts. for
freight yard. This made the bulkhead immedi-
ately in front of the yard extremely useful TO
the company, and it set about getting it. Egan
was too quick for it, however. The week follow
/ ing the election in 1901 Egan made applica-
ton for q lease OF the buIkhead between
Twenty-seventh and Twenty-eighth sts This
fact should be remembered as it illustrates the
slovenly manner in which things were done by
the old board. Perhaps Egan did not know just
where the Erie going to have its new yard
ANYWAY he made a mistake in his application
/ for a bulkhead if he had it in mind to hold up
/ the company. His application went to the
board. and the board at once gave him not what
he asked for, but a lease of the bulkhead one
) han +Ha ard a
gave Egan what he probably really was aiming
10 get-that is the bulkhead just in front of the
Fries new yard. His application was for a
three year lease. and this was what the board
gave him in its resolution But then something
very remarkable happened. The official minutes
were changed so as to make it appear that the
lease had been made for a thirty year term IN
stead of three years. The terms of the lease
said that Egan should pay $3.50 year This
sum was al first incorporated in the lease. and
then the figures were changed so as to make
the price only $3.50 a year Whether the lease
terms were changed before or after it was
signed bv Messrs Cram. Meyer and Burke for
the city and Egan for himself is not known but
the existence of specific figures in the minutes Of
the board would indicate that the alterations
were made afterward. The lease itself shows
that hje the alteration was made IN one IN
sta,ca II was not made in another instance, thus
leaving the terms OF the IeisF Iii' ''i'Si0e--' 49,
itself AS the custodian Of the city docu-
+ nents in possession OF the DOCK Department M.
Burke was responsible for the safe keeping OF
I the leases He will have 70 explain 10 AS
sistant District Attorney Clarke how II hap
pened that some one got at them and made
numerous alterat tiOns.
WHAT MR. FLEMING KNOWS
John Fleming is another star witness, pro-
,,aed Mr. Clarke can induce him TO tell half
= ,h.+ ba knows about the enormous profits OF
Continued fourth page.