The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-06-24
INVESTIGATION COMMITTEE
REQUESTED TO SUMMON ENTIRE
 POLICE COMMISSION


 A Letter from City Attorney Webb and
 Captain s. F. Thrasher-win Give No
 More Evidence Unless Their Requests
 Are Complied With-They Ask the
 Committee to summon Any Members
 of Police Force Named.
 The committee on the police investi- gation received a letter yesterday noon signed jointly by City Attorney Howard c. Webb and Capt. Samuel P Thrash CT. The letter makes two requests of the committee and states that unless an affirmative answer is given and their request granted, the signers of the let ter will make no more statements nor present further evidence before the committee.
 The two requests in the letter are the same as made verbally before the com mittee at the hearing Wednesday night. The two gentlemen ask that all the po- lice commissioners and such members of the police force as they shall name shall be summoned and testify before the committee, and shall give assurance that they will be willing to submit to cross ss-examination from the counsel for Messrs Webb and Thrasher. The coun- sel for MT. Webb will be former Corpo- ration Counsel William H. Ely and MT. Thrasher's counsel will be Lawyer E. P. Arvine, while Judge Henry Stoddard will act as associate counsel.
 The declaration is then made that if either of these requests is denied they will take no further part in any exam ination the commission sees fit to make.
 The letter in full is as follows
 New Haven, Conn.,, June 23, 1904. Messrs. Lynde Harrison, Henry Wade
 Rogers and George B. Martin:
 Gentlemen: The charter of the city of New Haven provides in section Il that Tt shall be the duty of the mayor: 1, To cause the laws and ordinances to be executed and enforced He shall be responsible for the good or der and efficient government of said city" The police commissioners are his personal appointees. The mayor is ex-offfcio of the board of police commits sioners. It is understood that you were appointed by the mayor under section 12 of the charter, after conference with and upon the approval of, the police commissioners. You were appointed to examine the affairs of the police de- partment, etc. The facts already stated by us before you involve both the mayor and members of the board of police commissioners. Therefore your appointment comes from the very per- sons whose conduct and administration of public affairs is called in question. It is a universal and invariable rule of justice and of law that no man shall be judge of his own cause or appoint at his pleasure the judges in his own ceuse. Giving you the fullest and larg- est credit as the competent, disinter- ested persons described in the charter, it still remains true that whatever au- thority you have comes through an ap- pointment of persons whose acts are the subject of debate.
 We have called your attention to some of these facts which touch both the mayor and members of the board of police commissioners You have twice said you will not call the mayor as a witness. The board of police commits sioners, through their counsel, MT. Gum, have publicly announced that they will not submit themselves to cross examination by counsel to be ern- ployed by us. It is plain to us that no proper or adequate examination of the police department, it's officers, etc, can be made save and except by calling ali of the police commissioners and many of the members of the police force as witnesses, and having them subjected to cross ss-examination by coun- sel in adverse interest. In so far as you are a disinterested tribunal you, of course, cannot assume such advisory positions to the mayor or to the police commissioners from whom your ap- pointment comes. It is therefore neces- sary that any competent and efficient cross examination should be conducted and controlled by counsel holding such advisory position and occupying criti-