The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-24
MORE HANONE"DISCHARGED"
VARIOUS PRISONERS AND A
CLERK or SPECIAL SESSIONS.
Somebody Has been Letting Accused Grim.
InaIs Go without Trial. and the Court
Lets One Of Its Clerks Go without
Troubling TO Accept His Resignation.

sions have discovered that prisoners who
should nave come before them for trial
have been discharged without a trial, or
rather that the papers In the cases have
been marked discharged which would
mean that these cases would not get on the
calendar Of the court In the ordinary course
OF events. As a result Of what the Justices
learned Herbert s. Mase. who had been a
clerk Of the court for eleven years, was
dismissed last week, the Judges refusing
to accept his resignation.
An investigation has been begun TO learn
Just how many cases have been disposed
Of in this way. The investigation has been
going on for two days, but every effort
has been made to keep the dismissal OF
Mase and the circumstances leading up
to it as quiet as possible, and it has been
difficult to get any one connected with the
court to say what the investigation has
developed. A report Of what Is discovered
will he made to District Attorney Jerome.
A week or 80 ago Assistant District At
torney Miner, who is in charge Of the bond
NCi VI NNC oNtS hNhSAH~
Office, was looking over some old bail cases
charged to Special Sessions. His attention
was caught by two cases against Harry
Holmes, a negro who ran a dance hall In
West Thirtieth street. When Bob Spriggs,
the negro dive keeper, who was convicted
and sent to Sing Sing for twenty years,
was under fire Holmes closed up his place,
! the District Attorneys office having received
~. H. II,lnNa. Ial lA.V, IN NhA
same business.
Mr.. Mine found on his books that Holmes
had been arrested on January ~, this year,
for selling liquor without a license. Holme
had a dance hall on the second floor OF
lO4 West Thrift eth street. On March 4
he was arrested again for the same offence.
Each time he had been bailed out and Mr..
Miner had heard in an indeini tie way that
Holmes had left the jurisdiction, With
that in mind he called on Charles W. Gull
kin, Tamnany leader and chief clerk Of
Special Sessions, and told him that some
thing ought 10 he done about bringing
Holmes to trial. MIR. Culkin got the papers
in the two cases against Holmes and said:
why. there is nothing against him. He
has been discharged in each case"
Mr.. Miner was surprised. and he looked
over the papers. Sure enough in each
case discharged" had been written across
the back Of each paper. indicating that the
prisoner had been arraigned lsefore the
court aud set free.
That's queer, " said Mr.. Miner. Il wonder
why l haven't heard anything about bail
being discharged in this case"
MIR. Miner Immediately went to Justice
Zeller in Special Sessions. Justice Teller
waa astonished, too. He knew That IL
wasn't the practice OF the court to dis
charge men caught for selling liquor with
out a license. The general rule is 10 impose
a pretty heavy line. Justice Ieller looked
into the thing himself. talked with his
| colleagues and soon learned that Holne
had never been srraigned before them.
A meeting of the Justices was called and
Mase was summoned. In the meantime
he had a talk with Assistant Clerk William
Fuller, who got him his job eleven years
ago. At that time Mase was an elevator
boy in the st. George Hotel in Broadway.
As a result Of his talk with Mr.. Fuller Mase
was prepared to act when lie was summon eel
by the Judges.
Here il my resignation, +" he said.
He was told that he would have to make
an explanation OF how discharged" came
to be written on the Holmes papers, and
after he had done that the question OF con-
sidering his resignation would be discussed.
To the astonishment Of the Justices, Mase
declined to make an explanation, and he
was at once dismissed.
No one will say whether or not Mase adj
mitted that he tempered with the papers.
As an assistant clerk he had the run Of the
court, and from his long experience he was
familiar with the work Of the clerks Office
Of Special Sessions. There has been no ac-
cusation that Mase had any pecnniary
interest in seeing that Holmes was carried
on the records Of Special Sessions as having
been tried and acquitted. IL ia possible
that some system will be arranged to pre-
vent a recurrence Of the thing in the future.
1t was recalled that Mase was a witness
in the investigation which was made after
Matthew +. Lynch, a clerk in the District
Attorneys Office assigned TO Special Ses-
sions, resigned in September, 1904. Lynch's
resignation came after Mr.. Jerome learned
some things about what was happening to
liquor cases in Special Sessions.
A bartender for James McEvoy, a saloon
keeper at 2I38 Second avenue, had been
arrested for violating the excise law. Ac-
cording to McEvoy he was approached by
Lynch, who said that for $50 he could pre-
vent the case from DelnR tTleu. lueTe
was some scheme by which McEvoy's law
yer could enter a demurrer and then the
case would never be heard of again as a
result Of a little tampering with the papers.
McEvoy was a friend of Sheriff Hayes,
then Fire Commissioner. and couldn't see
why Lynch should get $50 from him. es-
pecially as he knew that Lynch owed his
appointment to the political influence OF
Sheriff Hayes. SO McEvoy promptly told
Mr.. Hayes of the proposition made by
Lynch, and Mr.. Hayes as promptly marched
to Mr.. Jerome's Office with McEvoy and
told Mr.. Jerome the story. IL wasn't long
before Lynch handed in his resignation.
At that time Mr.. Jerome stated that a
clerk in the o Of Special Sessions was
implicated with Lynch. An investigation
was mad by the Justices OF Special SEES
sions and Mase. among others, was called
as a witness. No report was ever made
of the result OF the investigation. although
Mr.. jerome presented evidence as strong
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