Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-11-27
CITY WORK NOT DONE
ARREARS OF TAXES NOT ENTER
ED UP FOR NEW YORK SINCE 1899

NEW YORK. November 27.-Edward A.
Slattery, collector of assessments and ar
rears was suspended yesterday by Con-
trolter Metz pending an investigation by
the controller of what he said yesterday
he thought were irregularities in the con-
duct Of the bureau
Mr.. Metz said that to all appearances Mr.
Slattery and some of his staff have neg
iected the keeoing Of the records of the
department in order to work for some OF
the title guarantee companies and that the
bureau seems to have been run as a branch
OF the title companies. He said also that
collector Slattery had undoubtedly been
PAID by these companies In return Ior the
work he did for them.
Slattery has been away from his office
IN the Stewart building for ten DAYS.
pieadinS II! health. While he was away
In doing so he discovered a tall nile of
BOOKS marked with the names of the Title
insurance Company, the Title Guarantee
ana trust Company and several other sim
mar mar companies. Some of the books also
pore MI Slatterys own name Mr.. Metz
round that the records of arrears due on
properties In the city were entered I'D
10 GATE In these books, but that the city's
DOORS .s1S, mad not been written up since 1889.
The assumption | have made and nron
eriy so, Think Mr.. Metz SAID yesterday.
is that Mr.. Slattery and the officials of the
department have been practically working
Tor the companies while at the same time
drawing pay from the city Whenever the
city was about to purchase property for
puphc purposes We would sendn to the b,,-
reau for the collection of assessments and
arrears to find out if there were any Hens
on sucn properties. But we were unable
10 get the information because the books
We're not entered up, and the only way
the information sought could have been oo-
tanned would be by searching rough huge
STACKS or assessment rolls which ought to
journals provided for that purpose. The
result was that the city had to pay some
OF these title insurance companies for the
needed information and the peculiar part
OF II is that in paying this money to the
companies the city was paying for data
given to those companies by the city's en-
ployes. have taken possession ofthe books
belonging to the companies and to Mr. Stat
tery, ana intend to make a thorough inves-
tigation.
There will be q big scandal in this de-
partment one of these fine days The ar
rears bureau is not the only one in which
there Is cause for complaint. Some of the
other bureaus need looking into and I in
tend 10 look into them at once l know
already that some of the men in this de-
partment succeeded in fooling Mr. Grout
for four years, but they will not fool me-
ana before L get through with them some
OF them Will lose their places. 1 will clean
up the department # l have to dismiss
every man in it. A lot of these men around
here think they can do as they like under
the impression that they are protected by
the civil service laws, but some of them are
likely to have charges made against them
of neglect of duty so persistent as to war
rant their removal"
According to the controller, the clerks
of Mr.. Slattery's bureau admitted that the
collector and some of the employees in the
Office worked on the books of the com
panies,. but said that this work was done
after office hours and that therefore the
city was not robbed of any time
And that reminds me- Mr.. Metz sud
denly exclaimed, that the men up in that
bureau have been in the habit of sending
in bills for supper money on the excuse that
they had been compelled to work overtime
AS the city's books have not been checked
up 1T looks as If the supper money paid by
the city was for over time work on the
private books