The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-17
CALL FOR CEMETERY REFORM.
LUTHERAN LOT OWNERS PITCH
INTO THE MANAGEMENT.
Say the Geissenhalners Run Things for
Their wi Benefit and Boss the An
nual Election Magistrate Wuhle says
IheA should AcCnnnI for FIflN Years.

were made last night at a mass meeting
Of lot owners held at the Teutonia Assembly
rooms, 1853 Third avenue. 1t was alleged
that the cemetery WAS in control OF one
family, that the trustees in defiance OF the
law prevented the lot owners from voting
at annual elections and that the cemetery
had been used as an opportunity for private
gain. while flags and flowers were stolen
from the graves and the place was allowed
to look like a Circus"
As a result of the speeches made, among
them one by Magistrate Wahle, the meet
ing organized itself into a permanent asso-
citation to demand an accounting from the
trustees of every dollar received and paid
out since 1852.
The present trustees OF the cemetery
are Frederick w. ~Geissenhainer OF Sea Gin,
Jacob A. Geissenhainer and F.. W Hunter
of 90 William street. NJ. H. Getty, whose Of
fee is in the Grand Central Station, and
Jacob F. Milet Of 100 Broadway. Most
IL not all OF them are descendants OF old
Dr.. Geissenhainer. the Lutheran clergyman.
who founded the cemetery In 1852. 1t Is
now the biggeet German cemetery in Greater
New York and contains the graves OF the
Slocum dead. 1t liz in Middle Villa Re,
near Ridgewood.
Under the Law under which such cemeteries
are incorporated all lot owners havethe right
to vote for trustees and should control the
m~anagemen OF the cemetery. But II was
charged that. whatever we're the old minis
ter's motives his sons who became lawyers,
had fixed things 81 that the cemetery has
remained absolutely in the hands OF the
family.
Philip Wagner of 1888 Second avenue, the
chairman of a committee that started the
investigation which led to last nights meet
ing, told Of his visits to the Geissenhamers'
office to find out something about the GEM
g tery's MANAGEMENT. He said that the
object of the meeting was to get the GEM
etery out of the hands of that family. He
said that he had gone to the sons OF the old
clergymen, now wealthy men, and asked
that the lot owners be given two trustees.
The cemetery. although its income was
$40, 600 a year. he said, had only a few thou
sand dollars in the bank and to his surprise
the G~eissenhamers told him that there wal
Ss7, 900 out in certificates of Indebtedness.
They offered to give over the cemetery
il got the Ss7, 600" said MIR. Wagner. Il
said all right, but when | went back a sec
ond time It was $500 900 they wanted for II.
| told them that we would have nothing
IlOIb W III III IllCtI' iiCil thS tNtN ivy
would give any one who interfered the bit
terest fight on record and intimated that
money was no object
At this point Mr.. Wagner was Interrupted
and it looked for n minute as il serious
trouble was coming. The interrupter was
a man who got up eXcitedly and eaid:
as the object of this meeting to insult the
GeisSenheimers?"
There we're 500 persons then In the hall
and they were not at all in a mood for this;
1har~ ,.arn orinp IF sItIf him nIlt1" "SRn6
him home"
Il know who you are. You're a Geissen-
hainer," shouted Mr.. Wagner. The man
sat down.
Then Mr.. Wagner went on to say that
there were IS. 600 lot owners. The law pro-
vides that unless one-ffth of the lot owners
vote the election isn't valid but he said the
Geissenhainer got around this by having
three of the members OF the family who are
trustees cast 875 votes n then a daughter
of Jacob A. G~eissenhainer would come in
and cast l3. 600 ~more-those of unsold lots.
Don't give up the fight, " he said: Let
us all go over to this annual meeting on
Monday. They have fixed it 80 that the
polls are only open from II to O'Clock.
Do you think 5000 votes can be deposited
in that time? Tammany Hall wouldn't go
us far as that
Mr.. Wagner told every one to'bring his
deed.
They didn't see how they were going to
beat us out, he said. 80 a few years ago
they began selling 95 foot lots. At least,
they are so described on the deeds. You
have to hold 90 feet to vote. But the lots
really measure 100 feet and you've got the
right to vote, no matter what the deeds
say.
Several men held up such deeds and the
meeting got more excited. MIR. Wagner
said that the money paid in by lot owners
had gone to improve property which the
Geissenhainers subsequently sold to the,
cemetery. He said that the trustees had
made a dea with the Long Island Railroad
by which II was going to tunnel under the
graves, the only return being that IT had
agreed to All in a swamp. When Mr.. Wag-
ner got through Magistrate Wahle got the
platform.
Il doubt if any such meeting was ever
before held in history. he said. We
meet not Tor money, NOT for politics, but
for our dead. We are here to see that
they are treated az they supposed they
were to be treated. ] dom know and don't
care what the Geissenhainers have got for
| the land. i know that my father IL buried
| there and | protest in the name of decency
against his last r~estingplace being turned
into a hole, a swamp, a means OF unlawful
profit"
sente were true then there was enough
going into the Golfers of the cemetery to
keep il in a decent condition.
This is the point he went on. What
are they doing with what belongs to our
dead? There isn't a nOisler cemetery in
Greater New York than this. There is no
cemetery in the world where things. are
permitted to go on right outside such az
are permitted there. There isn't a cemetery
in the world where they sell peanuts at the
gate and where you are held up inside and
an offer made to take your photograph on
a grave.
1t is the only cemetery in New York
where they steal money and nobody stops
them; where you can't put a flag on your
veteran fathers grave and see IT there a
week, where the flowers you put on your
dead ones grave one day are on sale in a
store two blocks way the next. IL is
the most indecently managed cemetery
there is. III it wasn't that our dead had
asked to lay there some of us would take
them out tomorrow.
As Judge Wahle described the condition
Of the cemetery many Of the men and women
shed tears. Mr.. Wahle said that relief could
not be had at once. Fifty years of abuse,
he said, had given the trustees great power:
They nave so arranged their election
he said, that If you had 10000 lot owners
there on Monday you could not cast their
votes. You can't elect trustees this year,
but you can bring every one OF these men
into court and make them account for the
money they have received, whether you
90 out there on Monday to be laughed at