New-York tribune., 1909-03-31
CHARTER DEBATE HOT
BOROUGH AUTONOMY THE
CRY.
Manhattan Expected to Continue to
Furnish the Principal Portion
Of the TareS.
rRv Telegraph to TIE Tribune J


bo,,r5 sre-5 money raised by taxes on Manhattan
real estate without any check from Mammalian
WIS debated with heat TODAY al the second Hsai
s,,- on 7l7e proposed New York city chaTter heloie
-. ,-,,sas committee OF the two houses. Repre-
e,arts.i,-es Of F3~ooklvn Richmond, The Bronx ana
Queens protested against aholishnE the aoihlils
r~ative posyers Of the borough presidents and max
ing them simply members OF the recohsI'ue'e'
BOARD of Estimate and Apporuonment-
1T means death to borough autonomy was uHe
CRY sent up by AlmeJ r. Iatson- ol tle clldi 'e,
commission supposed 10 be voiclnE the "i''lloIi =
Timothy I Woodruff Borough President CromWelI
.. E7;,br,ord and others Mr.. Iatson was not
sricl1er enough for borough autonomy to want II
70 include the raising by each borough OF l'S ~
funds He expressly stipulated that should remain ~
as at present the extreme disgust "a <A''
Of the proposed charter
Sor1ebo ought 70 speak a word Tor -NahHa'-
tan" declared James Cowden Meyer also ol 'i7
commission jumping to his feet aiter lie ot't''
OF the Capitalization plan had spoken lot uIee
hours. ...-
These tax enters come here and tell US our
shackles should remain on Manhattan ana Us na'
dvrele-s supply the TAXES for the rest OF Ile o'@-
Manhattan now pays - per cent OF al the 'aAes
19asi5es thai Al the tine OF consolidation 1t turned
over 10 The consolidated city all the income pro
ducinC docks Now this borough pays taxes 70 %
sren- lv ren elected IN other boroughs not answer
able 70 Manhattan. II this money Is 10 De st' 4
g. ba sre-t by men arsHerble 10 the entire city
u can make a very simple answer TO All the pro-
tests you have heard here tins afternoon went Oh
Nr Never. tzIrninE 10 the committees Lei liIo
el- s,,- man Who has spoken against this section
- no cra--ar if re wants have his borough
autonomous with its borough taxes II ne
saws he does I VIII say give him all the borough
autonomy Re wants
LOCAL. ASSESSMENTS NOT PAID.
His statement raised = howl from Brooklyn,
77r,nx and Queens representatives. who tried 10
czArsl7elna him with questions. hut he oountered
,ffac-refI- by declaring that the local assess
1nents frequently were not paid by the boroughs
coming out Of bond issues which were not re
deemed
V7ev4efa- Commission declared 8Ir. Meyer was
70 present city government not for the DeIlenI OF
arz- locality. but the city as whole ana one
that could-not would, but could-be run economic
ally"
Horace 4 DerninE went even further. He de-
clared that the only objection 10 the proposed
Capitalization could that Il lost an opportunity
70 elect a man 10 boss the spending Of money IN
C5Itlying borOughs who EoUld nave d IoI oL SP-
pointnents under him
And that's sound administrative pohcy'
raid ha You've got for the first time real home
r1lJe IN Kew York City under this charter. You
don't want five cities You want one This charter
Is the first TO recognize that principle"
Controller Metz. a member Of the charter revision
commission. said he didn't care snap of his
fingers for the political end Of the charter and
favored Capitalization
..F3roollvn last year received 100000. against
Sg&oaa0 paid in in taxes said he Manhattan
raid about all Of the sinking fund revenues-So
Iper cent IN fact. They explain that the basis
that il is all big city II that is let US have
il one big city The trouble here is not with the
budget allowance. as some speakers have said. The
trouble is that the borough presidents. sitting
members Of the Board OF Estimate and Apporton-
Tneut. spend corporate stock, and they will work
together get their money.
Brooklyn. under the present centralized school
board continued the Controller. got about one
half Of the school appropriations, amount it
could never have gained under the local board
system"
Taking UP the removal OF the Brooklyn police
headquarters TO Manhattan Controller Metz
charged It 10 Commissioner Bingham's undesirable
personality rather than any fault in the cenraza-
TioR system ITS simply because We've got Po-
ice Commissioner bigger than God himself" said
Nr Metz. 7 hope We shall not always have that
kind Of commissioner It's merely question of
personality 7ou'u get as good men by appoint
by election, n spite of whatever these ad
rocz1es Of borough autonomy may say
The Controller said that while he stood for the
charter as whole there were some details which
he could not support. He believed for instance,
that the Councinen. instead Of serving for moth
ing should have 5000 2 year
lawson Purdy president Of the Tax Commits
sion, advocated the proposed chrter. which, he
said. would harmonic the boroughs and create
one city out Of elements now sadly a-jangle
SUGGESTS A COMPROMISE.
William 7 Schieffelin, chairman Of the Citizens
Union: Lawrence A Janzer and Robert Van Ider-
etne advocated the abolition Of the administration
powers CT the Borough Presidents and the central
izst3on scheme embodied IN the proposed charter.
Ny. Schiefelin proposed a compromise plan by
which & board Of street control Of five commits
sioners one from each borough, should be ap-
pointed BY the Mayor
The true sentiment OF the outlying boroughs is
not concerned by questions Of patronage" said
he but IS moved by a desire for efficient and
economical administration. with consideration for
the local needs OF each borough"
Opposition the Capitalization plan. which its
surporters said arose entirely from political mo-
-ives was led ny Isaac ". kapper, a member Of
the Roosevelt charter commission. who is more
widely known as Senator NcCarren's lawyer and
NE- Lareon- Mr.. Kapper maintained that the
listing charter was valuable because II had been
tried
70 warrant a change 81 this one great thing" said
fe referring 10 the Borough President system,
which al the horoughs except Manhattan are
determined shall not be changed"
DO YOU think the c5ty's financial administration
has been 50 satisfactory that there is for
Change interrupted Senator NewComb.
SATISFIED WITH FINANCES
II Co." -esorted Mr Kapper. y think the ad-
,rnistratiou under the present Controller IS i'm
4roven7en; on anything that we've ever had"
He believed that # the system needed changing
The CASSIDY committee bills would do all that
necessary
.Sans- few owners cf real estate in lower Man
haitian are determined - hold the purse strings
and so deprive the boroughs of home rule" he de
c#areG. Il they deprive the outlying horouels
81 inhabitants grass viii grow ia every street in
oIaulartan' Tie proposed bureau system in the
Board q Estimate Illogical and the entire
charter . TloustTosity.
y can't tolerate Tie argument rlat because Man
Eattau yields more than half lie the other