New-York tribune., 1910-04-29
GRESSER IS NAMED
m QUEENS SCANDAL
Sworn Statements Made That
Borough President Got Graft
for Campaign.
DENIES ALL TO F0SDlCK
iommis sioner of Accounts Re-
ports TO the Mayor Serious
Situation Has
Arisen"

Accord Ing to sworn testimony taken
,,,. -hc Commissioner of Accounts. Mr.
Fosdick. in his investigation of the Of
8. ~ Borough President Gresser Of
oucers. the latter directed that contri-
b,,fions for his campaign last fan he
elected from the employees Of the
pn-sau Of Sewers. Joseph b. Nelson.
f,~nerlv chief clerk of the bureau. tes-
.feed that not only did he turn over 10
tho Borough President $50 collected IN
,bis yav but also handed to him for
,bo fund SO which had been given to
Ners.r I,s a contractor 10 pay for
borough inspector on some private sewer
work
President Gresser. who spent an hour
NTH the Commissioner Of Accounts after
-re srfuc of the report. was examined in
detail about the alleged transactions. de
denied 7.tlg that he had ever ordered
IN. collection or campaign assessments
o. s.sd evor received any 50 collected.
Il, also denied to Commissioner Fosdick
-bat Do had auy knowledge Of ths so
transaction related by Nelson.
To the newspaper men. who caught
nfn as .o was going ont Of back door
af the C1rmissiane- 0f Accounts office,
.-. Porareh President refused u discuss
.ta case ID amy way Go to Fosdick,' -
rs declared Il won't say word"
T.- Borough President said he had
received aua accepted the resignation Of
Car Berger his Superintendent Of Build
ms. whose name has fgured in the
-,ns-al Investigation. 81 believe Berger
q, Pa eool man." said the Borough Presi-
dent
The report made by Commissioner
losdick o. the Mayor Yesterday is but
o. small ra~t of the material he has gath
erred iH his investigation Of the Borough
Presidents office in Queens. He viii
make another report 10 the Mayer to-
.day. and others viii follow. The report
Yesterday was prefaced by the eXplana-
ton. a situation Of so serious a nature
has arisen that ii is deemed advisable
60 caI b. Immediately To your attention.
About $50 Transaction.
The report takes up the $50 transac-
ton first. II explains that where per
mits are issued for sewer construction
by private individuals il Is obligatory
under the Law for the contractors TO
guarantee To- the Bureau OF Sewers the
COST of an inspector representing the
Borough Presidents office Sometimes
tlo contractor pays the inspector direct
and receives back his guaranty. but I'm
ruosf cases the cost of the inspection is
rail 0UI of the guarantee money.
According 20 the report. Frank J. car
urry and Louis Dornbach. Glendale
Plumbers. applied on october u. 1903
fnr permit 10 construct sewer in
Madison street. A check for $50 TO pay
the cost % inspection was handed over
O. Joseph p. Nelson. II was payable TO
hIm and signed by Dornbach. The lat
ter produced the cancelled check for the
Commissioner OF Accounts. and il is in
evidence showing that Nelson had IN
.arsed It
The records of the Bureau of Sewers
according to the report. do not show
thst any inspector was employed on the
Madison street sewer. and both Carberry
and D0rnbach testified they had seen no
D-tv Inspector Oh the work
The report goes on % say:
lie .,,elsonl further testified that at the
regle-f ~ President Lawrence Gresser De
ta1 u1t appointed an inspector upOu the
No.k lu question. that the sever had been
Hllt absolutely without inspection. and
t-a- ta- s. paid iu for this purpose had
been handed 10 AZ. Gresscr personally. Al
..- Iattcr's request. 10 augment his cam
le tlnus According l. Nelson's testi-
l..... fuis money was handed 10 Presi-
t..r E"-~Ser DO tIe lstter'S private Office
r. Saturday afternoon. october 3, at about
81. .-l0ck.
Gustav Newman. an inspector of Tri-
Nste sewers in the Queens, testified that
some time after election he was sum-
nl9ne1 to the Borough Fau by chauf-
teur in the Borough Presidents Office
and asked by some one" 10 hand in
signed reports in regard 20 the inspec-
uan of the Madison street ever. al
tnHu-l he had nothing whatever 10 DO
Htfh f Ee refused 90 make such re-
ports. Newman refused 10 indicate who
t.c some one was. Justice Alfred
Denton. of tao 30 District Municipal
Court. tsetiecd tlat Newman had told
him in December he had been asked 20
nlake adidati's that D. had inspected
The Madison street sewer.
III is clearly esidcut." SAYS the re-
Port both from the records and all the
testimony that The money paid la by
t.e ,sltractor for THE inspection of this
.rec WAS diverted 20 sthor purposes.
.as tlat considerable effort was made at
conceal mont"
Other Colccticns Cited.
Taking up the alleged instructions q
Borough President Gresser regarding The
collection of camTaign funds from the
employees the report says.