New-York tribune., 1910-07-27
GARBAGE MEN IN GRAFT
Queens Borough Has Complaint
of a New Extortion.
LITTLE THING BUT ANNOYING
Returns to Drivers, However,
Large in the Aggregate-In-
vestigation Promised.


scale than that Of former charges. but the
system of extortion is none the less potent
and It has been yielding good returns, ac-
cordtng to the persons who have been COM
PEELED to contribute.
/ The branch of the Queens Borough gov
eminent which employs the men who this
| time figure in the charges of graft is the
Street Cleaning Department. The COM
plaint comes to The Tribune from hotel
proprietors, boarding house keepers and
cottageFs in one street in Eammel Long
| Island, that they can receive no service
from the men who remove the garbage
and rubbish unless they submit to the
extortiouate demands of the latter.
These complaints were called to the at
| tentfon OF Superintendent Arrow c. Han
| kins. Of the Queens Street Cleaning De-
/ partment yesterday, and he said he would
begin an immediate investigation Until
! he has finished this investi CATION it will
be impossible TO say whether only those
living the street whence the protest
comes or the entire summer colony have
been held up,
Profitable for the Grafters.
| While the graft that is alleged to have
| been practised is petty in character, the
number Of those who have been victir1lized
! Is great enough to have made It profitable
for those who benefited by il, and despite
| its petttness IL has proved annoying to
/ those who have paid. There are at least
| two men involved in the charges, a driver
and helper on one of the wagons of the
| department Just how much these two
men have succeeded in collecting may be
only surn1ised. but 1t surely has been suf
! fcient to make their wages Of little con-
/ sequence TO them.
| There is nothing roundabout in the al
! legged operation of these men. There is no
/ go-between. They make the demands
| themselves, they do their own collecting
/ and they work with an almost appalling
! openness. The men are assigned to d
large, double truck Of the department.
! One remains on the wagon while the other
/ is on the ground. The latter does the
/ shaking down. but the partner has a say
about the acceptance or refusal of the
blood money. He drives the wagon up to
house. The man on the ground looks over
/ the barrels to be enlptied and then looks
/ up the manager, housekeeper or occupant
OF the house as the case may be.
How the Trick Is Played.
His usual saIutation is:
See here, boss, you got this garbage and
rubbish all mixed up. You'll have TO come
up If you want US 10 take it away
The victim always comes up, which IN
the mind Of the empv-S of the Street
Clearing department justifes him in
violating the rule regarding the mixing Of
garbage and rubbish or ashes in one barrel.
But the victim can violate this regulation
only on submitting 10 extortion. Some
times the violation is only slight, but If
I 4y,o ;e, a4 oil "a al ftoTs find
it by digging through the barrels.
The amount OF graft varies in proportion
% the enormity of the offence, from 10
cents TO a quarter But figuring thirty
houses 70 i block and few are exempt, it
nets the alleged grafters Z fine daily in
come OF course II takes the men much
longer to get through with their work be
cause Of the negotiations than it other
wise would.
The person VINO vouches for the accuracy
OF the details here given witnessed last
SATURDAY. at Hamnel about as brazen 4
f7oId-up by : city enpIove as has ever been
practised The victim was the housekeeper
OF q cottage The man On the ground had
tossed a barrel up 10 his partner on the
wagon. On the top was a quantity of
paper. At the bottom Was some ashes.
C7ruf7v the nrancier OF the pair approached
the housekeepsr
Woman in the Clutches,
See here.'' he shouted. We cant take
this
why not" asked tbs woman
"Av. ir's all mixed W replied the man
on the ground
Al this time both men stood idle the
man on The wagon Watching for what he
knew vas coming The barrel was hal9
en7ptv. The housekeeper was one OF those
women who don't carry their pocketbooks
! IN their hands, and after some Difficulty
she rroduced hers She distracted nickel
! from the purse and rendered 1t 70 the ez-
pectant Street Cleaning Department man
He held up the coin for his partner to see
Then they both laughed scorn1ully
.sYo,I'n have 20 come across with another
nickel said the man with the coin. The
7-o-,an rep!ied that she did not have any
more change
s.p,,+ e al back n the barrel 3" shouted
.ha senior partner and the junior partner
IN the wagon hastened to stuff the barrel
f71 again from The contents of the wagon
IT viii give you the other nickel :o-ncr
row" promised the woman
..Conoehodv else will be around to-nor-
row explained the senior partner
After sc1lrrvng around the housekeeper
rroauced the second nickel and the barrel
vas enptied notwithstanding the alleged
violation of the regulation regarding mixing
Turn of HoteIkeePer.
Newt 70 the cottage where this incident
+oolx Mace is a hotel The wagon stopped
+bare The man on the ground discovered
some potato peoIs in the same barrel with
come raper. He looked up the boss. He
nd he receiVeti
tts craft without parIey and the barrel
was quickly euptied
When the freebooters had gone the pro-
rrietor of the hotel said:
..7z,,,s ts the worst case of graft l he sc
a,,er seen. But we have 10 submit to 1t,
s7,npose. Unless we do they will Just leave
,,,aee barrels here and ] have not the time
n on 10 the superintendent TO complain,
b,,, IT ought 70 be stopped
c,,,erfutendent Hankins OF the Bureau %
c,+2raat cleaning IN Queens said
ort is the duty of citizens when demand
g made upon them by employees OF the city
eo,. money for doing what they are paid ny
.,a .i+v 10 do to turn these employees over
:, +ba notice. I cannot control every wagon
driver In my department But citizens car
halr, me greatly II they will be careful 10
1,,,,e witnesses ut hand who can hear these
,ae,,,ands made and then have the guilty
er,rIo,,es arrested. A difficulty that have
"a contend with here is that 1 can't get
,,,,.1z +o drive garbage carts.