The evening world. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1887-1931, 1912-07-27
POLICE HEADS
/ COME AND CO
+ WITH RAP|D|Ty
Eight Commissioners In Office
and Seven Out in a
Decade.
A TERM IS FIVE YEARS.
Longest Tenure Was That of
Bingham, Three Years and
Six Months.
A TERM IS FIVE YEARS.

Six Months.
~ term Of once Of the Police Com
suAsa1ossr Of the City Of New York shail
- Eve pears. So says the law under
which the present system Of . single
hooded police commission was organ
is0a
0noe isoa, whom the law went into
eject. the longest tenure Of once OF
Pelios Commissions In New York City
- bssn three years and six month";
Col. Theodore A. Bingham holds that
roeord.
Some Of the seven men who have
bssa In and out Of the Big Chair at Po-
lice Headquarters have tried 70 run the
Department the way the police themselves
have wanted to see II run. Others have
run II the way they thought the Mayor
wAo appointed them wanted to see the
department run And ono or two have
tyted TO manage the department. the
way they thought the taxpayers who
Say the salaries want to see It run. II
70 somew what encouraging. students OK
municipal politics say. to observe that
Bingham, whether he Judged right or
wrong a. 10 what the taxpayers want
"a but undoubtedly doing his best TO
givs them what no thought they want
q. Was the man who lasted longest
wAido's record 10 not complete.
Examination OF the history OF the DO
lice Administrations of the seven men
from Murphy TO Cropssy shows one law
that has held absolutely good up to this
time:
YubaAo sentiment forces CT tAs
Oosn1assaoasr VINO lsts tAs peaies
have tAsas own way.
ne thing ~ cali "xhs System"
forces cut Ne 0emmissaeaeS vac
less "a ~ ne lsacsrs Of svn -
ausnses (fsv though tAsy nay -
II ~ OspassAsns) hsve tAs1R ewn
wv.
=, col. MURPHY LASTED LEss
49, THAN A YEAR.
Michael c. Murphy was appointed Po-
lice Commissioner by Mayor Robert A.
vsa wyck Feb. =. 1901. He came after
a riot Of confusion caused by so
called bipartisan board: John d. Sex.
ton, Bernard J. York. Democrats. and
Jacob Hes and Charles Absei. Rspub-
licanA
Col. Murphy was . hne old figure Of
Civil War veteran and an invalid
from . chronic stomach ailment. With
q keen mind and . remarkable under
standing Of men he combined an I'M
questioning loyalty to the appointing
power. He made Devery Chief OF Po-
lea There followed the Red Light.
bsass cheek campaign OF the candidate
sss District-Attornsy. William Travers
Jerome, and the often repeated pledge
sf Seth Low. candidate for Mayor. that
were be elected the head Of Devsry
shall roll upon the ground" 1t did.
Likewise the head Of Murphy. Among
ether things which he was ALLEGED TO
have tolerated among his subordinatei
% high rank were the sale Of promotions,
the sale Of transfers 10 desirable pre-
elncts and posts. the extortion OF black
mail b. threats Of transfer or Of dlsclp-
laary finss. He lasted ten months and
six days Of his fve years.
PARTRIDGE FLEW OUT At THE
End OF ONE YEAR.
John w. Partridge Of Brooklyn wal
made Commissioner by Mayor Low al
TIE beginning OF the Mayors term
which had been shortened to two years
Partridge had been the colonel Of Z
militia regiment. He was a pompous
busy little man who liked the cersmon,
ana the reputation for power which hi
once gave him. The rank and file o.
the police called him an IDEAL Commits
siousr. He could always be persuaded
TO take an excuse and could easily b,
LED Into busyinE himself with unim
portant details when his men wantss
his head turned the other way on re
garding things OF importance 10 them
selves.
Under Partridge only the matches
traditions OF the New York police 70
bravery. discipline In the face Of dis
order and common sense saved 1t from
disintegration.
In Partridge's administration a llttl
plastsrer named McAulife. who had bee
arrested for drunkenness. was foun
dead In the street. There was stron
reason to believe that his death wa
due to brutality in police static
whence he had been thrown out to di,
A cry was raised that The Systel
had murdered McAulifre TO frighten hi
wife, who was to be witness again,
q policeman accused OF protecting a di,
orderly house. II at once became III
tactics OF The System--which probabl
had nothing to do with tho murder-t
suppress the facts lest they re-ac
against The system In spite Of .,s IL
suaded to take part In the effort
mix up and cloud the evidence. lie W.
q Joke. as was shown when list
men whose promotion papers ne hs
signed was shown to him and he a
not remember signing them. He last,
Just one year.
GEN. GREENE WENT OUT
TWELVE MONTHS.
Francis vinton Greene. back from q
Philippine rebellion. took try. He x