New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-01-02
Citizens Committee Z led at
Roadway Made b. lest
Against RoWdy
BIGGER SCOPE N YEAR
Casualties Compa icy Few
and Only Fatali ) Va the
Result of Indoors Fam
lily Celebration.

| rOWdylSn ana All appeal 20 the people
| Tor quieter and more dignifed New
Years celebration was concerned, the
members of the citizens committee.
headed by Jacob \. Ris, which carried
out the programme for a safe and sane
! recognition of New Years Eve. were
| highly elated Yesterday at wiz Mr.. Riis
| termed the enormous success of the
! committees first efforts. The New Years
casualties were comparatively few. and
| the only fatality-that of woman in
Brooklyn-was the result Of an indoors
row only remotely corrected with the
city's observance of t-" holiday.
Encouraged by tn manner in which
the huge throngs caught the spirit of the
more dignfied celebra lion and joined In
the choral songs rendered at the four
centres" where the safe and sane cele-
brations were held. particularly in Madi-
son Square. the committee promises big
ger things for next year
Already Mr.. Rs and his associates
have i'm mind the plan for big torch
| light procession of singers down Fifth
avenue. from 3ith street To Madison
Square. next New Years Eve With
ample time. instead of the two weeks IN
which Tuesday nights exercises were
| planned. the suggestion has been made
for the assembling and training OF
| great chorus of four or five thousand
voices 10 lead the singing in Madison
| Square. the point which the committee
considers the heart Of the city" and a
which the principal celebration should
| be held. The safe and sane centres will
also be extended TO other parts OF the
| city.
Speaking Of the work OF the committee
and the results which II believed 1t had
accomplished. Mr.. Riis said yesterday:
Feels Much Encouraged.
/ Nliic many difficulties beset lis Rnd
! Ne learned our lesson from our first ex-
perience. we feel greatly encouraged over
! the manner in which the appeal for
/ safe and sane celebration was received
! by the people. We hope that We have
begun something which will become an
! institution in this city on New Years
/ Eve in the years TO ocme. The great
J. heart OF New York Is all right The
; celebration planned by the committee
| went far beyond our expectations. We
/ hardly had expected TO do more than
register moral protest against rowdyism
| on the part of hoodlums. and certain
] part Of the respectable people who turn
| hoodlums or that night. and in that
| respect the safe and sane celebration was
| enormously successful. / believe that
| New York had n quieter and more digni-
fled New Years Eve than il has had for
! years
| Mr. Riis told OF the suggestions which
| had already been made for extending the
celebration for next year. He and the
! Rev. Arthur J. Smith. superintendent OF
/ the cvanEelistic committee. who assisted
Mr. Riis in planning and supervising the
quieter celebration. were at Madison
Square Curing the rendering OF the choral
numbers by six hundred voices under ~.
leadership of +. G. Marquard. They were
both enthusiastic yesterday over their ex-
perience at that centre. One Of the lsrg-
est crowds in the history OF the city. per-
| haps 5000 people. assembled there be-
tween II o'clock and midnight. and a
| great majority Of them apparently came
TO sing. according to members Of the com
mittee.
Auto Crowds Joined Songs.
! MIR Riis and Or. Smith circulated through
| all parts Of the crowd during the singing.
they said. and everywhere persons were
! following the songs from the printed words
which had been distributed. and the great
volume OF song just before midnight could
be heard above the din of the noise max
| ing devices in the hands OF the wanton
jewellers who gathered on the edges of
the great crowd and In the surrounding
streets Hundreds Of automobiles filled
| with stylishly dressed men and women,
were parked on Madison avenue. and In
most Instances the occupants were joining
Justify in the singing 1t was said.
1T was evident that the greater part
of that huge mass Of people came to
Madison Square TO sing" said DR.. Smith,
and the committee il very happy In tho
results obtained, particularly at that
point 1t gives us courage and hope for
| bigger and better things next New Years
| Eve. The music and singing at City Hall
Park were effective, too, and those Of the
big crowd there who were near enough the
Dand 10 catch the tunes readily responded
in swelling the chorus. The Salvation
| Army carried out an impressive and sue
| cessful song service at Union Square. The
| oldtime noise interfered with the singing
| most at Herald Square. I believe. how
ever. that the moral protest registered
| against rowdyism last night will be last
ing and beneficial in the future
Plenty Of Arrests, However.
Despite the safe and sane celebration,
there was the usual number OF police
| cases I'm the magistrates courts yesterday
| morning. but there was nothing TO show
that they exceeded or even equalled the
| number recorded in the aftermath OF for
| mer New Years Eve celebrations. Most OF
the Injuries received by combatants In
| fights and brawls, and the several persons
wounded by stray bullets from the hands
Of marauders who became overenthusi-
| astic AS the libations increased and the
evening wore on. apparently occurred af-
| tor midnight The work of the safe and
sanors" stopped minute before mid
night at the four centres in Herald
Souare Madison Square, Union Square
and city Hall Park.
MAGISTRATE Krotel. who was sitting yes
/ ,erdav i'm the West Side court, complI-
| uented the district covered by the court
: an the small number of persons arrested
nm New years Eve. He said.
This district in years past has been
| notorious on account OF the NUMBER Oh
neople who got into trouble on New Year