New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-10-16
MARKED PAPERS in
own EXAMINATION
City Civil Service Aid Ad-
mitS Dual Role in Eye
sight Test.
FINGER PRINT EXPERT
LEARNED IN A MONTH
Studied in Navy Bureau Under
One of EXaminers-COnfer
on Testimony.

Testimony taken yesterday before th'
State Civil Service Commission. in Its
investigation of the conduct OF Tho
municipal department, led to the inter
esting discovery that Miss Gertrude
Sullender. who passed first on the us,
of eligible candidates for hnger prlh,
expert. had acquired her knowledge OF
the subject in a months study undei
J. H. Taylor, head of the finger prin,
bureau OF the United States Navy, al
Washington. ID. c., who was one OF the
two examiners in charge OF the eXamln'
alton in question.
The other examiner was DR.. Henry
p. de Forest. an employe of the local
commission, whom Miss Sullender ties
tilted she had known for number CT
years, and for whom she had worked
as a trained nurse in attendance on
many private patients.
Incidentally, it was revealed that
David Scott, a clerical employe Of the
Municipal Civil Service Commission
who testified that his work was that
of a photographer and monitor" had
assisted in the examination Of cand-
idates and had marked their papers in
chart test. despite the fact that he
personally was competitor in the
same examination. A rejected cand-
idate swore that he had been handed
a card with the classification of the
finger prints used in the technical eX-
animation marked thereon.
DR.. dc Forest insisted that he had
marked Miss Sullender ahead of De-
tective Sergeant Frederick kuhne. who
has conducted the finger print bureau
st Police Headquarters for seven years,
because of her superior education. The
examiner said he considered Miss Sui
lenders professional training superior
to that of Miss Meta Florine Merchant
who not only holds two degrees. but
has ad actual experience in the finger
print bureau. of the women's court in
Brooklyn. The witness also admitted
that several candidates originally re-
Jected for near vision" were later, on
being admitted TO denomination, re-
Jected for distant vision"
Miss Gertrude Sullender testified
that she had gone to Washington, in
troduced herself to DR.. j. II. Taylor,
and requested permission to study the
finger print system in the Navy Blu
reau. She denied that she knew that
On. de Forest was to be an examiner
IN the tests here. or that she had
seen the prints supplied by the latter
Tor examination purposes.
The police expert, Frederick Kuhne,
testified that the reason he had been
unable to answer more than three out
of the five questions in the technical
paper was because only forty-fve min
utes had been allowed for the eXami-
nation and fully fifteen minutes
elapsed before those in the rear seats
were supplied with all the necessary
forms. Kuhne said ne had been placed
as the last man in the third row.
Mr. Mayors. finger print expert in
the workhouse on BlackwelPs Island,
testified that he had been put through
the dumbbell test by David Scott, a
Civil Service Department employe, and
that the eyesight test had been con-
Quoted by a young lady" who re-
fcrred TO Scott before marking his
paper.
David Scott explained that he had
been employed by the Civil Service
Commission for the last four years and
that he had done finger print work in
the bureau attached to the commission
He said that both he and a policeman
named Greenberg who is also attached
to the municipal commission, had taken
the examination for finger print expert
He denied that he had marked any
papers.
Louis J. Gottlieb, police court finger
print expert, testified that Scott haC
marked his paper in an eyesight chart
test. Scott was recalled and asked
whether his memory had been re-
freshed. He admitted that he might
have marked" Gottlieb's paper
When asked by Mr.. Moss whether he
had similarly marked the papers OF
other candidates, he replied that he
might have done So"
How many?" persisted Mr.. Moss.
well. maybe Dozen"
Are you sure that is ALL"
at might have been fifty" confessed
the witness.
In response to further inquiries the
witness admitted that he had beer
called in by the local civil service au-
thorities to a conference the previous
night. when it was learned that he
was 10 be witness before the state
commission. DR.. de Forest, Deputy
Commissioner Keogh arti Assistant
Corporation Counsel Slower, he said
were present at the conference. He
admitted that the chief subject at The
conference was the testimony he NIGH
give, if called.
fpr-nNy or AHTDr D~D