New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-10
mitchell PRAISES,
COURT CRITICISES
DR.. DAvIS'S ACTS
Within Rights in Dismiss
ing Moore, Says Justice,
Censuring Procedure.
PRISON COMMISSION
CHIDED BY MAYOR
Declares Members Had Agreed
to Dust Hayes-Reviews Re.
forms Here by Commissioner.

Commissioner Katharine b. Davis of
the Department of Correction gained
an ardent supporter yesterday in Mayor
Mitchell and at the same time became
the object of further criticism from
Justice Brady, OF the Supreme Court in
The Bronx. The criticism of the court
was mellowed, however. as he decided
the issue before him in favor Of the
Commissioner.
In refusing TO grant peremptory
writ of mandamus TO Martin J. Moore,
former overseer of the Harris Island
reformatory, who was dismissed by
Miss Davis. Justice Brady declared that
Moore had not had an impartial trial
and that the Commissioner had acted
more the part Of prosecutor than Of
a Judge. The Commissioner wasted time
and money by appointing two men to
assist her in reaching a decision which
she could as we'll have rendered alone,
the court said. Despite the criticism,
however, the justice said she had acted
entirely within her prescribed rights.
Replying to Justice Brady's criticism,
Commissioner Davis pointed out that
she granted Moore a trial only because
he had been going 20 the Mayor and
other city officials and charging her
with prosecuting him. and she desired
TO have the proceedings entirely open.
DR.. Davis Answers.
81 suggested a hearing before three
men," said Commissioner Davis, "one
to be selected by me. one by Moore and
one by the Civil Service Commission.
told Moore that if two out OF the three
sustained him he would not be dis
missed. Moore failed to appoint his
man, and | appointed O. f. Lewis, sec
retary of the Prison Reform Assocla-
ton. and Robert W. Belcher, secretary
of the Civil Service Reform Associa-
ton, was the other man appointed"
Before Mayor Mitchell left for the
citizens camp at Plattsburg he had re-
ceived a copy of the report OF the State
Prison Commission holding up Com
missioner Davis TO criticism in the ad-
ministration of her department. The
Mayor dictated statement highly com
mending her work, which was given out
yesterday. He said;
"The State Prison Commission is dis
ingenious in its conclusions, as 1t was
disingenuous in instituting its invest-
CATION. The secretly avowed and admit
ted purpose among the members OF the
commission was TO Gust Warden Hayes
like other attacks that have been made
on various departments of this admin
istration, this has been a political IN
vestigation with a purpose.
miss Davis has recognized from the
first that the penitentiary is physically
unfit and unsanitary. Her programme,
if carried out by the Board of Esti-
mate, will wipe out that institution on
Blackwell's Island and transfer the
prisoners to new and sanitary quarters,
where the modern principles Of cor
receive penology can be applied. Miss
Davis has done the best she could with
the funds allowed, and is pushing her
programme of reorganization and re-
construction as fast as the Board OF
Estimate is able to furnish the finan-
cial resources. In the mean time she
has been bending her utmost efforts to
the correction of long standing abuses
and the improvement of administrative
methods.
Defects in Penitentiary.
"The penitentiary is an inheritance
of earlier and less enlightened days.
For its physical defects and inadequacy
Miss Davis and this administration are
not responsible. Responsibility for that
rests on earlier administrations OF the
department and on the fact that the
credit resources Of the city have been
so heavily taxed for subways and other
imperative necessities that preceding
boards of estimate have been unable to
furnish funds for new quarters and
workshops for the prisoners.
warden Hayes, it is true, belongs 70
the old and more stringent school OF
penologists, to which Miss Davis does
not belong, but she informs me that no
ground for charges or action against
Warden Hayes has even been brought
to her knowledge. We do not remove
civil service employees of long standing
without substantial cause.
Miss Davis informs me-and | am
aware Of it myself-that many Of the
recommendation of the commission have
long since been put in process of adop-
ton by Miss Davis-this the commits
sion must have known when it attempt
ed to give the impression that these are
it's own recommendations many
others cannot be carried into effect
oJJ,t;ono1 apnr0nria tiOns and