New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-10-04
Mccormick, Retired After
SO Years Sheriff Duty
Nails Famous Epigram.
READY NOW TO BEGIN
BELATED LAW CAREER
Has Roomful of Souvenirs OF
Luxurious Panel Dinners
Knew Morgan and Astor.

- established fruthfulness. he never
said it But twenty years - not long
enough 10 e1punec from the history o.
the Sherif's Office or from tho mem
orv ~ those who read 10 or have heard
IL repeatcd that famous expression
Der chan iss oudt" attributed 10
sheriff Hansen.
"Hc never said g."
This authoritative statement comes
from William Il. Mccormick. who on
THURSDAY severed his official relations
with the Sheriff. Office after thirty
eight years Of continuous service. the
greater part (which time he has been
jury clerk.
81 knew sheriff Tamsen WE'LL sald
Mr Mccormick. "and liked him HIS
English was good and he spoke with
out an accent remember when the
three or four Federal prisoners es-
caped from Ludlow street jail. which
was supposed 70 have called forth the
now famous expression from MI. Tam
sen. But those words were put into
his mouth by 81 political enemy. whom
the Sheriff had refused a job
Thus is a detail Of New forks his
tory corrected. But no amount Of re
pudiation will efTacc the expression. al
though the author IS now unknown.
Is Known to Thousands.
There is no man connected with the
Office Of the Sheriff better qualified 20
write its history and that Of It's In
cumbents In the last :h,-ty-eight years
than Mccormick. in fact be is the
only historian that could do II accu-
ratoly. for no other man m that branch
Of the county government has been
there anywhere near as long. Now.
Mae" as he is intimately known.
which means by nearly every lawyer
in New York and hundreds OF mill
ionnires who have served on the
sherif's jury. is gone That is. he is
cone officially. but he intends 10 re-
main around and break in his sue
cessOr
Mccormick has not found IL neces-
sary 10 write for his own use what has
happened in the Office since he began
his long service there. Books might
get lost; they right be destroyed.
Macs" memory has not been affected
IN either way and that Is where he car
ries the Sherif's Office history % near
lv forty wears. which was even before
Mavor Mitchell was born.
Mccormick is quitting on a pension.
He has no axes 10 grind, no regrets He
is not a man who moralizes much.
However. he had one bit Of advice FOL
young men. Il Is, Don't become de-
pendent on politics for a livelihood
when Mae" first got his Job, IL might
hen arwcrgaraa 4 vanlH4rrol rrc
Tie overcarne that How did he do it?
Simple enough. as he explains II. He
just attended 20 his work. That is
why he has served under seventeen
Sheriffs- Democratic, Republican, La
Dor and Reform.
Began Year Tweed Died.
Mccormick came into service IN 1877,
which was the same year In which
Gill" Tweed died IN Ludlow Street jail
a he traced the history of the Office
from that time 20 date. relating the
peculiarities or fine points Of his
chiefs not a bad word for one Of them
he quoted years and names like a
man reading from a diary.
Perhaps the two most picturesque
Sherifs under whom he has worked
were the late Major General Daniel f.
Sckles and the late julius Hamburger.
The general was "a strict disciplinarian,
who sought 10 run his Office with mill
tHry preciscness. Tie was appointed by
Governor David B. Hill TO I'M out the
year 1880, after James a. Flack re-
signed under pressure. Mr. NcCOr-
mick tells this about General Sickles:
"'Nick' Biddle was a well known
newspaper man. Tie wrote a story in
which he charged two clerks with keep
ing man out Of Jail The Sheriff sent
for the offending Biddle after he had
announced that he would get a retrac-
tion or pistol him.
Nonsense was the ony reply Of the
reporter 20 the generals demand for
proof or retraction Furious at this
treatment Of his complaint. the general
shouted. as though leading a battalion
az Gettysburg Right about face. for
ward, march, Biddle marched lie
never came back but the rctraction was
printed
knew City's Millionaires
"Qute the opposite" said Mr.. Nc
Cormick was William J. O'Brien. who
was elected 90 Office by the labor party.
lie was lOvable man. He was not too
strict. but the men worked hard for
him. One morning he got 20 the Office
very early. His staff had no. yet APP
peared After that he never got 70
The Office until after 10 o'clock 80 as
never 10 see any Of his subordinates
come in late.
Mitchell L. Granger. now. a SUI
preme Court Justice. succeeded Mr.
O'Brien." continued Mac" ole was
the first man 10 advocate the abolition
Of Ludlow Street Jail and imprisonment
Tor debt, In which he was supported
by The Tribune. Whenever debtor
was arrested he would consult with the
lawyers and try 20 find way 10 settle
the case without sending the man tC
Jail"
II was more difficult 20 get McCor
mick 20 talk about "millionaires hav,
met" than Il was 10 have him tell about
"Sherihs | have worked under" Tn,
men Of financial and commercial great
ness with whom he has fraternized n,
has met officially and also socially
There ~ perhaps no man in New Yorl
~ho has known more Of these men o
wealth, for the rolls Of the three panel
i ~ the Sherif's jury might easily b
\ mistaken for list Of the Mctropolita
Club.
Morgan Juryman.
"When the late J. Pierpont Norga
was q juryman." Mccormick said, al
did not attend the sessions Of the iur
very often. but he was q regular at
\ tendsnt AZ the dinners Of the panel
And he enjoyed them. too. George
Bowdoin and Temple Bowdoin, part
ners Of Nh. Morgan, were also jury
men. J. r. Morgan. IT,. was not cligi
bic g. succeed his father because h.
was not resident Of this county
Colonel John Jacob Aston used to re
port for duty and when he died hii
son Vincent WAS appointed 20 his place
Apparently the son was too busy. foi
10 rasfgpef