New-York tribune., 1918-10-24
Hylan a Failure
From Start, Says
Citizens Union
Charge Mayor Has Torn
Down Rather Than Built
Up Effective Government

In long review to be published in a
forthcoming issue Of "The Searchl ght."
the Citizens Union charges that Mayor
Hyans administration has faied in
corst uct'v achievement, has failed
to meet the needs of the critical times,
bu. has. instead Attempted TO tear
down some Of the structu g of effective
mum cpal government bu 1t up labori-
ously during recent years.
AS for Mayor Hyian himself. he has
&C ntinued to d mo ish raw men of
campaign times and TO indulge in dem
agoa'c b. pays calculated to wln ap-
p ause from the people,"
HIS honor is described in the ar
TIC IS n rr) lie .et1er writer, IN
tending, doubtless, 10 initiate the late
Ma. OF uaynor but ra her emphasizing
the prevailing public opinion of the
unfortunate cont asst between the char
acter and c pac ty Of William j. Gay
nor and of John f. Hylan"
The Citizens Unions review char
acterizes as the most cen spicuous out
break of tie iIy an administration the
attack on the Health Department. This,
the review says. was launched by the
Mayor and car led on by James f Mac
Bride, at that time president of the
a.,
and who is described as "a former
rol.tica! reporter for the Hca st news
papers The purpose of this attack, tn 2
review says was to terminate the bu-
rcau organ zation OF the department
and to abo ish the post ons of bureau
di ectors he d by trained special S
Eventua ly the administration attack
was abandoned but, the review adds,
mot without casua. ties"
Indicted by DR.. Amster
One of these was the Health Com
missioner. DR.. j. Lews Amster, who ,e
res gnation addressed TO the Ma, or
con aimed what the Cit zens Union
terms "a sea hing indictment of the
Mayor for petty political and personal
interference with the work of the
Hea tn Department"
Civil Service Commissioner MacBride
was the next to go. rendering s res
lgnation. according to the review in
ga touching 'rtter to the Mayor, which
was answered in kind But is resig-
nation came after MacBr;de had sh fled
his inquiry into IAN alleged examina-
tion Of charges of graft arairs three
minor employees in one of the bureaus"
Tina ly," the review adds. DISCUS ed
by the mess. tha d rector of the Bu-
reau Of Public Health Education re-
signed. but his work. which Commits
81 ner MacBride had sa d was valueless
and d be done by c'erk has been
continued under the personal super
vision of the new Heat tn Commits
sioner"
Then the review describes the fling
by Macl}ride of charges aoairst Dr..
Luc;us P. Brown. d rec or of the Bu-
rcau of Food and Drugs. reaec ing on
his integrity; "the lud or US and futile
attempt of the Commissioner of Ac-
counts. after the charges had been
filed, to f"d evidence t. sustain them;
the transformation of these charges
tive inetf cheney. and the ultin ate dis
missal y the Board of Healt'' of all
of the ch rges Fl cd against Dr.. Brown" ,"
Hulbert's Plans SO led
Commissioner Murray Hulbert's 9th
Dock Department was married." ac-
cordng to the review, "by the at empt
to lease Pier 50 at a rental VIII ch
while greater than previously received
by the city, was $1,000 per onnum less
than was tfercd b.. the OUTGOING lessee
and $40 800 less than was finally OBJ
tanned after the affair had taken promi-
nence in the newspapers"
Frederick H. Rughcr's RESIGNATION as
Police Commissioner is a 'trlbuted bv
the Citizens Union to "the Mayor's
demoralzing Interference with the
work Of the department. Commits
sioner Enright IS damned with faint
praise.
In referring to the Commissioner of
Accounts. descr bed in the review as
"Hy ans friend Hrshfield," the review
says:
az is difficult to have entire conf
dence in t G administration of any de-
rartment headed or directed by an Off
lier personal record"
"T here is a lot of detailed crit cisn.
in addition o the above, aside from
which Mayor Hylan's administration is