New-York tribune., 1921-06-04
Accounts of 50 Tammany
Leaders To Be Seized:
Records of O'Malley.
Market Chief, Taken
Panic at Wigwam;
O'Brien Protests
Morris Bloch Pleads That
Papers of the Mayor
Be Granted Immunity

The legislative graft hunters yes
terday began sweeping investigs-
tlon into the financial operations of
Mayor Hylan, other members of the
iammany-controlled Board of Esti-
mate and various important figures
IN the Hearst-Hylan-Ta -Tammany ad-
ministration.
The committee expects to go thor
oughly into the bank deposits of at
least fifty members of the city ad-
mlnlstration. Bank accounts of q
number will be in the hands of the
committee within the next few davs.
A few minutes before the doors OF
the Broadway branch of the Columbia
Bank, Canal Street and Broadway.
were to close for the day process
servers of the joint legislative graft
investigating committee entered and
seized the bank accounts of Edwin ].
O'Malley, Commissioner Of Public
Markets.
Commissioner o'Malley, who. sl-
though resident o. Queens County
is protege of Charles f, Murnhv
leader of Tammany Hall, in discussing
the seizure of the books revealing
some OF his financial dealings, said:
was notified by officials Of the
bank that my account had been sinh
p9naed. l told them to w;+hho1.
nothing for there is nothing Pm
afraid off,
Dismissed in 1919
This is not the first time O'MalIav
mas been under fire. an October. 1915
the Rev. Jonathan C. Day. Presbvr
serlen minister, then Commissioner OF
Markets, dismissed O'Malley, who was
ms First Deputy Commissioner. Com
missioner Day did not ike the wav
y Malley was handling the sale of the
army food supplies allotted to this
city; G. O'Malley and another deputy.
Whliam W. Smith, kept the proceeds
o. the sale, which ran into the hun
dreds of thousands of dollars, in their
own name in several banks in Manbs+-
tar and Brooklyn. This, thev ey-
planned at the time. they were com
peiled to do because the moneys could
not De deposited in the name of +bo
clty. Shortly after O'Malley was dis
missed Commissioner Day dismissed
Smith
This was more than Mayor Hylan
could endure, and within twenty-four
hours after Smith had been dismissed
ne. ne removed en- Commissioner Day. Day
was no sooner out than Mayor Hylan
appointed O'Malley his successor ana
instructed him to reappoint Smith.
La Guardia Asked Inquiry
After Days removal F. H La
Guardia, President of the Board of
Aldermen, one Of the two Republican
members of the Board of Estimate, de-
manded that there be an investigation
OF the charges made against O'Mallev
bv Day. The Mayors friend, Commits
sloner of Accounts Hirschfeld, said :he
papers and documents which Day said
would prove his charge had disap-
peared and the investigation ended in
q fizzle.
The news of the new turn the in
yestigation had taken threw Tammany
hall INTO panicky state. The spokes-
man of Tammany Hall on the commit.
tee, Assemblyman Morris Bloch. pro-
tested against the seizure of the bank
accounts, objecting especially to tho
probe into Mayor Hylan's financial op-
erations.
Mayor HyIan by virtue of his posi-
ton Is entitled to certain considers.
ton, which the committee has failed to
show him. said Bloch 'If the com
mittee wants the Mayors bank ac-
counts they would call him publicly TO
the stand and ask him about them
6loch Appeals to Meyer
Rlncd
the newspaper men, called at the Office
OF the legislative graft hunters and
made the same protest to Senator
Schuyler NJ. Meyer, chairman of the
committee
The quest of the financial accounts
OF prominent members of the Hearst
n hylan-Tammany administration was
begun Systematically two weeks ago,
when = blanket subpoena was served
upon Comptroller Craig calling upon
hlm TO produce all the pay vouchers OF
Mayor Hylan and his associates in the
city administration for the months of
February and March. When these were
returned to the legislative graft inyes-
committee the stamps and can
te!iatlons on the checks revealed some
or the repositories used by Mayor Hy-
Ian and his cabipet and lesser officials.
There was talk last night of second
blanket subpoena being served on all
the banks Of the city calling upon them
TO produce the accounts of all city Off
Gals.
The graft investigators, through
their chairman, Senator Meyer, yester-
day made formal request of Police Com
m ssioner Enright TO assign Honest
Dan" Costigan, former head of the.
Vice Squad, who was denoted by En-
right, to aid them in their Investigation
Of graft conditions.
Letter Requesting Dam
The request was embodied in the fol-
lowing letter to the Commissioners:
Dear Sir: The New York State
Joint Legislative Committee to inyes-
tigate the affairs of the City of New
York, under the authority conferred BIZ
the Legislature TO have the assistance
and cooperation of officers and employ.
ees Of the City of New York requests
you to assign Captain Daniel K. COST
gan to assist the committee in its work.
Il need not point out, / am sure,
that this is matter OF great urgency