New-York tribune., 1921-10-29
Vice Thrives
Under Hylan,
Says Curran
Continued from paue ono

said that her daughter was becoming
wild and unmanageablc she assigned
a policewoman to investigate the case.
AS detail by detail was worked out
and laid before her, she had three
young girls brought into her office and
questioned separately. Two of these
girls were seventeen years old said
MIS-. O'Grady, and they told horrible
story OF two men who had taken them
into an apartment in New York-those
men had spoken to them from an auto
mobile IN Fifth Avenue, and they took
those girls into their apartment, and
things happened that should not have
happened, and felt that arrests should
be made These were two very wealthy
men-well-known men, / believe; at
least one of them is very we'll known
What did Mrs. O'Grady do? What
would you have done had you been in
her place? She ordered the policewomen
TO arrest those men. The policewomen
went to the Office where the men were
and there they found Mr. Hackett, sec
retaryA to Police Commissioner En-
rights closest friend and boon com
panlon for twenty years, the man who
made million dollars. The presence
OF these officials naturally confused
and bewildered the policewomen They
reported back by telephone, said Mrs
O'Grady, that Hackett and Hughes had
prevented them from arresting the men
through their actions. The policewom
en- reported that they didn't try not to
arrest the men, but there was so much
shutting doors ard taking them to one
room and shutting doors that these
men got away.
Tried to Arrest Him in Vain
"The bewildered policewomen tried
vainly to make the arrest and then they
telephoned again. Let Mrs. O'Grady
tell it: They said to me. "Commis-
sioner, we cannot arrest these men. Ex-
Inspector Hughes is here and the Com
missioner's secretary, and they are pre-
venting our doing anything. What
shall we do?" l said, "Stay there and
arrest your men," and they called me up
repeatedly. But Hackett and Hughes
framed their getaway
Cant you see what was going on?
Can't you understand the way Mrs.
O'Grady felt, trying her best to make
this city little better and little
safer for young girls, and being blocked
by the very men who should have been
the first to come to her assistance?
"She reported the thing to Commits
sioner Enright. He asked me whether
they were good girls testified Mrs.
O'Grady. 4 said those girls were under
eighteen, and, were they black as ink,
any man who had anything to do with
them was guilty of crime.
Mrs. O'Grady also told her story to
the Mayor, she testified. She went
right to the Office of Hylan at the City
Hall and told him the whole story,
how Enright's secretary and Enright's
close personal friend, exInspector
Hughes, had blocked her efforts to ar
rest these two men. Did Hylan move
tce when he had the facts from a
Deputy Police Commissioner whom he
had appointed to uphold the law? He
did not.
"Mrs. O'Grady went back to Police
Headquarters disappointed. She knew
she was right. She knew that she was
working earnestly and sincerely to pro-
tect the women and the young girls of
New York, but she had run up against
the stone wall of the Hylan- -Enright
methods of taking care of their friends.
"But she didn't take her lesson to
heart. 1t was impossible for good
woman like Mrs. O'Grady to sit quietly
by and see things happen that would
make decent man or decent woman
shudder. She kept right on at her job,
going after the vice which Hearst is
now trying to tell US that Hylan drove
out What happened? She testified
she got message from Enright, deliv-
cred to her by police captain, sub
ordinate Enrght had placed in her of
fee, warning her that she was getting
altogether too strenuous Still she
persisted.
Petty Prosecutions Begin
"Her polcewomen continued their
crusade against the places where the
vice that Hylan did not drive out flour
ishes, places where the procurers and
cadets get their recruits. She began
to feel the burden of the Hylan- En-
right official displeasure. A series of
petty prosecutions began, mortifying to
her self-respect not only as an official,
but also as q woman.
after enduring this for year, and
getting no help from Hylsn. Mrs.
O'Grady resigned, and Enright's friends
once more breathed freely. Mrs.
O'Grady was honest, yes. She took
her Job seriously and worked as hard
as she knew how in the interests of
the women and children of New York
whom she had sworn to protect, but
she failed in just one thing. She did
not appreciate that vice is not vice be-
tween friends, if the friend is in
right She did not understand that
friend of Enright's is immune from
interference by Police Headquarters
And so she resigned. And when she
threw her shield on Enright's desk she