New-York tribune., 1922-01-12
Says TO Greedy
/ 4alltllOs'<ls(' 'a1lse
s<ent Suit Flood
Chief Clerk Of Harlem
Iour, Asserts Greater Part
of S .800,O 900 Deposited
III Actions Is Paid Them
= 100000 in Fees Kept
cs'ifics ST That Jury Money
Was Sent to Comptroller
on Advice Of Hirshfield

Seventv-fve per cent Of thousands If
''"' cases that seem to stream in
'cFfAinably through the 9TH District
Municipal Court in Harlem arc caused
oy ten greedy landlords" it was tcsti-
he'd before the Lockwood committee
on housing Yesterday.
lhese ten, according to the record
nave appeared in this court dav after
day and month after month under nu-
meFouS names and titles ever since tho
emergency rent laws became effective.
lhree- tourths of the SI,SOO.OOO de-
posted with this court as rent by ten
ants involved in litigation is paid to
these ''grcedy ten" said witness.
lheTe are now pending about 5000
landlord and tenant cases in this one
district.
1t WAS also disclosed that sloo 600
III jury fees, paid by tenants for jury
trials which did not take place, were
retained by John P. Burns, chief clerk
CT the 1th District Court. Burns said
this money was collected from litigant
tenants and much of it sent to the
Comptroller's Office in accordance" with
an opinion Of Commi issioner of Ac-
counts Hirshheld.
City Received Share
The chief clerk explained the accumu
lation Of this fund by saying that when
many tenants had their cases tried
Jointly before a single jury, each of
the tenants was required to pay SO
jury fec, as though they had had separ-
ate trials. Although only SO was ex-
pended for jury service. the rest of the
money was not returned to the tenants,
said Burns, but went to the city. The
chief CLERK said he had been told to do
this, not only by the Commissioner of
Accounts office, but also by Magistrate $
Davies. Crane and Friedlander.
Samuel Untermyer, chief counsel to
the Lockwood committee, insisted that
there was no authority for any such
procedure and that he "would not see
the tenants cheated Of this money
The committee Immediately ordered
subp9nas served on the Commi ssioner
Of Accounts and the three magistrates
under whose advice Burns said he re-
hold any further fees at the request
of Mr.. Untermyer until the matter was
settled and legal opinion had been
obtained from the Corporation Counsel
100000 Withheld From Tenants
Burns was subpoenaed following the
testimony of Harry A. Ely, chairman
Of the Audubon Community Council of
Defense and editor Of The Tenant
and numerous other householders, who
told of their jury fee money being re-
tanned, although they had had no jury
trials. Ely said that if the emergency
rent laws were not continued there
would be revolution against land
lords. Ely said that 100000 in such
fees had been held up when they should
have been returned to tenants when
jury action was discontinued
In one case, said Ely, 26S tenants had
paid So each for jury trial. They
agreed to abide by the verdict in a
single case, but the 267 could not get
their So back. Mrs. Katherine Blust
of 500 West 169th Street, told how
after getting an apartment for S25 four
years ago, the landlord is now trying to
get SIS from her. Four other tenants
joined her in an action, agreeing to
abide by a single verdict, but each
had to put up SO for jury trials, al
though there was only one trial. She
said when she tried TO get her SO she
was shuttled between the 18th District
Court and the City Comptroller's off ice
Similar stories were told by other
witnesses.
Would Give Landlord Interest
Chief Clerk Burns appeared in court
with several Of his bank and account
books. He said he would gladly per-
NIT the committees accountants to go
over his court records. He said that
he deposited his court funds in three
accounts with branch of the Corn
Exchange Bank before they were dis
posed OF in accordance with the de-
cision in the rent cases.
He said that s1.soO.ooo had so been
deposited by him since January l,
1921. He testified that per cent in
tcrcst was accruing on some of this
money. which had not yet been dis
posed Of. He said he thought the in
tcrcst should go to the landlords.
When he said that he was told to
turn the 100000 jury fec money over
to the Comptroller by the Commits
sioner of Accounts, Mr.. Untermyer
asked. "Did you get written opinion
from that legal lumnary?" lie re-
piled he did not, but that he saw an
examiner named Amos in the Commits