Evening star., 1932-03-15
UNWILLING MAYOR
BUSY IN TARRYTOWN
Girls School Principal Found
Speakeasies Difficult
to Rout.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


TARRYTOWN. N. Y, March Is
N-A.N.A).-In many ways the model
community of New York States West
chester County. this town has a new
prominence because its schoolmaster.'
Mayor Eugene Heitler Lehman an
nounced in a recent proclamation tnas
he was abandoning his drive to en-
force the eighteenth amendment
The story Of Mayor Lehman's at
tempt to make a majority of his cit
liens obey the laws of the country is
worth looking into.
Tarrytown is largely a residential
community and within the town limits
are many fine estates, including large
part<of the estate of Tarrytowns rich
est citizen, John D. Rockefeller, jr.
Rich in historical tradition from Co
lonial and Revolutionary times. Tarry-
town is also the country of Washing
ton Irving.
Private schools for boys and girls
have found ideal sites in Tarrytown.
One of its leading educational institu-
tions is the Highland Manor School
for Girls, of which Mayor Lehman is
the principal.
Dominated by G. o. P.
For years Westchester County has
been dominated by a Republican ma
chine fully as strong in its own baili-
wick as Tammany is next door in New
York City. King William" L. Ward
is now rounding out his thirty-sixth
year as the political boss of the county,
and despite occasional disagreements
with w. Kingsland Macy, New York
State Republican leader, Ward appears
to hold as much influence as ever.
This was the machine which Princi-
pal Lehman Of the girls school de-
feated year ago. Mr.. Lehman con-
.S1stently refused to run for mayor,
and was finally nominated in absentia
by friends while he was attending an
educational convention In Detroit.
He made no campaign, had no plat
form. He made one speech" of five
club. When the final results of the
balloting came in, he was astounded to
learn that he had carried all three of
the Tarrytown districts.
Mayor Lehman is no more uf a pro-
fesslonal reformer than he is a pro-
fesSional politician, but cne OF the first
decisions he made after taking Office
was that the laws should be enforced.
He does not drink. although while a
student in Germany years ago he
learned to like beer.
Found FIagrant Violations.
Law observance seemed to him to be
merely the least that could be expected
of any good citizens, and If a citizen
were elected to ONCE it became his
natural duty to see that all citizens
locked upon the law with respect.
Mayor Lehman found the most fiagrant
violations of the law in the matter
OF speakeasieS. gambling joints and dis
orderly houses.
He wrote to all the civic and religious
organizations in Tarrytown and asked
the members whether they wanted to
see the laws observed. The answers
came back unanimously in favor of law
enforcement, and Tarrytowns unusual
mayor took the answers at their face
value.
The police chief was ousted and q
new one installed. The drive against
speakeasies. gambling joints and dis
orderly houses began, The last two
were successfully driven from the town,
but the fspeakeasies were a harder
"ffs areOrss55 Orisis1ao Sosy had been thr.. or
tInr blin, &n htS twentS or SIX sseaR sa%
easies, asCHairs U 70 Mayor Lehman.
Nov he cs. M there are about ten
or q dozen ~speakeasies, although at
police headquarters the new chief said
that he knew of only five.
Mayor Lehman threatened TO station
police officers outside each known
speakeasy, with instructions to list the
names Of citizens patronizing them.
The list would then be posted on a
bulletin board for every one to inspect.
The revelation that a citizen did not
seem to care whether he was known as
topper or as a law-abiding citizen was
what finally discouraged Mayor Leh-
man.
Text of Proclamation.
This is what he said in his proc
lamation:
MY efforts have not met with notable
success because the number of our peo-
pie who honestly desire real enforce
ment OF the amendment is insignificant;
the number who do not wish it en-
forced is overwhelmingly large A large
number Of elected officials, in fiat de-
fiance OF their oath Of ONCE, make no
pretense either to comply with the law
themselves or to enforce it among
Mayor Lehman was born in Pueblo,
Colo. on September 5, 1878. He re-
ceived his A. B. degree from Yale in
1902 and his M. A. in 1910. He has
studied also at the University of Berlin
and at Columbia.
(copyrighs; 1892. by. the North American
Newspaper Alliance, Incl