The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-12-20
EMPTY PURSE
TO GREET new
GOTHAM MAYOR
La Guardia Faces Huge
Task; City $3.50, 1000, 1000
I'm Red
BIZ United Press

DW q mica Press
NEW YORK. Dec. 2o.-Fforelo H
La Guardia, who challenged the
twenty-year dominance Of Tam
many Hall and triumphed in tht
November elections, will face one
Of the most stupendous tasks Of
municipal reconstruction in the
history of New York when he as
sumes Office Jan. l.
To meet the problems involved II
a budget Of more than s500,OO0,00C
and an empty treasury, he will take
into office with him a brain trust Of
his own, consisting in part of poll
tical professors and in part Of con-
stitutional Tammany-baiters and
social experts who rallied TO the
Fusion banner last summer.
In addition to a complete read
justment of the city's finances, La
Guardia is called upon to unity the
disjointed subway systems, which
is a iOr railroad-economic Job; to
bring the city under the new repeal
regulations and at the same time
eliminate police graft; to abolish an
overgroWth Of expensive political
offices; to reorganize the crazy-quilt
Of department activities that make
the municipal machine a cumber-
some, unWieldy and inefficient
agency for government; to furnish
relief for an army of unemployed;
to reduce a total city debt that has
mounted to more than So ,250,00O, 900.
Pension Grab Starts
The two most important posts in
the La Guardia cabinet, under these
circumstances, are those of COM
missioner of accounts and commits
sioner of police.
For the first, he chose Paul
Blanshard, who for fifteen years,
in season and out, has fought Tam
many rule, waste, corruption, ex-
travagance and graft. AS commits
Sioner Of accounts, Blanshard has
the power to launch Investigations
as sweeping as the Seabury probe
that produced the Tammany de-
bacle. With him, as counsel, will be
Irving Ben Cooper, Samuel Sea-
bury's right hand man, who turned
up the evidence that sent many a
Tammany chieftain scurrying for
the pension cyclone cellar.
For r1nlTPn n
Guardia chose Major General John
F. Organ, fighting Celt, who won
the distinguished service medal and
the CroiX de Guerre as commander
of the Twenty-seventh division of
the A. f. F.
Tammanys dying days at city hall
have been marked by a rush for
safety in the Open-handed and gen.
erous pension system established
long ago by foresighted politicians
to take care of lame ducks. Judges
who retired under the hottest of
the Seabury fire have marched up
to the pension desk and been made
happy on $1,000 a year. Police in
spectors, fearing the ak, have sud-
denly decided TO take their pension
dues.
People Are Confident
AS a result, the city's pension
costs. which were $2900O,0OO this
year, threaten to rise within the
next ten years to $600O0,000. La
Guardia'S job-with the assistance
of the state legislature-wil1 be to
reorganize the citys eleven pension
systems, safeguard the civil service
worker, and eliminate the political
pension grabbers.
But the supreme task will be the
balancing of a $551 ,OOO.O 900 budget
which is out of trim today by
SGT 000,000-more than 5 per cent.
The people of New York have no
idea how this will be done, but sew
eral millions of them, who cheered
La Guardia in his November fight.
have bland and childlike faith in
his financial alchemy.