Year: 1874

The Vacant Police Commissioner-


ships-Will tho Law Be Obeyed.


The friends of Police Commissioners Char
lick and Gardner affect to believe that the
conviction of those officers Of misdemeanor
in having violated law they were sworn to
faithfully observe does not entail the forfeiture
of their offices. 1t is even rumored that Mr.
Gardner appeared at Headquarters yesterday
and essayed to perform some official duties.
There was no meeting of the Police Board,
however, and it is not probable that the pres
ent Commissioners-Mr. Disbecker and Gen.
eral Duryee-wiI be willing to risk indct-
ment for msdemeanor themselves by acting
with or in any manner recognizing the official
existence of their late associates. There can
facto forfeiture of Office, and that the places
OF the Commissioners are already vacant We
believe the provisions Of the charter to be con-
elusive on that point, Independent of the
plain language of the common law. The
charter makes any violation of its provisions
viction the Office held by the person so con-
victed shall be forfeited. One of the provisions
of the charter requires every municipal officer
to perform such duties as are required Of him
under any law not inconsistent with the char
ter, and o violation of such duties is thus
made a violation of the charter. But
the language of the Revised Statutes is ex-
plicit, and there can be no doubt that the
Police Commissioners in their relation to the
Election law hold an Office that comes within
its scope.


Section 49, of article 4, chapter s. part /,
volume of the Revised Statutes, fifth edition,
provides that every Office shall become
vacant on the happening of either of the fol-
lowing events before the expiration of the
term of such Office. S. His convic-
ton of any offence involving vio-
lation of his oath of Office"


Section Al provides, whenever any officer
shall be convicted of an offence
involving violation of his oath of Office
the Court before which such convic-
ton shall be had shall Immediately
the cause of such conviction


Section AZ provides that 'The Governor
shall Immediately give notice of the vacancy
created by such conviction to the
body or officer in whom the appointment to
the Office is vested"


The duty of the Governor is mandatory.
He cannot go behind the certificate of convic-
ton which has been forwarded to him by the
Court. Whatever special pleas may be raised
as to the law under which the conviction was
secured, or as to the position Of the Police
Commissioners when acting as Commissioners
under the Election law, or as to the scope of
their oath Of office, it is clear that any attempt
of the convicted Commissioners to hold on to
Office or to do single official act will be a
bold attempt to defy the law and most dan
gerous precedent in city like New York.


The GOVERNMENT OF VENEZUELA is engaged
in o very laudable endeavor to secure to the
people Of the Republic measure Of internal
peace based on the foundation of constitu-
tional reform. The special letter from
Caracas which we publish in the HERALD to-
day details the progress of the movement under
the administrative direction of President
Guzman Blanco. The matter of the treat
ment Of the Church appears to present o
difficulty in the way, the subject having
assumed tho same aspect of perplexity and
doubt or positive contradiction, which is so
embarrassing to many of the Old World gov
ernments.


MEDICAL MALPRACTICE is q crime deserving
swift and severe punishment on the part of
the law, and the verdict found against a
physician in one Of the courts yesterday for
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