Year: 1874

Police Department..


The Special Committee of the Board OF
Aldermen appointed to investigate the affairs
of the Police Department and to report what
action should be taken on the Mayors mes
sage, declining to consider the evidence taken
before the Legislative Committee relating to
the corruptions OF the Street Cleaning Bureau,
made their report yesterday The report is
signed by Aldermen Ottendorfer, reformer;
S. V. r. Cooper, republican, and Edward
Gilon, democrat. The committee very justly
condemn the frivolous excuses of the Mayor
and his indifference to the misconduct of his
appointees They regard it as the duty of
the Executive to watch jealously and closely
the workings of all the departments, and to
exercise the power of publication vested in
him by the charter, without waiting for
specific charges to be made in an official form
by some outside party The Mayor, as the
head of the city government, is certainly re-
sponsible for the ineficiency and maladminis-
tration for which several of the departments
are notorious. The fault lies with him origi-
nally for studying personal friendships and
political bargains in the selection Of his ap-
pointees. He has filed the public offices with
men unknown to the community, or too well
known to be trusted, and has thus brought
upon the city such scandals as the police in
vestigation, the grand jury presentment and
other disgraceful disclosures. In imperti-
nently branding the inquiry of the legislative
committee as mere partisan movement un-
deserving the confidence or respect OF the
community, as in his pretended investigation
of the charges brought against the Depart
ment of Charities and Correction, he shows
that he is resolved to stand by his nppointees,
however unworthy they may be. The censure
be receives from the Aldermen is therefore
well deserved.


The Aldermen find much to condemn in the
management of the Police Department. and
express the belief that the " "ineficiency, neg
igence corruption and defiance of laws which
are proved to exist in the street cleaning
and election bureaus are not restricted to
these two Offices, but pervade more or less
every branch of the Police Department
Their conclusion is that it is the
imperative duty of Mr. Havemeyer to suspend
and remove the Police Commissioners 'who
are responsible for the generalization exist
ing in their department" and to appoint gen.
tlemen whose character and standing in the
community will be a guarantee of the thor
ough reform of the department The COM
mittee have made a mistake in taking up the
cudgels for the Tammany braves in their fight
with the Police Commissioners over the ap-
pointment of inspectors of election. Their
report will lose some of its force on this ac-
count. The Street Cleaning Bureau has been
notoriously inefficient, extravagant and cor
rupt, and it would have been well Tor the
Aldermen to have rested their case on this
ground alone Nevertheless their recon-
mendation of reformation of the Police
Commission is as proper as it will be inehfec-
tual. The interests of the Police Commission
and the Street Cleaning Bureau are the inter-
ests of the Mayor, and he will not interfere
with either. It will be fortunate if the recent
changes in the Commission-united with the
exposures that have. already been made
should have the effect Of removing some Of
the abuses that exist in the department.