POLITICAL ABUSES IN NEW YORK.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 6, Issue 1757, 9 August 1884, Page 2

POLITICAL ABUSES IN NEW YORK.

. The committee appointed by the State Assembly of New York to inquire into the government of New York City has made a report which contains some extraordinary revelations. It is stated that a county clerk received in figures 13,700 dols,, which he retained thoi'gh tlio law required him to hand over these fees to the city, His predecessor retained 36,520 dols., explaining that he did so under the advice of counsel, The clerk has a net income of 80,0000 dols, and for his whole term 250,000 dols., but he is required to pay over a large part to various political organisations. The work is done by. subordinates. The registrar, who keeps the record of deeds and mortgages, had forgotten whether he had paid more or lesss than 50,000 dols. for his office, and in consequence of the books having having been carried off by his predecessor, the committee could not ascertain what his income was. The surrogate's office was found to be largely a blackmailing establishment. The committeo state that the first step towards getting work done there is to bribe the employees. The sheriff receives numberless fees for services which cost him nothing to perform. A haul is made out of the conveyance of prisoners to gaol, and the sheriff feeds his prisoners at a profit of 14,000d015, makes 3600d01s by serving notices on jurors, and pockets 600dols whenever a criminal is hanged. Though his clear income exceeds 60,000d01s per annum, his gaol in Ludlow street (to quote the report) is yet "in a revolting and almost incredible condition, the keepers being drunken and brutal, and making a living out of the wretched prisoners by a thorough system of extortion and black mail," The President of the committee described the general government of the City of Now York to be in a condition that was simply appalling, and that would not be allowed to exist for a moment if the Majority of the voters were aware of the facts, and were influenced by the slightest particle of public spirit, The committee introduced nine bills to remedy the abuse, but failed to obtain the necessary votes to make the bills a special order for certain days. One of the bills will abolish arrests on processes for delil, a line of prosecution which has boon a'.very'..fruitful ."source of abuse, The Bill, which gave to the Mayor of New York City the sole power of appointing heads of departments, was passed, after a spirited debate in the Senate, by a vote of twenty-four to seven. The "Nation" observes that the time has now come when the citizens of New York may turn their eyes to the real government of the city as it will exist in the future the essential feature of which is to be the election by universal suffrage of a single executive head, vested with absolute power of appointment, and held responsible for its exercise. The great metropolitan city thus finds relief only in using the universal vote to establish what is practically the despotism of one man,