MUNICIPAL 
 GOVERNMENT 
 
 OF THE CITY OF 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 BAKER 3" WARE 
 
REESE LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
 Class 
 
BIRD'S-EYE VIEW O: 
 
ATLANTIC OCEAN 
 
 HE FIVE BOROUGHS 
 
MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 
 
 OF THE CITY OF 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 BY 
 
 ABBY G. BAKER 
 
 
 
 AND 
 
 ABBY H. WARE 
 
 GINN & COMPANY 
 
 BOSTON . NEW YORK . CHICAGO . LONDON 
 
COPYRIGHT, 1906 
 BY ABBY G. BAKER 
 
 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED 
 
 66.4 
 
 gtftenaum 
 
 GINN & COMPANY PRO- 
 PRIETORS BOSTON U.S.A. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 During the past few years a widespread interest, not 
 only in this country but in Europe, has been awakened in the 
 subject of civic betterment. The means by which it could 
 be attained has been discussed in frequent public meetings, 
 and numberless reformations in municipal governments have 
 been inaugurated ; but it is generally conceded by those 
 who have given the matter the most careful consideration 
 that the National Educational Association struck the ulti- 
 mate solution of the problem when it indorsed the proposi- 
 tion to introduce the study of city government in the public 
 schools. It was forcibly shown at that time that the best 
 guarantee of better civic conditions in the future lies in 
 familiarizing the school boys and girls of to-day with the 
 administration of their own city government. Recognizing 
 this fact, the Board of Education of New York City has 
 greatly enlarged its course of study in regard to national, 
 state, and local history and civics. In the requirements of 
 the latest syllabus for the eighth grade of the public schools 
 the governments of the state and of the city of New York 
 are made a part of the course of study. The three depart- 
 ments of the city government and the chief offices of the 
 city are particularized, with the suggestion that increasing 
 emphasis be laid " upon the duties and responsibilities of a 
 citizen as a member of a family, as a pupil, as employer 
 or employed, as a voter, or as officeholder." For the high 
 
 iii 
 
 166705 
 
iv PREFACE 
 
 school the syllabus recommends that a generous amount of 
 time should be used in a thorough study of civics, and among 
 the subjects assigned is the charter of Greater New York. 
 
 Primarily, Municipal Government of the City of New 
 York was written to supply the text-book required in the 
 classes thus designated, and as it closely follows the charter 
 of Greater New York in treating the different branches of 
 the city government, it will be found a convenient hand- 
 book for that study ; second, it was written with the expec- 
 tation that it would be of great value to those who take the 
 city civil service examinations, and of equal value also to 
 the members of municipal leagues and other civic organiza- 
 tions outside as well as in the City of New York. 
 
 After an introductory chapter telling the story of New 
 York under the Dutch and under the English, and the first 
 settlement of Manhattan and adjacent territory, with a brief 
 resume of the city's subsequent growth, the book takes up 
 the branches of the municipal government, following the 
 plan of the city charter. In a realistic manner it places 
 before the pupil the workings of the city government. It 
 teaches him to be a close observer of actual conditions. It 
 sets forth in outline the various city charters of the past 
 and explains how the charter of Greater New York was 
 made and adopted ; it shows how the city elections are con- 
 ducted and whya voter should vote intelligently. It describes 
 the duties of the mayor, the Board of Aldermen, Board of 
 Estimate and Apportionment, the Board of Education, as 
 well as those of other officials and executive boards of the 
 city. It tells of the work and institutions of the Depart- 
 ment of Public Charities, how the Tenement House De- 
 partment is managed and the nature of the statutes relative 
 
PREFACE V 
 
 to tenements, how the Police and Fire Departments are 
 managed, shows how the city is supplied with water, and so 
 on, through all the departments of the city government. 
 Each chapter is introduced with a short sketch of the early 
 history of the subject under discussion, and closes with a 
 summary which fixes in mind the main facts treated in 
 the chapter. 
 
 The illustrations of the book are also of an educational 
 character. Not only has the work of the different depart- 
 ments been shown in them, together with numerous school- 
 houses and school features of the five boroughs, but many 
 important buildings of the city and attractions of the parks 
 have also been reproduced in order to give the pupils a more 
 intimate acquaintance with them and to make them familiar 
 to the readers who do not reside in New York City. 
 
 Grateful acknowledgment is here made to the following 
 named men for their generous help in securing necessary 
 data to make the work an accurate and reliable text-book : 
 to the Honorable Henry Litchfield West, Commissioner 
 of the District of Columbia, for potent letters of introduc- 
 tion ; to the Honorable George B. McClellan, Mayor of New 
 York City ; to his former secretary, John H. O'Brien, and 
 to the heads of the fifteen executive departments of the mu- 
 nicipal government, whose cheerful helpfulness and untiring 
 patience in explaining the mechanism of the various depart- 
 ments, and in verifying the statements of the book concern- 
 ing them, made not only the book itself possible but added 
 inestimably to its value ; to Dr. James A. Canfield, the libra- 
 rian of Columbia University, whose excellent and kindly 
 suggestions and unfailing assistance were given in all stages 
 of the work ; to the city clerk, Mr. Patrick Scully, who 
 
vi PREFACE 
 
 made accessible many of the city records and files which 
 otherwise would have been inaccessible, and who in numer- 
 ous other ways gave assistance in substantiating the data 
 for the book ; to the secretary of the Civil Service Com- 
 mission ; to the clerk of the Board of Estimate and Appor- 
 tionment ; to Mr. A. Emerson Palmer, the secretary of 
 the Board of Education ; to Mr. G. L. Sterling, Assistant 
 Corporation Counsel; to Attorney Albert E. Hadlock ; to 
 Mr. George Rice, chief engineer of the Rapid Transit Com- 
 mission ; and to the secretaries of the New York Clearing 
 House, the Stock, Produce, and Maritime exchanges, and 
 the Chamber of Commerce, all of whom lent valuable aid 
 during the preparation of the book. 
 
 Credit must also be given to the following : to Harper 
 & Brothers, for permission to reproduce the cuts from Felix 
 Oldboy's Tour around New York; to A. S. Barnes & Co., 
 for permission to reproduce the picture of the first ferry 
 on Long Island, from Lamb's History of New York City ; 
 to the New York Zoological Society, for allowing the use, 
 for illustration, of certain copyrighted pictures of animals 
 and features in the Zoological Park ; and to Messrs. Van 
 Horn and Sawtelle, for the use of their copyrighted picture 
 of Bellevue Hospital. 
 
 To one and all sincerest thanks are returned. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER I. THE ISLAND THAT SOLD FOR TWENTY-FOUR 
 
 DOLLARS 3 
 
 The Coming of Henry Hudson. The Dutch Settlement in 
 America. The First Direcktors-General. The Purchase of the 
 Island. Other Direcktors-General. Direcktor-General Peter Stuy- 
 vesant. Improvements made during Direcktor Stuyvesant's Ad- 
 ministration. The English Invasion. The Change in the Name 
 of the Colony. The City under the English. The Era of the 
 Revolution and Subsequent Growth of the City. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER II. THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW 
 
 YORK 19 
 
 The Development of the City. The Charter of a City. The 
 Dutch Charters. The English Charters. The Adoption of the Con- 
 stitution of the State of New York. The Formation of the Bor- 
 oughs. How the Present Charter of the City of New York was 
 Made. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER III. ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK . . 29 
 
 Electors' Rights in Colonial Days. The Australian Voting 
 System. . The Australian Ballot. The City Elections. How an 
 Election is Conducted. Primary Elections. Board of Elections. 
 Registration. How the Voting is Done. Citizenship. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. THOSE WHO MAKE OUR LAWS : THE BOARD OF 
 
 ALDERMEN 40 
 
 The Legislative Branch of Government. Scope of Municipal 
 or City Legislation. The Board of Aldermen. The Powers of the 
 Board of Aldermen. Members elected from the Aldermanic Dis- 
 tricts. The President of the Board of Aldermen. Those who sit 
 on the Board but have no Vote. Meetings of the Board. Respon- 
 sibilities of the Board. Summary. 
 
viii CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER V. THE MAYOR 51 
 
 Importance of the Mayor as Chief Executive and Chief Magis- 
 trate of the City. The Mayoralty in Colonial Days and After. The 
 Duties of the Mayor. The Mayor's Veto. Other Duties resting 
 upon the Mayor. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. THOSE WHO CARRY OUT OUR LAWS : THE 
 
 MAYOR AND HIS HELPERS 61 
 
 The Executive Branch of Government. Some Features of New 
 York City's Area, Population, and Wealth. The Fifteen Execu- 
 tive Departments. The Board of Estimate and Apportionment. 
 The Commissioners of Accounts. The Board of Assessors. The 
 Board of Revision of Assessments. Other Boards and Bureaus. 
 Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. THE BOROUGH PRESIDENTS 73 
 
 The Formation of the Boroughs. The Borough Presidents. 
 Powers and Duties. Appointing Power. The Local Improvement 
 Boards. The Necessity of a Borough President. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION . . . 81 
 
 A Glance at the Early History of the Schools of New York City. 
 Schools during English Occupancy of the Island. The Establish- 
 ment of the Present School System. Educational Advantages of 
 New York City. The University of the State of New York. 
 Columbia University. The New York University. The College 
 of the City of New York. The Normal College. Educational 
 Societies. The Library System of the City. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (continued} 95 
 
 The Organization of the Board of Education. The Board of 
 Education. Powers and Duties. The Local School Boards. The 
 Superintendent of School Buildings. The Superintendent of 
 S^ool Supplies. The City Superintendent and Board of Super- 
 intendents. Work of the Directors. Libraries. Department of 
 Lectures. Vacation Schools, Public Playgrounds, Recreation Cen- 
 ters. Summary. 
 
CONTENTS ix 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER X. THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING . .109 
 
 Origin and Organization of the Department. The Commis- 
 sioner of Street Cleaning. Cleaning the Streets. Removing Ice 
 and Snow. Disposing of the Wastes of the City. Rubbish. 
 Ashes and Sweepings. Other Uses for the City's Wastes. Street 
 Sweepings and Ashes. Garbage. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY, GAS, 
 
 AND ELECTRICITY: THE WATER SUPPLY 119 
 
 Water Supply of New Amsterdam. The Aaron Burr Water- 
 works. The Commencement of the Croton Water System. Con- 
 struction of the First Dam and Aqueduct. The Need for More 
 Water. The New Croton Dam. Reservoirs. New Aqueduct and 
 the Route. Other Waterworks. The Care of the Water Supply. 
 Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY, GAS, 
 AND ELECTRICITY : THE BUREAU OF GAS AND ELEC- 
 TRICITY 134 
 
 Early Dutch Methods of Lighting. The Introduction of Oil, 
 Gas, and Electricity. The Department of Water Supply, Gas, and 
 Electricity. Lighting the City at the Present Time. Public Lamps 
 in the Parks. The Electrical Bureau. The Third Rail. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 144 
 
 The Army of Public Safety. How New York City's Police Force 
 has Grown. The Beginnings of the Present Police System. The 
 Duties of the Police Commissioner. The Police Inspectors. The 
 Captains. The Sergeants and Other Officers. The Telephone 
 and Telegraph Bureau. Other Bureaus. Other Features of the 
 Department. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 15? 
 
 The Earliest Fire Regulations. Fire Buckets and the First Fire 
 Company. Origin of the Fire Department. The Present Fire 
 Department. Bureau Chief of Department. Station Houses and 
 Fire Apparatus. Fire Alarm and Telegraph. Training of 
 men. Bureau of Combustibles. The Bureau of Auxiliary 
 Appliances and Violations. The Bureau of Fire Marshals. Relief 
 Fund and Pensions. Summary. 
 
X CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER XV. TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS OF NEW YORK 
 
 CITY JH^Jt . . . . 1 68 
 
 Early Methods of Transportation. The Beginning of Street 
 Railways in the City of New York. Street Railway Franchises. 
 The Elevated Railway. How and When the Rapid Transit Com- 
 mission was Appointed. Powers and Duties of the Commission. 
 Manner in which the Railway was Built. The Waterproofing 
 Process. The Roadbed, Trains, and Street Stations. The Brook- 
 lyn Division. Terms of the Contract. Some of the Wonderful 
 Features of the Railway. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. THE PARK DEPARTMENT AND THE ART COM- 
 MISSION 187 
 
 Older Parks of the Five Boroughs : Bowling Green, Battery 
 Park, City Hall Park. Madison and Other City Squares. Early 
 Brooklyn Parks. Park Department. Other Parks of the City: 
 Central Park, Prospect Park. Parjcs of The Bronx : Pelham Bay 
 Park, Van Cortlandt Park, The Bronx Park. Statuary of the Parks. 
 Art Commission. Its Powers and Duties. The City Improvement 
 Commission. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES .... 202 
 
 The Need of Bridges. Origin and Organization of the Depart- 
 ment. Powers of the Department. System of Bridges. Historic 
 Bridges: Kingsbridge, Farmers' Bridge, Macomb's Dam Bridge, 
 Third Avenue Bridge, Williamsbridge. Other Harlem River 
 Bridges. East River Bridges : Brooklyn Bridge, Williamsburg 
 Bridge, Manhattan Bridge, Blackwell's Island Bridge. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. THE DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 213 
 
 The Water Front of the City of New York. Docks and Piers. 
 Features of the Harbor of New York. How the Docks and 
 Ferries were Established. In the Days of the Revolution and 
 After. The Department of Docks and Ferries. Commissioner of 
 Docks. The Divisions and Officers of the Department of Docks 
 and Ferries. The Length of the Piers and Why. Harbor Fran- 
 chises. Recreation Piers. Summary. 
 
CONTENTS xi 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 224 
 
 How the Health of the City is Maintained. Origin and Organi- 
 zation of the Department. Duties and Powers. The Sanitary 
 Code. The Sanitary Bureau. Division of Inspection. Inspec- 
 tion of Foods. Division of Contagious Diseases. Medical School 
 Inspectors. School Nurses. Employment Certificates. Vaccina- 
 tion. Hospitals. Division of Laboratories. Disinfection. Bureau 
 of Records. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT . . .237 
 
 The Necessity of the Tenement House Department. The 
 Tenement House Commissioner. Organization of the Department 
 into Four Bureaus : The Executive Bureau, The New Building 
 Bureau, The Old Building Bureau, or Inspection Bureau, The 
 Bureau of Records. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES . 246 
 
 The Dependent Classes of New York City. Early Charity 
 Organizations. The Establishment of Bellevue Hospital. The 
 Department of Public Charities. Philanthropy of the Department 
 of Public Charities. The Institutions under the Department. The 
 City Hospital. The Tuberculosis Infirmary and the Homes for 
 the Aged and Infirm. Randall's Island Institutions. The Brooklyn 
 and Other Borough Institutions. The Cottage Colony. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION . . . 259 
 
 Why a Department of Correction is Necessary in the City Gov- 
 ernment. Departments of Correction. New York City's Depart- 
 ment of Correction. The Powers and Duties of the Commissioner 
 of Correction. The Penitentiary on Blackwell's Island. Prison 
 Regulations. The Reform Schools. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. THE LAW DEPARTMENT 267 
 
 Why the City of New York has a Law Department. What 
 constitutes the Law Department. The Corporation Counsel. 
 Bureau of Street Openings. Bureau for Recovery of Penalties. 
 Bureau for Collection of Arrears of Personal Taxes. Tenemen|g^ 
 House and Building Bureau Branch Office. Questions whicri 
 come before the Department because the City is a Property Owner. 
 Suits involving the Civil Service. Summary. 
 
xii CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE .... 279 
 
 Public Finances during Colonial Period. Appointment of a 
 Comptroller. Development of the City's Financial System. Why 
 the Department of Finance is Important. The Financial Impor- 
 tance of the City. Institutions which make the City Great : The 
 Stock Exchange, The Consolidated Exchange, The Chamber of 
 Commerce, The Produce Exchange, The Maritime Exchange, 
 The New York Clearing House. Department of Finance. The 
 Comptroller. The Sinking Fund. Bureaus of the Finance De- 
 partment. The Chamberlain. Bureau Divisions. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. THE DEPARTMENT OF TAXES AND ASSESS- 
 MENTS . . . 297 
 
 What is Taxation ? Why we are Taxed. Taxable Property of 
 the City. Corporation Property. Early Taxation. The Depart- 
 ment of Taxes and Assessments. Duties and Powers. Work 
 of Deputy Commissioners. Tax Rolls. Rate of Taxation. Tax- 
 payers' Privileges. Payment of Taxes. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION of THE 
 
 CITY OF NEW YORK ." . . .-'.- 309 
 
 What is the Civil Service Law ? The Necessity for the Civil 
 Service Law. How New York State came to adopt the Civil Serv- 
 ice Law and the Need for it in the City. New York City's Civil 
 Service Commission. The City's Civil Service Law. The Exam- 
 iners. How the Examinations are Conducted. Special Examina- 
 tions. How Appointments are Made. Summary. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. THE CITY JUDICIARY 320 
 
 The Sources of the Law. Kinds of Law : Criminal Law, Civil 
 Law. Judicial Procedure. The District Attorney. The Jury 
 System of Courts. Civil Courts under the Charter: City Court, 
 Municipal Court. Criminal Courts under the Charter: Court 
 of Special Sessions, Children's Court, Magistrates' Courts. 
 fPtmmary. 
 
 INDEX . ... -339 
 
ERRATA 
 
 Pages v and 293. For James A. Canfield read James 
 H. Canfield. 
 
 Certain changes having been made by the Board of Education 
 in the numbers borne by some of the New York public schools, the 
 following corrections are noted : 
 
 Page 67 (under the illustration), for No. 63 read 4. 
 Page 97 (under the illustration), for No. 153 read 26. 
 Page 100 (under the illustration), for No. 175 read 33. 
 Page 103 (under the illustration), for No. 106 read 21. 
 
 Baker: Municipal Government. 
 
MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT OF 
 THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 W 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
FIG. i. Henry Hudson 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 THE ISLAND THAT SOLD FOR TWENTY-FOUR DOLLARS 
 
 The Coming of Henry Hudson. One September day almost 
 three hundred years ago a Dutch sailing vessel bearing the 
 name The Half Moon 
 slowly rounded the 
 point of land now 
 called Sandy Hook. 
 It plowed its way 
 through the waters 
 of New York Bay 
 and dropped anchor 
 on the shores of an 
 unknown land, "a 
 countrie full of great 
 and tall oakes and 
 peopled with strange- 
 looking red men, ' ' as 
 the discoverers de- 
 scribed it. The ves- 
 sel, a small craft of 
 eighty tons, manned 
 
 by twenty Dutch and 
 English sailors, was 
 in command of the 
 
 ! 
 
 FIG. 2. A Dutch Sailing Vessel bearing the 
 Name The Half Moon 
 
 English explorer, Henry Hudson, who, in the employ of the 
 government of Holland, was searching for a northwestern 
 
 3 
 
4 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 water way to the Far East, a fancied water route which 
 was one of the delusive dreams of early navigators. When 
 Hudson and his men saw the great river, the River of the 
 Mountains, as he called it, but which now bears the dis- 
 coverer's name, they were filled with joy. They believed 
 that at last the object of the long search 'was attained, that 
 they had found "the North Sea," which was then said to 
 "lie back of Virginia " and to open into a water route lead- 
 ing to India. A number of the sailors manned a smaller 
 boat and sailed up the stream ; but as day by day the waters 
 grew more shallow, they were at last compelled to give up 
 the fond hope. Reluctantly they returned to The Half Moon, 
 and in keen disappointment Hudson made his way back to 
 the Old World. 
 
 The Dutch Settlement in America. Although Hudson 
 and his men had failed to find a water route to India, they 
 had, without knowing it, made a far greater discovery. To 
 them belongs the honor of laying the foundation, in dis- 
 covering the land, upon which was built not only the 
 Empire State of our Union but also the greatest city of 
 the western world. Soon after the report of Hudson's dis- 
 coveries had been published, a mercantile company called 
 The United New Netherland Company was formed in Hol- 
 land to open up a fur trade with the Indians. These furs 
 were eagerly sought in the European markets, and to obtain 
 them the company established two trading forts, one, sub- 
 sequently called Fort Amsterdam, at the southern end of 
 Manhattan Island, and the other, known as Fort Orange, 
 farther up the river near the present site of Albany. In a few 
 years the New Netherland Company was succeeded by the 
 Great West India Company. To the latter the states-general, 
 
THE ISLAND 
 
 5 
 
 the governing body of Holland, granted a charter covering 
 all lands beyond the sea discovered by Hudson. 
 
 The First Direcktors-General ; the Purchase of the 
 Island. For forty-three years the Great West India Com- 
 pany controlled the Dutch possessions in America. It 
 exercised its authority through six "direcktors," or govern- 
 ors, who were appointed by the company at Amsterdam. 
 
 FIG. 3. Peter Minuit buying the Island from the Indians 
 
 The first two of these remained in the colony but a year 
 each, and did little towards establishing a permanent settle- 
 ment. Peter Minuit, the first real direcktor-general, arrived 
 at Manhattan Island in May, 1626, bringing with him a 
 shipload of colonists. He commenced at once to enlarge 
 the fort at the mouth of the Hudson River, but before 
 doing so, with a sense of honor not always practiced by his 
 successors in their dealings with the natives, he called 
 
6 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 together the Indian tribe living in the neighborhood and 
 purchased from them the island. It contained about twenty- 
 two thousand acres, and in payment Minuit gave the 
 Indians bright red cloth, small looking-glasses, and trinkets 
 of various kinds, to the value of twenty-four dollars in our 
 money, a bargain, astonishing as it may seem to us 
 to-day, which was perfectly satisfactory to both parties. In 
 his Memorial History of New York Mr. Wilson says that 
 although the Indians of this tribe were fierce and warlike, 
 they seemed to have had a certain appreciation of sentiment, 
 for they called the island Manhattan, from the combina- 
 tion of the Indian words ma, meaning Great Spirit, na, 
 excellent, and at a, beautiful land. He adds that this not 
 the appellation of the tribe itself was the source from 
 which the island derived its name. 
 
 For his residence Direcktor Minuit erected a blockhouse 
 within the fort. Around it the colonists built their smaller 
 dwellings, close together for protection both against the 
 Indians and the wild beasts of the forest. Not much effort 
 was made to enlarge the colony until a few years later, when 
 the patroon privilege was inaugurated. This was a grant 
 called the Privileges and Exemption Charter issued by the 
 West India Company, by which any member of the com- 
 pany who brought fifty grown-up people into the colony 
 and settled them in homes in any part of the province, aside 
 from southern Manhattan, was given a large tract of land 
 with the right to engage in all trades, except that of buy- 
 ing furs from the Indians. The company reserved the fur 
 trade and the southern part of the island for itself, a self- 
 ish policy which afterwards made a great deal of trouble. 
 The Privileges and Exemption Charter was the means of 
 
THE ISLAND 
 
 founding a number of immense estates throughout the 
 province, and of bringing in thousands of people. The men 
 who established these settlements were called patroons, and 
 had full control of all who lived on their lands. During 
 this period the government of the province was very simple. 
 The trading company in Holland, with the approval of the 
 states-general, appointed a council of five men as Direck- 
 tor Minuit's advisers ; but in most matters his word was 
 the law of the little community. The council included a 
 schout-fiscal, who was the secretary of the company, and 
 a koopman, its bookkeeper. 
 
 Other Dutch Direcktors-General. In 1633 Wouter Van 
 Twiller, a clerk in the warehouse of the West India Com- 
 pany at Amsterdam, who 
 had married the niece of 
 the wealthy patroon, Van 
 Rensselaer,was appointed 
 to succeed Governor 
 Minuit. He came to New 
 Amsterdam with a small 
 fleet of ships bearing, 
 besides one hundred and 
 four soldiers, several fam- 
 ilies, and many useful 
 things, such as tools and 
 implements, to build up 
 the colony. Among those 
 who came with him were 
 the minister, Dominie Everardus Bogardus, who afterwards 
 became such a prominent figure in the province, and Adam 
 Roelantsen, the first schoolmaster. Direcktor Van Twiller 
 
 
 FIG. 4. Direcktor Van Twiller and his 
 Friends 
 
8 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 was inclined to take life easy and rather let affairs in the 
 colony drift, and Diedrich Knickerbocker, in one of his hu- 
 morous tales, describes him as so fat and with so short a neck 
 that " when he was erect he had the appearance of a beer 
 barrel on skids." He was active and shrewd enough, how- 
 ever, to make a fortune for himself, and it is recorded to his 
 credit that at one time he drove out a company of Englishmen 
 who attempted to establish a trading post on Dutch territory. 
 
 During his administration he made a number of substan- 
 tial improvements in the settlement. He enlarged the fort 
 and erected the first church building. The latter stood 
 near the present foot of Broadway on the oldest thorough- 
 fare in the city, Pearl Street, then called "The Road to 
 the Ferry." Before that time public worship had been held 
 in the upper part of a grist mill standing below the fort. 
 The new church was dignified with a tower and a chime 
 of bells which had been captured from a Spanish vessel. 
 Some of the colonists built substantial dwelling houses of 
 yellow brick, a color and material very popular during the 
 Dutch colonial period. In 1637 Van Twiller bought an 
 island in New York Bay, where he built his summer home 
 and laid out a large plantation. The Indian name for this 
 island was Pagganck, but from the quantity of chestnut 
 and walnut trees growing upon it, the Dutch termed it 
 Nutten Island. Many years later the English government 
 set this land apart for the benefit of " His Majesty's gov- 
 ernors and councilors," since which time it has been known 
 as Governors Island. At the end of five years Van Twiller 
 was recalled to Holland. 
 
 He was followed by Direcktor Kieft, a tyrannical gov- 
 ernor who soon succeeded in making himself very unpopular. 
 
THE ISLAND 9 
 
 Shortly after his arrival he reduced the council to two 
 persons, himself and one other, and in order to make sure 
 that his word should be law, he retained two votes in the 
 council and allowed his colleague only one ! After thus 
 assuming complete control of the government his tyranny 
 was unlimited. Finally, by a cruel act of his own, a fierce 
 and bloody Indian war was brought on, which compelled 
 him to call together the old council, as well as the patroons, 
 for advice. But as soon as the war was over he dismissed 
 them and resumed his arbitrary methods. At last he made 
 so much trouble that the colonists could endure it no longer. 
 They wrote a letter to the states-general and sent three of 
 their number with it to Holland, where they presented their 
 cause so successfully that, in 1646, Kieft was recalled. 
 Notwithstanding all these troubles, while Kieft was the 
 direcktor-general some notable improvements were made. 
 A stone tavern, long known as "The Dutch House of 
 Entertainment," was erected at the foot of Pearl Street. 
 It was afterwards used as the Stadt Huys, the Dutch name 
 for the city hall. A stone church building, the first belong- 
 ing to the Dutch Reformed Church in America, was erected 
 in the fort by Kieft. 
 
 Direcktor-General Peter Stuyvesant. The last of these 
 Dutch Direcktors was Peter Stuyvesant, a sturdy old soldier 
 who had lost one of his legs in battle in the West Indies. 
 He was by far the best of the early governors and has some- 
 times been called "The Father of New York City," yet 
 even he gave the people but little self-government. He 
 held his commission from the West India Company and 
 conscientiously felt that it was his duty to promote the in- 
 terests of the company rather than those of the colonists. 
 
10 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 While this is true, history has shown the wisdom of many 
 of the acts of his administration. When Sweden sent a 
 colony into some of the territory claimed by the Dutch, 
 that which is now a part of the state of Delaware, Direck- 
 tor Stuyvesant went down and compelled the colonists to 
 
 become subject to Hol- 
 land. Although his gov- 
 ernment was strict, often 
 severely so, the colony 
 grew and flourished 
 under him. 
 
 The little settlement 
 then contained about 
 fifteen hundred people, 
 with three hundred 
 houses. In honor of the 
 capital city of their home 
 land, Stuyvesant is said 
 to have named the settle- 
 ment New Amsterdam. 
 It had become the lead- 
 ing hamlet of the prov- 
 
 FIG. 5. Direcktor Peter Stuyvesant, who mce) anc l the inhabitants 
 has sometimes been called "The j j d f inde _ 
 
 Father of New York City " & ' 
 
 pendence from the West 
 
 India Company, and for municipal privileges. To attain them 
 they sent three of their number to Amsterdam to intercede 
 with the states-general. After a long and hard struggle they 
 secured a city charter for New Amsterdam and village 
 rights for its outlying settlements. The charter was some- 
 what similar in form to the one in use in the mother city ; 
 
THE ISLAND 
 
 1 1 
 
 it provided for two burgomasters and five schepens, who 
 were to be elected by the freeholders, that is, those who 
 owned certain landed property. Amidst much rejoicing, 
 on the 2d of February, 1633, New Amsterdam was pro- 
 claimed a city ; but as the direcktor refused to allow the 
 
 FIG. 6. Governor Stuyvesant's Town House, Whitehall 
 This afterwards gave the name to the street on which it stood 
 
 election, and appointed the officials himself, the colony was 
 not much better off than it was before it had the charter. 
 The quarrels between the little city and the autocratic 
 governor grew more and more severe each year. 
 
 Improvements made during Direcktor Stuyvesant's Ad- 
 ministration. The seal of the city was adopted in 1654, and, 
 arbitrary as Stuyvesant was, many improvements were made 
 in New Amsterdam after the charter was obtained. The 
 better class of burghers, as the citizens were called, built 
 large and comfortable dwellings, the governor himself setting 
 
12 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 them an example by erecting a handsome town house, which 
 he named Whitehall, and which afterward gave the name 
 to the street whereon it stood. The first large wharf, a 
 crescent-shaped anchorage at the foot of the present Moore 
 
 Street, was constructed 
 during this time. Satur- 
 day was proclaimed gen- 
 eral market day, and a 
 market was established 
 "near Hans Kierstedl's 
 house," now the north- 
 east corner of Pearl and 
 Whitehall streets. One 
 of the principal thorough- 
 fares of that day was 
 known as De Brouwer, 
 because there were three 
 breweries standing on it ; 
 but as it was the first 
 street of the town to be 
 paved with stone, it was 
 given the name which it 
 has ever since borne, 
 
 FIG. 7. Coenties Slip in the Dutch Times 5tone Street We will 
 
 learn later how it came to be paved. There was a clear little 
 stream running through one part of the settlement where 
 the maidens used to go to do the family washings, and this 
 gave the name to Maiden Lane. 
 
 Because Direcktor Stuyvesant was afraid that the English 
 were coming to attack the colony, in 1653, he built a strong 
 wooden wall, twelve feet high, entirely across the island, and 
 
THE ISLAND 13 
 
 that gave the name to Wall Street. Aside from his town 
 mansion the governor owned a large farm, or "bouwery," 
 in the neighborhood of the present Third Avenue and 
 Twelfth Street. The road leading to it was known as 
 Bouwery Lane, later changed by the English into The 
 Bowery. Not far from this residence in the "bouwery" 
 the governor's widow built St. Mark's Chapel, where St. 
 Mark's in the Bowery, Second Avenue and Tenth Street, 
 
 FIG. 8. The Old Stadt Huys 
 
 now stands. In a corner of this church, beneath the tablet 
 erected to his memory, is the tomb of this erratic but best 
 remembered Dutch direcktor. 
 
 The English Invasion. The English always disputed the 
 right of the Dutch to New Netherland. During all the 
 years that Holland held these possessions England watched 
 them with jealous eyes and tried many times to obtain 
 them. There was constant friction between the two mother 
 countries, and finally, in 1664, basing his claim to the 
 province on Cabot's discoveries of 1497, regardless of 
 Holland's rights of colonization, Charles II of England 
 granted to his brother James, then Duke of York, the 
 
14 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 whole of New Netherland. The duke sent Colonel Richard 
 Nicolls with three ships and a thousand men to take the 
 coveted possessions. One summer day, with his ships and 
 men, Nicolls sailed into the harbor of New Amsterdam. 
 He dispatched a letter to Governor Stuyvesant demanding 
 the surrender of the fort, and with it he presented the 
 terms of peace. The doughty governor was filled with rage 
 
 and, although his little garrison 
 contained but twenty guns and 
 two hundred and fifty men, did 
 his utmost to rouse the colony 
 to resistance ; but it was useless. 
 The terms of surrender were 
 generous. Moreover the colo- 
 nists had long seen that England 
 
 ^ ave ^ er su kj ects m tne New 
 World more liberties than they 
 themselves enjoyed, and, having 
 grown weary of the tyranny of 
 the West India Company and its 
 despotic governors, they refused 
 to listen to Direcktor Stuyve- 
 sant 's entreaties. Although with 
 tears streaming down his face he 
 told them that he would rather 
 be carried to his grave, they compelled him to accept the 
 terms of peace and to surrender the fort. Thus the Dutch 
 gave up their greatest colonial possessions and England 
 annexed them to the territory she already controlled. 
 
 The Change in the Name of the Colony. One of Gov- 
 ernor Nicolls' first acts was to change the name of New 
 
 FIG. 9. Direcktor Stuyvesant 
 surrendering the Fort to the 
 English 
 
THE ISLAND 15 
 
 Amsterdam to New York, and to christen the fort James, 
 in honor of the duke. He also made English the official 
 language of the colony. He was kind and courteous and 
 tried to make the Dutch feel the change of government as 
 little as possible ; but in the course of a year he proclaimed 
 the Duke's Laws, which, while containing certain civil rights, 
 took away the suffrage of the freeholders. The Dutch 
 charter continued in force, but five aldermen replaced the 
 burgomasters ; Thomas Willett was appointed mayor, and 
 the sellout-fiscal was reappointed with the title of sheriff. 
 
 The City under the English. From this time (with the 
 exception of about fifteen months in 1673-1674, when New 
 York was recaptured by the Dutch) until the end of the 
 Revolution the English held New Netherland. During 
 these years the province was successively under the author- 
 ity of twenty different governors appointed by the British 
 crown, and had sometimes more, and sometimes less, local 
 suffrage. Yet despite this tyranny the growth of New 
 York was continuous. In 1670 her merchants commenced 
 holding weekly meetings, which were the beginning of the 
 New York Exchange. In 1672 the mail route was estab- 
 lished between New York and Boston. On the first Monday 
 of every month "a sworn messenger was dispatched to 
 convey letters between the two cities"; and on his initial 
 journey he carried an ax with him to blaze the trees in 
 order to know the way on his return. Each trip consumed 
 two weeks. 
 
 In 1675 a basin for small crafts, called the Greta Dock, 
 was built in the east harbor, for even then the ocean and the 
 river trade indicated what they would become eventually. 
 All commerce was on the increase, and many enterprises 
 
16 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 which now make the city great sprang into existence. In 
 1725 Bradford's Gazette commenced publication, the fore- 
 runner of all the present dailies and weeklies. The first 
 
 monthly was started by 
 Noah Webster in 1788. 
 The first public library 
 building was opened in 
 1754, although a circu- 
 lating library had been 
 in existence for half a 
 century. In that same 
 year the Nestor of the 
 higher institutions of 
 learning of New York 
 State, King's College, 
 now Columbia Univer- 
 sity, was started on the 
 outskirts of the city, 
 that section of down 
 town which is Murray, 
 Barclay, and Church 
 streets. By the middle 
 of the century lawyers 
 and men of other pro- 
 fessions were becom- 
 ing numerous. 
 
 The Era of the Revolution and Subsequent Growth of 
 the City. During all these years the government of the 
 city, as well as that of the province, remained a vexed 
 question causing continual trouble. In fact, there was 
 such conflict between all the colonies and their English 
 
 FIG. 10. Oldest House on Manhattan 
 Island, 19 Pearl Street 
 
THE ISLAND 
 
 governors that a coalition of the assemblies was finally 
 brought about, out of which grew the Continental Congress, 
 and from which, as a necessary sequel, resulted the Revolu- 
 tion. In the sad days of that awful conflict commerce suf- 
 fered in all parts of the new country, but nowhere more than 
 in New York City, for it was under 
 British dominion almost the entire 
 time, and was the scene of many 
 battles. With the independence of 
 the states, however, and the estab- 
 lishment of the republic the city com- 
 menced a growth which has continued 
 ever since. In 1785 
 the first American post 
 office in the city was 
 opened on Smith 
 Street ; the next year 
 the first bank, The 
 Bank of New York, was 
 founded; and in the 
 year following the first 
 medical society. Early 
 in the twenties ocean 
 traffic began to wield its 
 power. The first vessel 
 propelled by steam to 
 
 .cross the Atlantic was the Savannah. She sailed from New 
 York to Liverpool in 1819, and her steam engine created 
 intense wonderment. In 1839 the Cunard Line began 
 operations, and in 1855 the line between New York and 
 Havre was opened. As early as 1811 Gouverneur Morris 
 
 FIG. n. Erecting First Tel- 
 egraph Lines in 1846 
 
l8 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 projected the Erie Canal, but it was not begun for a number 
 of years, nor completed until 1825. It gave an impetus to 
 trade of all kinds. The first railroad, used originally as a 
 horse-car line, was extended from Harlem to the lower part 
 of the city, in 1831. In 1846 the first telegraph lines were 
 erected. Since the introduction of railroads and telegraph 
 the growth of the city has been surprisingly rapid. 
 
 Summary. New York was discovered by Henry Hudson and 
 first settled by the Dutch. Two trading companies, the New Nether- 
 land and afterwards the West India, established trading forts with 
 the Indians in order to secure the furs of the country. Around the 
 two forts small settlements were made. The government of the col- 
 ony was invested with the trading company, which received a charter 
 from the states-general of Holland. Peter Minuit, the third direcktor, 
 bought the island from the Indians for twenty-four dollars. He was 
 succeeded by three other direcktors, the last and best of whom was 
 Peter Stuyvesant. A city charter for New Amsterdam and village 
 rights for the outlying districts were obtained in 1653. Charles II 
 of England, basing his claim to the country upon the discoveries 
 of Cabot, granted the New Netherland to his brother James, Duke of 
 York, who sent Colonel Richard Nicolls to take it from the Dutch in 
 1664. Successfully accomplishing this, Nicolls changed the name of 
 New Amsterdam to New York. Under the English the colony flour- 
 ished and commerce developed. Its growth since the Revolution 
 has been continuous, until now it is the second city in size and 
 commercial importance in the world. 
 
FIG. 12. The Seal of the United States 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Development of the City. Long, long ago, in the 
 days when the world was still quite young, there were no 
 towns and cities such as we now know. People dwelt in 
 tribes and wandered from place to place to find pasturage 
 for their stock. When they remained at a place for any 
 length of time they built walled inclosures around their set- 
 tlements. Towns finally grew from these walled inclosures 
 of the primitive tribes, and cities followed as the result of 
 
 19 
 
20 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 trade and commerce. The Church of England first defined 
 the term "city " by applying it to any borough which was 
 the seat of an Episcopal see. 
 
 In America, towns were organized even before the col- 
 onies themselves adopted a form of government. The 
 colony of New Netherland was established on the island 
 of Manhattan by the Dutch West India Company for the 
 purpose of trade. When the English took possession of 
 the island they inaugurated the Duke's Laws, which pro- 
 vided for the formation of towns and counties similar to 
 those existing in England. Each town elected its represent- 
 ative to the general assembly of the colony. The assembly 
 elected the sheriff and several other officers who determined 
 the taxation of the county. These towns were established 
 for the purpose of trade and commerce, and, like all their 
 successors since, were municipal corporations. 
 
 A municipal corporation, that is, a city, according to the 
 federal statutes, is "a subordinate branch of the govern- 
 mental power of the state in which it is located." This 
 simply means that the city is a part of the state to which 
 it belongs, and is under the control of state government. 
 While this is true, it is undoubtedly better that the state legis- 
 lature should interfere as little as practicable in city govern- 
 ment ; for the best governed cities are those which are most 
 responsible for their own administration. Nor should we 
 ever forget that a city is a municipal corporation, that is, 
 a civic organization primarily for business purposes. The 
 mayor and all other city officials are elected for the exclu- 
 sive purpose of carrying on the business of the city. For 
 this reason party politics should never dominate a city elec- 
 tion. Not the political party to which a candidate belongs, 
 
THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY 
 
 21 
 
 but the fitness of the candidate for the position, should be 
 the principle governing an elector in his vote. Only the 
 most capable, honest, and upright men should be chosen 
 for public offices in the municipal government. 
 
 The Charter of a City. In the state of New York a city 
 is a district which is subject to a municipal government 
 organized under an act of the state legislature. This act of 
 the state legislature, known as the act of incorporation, is 
 called a city charter. The 
 charter usually gives the 
 name the city is to bear, 
 states how much terri- 
 tory it is to occupy, de- 
 fines all its rights and 
 privileges, and confers 
 upon it many business 
 obligations, and in some 
 degree authorizes it to 
 manage its own govern- 
 ment. Most of the func- 
 tions thus conferred upon 
 the city by the state 
 legislature, however, are purely business functions, and only 
 a small proportion of them are governmental. The state 
 legislature may amend the charter at any time. 
 
 The Dutch Charters. New York was among the first of 
 the cities in North America to Have a charter, and, in 
 truth, there was a charter a good while before there was 
 any city or state of New York, under those names. Soon 
 after Henry Hudson returned to Holland the New Neth- 
 erland Company was formed to trade with the Indians 
 
 FIG. 13. Seal of New Netherland, 1623 
 
22 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of Manhattan, and the first charter, that is, the rules which 
 were to govern trade and the management of the colony, 
 was given to this company by the states-general of Holland. 
 In granting the charter the states-general designated as 
 " New Netherland " the territory in which the company 
 was to trade, thus giving a name which subsequently was 
 applied to all the Dutch possessions in America. 
 
 The Great West India Company soon succeeded the former 
 one, and, in 1621, the government of Holland sent to the 
 Manhattan colony a much more clearly defined charter, some 
 portions of which remained in effect until the English took 
 the province in 1664. Under each of the direcktors certain 
 privileges were obtained by the people. However, not much 
 semblance of self-government was secured until, during Peter 
 Stuyvesant's administration, New Amsterdam was made a 
 city and the outlying hamlets gained village rights. The 
 burgher government thus established consisted of a council 
 of nine men who were to hold office three years. It was to 
 "decide cases between man and man," and to regulate the 
 rate and collection of taxes. At first Governor Stuyvesant 
 himself appointed this body of men and defined their duties, 
 but eight of the villages of the province protested and ap- 
 pealed to the states-general. They gained their contest and 
 shortly afterwards held an election for the members of the 
 assembly. In 1660 the freeholders colonists who owned 
 a certain amount of land also elected the schout, an official 
 who at that time combined the duties of prosecuting attorney, 
 judge, and sheriff. This form of government still existed 
 when the English came into power in 1664. 
 
 The English Charters. As will be remembered, when 
 the English took possession of New Netherland, King 
 
THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY 
 
 Charles gave the province to his brother James, the Duke 
 
 of York, and a few months later the governor whom he 
 
 had appointed put into operation the regulations for the 
 
 colony known as the Governor Nicolls Charter. This 
 
 charter established four principles which are still a part of 
 
 the fundamental law of New 
 
 York State. They are (i) 
 
 equal taxation, (2) trial by 
 
 jury, (3) obligatory military 
 
 duty, (4) freedom of religious 
 
 worship. 
 
 But the one of these early 
 agreements which is best re- 
 membered is that known by 
 the name of the second Eng- 
 lish governor, the Dongan 
 Charter. Governor Dongan 
 was more broad-minded than 
 most of the men of his day. 
 Soon after reaching the col- 
 ony he called for a general 
 assembly of the province, to 
 be composed of seventeen FlG - J 4- First English Seal of the 
 members elected by the free- 
 holders. It met in the old fort at New York in October, 
 1683, and prepared the famous charter which began with 
 the declaration, " That the supreme legislative power shall 
 forever reside in the governor, council, and the people met 
 in general assembly ; and that every freeholder and free 
 man shall vote without restraint." Not long afterward 
 the Duke of York became King of England, and as king 
 
24 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 he was unwilling to give the colonists as much liberty as 
 this charter carried. He therefore held it for two years 
 without signing, but under the next reign, that of William 
 and Mary, it was ratified and remained the basis of the 
 
 government of the colony 
 until after the War of the 
 Revolution. But its 
 power was greatly ham- 
 pered by the governor's 
 council, a body appointed 
 by the crown and claim- 
 ing the right to overrule 
 the acts of the assembly. 
 In 1730 it was revised 
 under Governor Mont- 
 gomerie and took his 
 name. The Montgomerie 
 Charter, in addition to 
 defining the duties of the 
 
 FIG. 15. City Seal" of 1686 ...-,, i 
 
 assembly, divided the 
 
 city into six wards and provided that from each an alder- 
 man be elected. The troubles of the New York assembly 
 were repeated in all of the colonies and finally resulted 
 in the call of the Continental Congress in 1764 and the 
 national revolt in 1776. 
 
 The Adoption of the Constitution of the State of New 
 York. Early in the Revolution, New York City was taken 
 by the English and remained under their rule until the 
 war was over. When the colonies were finally victorious 
 the Continental Congress advised each state to form a 
 permanent government by adopting its own constitution. 
 
THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY 
 
 There is this difference between a constitution and a char- 
 ter : A charter is granted by a sovereign, or a higher power, 
 while a constitution is established by the people themselves. 
 All of the states except Rhode Island and Connecticut 
 adopted written constitutions based largely on the charters 
 which had preceded them, the governors of the states ex- 
 ercising the power which previously had been vested in the 
 governors appointed by the crown. Under the constitu- 
 tion which the state of New York adopted April 20, 1777, 
 a Committee of Appointment was made a part of the state 
 government. This committee consisted of the governor 
 and four state senators, and was empowered to appoint all 
 state and city officials. But in 1821 it was decided that the 
 city council of New York 
 should elect the mayor, 
 and it was not until 1834 
 that the people of the 
 city themselves elected 
 that officer. Since that 
 date New York City 
 has had numerous char- 
 ters, for it has unfortu- 
 nately happened that the 
 legislature of the state 
 has always had a great 
 deal to do with the gov- 
 ernment of the city. 
 Only about thirty years ago all the expenses of the city were 
 voted at Albany, and until 1895 laws could be passed by 
 the state legislature affecting the city's most vital interest, 
 without any notice to the local authorities whatever. This 
 
 FIG. 16. The Present Seal of 
 New York City 
 
26 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 is one of the reasons why there have been so many changes 
 in the charters of the city. 
 
 The Formation of the Boroughs. By the middle of the 
 last century many of the people who lived in the counties 
 near Manhattan Island had all their business interests cen- 
 tered in New York City. Even at that early date the sub- 
 ject of uniting these counties into one municipality began to 
 
 FIG. 17. New York Harbor from Battery Park 
 
 be discussed. Men whose homes were beyond either of the 
 rivers, but whose business was in the city, keenly felt the 
 necessity for this union, but it was not accomplished until 
 1897. At that time the proposition to unite into one 
 municipality, under the corporate name of the City of New 
 York, the various communities lying in and about New 
 York harbor was submitted to the people living in these 
 districts. By a very large vote it was decided to do so. 
 
THE CHARTER HISTORY OF THE CITY 27 
 
 For the convenience of administration the legislature divided 
 the enlarged city into five boroughs, which, according to 
 their importance in population, are designated Manhattan, 
 Brooklyn, The Bronx, Queens, and Richmond. Thus con- 
 stituted, Greater New York is the second city in size, 
 wealth, and influence in the world. 
 
 How the Present Charter of the City of New York was 
 Made. After the consolidation of the boroughs the gov- 
 ernor of the state appointed a commission, consisting of 
 some of the representative lawyers of the territory to be 
 consolidated, to prepare a charter which would meet the 
 needs of the enlarged city. This commission made an ex- 
 haustive study not only of the Constitution of the United 
 States, which is the model constitution of all the world, 
 but also of the charters of all our own great cities and 
 those of Europe. With the utmost care they wrote a draft 
 of the charter. This they presented to the state legislature 
 and, with some modifications, it was adopted. It went into 
 effect January i, 1898. 
 
 But notwithstanding all the study that had been given 
 the charter, it was found, when in active operation, that 
 it contained defects. The governor therefore appointed 
 another commission to revise it, and again several months 
 were spent in this work. At the end of the time the 
 draft of the modified charter was presented to the state 
 legislature and after due consideration by that body it was 
 adopted. This revised charter went into effect on Janu- 
 ary i, 1901. It is a development of the charters of the 
 old City of New York, Brooklyn, and Long Island City, and 
 was written with the intention of giving Greater New York 
 more power in conducting its own affairs, with as little 
 
28 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 legislation as possible on the part of the state legislature. 
 It divides the city government into three branches, the 
 legislative, the executive, and the judicial. The legislative 
 branch, which makes the laws of the city, is the Board of 
 Aldermen. The executive branch, which sees that the laws 
 are enforced, is vested in the mayor and his executive 
 helpers, who are the borough presidents ; the heads of the 
 administrative departments ; and certain executive boards. 
 The judicial branch includes the majority of the courts of 
 the city and the work performed by them. 
 
 But while charters are essential to the good government 
 of the city, it is well for us to remember that neither char- 
 ters nor any amount of organization will ever make good 
 government. The fact that the vote of the people makes the 
 government what it is, should not be forgotten ; nor should 
 another important fact be overlooked, that if there is to be 
 good government, good people must fill the public offices. 
 
 Summary. Towns and cities developed from the walled inclosures 
 of the primitive tribes. A city is a municipal corporation. State legis- 
 latures grant cities their charters. New York was among the first 
 of the cities in North America to obtain a charter. There were sev- 
 eral charters granted to New Netherland during Dutch colonization. 
 Governor Nicolls put the first English charter in operation. The 
 Dongan and the Montgomerie charters are notable in the history of 
 New York. After the Revolution, New York State adopted a consti- 
 tution by which much of the elective power was withheld from the 
 people ; by later enactments liberal suffrage laws became general. 
 After the consolidation of the city into the present five boroughs a 
 new charter was adopted. It was revised and, in its present form, 
 went into effect January i, 1901. 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
 ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Electors' Rights in Colonial Days. During Dutch occu- 
 pation of New Netherland the colonists had but limited 
 privileges of suffrage, 
 that is, the right to vote, 
 nor was that condition 
 much improved while 
 they were under English 
 dominion. The Dutch 
 direcktors were ap- 
 pointed by the fur- 
 trading companies, with 
 the approval of the 
 states -general at Am- 
 sterdam, and they were 
 far more desirous to 
 further the financial 
 interests of the trading 
 company than to estab- 
 lish a colony which 
 might become suf- 
 ficiently powerful to 
 demand independence. 
 
 But the Colonists FlG * ! 8 - Ward ' s Statue of Washington on the 
 
 Steps of the United States Subtreasury 
 
 brought with them from 
 
 Holland the idea of the limited suffrage prevailing in the 
 
 29 
 
30 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 home land, and to secure the same privileges in their new 
 home they contended unceasingly with all the direcktors. 
 Through their efforts, while Peter Stuyvesant was governor, 
 New Amsterdam was made a city and the outlying districts . 
 were granted village rights. A few years later the freeholders 
 were allowed to elect the officers of the local government. 
 
 Within a year or so after the province passed under 
 English dominion it became subject to the same laws 
 which governed Massachusetts, and by degrees the right 
 of suffrage broadened. Toward the end of the seventeenth 
 century citizens who owned a prescribed amount of prop- 
 erty could vote, but the restrictions were many. Quakers 
 could not vote, nor indeed could any one who did not be- 
 long to the church. An old ordinance records that " drunk- 
 ards, common lyars, swearers, and apostates from the 
 fundamentals of religion " were also denied the right. The 
 fact that English dominion allowed the colonists less and 
 less self-government eventually led to the Revolution and 
 the independence of the colonies. When our federal gov- 
 ernment came into existence the right of suffrage was 
 made one of the underlying principles of the constitution, 
 and in course of time each state of the Union regulated its 
 own election laws. 
 
 The Australian Voting System. For many years at the 
 elections throughout the country there were almost as 
 many ballots as there were candidates for office. This 
 naturally led to much confusion and often to dishonesty. 
 From Australia, an island way over on the other side of the 
 world, the United States finally learned the best method of 
 conducting an election. Now the Australian system, with 
 some modifications, is adopted in the majority of the states. 
 
ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK 31 
 
 The Australian Ballot is a large sheet of paper on which 
 is printed a number of columns. Each column bears the 
 name and emblems of a different political party. The accom- 
 panying picture illustrates this. In addition to the columns 
 bearing the names of the political parties, there is also a 
 blank column in which the voter may write the name of any 
 person for whom he wishes to vote, if he does not find it in 
 the others. Under the emblem and above the party name 
 
 FIG. 19. Upper Part of an Australian Ballot 
 
 is a small circle ; opposite the name of each candidate and 
 the office for which he is running there is a blank square. 
 These are called the voting spaces, for in them the voter 
 indicates his choice. If the elector or voter wishes to vote 
 for all the candidates of any one party, he merely makes a 
 cross (X) in the circle at the top of his party column. This 
 is called voting a "straight ticket." If he wants to vote 
 for men of different parties, he omits the cross (X) in the 
 circle, but makes it in the blank square opposite the name 
 of any man on the ballot for whom he wants to vote. 
 This is voting a " split ticket." This system of voting also 
 
32 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 provides for a number of small booths in the polling places, 
 into one of which the voter goes by himself to cast his ballot ; 
 if he is blind or otherwise unable to prepare his ballot, he is 
 helped by some one appointed for that purpose. 
 
 The City Elections. The national elections, when the 
 President of the United States and many state governors 
 are elected, are held on the alternate even years, on the 
 first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. The 
 constitution of the state of New York provides that city 
 officers shall be elected in the odd-numbered years on the 
 first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. It is 
 a wise provision that national and city elections should be 
 held at different times, in order that local issues may not 
 be overlooked or biased by national affairs. 
 
 Besides the mayor two other city officials are elected by 
 the votes of all the electors in the five boroughs of New 
 York. They are the comptroller, who is the financial 
 executive officer of the city, and the president of the Board 
 of Aldermen, who fills the mayor's place when he is absent. 
 Elections thus show the will of the people, and, as the right 
 to vote is one of the underlying principles of our government, 
 every possible safeguard is thrown around them. 
 
 How an Election is Conducted. In a great city like New 
 York an election entails an immense amount of work, and 
 there is always danger of fraud in connection with it. For 
 this reason all matters pertaining to it are placed in charge of 
 four men called the Commissioners of the Board of Elections. 
 Their work is so important that each of them receives an 
 annual salary of five thousand dollars. Under their supervision 
 the city is divided into many hundred small sections, or elec- 
 tion districts, with from four to six hundred electors in each. 
 
33 
 
34 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Primary Elections. For months before an election the 
 commissioners are busy preparing for it. In the spring 
 and summer of an election year they call meetings in the 
 different city districts, which may be attended, and cer- 
 tainly should be, by all the electors of the respective 
 boroughs. These meetings are the primaries, at which 
 delegates to the city, county, and state conventions are 
 elected. At these conventions the various nominations are 
 made. At least twenty-five days before an election all the 
 political parties of the city file with the Board of Elections 
 certificates of nomination containing the names of the men 
 nominated for office. 
 
 Board of Elections. On July i, before an election, each 
 of the political parties sends to this board the names of 
 the men whom it wishes to serve as election officers in the 
 various districts on election day. These officers four 
 inspectors, two poll clerks, and two ballot clerks have 
 charge of the polling places, or rooms where the voting is 
 done, and they count the votes at the close of the day. 
 The Board of Elections also selects the polling places, and 
 about the middle of October announces through the daily 
 papers their location in each election district. 
 
 Registration. Every male citizen twenty-one years of 
 age or over may vote at the elections ; but if he intends 
 to do so, he must, on certain days in October preceding an 
 election, go to the polling place of his election district and 
 have his name recorded. He is there asked where he resides, 
 how long he has lived in the city, county, and state, from 
 what address he last voted, and how old he is. The officers 
 record his answers in books kept for that purpose, as well 
 as a description of his personal appearance, to identify him 
 
ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK 35 
 
 in case another man should attempt to vote in his name. 
 The names and addresses are all verified by personal visits, 
 and if an elector has given a wrong address or registered 
 more than once, his name is dropped from the list. This 
 list of electors is published and any one can secure a copy of 
 
 BOARD OF ELECTIONS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 CITY OF NEW YORK. 
 
 General Offices, 107 West 41st St., 
 
 Borough of Manhattan. 
 
 Notice is hereby Riven, In pursuance of Chapter 909 of 
 the Laws of 1896, as amended by Section 10, Chapter 05, 
 LAWS of 1901. of the boundaries of each of the election 
 districts In the County of New York, of the designation 
 of the place of Registration, for October 9th, 10th, 14th 
 and 16th, and of tb^ polling place for the Election to be 
 held November 7th. ]M)f. in each of the election districts 
 in said County, as foljows, viz. : 
 
 COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 
 BOROUGH OF MANHATTAN. 
 
 FIRST ASSEMBLY DISTRICT. 
 E..D. Location. Occupied as 
 
 1. .36 Greenwich st. ....... .Candy store 
 
 2. . 10 Washington st. . , Employment office 
 
 3.. 106 Greenwich st Confectionery 
 
 FIG. 21. A Registration Notice 
 
 it. On election day each party watcher at the polls has a 
 copy of the list, on which he checks the names of the electors 
 as they vote. As the time for closing the polls arrives there 
 is a great scramble by the party workers for the men whose 
 names are still unchecked, as every vote is desired. At 
 least six days before an election the Board of Elections 
 must publish in the city papers the names of all candidates 
 
36 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 for office, and at about the same time it must have ready 
 for general distribution sample ballots like those to be used 
 on election day. This gives the voters an opportunity to 
 study the ballots and to learn just how to mark them, or 
 how to " cast their ballots," as it is called. 
 
 How the Voting is Done. On election day the election 
 officers must be in the polling places by five o'clock in the 
 morning, an hour before the voting can begin. The booths 
 are open until five in the evening. When a voter comes to 
 
 the polling place he approaches 
 the inspector and announces his 
 name and address. The clerk 
 refers to the registration books, 
 and, if the elector's name is found 
 properly recorded, he is given a 
 folded ballot bearing a number 
 which is entered in the books 
 opposite his name. But if one of 
 the party watchers has reason 
 to doubt the man's right to vote, 
 he challenges his vote, that is, he 
 states his objection. If an elector 
 is challenged he has the privilege 
 of swearing in his vote, and if he does so he is allowed to 
 cast his ballot ; but if he refuses to take the oath he is not 
 allowed to vote. If he is eligible he goes alone into one of 
 the booths, takes the ballot which has been handed to him, 
 spreads it out on the little shelf which is provided for that 
 purpose, and selects the names of the men whom he would 
 like to see elected. He then makes a little cross opposite each 
 name, or in the circle above it if they are all of one party. He 
 
 FIG. 22. Interior of Voting 
 Booth 
 
ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 37 
 
 folds his ballot in the same manner in which he received it, 
 returns to the inclosure where the election officers are, and 
 hands his ballot to the inspector standing by the ballot 
 box. This officer tears off the numbered stub from the 
 rest of the ballot and drops each part through a slot into 
 
 FIG. 23. Public School No. 9, Manhattan 
 
 the proper ballot box. The boxes are locked and are not 
 opened till the polls are closed. At the close of the election 
 the votes are counted by the election officers in the presence 
 of any citizens who may wish to witness the count. The 
 nominees who have received the largest number of votes 
 are declared elected. City officials are installed at noon 
 on the first day of January following their election. 
 
38 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Citizenship. Two boys were playing one day when the 
 younger said to the older : " My father is a citizen of the 
 United States now. He took out his papers yesterday, and 
 when I 'm a big man I 'm going to take out papers and be 
 a citizen too." 
 
 " You will not have to do that," replied the older boy. 
 " You are a citizen now because your father took out the 
 papers which made him a citizen yesterday. That made 
 you a citizen also, because you are his son." 
 
 And what the older boy said is true, for all the boys and 
 girls whose parents are foreign born, but who have made 
 
 FIG. 24. The Flag of our 
 Country, the Symbol 
 far above Party Symbols 
 
 themselves citizens, are citizens too by virtue of their parents' 
 naturalization. Of course all the American men and women 
 who were born in this country are citizens of it, and their 
 children are also, even if some of them chanced to be born 
 in other countries while their parents were visiting there. 
 Any foreigner, except the Mongolian, may become a citizen 
 of the United States by residing within them for five years, 
 providing he files what is termed a "declaration of intention " 
 at least two years before his naturalization. Two years later 
 
ELECTIONS IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK 39 
 
 he swears before two witnesses that he has resided in the 
 United States five years and wishes to become a citizen. He 
 then receives his naturalization papers, which certify that he 
 is fully entitled to all the privileges of citizenship. This makes 
 not only the man a citizen, but his wife, and all of his children 
 under twenty-one years of age. Any son who is older than 
 twenty-one must take out his own naturalization papers. 
 
 Every legalized male citizen of New York City may vote 
 at the municipal elections and help to govern the city. This 
 is a grave responsibility, for the municipal government guards 
 the public health, maintains the educational system, and sees 
 that the public money is collected and honestly expended. It 
 provides an abundant water supply, looks after the sewerage 
 and highways, and keeps the streets and pavements clean and 
 in repair. It has control of the bridges, docks and ferries, 
 and parks. It is responsible for the faithfulness of the police 
 and fire departments ; it cares for the poor and criminal classes ; 
 it retains a city counsel and a large corps of lawyers to protect 
 the interests of the corporation. It prevents the erection of 
 unsafe buildings and sees that the transportation facilities 
 meet the public needs. How the municipal government has 
 grown to what it is and how it performs this work will be 
 taken up in detail in the following chapters of this book. 
 
 Summary. During the Dutch and English colonization of New 
 York citizens had few rights of suffrage. The Constitution of the 
 United States made suffrage one of its underlying principles. The 
 Australian system does away with numerous ballots and is a long step 
 toward honesty in elections. The city elections of New York are 
 conducted by the Board of Elections. The citizenship of the parent 
 confers citizenship upon minor children. The privilege of citizenship 
 carries with it much responsibility. 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 THOSE WHO MAKE OUR LAWS: THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN 
 
 The Legislative Branch of Government. Suppose nine 
 boys are elected to play on a baseball team. A captain is 
 chosen to lead the team, and perhaps a coach is hired to 
 train it. They must also have rules for playing, or the 
 pitcher might not aim the balls over the base, or the batter 
 might have to strike at bad balls. In fact, there could be 
 no game without rules. In the same way there must be 
 rules, or laws, for carrying on the city's business. The 
 citizens themselves must follow these rules ; they must 
 have officers who will enforce them and manage the affairs 
 of the city. The City of New York is too .large for all the 
 citizens to meet together to make the necessary ordinances, 
 as the laws of a city are called, so certain men are elected 
 for this purpose. The lawmaking or legislative branch of 
 the City of New York is called the Board of Aldermen. 
 
 Scope of Municipal or City Legislation. The school 
 baseball team makes rules only for itself. There would be 
 no use in its voting for a longer recess at school, for the 
 team has power to manage merely the business of the team. 
 So the city is limited to making laws for conducting the 
 business of the city. As it is a part of the state, the city 
 can do only those things for which power is given it by the 
 state legislature. The city charter states just what this 
 power is. The nation and the state make laws which oper- 
 ate in every part of their territory, so they operate in the 
 
 40 
 
THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN 41 
 
 city side by side with the city ordinances. For example, no 
 one in the City of New York may import certain articles 
 from Europe without paying duty because there is a 
 national law against it. No manufacturer may employ a 
 child under fourteen years of age because there is a state 
 
 FIG. 25. Room in which the Aldermen Meet 
 
 law against it. No one in the City of New York may run 
 an automobile faster than a certain rate because there is a 
 city ordinance against it. Thus we see that the national, 
 state, and city laws operate side by side in the city. The 
 city may not pass any ordinance contrary to national or 
 state laws, and may pass only such ordinances as are spe- 
 cifically provided for in its charter. 
 
42 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Board of Aldermen. As the City of New York is 
 too large for all the citizens to meet together to make their 
 laws, they elect men to represent them, and pay them to 
 devote their time to this work. This body of men is called 
 the Board of Aldermen. It is made up of members elected 
 one from each aldermanic district of the city, the president 
 
 FIG. 26. The City Hall, Brooklyn 
 
 of the Board of Aldermen, and the presidents of the sev- 
 eral boroughs. These meet to make the city ordinances. 
 The charter says, "The legislative power of the City of 
 New York shall be vested in one house," which means 
 simply that all members of the board shall meet together. 
 
 The Powers of the Board of Aldermen, in general, are 
 to pass any ordinances " which may seem mete for the good 
 rule and government of New York," but these must not be 
 
THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN 43 
 
 contrary to national or state laws. The board may also 
 pass any resolution or ordinance necessary to carry out 
 city laws, and may decree fines and imprisonment for those 
 who disobey them. For example, the city passed an ordi- 
 nance increasing the water supply. In order to carry this 
 out it passed another ordinance to purchase Croton Lake, 
 in New York State. To keep the water clean the board 
 imposes a fine upon any one who pollutes it. The Board 
 of Aldermen, with the approval of the Board of Esti- 
 mate and Apportionment, issued bonds for the purchase 
 of the lake. These bonds were sold. A bond is a written 
 obligation to pay a certain amount of interest on a given 
 amount of money, and at a specified time to pay the amount 
 of money. It is in this way that the city borrows money to 
 pay extra expenses. The board also appropriates money 
 for the Budget, the annual expense account of the city, 
 and may issue a large number of licenses and regulations 
 for different kinds of business. To preserve order the 
 board may pass ordinances and rules concerning intoxica- 
 tion, fighting and quarreling in the streets, or the breaking 
 or defacing of other people's property. 
 
 The board also has power to make rules for carrying 
 on its own business. Numbering seventy-three members, it 
 is divided into about twenty-four committees, which have 
 charge of this work. There is the Committee of Finance, 
 the Committee of Railroads, the Committee of Salaries and 
 Officers, and numerous others. If an ordinance comes up 
 in regard to street cleaning, it is referred to the Committee 
 on Street Cleaning before the board acts upon it. The 
 committee makes a study as to whether the ordinance is 
 needed, how much it will cost, and all about it. It then 
 
44 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 reports to the board with recommendations as to whether 
 the ordinance should be passed or rejected. If a committee 
 sees that any ordinance is needed, it frequently introduces 
 the ordinance with the recommendation that it be passed. 
 This committee system is necessary in every large board, 
 for it is impossible for each of the members to make a 
 detailed study of the innumerable things which come up 
 before the whole board. The foregoing does not tell of all 
 the duties of the Board of Aldermen, but is sufficient to 
 show that it has power to carry on the business of the city 
 and to maintain peace and order. 
 
 Members elected from the Aldermanic Districts. Since 
 the aldermen represent the citizens, it is only fair that they 
 should be in as close touch with them as possible. For this 
 purpose the city is divided into aldermanic districts, and at 
 the general city election the citizens in each district vote for 
 the alderman who is to represent them on the board. This 
 is in accordance with the principle of representation so dear 
 to the citizens of our country and so necessary to the lib- 
 erties of the people. Any citizen of the United States liv- 
 ing in New York City may be elected an alderman. His 
 term of office is for two years, with a salary of one thou- 
 sand dollars a year. The aldermanic districts are changed 
 every ten years, when a new census is taken in order that 
 all districts may contain about the same number of citizens. 
 From 1896 until 1906 there were seventy-three aldermanic 
 districts. While each alderman looks after the particular 
 interests of the district he represents, he should always 
 act for the good of the city as a whole. If the citizens do 
 not approve of their alderman's work on the board, they 
 may choose a different man at the next election. In this 
 
45 
 
46 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 way the interests of the city are protected. Do you know 
 the name of the alderman who represents your district on 
 the board ? 
 
 The President of the Board of Aldermen is elected by all 
 the citizens at the general city election for a term of two 
 years. His salary of five thousand dollars is fixed by the 
 charter, as are the salaries of the majority of the city 
 officials. It is his duty to preside at the meetings of the 
 
 FIG. 28. The Plaza, Prospect Park 
 
 board. When the mayor is unable to attend to the duties of 
 his office through illness or absence from the city, the presi- 
 dent of the Board of Aldermen acts in his place. This does 
 not entitle him, however, to all the powers of mayor. He 
 may not remove any official nor make executive appoint- 
 ments unless the mayor has been absent thirty days, nor 
 may he sign, nor approve, nor veto any ordinance unless 
 the mayor has been absent nine days. It is necessary that 
 
THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN 
 
 47 
 
 the presiding officer of the board should represent all the 
 citizens, and that is why the president of the Board of 
 Aldermen is elected by the entire city and not by any 
 particular district. 
 
 Those who sit on the Board but have no Vote. As we 
 shall see later, the mayor has a great number of helpers 
 who assist him in carrying out the laws made by the Board 
 
 FIG. 29. Public School No. 139, Brooklyn 
 
 of Aldermen. These helpers are grouped into fifteen execu- 
 tive departments. The head of each of these departments 
 is entitled to attend the meetings of the board, if he desires, 
 and to take part in the discussions. He must come if the 
 board wishes, and answer any questions concerning his 
 department, provided he has forty-eight hours' notice. This 
 is in order that the board may have all the information 
 
48 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 needed in passing ordinances. If the board plans to build 
 a new public playground, it may wish to ask the president 
 of the Board of Education if one is needed, or to ask the 
 police commissioner about furnishing patrolmen for it. 
 The head of a department seldom attends the meetings 
 unless an appropriation of money for his department is to 
 come before the board. While the heads of the depart- 
 ments may sit in the board, they are not members and so 
 have no vote. 
 
 Meetings of the Board must be held at least once a 
 month, except during August and September, although they 
 may be held oftener. In fact, every Tuesday morning finds 
 the Board of Aldermen in session. They usually meet for 
 one day only, leaving the unfinished business for the follow- 
 ing Tuesday, unless something very important demands a 
 special meeting. A majority of the members, that is, one 
 more than half, makes what is called a quorum, and a quo- 
 rum must be present before any ordinance can be passed. 
 If a mayor uses his power of veto, that is, of saying No to 
 the resolution or ordinance, then the board must vote again 
 on the same ordinance, not, however, before ten days, but 
 within the fifteen days following. At the second voting it 
 takes two thirds of the members to pass the ordinance. In 
 case it deals with money matters a three-fourths vote is 
 needed. If a special meeting of the board is called, a notice 
 stating the time of meeting and the business to be taken 
 up is signed by the mayor and published in the City Record, 
 the official publication of the city. A copy is sent to each 
 member, so that no subject in which he is interested can 
 come up without his knowledge. The city clerk is the 
 secretary of the board, and is appointed by it for a term 
 
FIG. 30. The Traffic of the City on Lower Broadway 
 49 
 
50 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of six years. One of his many duties is to see that the 
 proceedings of the board are published in the City Record, 
 which can be obtained by any citizen. 
 
 Responsibilities of the Board. Such varied and important 
 powers of legislation have been put into the hands of the 
 aldermen that grave responsibility rests upon them. The 
 men chosen for the board should be not only honest but 
 wise and clear-sighted. They should be able to discern 
 not only the present need and advisability of a city ordi- 
 nance but also its effect upon the future. 
 
 Summary. The legislative power of the City of New York is 
 vested in the Board of Aldermen. This power, important as it is, is 
 fully denned in the city charter, which is granted by the state legis- 
 lature. The Board of Aldermen comprises the president of the board, 
 who is elected by the entire city, the borough presidents, who are 
 elected by the citizens of each borough, and the members of the board, 
 who are elected by the citizens from each aldermanic district. These 
 men meet once a week to make the ordinances and resolutions in 
 regard to carrying on the city's business. Grave responsibilities rest 
 upon the members of the board. 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
 THE MAYOR 
 
 Importance of the Mayor as Chief Executive and Chief 
 Magistrate of the City. On the occasion of a great city 
 celebration, such as the opening of a new bridge, or the be- 
 ginning of some magnificent enterprise, such as the build- 
 ing of an underground railway, who is the most important 
 man on the occasion, the one who in his official capacity 
 represents the city ? Yes, you are right ; he is the mayor. 
 Every organization, great or small, must have some one 
 at the head to direct its affairs. As the President is the 
 chief executive of the United States, so the mayor is 
 the chief executive of a city. The head officer, or chief 
 executive, of all the five boroughs of New York City, or 
 Greater New York, as it is sometimes called, is the mayor. 
 The importance of a mayor's position depends upon the 
 size of the city or town ; it follows, therefore, that by far 
 the most important mayoralty in the United States is that 
 of New York City, for the mayor there is at the head of 
 the largest municipal corporation (the other term by which 
 the city is sometimes called) of the western world. 
 
 The Mayoralty in Colonial Days and After. Many years 
 ago, when the English still held the American colonies, 
 the mayor of New York City was appointed by the gov- 
 ernor under the British crown. After the Revolution, when 
 the Americans themselves governed the city, the mayor 
 was appointed by the Committee of Appointment, a body 
 
 51 
 
THE MAYOR 
 
 53 
 
 consisting of the governor of the state and four senators. But 
 the people did not like that very well, so from 1821 until 
 1 834 the mayor was elected by the Common Council. Even 
 that did not accord with the idea of " a government by the 
 people"; so in the year 1834 the mayor was elected by 
 
 FIG. 32. The Governor's Room in the Capitol at Albany 
 
 the direct vote of the citizen electors, and that has con- 
 tinued the custom ever since. If you will go down to the 
 city hall, in the lower part of Manhattan, you will find in 
 the mayor's office, and in several of the other rooms of the 
 building, portrait paintings of many of the men who have 
 been the mayors of New York City. Some of these men 
 have been largely identified with the growth and prosperity 
 of the city. 
 
54 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The mayoralty has grown in importance with the growth 
 of the municipal corporation and has been subject to a 
 number of changes. At first, as has just been said, the 
 mayor was appointed, next he was elected by the city 
 council, and then he was placed in his office by the direct 
 vote of the people. Sometimes he has held his office for 
 two years, sometimes for four, and there have been charters 
 
 in force which required 
 his election every year. 
 The present charter pro- 
 vides for a term of four 
 years beginning on the 
 first day of January fol- 
 lowing the November in 
 which he is elected. The 
 mayor receives a larger 
 salary than the governor 
 of the state ; the former 
 is paid fifteen thousand 
 dollars a year, while the 
 latter receives but ten 
 thousand. 
 
 One evening a schoolboy said to his father : " It is a 
 fine thing, is n't it, father, to be the mayor of New York ? 
 I was down at the city hall this morning when the mayor, 
 and the Board of Aldermen, and other big men of the town 
 were there to receive the foreign prince who is now in this 
 country. The mayor drove up in a handsome carriage, and 
 when he got out to go into the city hall everybody took off 
 their hats and cheered. When he came out he walked arm 
 in arm with the prince, and they drove over the city together. 
 
 FIG. 33. James Duane, First Mayor after 
 the American Revolution 
 
55 
 
56 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 To-night he will sit at the head of the table at the great 
 dinner the city is to give for the prince. Oh, it must be 
 a fine thing to be the mayor and have such good times ! " 
 
 " It is true, my son, that it is a fine thing to be the 
 mayor of New York," replied the lad's father, " for it is 
 the highest honor a city can show one of its citizens ; but 
 the office carries with it so much work and so much care 
 that it far outweighs the pleasure of such a scene as you 
 saw down at the city hall this morning." 
 
 Let us see what the duties of the mayor are, which the 
 father of this schoolboy considered so heavy and responsible. 
 
 The Duties of the Mayor. The city charter which went 
 into effect on the ist of January, 1901, clearly defines 
 the duties of the mayor. It places upon him more respon- 
 sibility for the good government of the city than any pre- 
 ceding charter, in that it gives him the power of appointing 
 and removing almost all the executive officers of the city. 
 That power not only calls public attention to all his own 
 acts, but it holds him responsible for the acts of all his 
 subordinates. As he has the power of removal for any 
 cause which seems to him justifiable, he must necessarily be 
 responsible for the fitness of the men he. appoints, as well 
 as for the manner in which they perform their official duties. 
 The only city officials which the charter does not provide the 
 mayor with power to remove, no matter whether appointed 
 by himself or his predecessor, are the comptroller, the 
 members of the Board of Education, the Aqueduct Com- 
 missioners, the trustees of the College of the City of New 
 York, the trustees of Bellevue and allied hospitals, and 
 certain judicial officials for whose removal other provision 
 is made by the constitution of the state. 
 
THE MAYOR 
 
 57 
 
 The Mayor's Veto. One of the greatest powers which 
 the charter confers upon the mayor is that of the veto, the 
 Latin word meaning " I forbid." The last chapter explained 
 this power in connection with the ordinances of the Board of 
 Aldermen. In addition to the mayor's power of veto in city 
 legislation the charter allows him the veto of any measure 
 
 FIG. 35. Public School No. 170, Manhattan 
 
 passed by the state legislature which in his judgment is 
 injurious to the city. A mayor's veto often focuses atten- 
 tion upon some unwise public measure and thus defeats it. 
 Other Duties resting upon the Mayor. The duties de- 
 volving upon the mayor are too many to be enumerated 
 here, but in addition to those spoken of the charter de- 
 clares that he must keep himself informed as to the work 
 of the various administrative departments of the city 
 
58 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 FIG. 36. Lincoln Monument, Brooklyn 
 
 government ; that he 
 must be diligent in 
 enforcing the ordi- 
 nances of the city and 
 the laws of the state 
 pertaining to the city. 
 Sufficient to keep him 
 busy, surely ! But in 
 addition to all the fore- 
 going he must send 
 one or more reports 
 annually to the Board 
 of Aldermen, telling 
 the condition of the 
 finances of the city, 
 how the various 
 departments are pros- 
 pering, the improve- 
 ments which have 
 been made, and those 
 which are needed. He 
 is also a member, ex 
 officio, of several 
 important bodies con- 
 nected with the mu- 
 nicipality. He is chair- 
 man of the Board of 
 Estimate and Appor- 
 tionment, the board 
 which has charge of 
 the money of the city, 
 
THE MAYOR 
 
 59 
 
 and, as its chairman, is largely responsible for the manner 
 in which the money is expended. He is also a member of 
 the Sinking Fund Commission, the Rapid Transit Com- 
 mission, the Armory Board, the Board of City Records, 
 and is one of the trustees of the Sailors' Snug Harbor. 
 He must guard the treasury against the schemes of 
 unscrupulous people who think that because they have 
 helped to elect him he should give them or their friends 
 some position, or employment in the city government. He 
 must always guard, too, against the unceasing efforts of 
 great corporations to gain franchises to use the public 
 highways. As head of the city the mayor also issues all 
 public proclamations, takes part in great public occasions, 
 and welcomes distinguished visitors. He is the repre- 
 sentative citizen and must in all things uphold the dignity 
 of the city. He can be removed from his office only by 
 the governor of the state. 
 
 Through all these various channels we have seen how 
 the city government is concentrated upon the mayor, but 
 at the same time, as we shall see by pursuing this study, 
 the charter also provides for local self-government through 
 the Board of Aldermen, the borough presidents, and certain 
 auxiliary boards. 
 
 Summary. The most important mayorality in the United States 
 is that of the City of New York. The mayor there is elected by 
 the electors of the five boroughs. His powers and duties are clearly 
 defined in the city charter, in which the responsibility of the city 
 government is concentrated upon him. He is personally responsible 
 for the fitness of the men he appoints. Through the power of veto 
 he controls city franchises, many of the measures passed by the Board 
 of Aldermen, and much of the state legislation for the city. He may 
 be removed by the governor of the state. 
 
E1!BLI.:J&BB ! 
 
 mnmaamm.mil 
 
 60 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
 THOSE WHO CARRY OUT OUR LAWS : THE MAYOR AND 
 HIS HELPERS 
 
 The Executive Branch of Government is that department 
 of the public service which carries out the laws. In the 
 government of the United States it is the department 
 which is under the direction of the President, who, as head 
 of the nation, sees that the laws enacted by Congress are 
 executed. The executive branch of the government of the 
 City of New York is similar to the executive branch of the 
 government of the United States. It includes the mayor, 
 who is the chief executive ; the borough presidents, who 
 rank next to the mayor in official importance ; the officers of 
 the fifteen administrative departments of the city ; and the 
 members of several important executive boards. For exec- 
 utive purposes the city is divided into five boroughs with 
 many subdivisions. Some of these are the aldermanic, 
 judicial, school, local improvement, and election districts ; 
 the dock, police, fire, and street cleaning districts ; besides 
 the districts of sanitary, building, and school inspection. 
 But New York City is too large to be administered either 
 conveniently or effectively by one man. Let the pupils 
 think of some of the features of the city for a moment 
 and they will appreciate this fact. 
 
 Some Features of New York City's Area, Population, and 
 Wealth. In area Greater New York covers within a fraction 
 of three hundred and twenty-seven square miles and includes 
 
 61 
 
62 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 the whole of the city and county of New York, the city of 
 Brooklyn, and the counties of Kings and Richmond, and part 
 of the county of Queens. In marked contrast to the densely 
 populated parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn, sections of 
 the boroughs of Richmond and Queens are so thinly settled 
 that there are hundreds of acres practically unpeopled. 
 
 New York State has a population of seven million people ; 
 and more than half of that number live within the limits of 
 the city. This gives -the city a population larger than that 
 of any state in the Union, except three. In connection 
 with the population we must remember that it is remark- 
 ably cosmopolitan ; that is, there are people in New York 
 City from almost every nation. This is true to such an 
 extent that certain parts of the municipality are entirely 
 given over to these peoples from other lands, and the 
 neighborhoods where they live are called by their home-land 
 names ; such as Little Italy, Little Germany, Chinatown, 
 The Ghetto, Little Hungary, and Poverty Hollow, the lat- 
 ter a name facetiously applied to a section occupied by the 
 Irish. Some of these places are so crowded that they have 
 become the densest centers of population on the globe. 
 
 The city contains about two hundred thousand buildings 
 and the assessed valuation of its real estate reaches beyond 
 five billion dollars. The value of its property, personal and 
 real, is far more than that. While this is but the faintest 
 outline of what the city is, and what its government must 
 involve, it will enable the pupil to see why the municipality 
 is too large to be administered by one man. It will also 
 help him to understand why it is necessary for each of the 
 five boroughs to have a president, and why the adminis- 
 tration of the municipal government is divided into fifteen 
 executive departments. 
 
64 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Fifteen Executive De- 
 partments. The heads of these 
 departments, with the excep- 
 tion of the comptroller, are 
 appointed by the mayor, and 
 they are personally responsible 
 to him for the success of their 
 respective departments. They 
 look after the money of the 
 city, the expenses, the taxes, 
 streets, and parks, and all 
 franchises of the city govern- 
 ment. In short, they are like 
 the managers of a great com- 
 mercial enterprise of which the 
 mayor and Board of Aldermen 
 would be regarded as the head. 
 It is their business to see that 
 the plans of the mayor and the 
 Board of Aldermen are carried 
 into effect, and that the City of 
 New York is made a safe and 
 pleasant place in which to live. 
 
 The Board of Estimate and 
 Apportionment. The most im- 
 portant of the executive boards 
 of the municipality is the Board 
 of Estimate and Apportion- 
 ment. As it requires over one 
 hundred million dollars to pay 
 the expenses of the city 
 
 i 
 
THE MAYOR AND HIS HELPERS 65 
 
 government for one year, it naturally follows that the 
 utmost care should be exercised to see that the money is 
 wisely spent. In the year 1870 this board was organized, 
 under the old City of New York, to pass upon all expendi- 
 tures of money made by the city. The board is now com- 
 posed of the mayor, the comptroller, and the president of 
 the Board of Aldermen, each of whom has three votes on all 
 questions which come before it ; the presidents of the bor- 
 oughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn, who have two votes 
 each ; and the presidents of The Bronx, Richmond, and 
 Kings, each of whom has one ; and all of whom are elective 
 officials. This board is in reality the governing board of 
 the city and stands between the taxpayer and any unwise 
 expenditure of his money. 
 
 The board decides how much money shall be spent on all 
 large public improvements, what streets may be opened, and 
 in what manner the work shall be done ; it authorizes all bond 
 and stock issues which are made to meet these expenses ; it 
 regulates the remuneration of all the city employees, except 
 that of the public school teachers and certain employees of 
 the police and fire departments. No department of the city 
 government can enter into any. enterprise which involves a 
 large expenditure of money without first obtaining the con- 
 sent of this board. The expenses of the city are submitted to 
 the board in the following manner. By the loth of every 
 September the borough presidents, the heads of each of the 
 executive departments, and the heads of the other boards 
 send to the Board of Estimate and Apportionment a detailed 
 estimate of the amount of money they will need for their 
 expenses during the coming year. At about the same time 
 the comptroller estimates the amount of money the city will 
 
FIG. 40. St. Paul's Chapel 
 
 Its churchyard is in ths midst of the busiest section of the city 
 66 
 
THE MAYOR AND HIS HELPERS 67 
 
 need to meet its other obligations, and he sends this estimate 
 to the board. The board takes these two statements of the 
 city's needs and compares them with an estimate of the 
 amount of money which will come into the city from all 
 sources of revenue, such as taxes, rent from the franchises, 
 docks, and similar sources. From the result of this com- 
 parison the board decides how much the city may spend 
 
 FIG. 41. Public School No. 63, Fulton Avenue and One Hundred 
 and Seventy-third Street 
 
 during the coming year. It embodies the decision it reaches 
 in a document called the Annual Budget, which is the official 
 itemized estimate and statement of all moneys needed, and 
 of the probable income from all sources. This Budget is 
 published in the official publication, the City Record, and if 
 a taxpayer objects to any item it contains, he may, durin^a 
 specified time, bring his objection before the board. After 
 its preparation the board sends the Budget to the Board of 
 Aldermen, who cannot increase, but who may reduce, the 
 
68 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 amounts itemized, and who must approve of it before it goes 
 into effect. If they fail to act upon it within twenty days after 
 it is submitted, it goes into effect the same as if adopted. 
 
 The Commissioners of Accounts. Another executive board 
 which looks after the welfare of the city is known as the 
 Commissioners of Accounts. It is comprised of two men 
 appointed by the mayor, who are to a certain extent his 
 confidential officers, and one of whom must be a certified 
 public accountant. Every three months they are required 
 to examine the receipts and the disbursements in the offices 
 of the comptroller and the chamberlain (the two men who 
 have charge of the city's money) and of the various admin- 
 istrative departments. At the request of the mayor they 
 make special audits of the expenses of the city, and, when- 
 ever he wishes, look into the accounts of any city official 
 which he may desire to have investigated. 
 
 The Board of Assessors. In a great city like New York 
 the corporation is constantly opening new streets, laying 
 out large and small tracts of land in parks and public res- 
 ervations, condemning buildings which must come down, 
 buying sites for schoolhouses and other public structures, 
 besides opening thoroughfares for street railways and kin- 
 dred franchises. All this entails controversy and litigation, 
 for it often happens that in these transactions the city con- 
 demns private property. It has a right to do this because 
 no man's property can stand in the way of the public good. 
 Under the law of eminent domain the city can take any 
 property which it needs, but when it does so some one 
 must decide what such property is worth to both the city 
 and the private owner. One of the boards before which 
 the questions arising about such property is submitted is 
 
THE MAYOR AND HIS HELPERS 
 
 6 9 
 
 the Board of Assessors. It consists of three men appointed 
 by the mayor, and they make all assessments for local 
 improvements in the city other than those required by law 
 to be confirmed by a court of record. This board meets 
 regularly each week on Thursday afternoon. 
 
 The Board of Revision of Assessments. Another board 
 to which contested questions relative to the revision, cor- 
 rection, and confirmation of assessments for local improve- 
 ments are referred, is the 
 Board of Revision of As- 
 sessments. This board 
 consists of the comptrol- 
 ler, the corporation coun- 
 sel, and the president of 
 the Department of Taxes 
 and Assessment, who 
 serve without salary. It 
 makes the final decision 
 in the questions concern- 
 ing the rights of property 
 holders in any public im- 
 provements, except on 
 
 FIG. 42. The Washington Arch 
 
 the assessments which 
 have been made by the 
 commissioners appointed by a court of record, and those 
 which have been confirmed by the Board of Assessors. 
 Both boards appoint secretaries and such clerks and sub- 
 ordinates as they may need. 
 
 Other Boards and Bureaus. In addition to the boards 
 which have been mentioned there are several others which 
 have an important part in the municipal affairs of the 
 
;o GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 corporation. There is one called a Commission of the Sink- 
 ing Fund, consisting of a body of men who have charge of 
 a large sum of money belonging to the city and known as 
 the sinking fund, of which more will be told later. There 
 is a Bank Commission consisting of the mayor, the cham- 
 berlain, and the comptroller, who decide in which banks 
 the money of the corporation shall be deposited. There is 
 also an Aqueduct Commission, appointed by the governor 
 of the state, which has charge of the source of the water 
 supply of the city. 
 
 Among the bureaus which are a part of the municipal 
 government is the Bureau of Licenses. This bureau grants 
 licenses to many of the business enterprises carried on in 
 the city. If a man wishes to open a pawnbroker's shop, he 
 must obtain a license from this bureau, for which he pays two 
 hundred dollars into the city treasury. Or, if he wishes to 
 open a junk shop, he must obtain a license and pay twenty 
 dollars. All public hacks, carriages, cabs, and express 
 wagons, as well as push carts of various kinds, fruit stands, 
 and hand organs, must secure and pay for licenses. Cer- 
 tain other enterprises obtain their licenses from the police 
 department ; concert halls, theaters, circuses, besides certain 
 kinds of street parades, must be licensed there. These 
 licenses bring a large revenue into the municipal treasury. 
 
 Two other important bureaus, but which are under the 
 jurisdiction of the borough presidents, are the Bureau of 
 Highways and the Bureau of Sewers. These regulate the 
 grading, curbing, flagging, guttering, and all matters per- 
 taining to the sewerage of the streets in the respective 
 boroughs. There is also a Bureau of Public Buildings and 
 Offices, which has the care and maintenance of all the 
 
FIG. 43. The Flatiron Building 
 
72 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 municipal buildings ; a Bureau of Buildings, which, in con- 
 nection with the Tenement House Department, enforces 
 the regulations of the city in regard to the erection of new 
 buildings ; and the Board of Building Examiners, which 
 hears all appeals from the Bureau of Buildings. Besides 
 these there is the Board of Elections, of which we learned 
 in the chapter on elections ; a Board of City Record, which 
 publishes the municipal organ, the City Record ; and a 
 Municipal Explosive Commission, which decides who may 
 handle explosives. With these there is a Bureau of Baths 
 and Public Comfort in each borough, under the supervi- 
 sion of the borough presidents; also the Examining Board 
 of Plumbers, Sealers of Weights and Measures and the 
 Inspectors of Weights and Measures, and the Board of 
 Armory Commissioners. In addition to these there are a 
 number of others of lesser importance. 
 
 Summary. The municipality of the corporation of New York is 
 too large to be administered by one man, as is shown by a short study 
 of the city's area, population, and wealth. The executive branch of 
 the city government includes the mayor, the borough presidents, and 
 the heads of the fifteen administrative departments, besides certain 
 executive boards, the most important of which is the Board of Esti- 
 mate and Apportionment. 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
 THE BOROUGH PRESIDENTS 
 
 The Formation of the Boroughs. At the time when the 
 first ferry was established between " Breuckelen " and New 
 Amsterdam the wayfarer who wanted to cross the East River 
 had to let his desire be known by blowing a horn which 
 
 FIG. 44. "Wayfarer blowing a Horn as a Call to be taken 
 across the East River 
 
 hung on a convenient tree near the ferry landing. This 
 brought the master of the ferryboat, who for six stivers will- 
 ingly rowed him over the river, but who utilized the time 
 while trade was dull by tilling his near-by fields. Little did 
 those simple-minded folk dream that the day would come 
 
 73 
 
74 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 when not only Brooklyn but Staten Island, away over on 
 the other side of the bay, and the region far out beyond the 
 Bloomingdale road would become a part of the one great city. 
 It took more than two hundred and fifty years to accom- 
 plish this, but in course of those years New York grew so 
 large that its merchants and business men lived in all the 
 outlying towns and districts ; and their interests made the 
 consolidation of the city a necessity. 
 
 The Borough Presidents. When the territory embraced 
 in Greater New York was united for administrative pur- 
 poses it was formed into five boroughs. Each of the cities 
 in the district thus united had formerly been governed by 
 an individual mayor and other local officers. In the consoli- 
 dation they all came under one charter and one mayor, but 
 each borough was placed under the immediate supervision of 
 an executive officer, called a borough president, and a local 
 government was established in connection with the general 
 municipal government. Each of these presidents is chosen 
 by the voters of the respective boroughs at the time when 
 the mayor of the city is elected, and for the same term. The 
 charter defines his duties just as it does those of the mayor. 
 It stipulates that his home must be in the borough at the 
 time he is elected, and that he must live there during his term 
 of office. The presidents of the boroughs of Manhattan, 
 The Bronx, and of Brooklyn each receive a salary of seven 
 thousand five hundred dollars per year ; while the presi- 
 dents of Queens and of Richmond each receive five thousand 
 dollars. Like the mayor of the city, the presidents of the 
 boroughs can be removed only by the governor of the state. 
 
 Powers and Duties. The president of the borough by 
 virtue of his office is a member of the Board of Aldermen 
 
75 
 
76 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 and the Board of Estimate and Apportionment. As mem- 
 bers of the Board of Aldermen the borough presidents have 
 legislative powers, for they thus help to make the laws of the 
 city. They attend the meetings of that board and vote on all 
 questions brought before it. In this way they not only are 
 responsible for the government of their own boroughs but 
 must share in that of the whole city. Their duties as presi- 
 dents of the boroughs are similar to those of the mayor. A 
 borough hall is selected by the Board of Aldermen, in the 
 central part of each borough, and in it the borough president 
 has a public office where the meetings of the various local 
 boards are held, and where he conducts all business con- 
 nected with his borough. He is chairman ex officio of 
 these boards and calls and presides at their meetings. He 
 may vote upon any measure brought before them, and also 
 has the veto over any action of the boards. He regulates 
 the grading, curbing, and repairing of the streets and the 
 laying of the cross walks, and has the care of the sewers ; 
 he attends to building repairing and the maintenance of pub- 
 lic roads, bridges, and tunnels within his borough ; subject 
 to the approval of the Board of Estimate and Apportion- 
 ment, he executes all plans for the drainage of the sewers in 
 his district. He has the control of public buildings, except 
 schools, hospitals, fire and police stations, and penitentiaries. 
 Through the superintendent of buildings of the borough, he 
 has the supervision of the erection of all buildings except 
 those which are directly vested in the Tenement House De- 
 partment. He prepares all contracts relating to the borough 
 and makes an annual report of all its business transactions 
 to the mayor. In addition to these things the presidents of 
 Richmond and Queens have charge of the street cleaning. 
 

 THE BOROUGH PRESIDENTS 
 
 77 
 
 Appointing Power. The president of the borough appoints 
 a commissioner of public works, and when it is necessary 
 has the power to remove him. The commissioner is the 
 officer of the borough 
 next in importance 
 to the president. In 
 the absence or illness 
 of the president the 
 commissioner of pub- 
 lic works discharges 
 all his duties for him. 
 The president also 
 appoints, subject to 
 civil service law, a 
 secretary of the bor- 
 ough and such as- 
 sistant clerks as are 
 necessary. Besides 
 these he appoints the 
 members of the local 
 school boards and a 
 superintendent of 
 buildings, who is the 
 head of the Bureau 
 of Buildings of the 
 
 FIG. 46. Tower and Southwest Wing 
 of the Wadleigh High School 
 
 borough. The superintendent of buildings must see that 
 all laws and ordinances relating to the construction, altera- 
 tion, or removal of buildings are enforced. 
 
 Should the president of a borough, during his term of 
 office, die, move away, or do anything which causes disgrace 
 to the borough, his office can be declared vacant. Then the 
 
THE BOROUGH PRESIDENTS 79 
 
 mayor calls a meeting, over which he himself must preside, 
 of the members of the Board of Aldermen who live in that 
 borough, and they must elect some one else in his place. 
 The mayor does not vote at this meeting unless there is a 
 tie, making it necessary for him to decide the election. 
 
 The Local Improvement Boards. There are twenty-five 
 local boards of improvement in the different boroughs of 
 New York City. They consist of the respective presidents 
 of the boroughs, as chairmen, and the aldermen residing 
 in the respective districts. In their own boroughs the local 
 boards have the power to grade, pave, and improve the 
 streets ; to construct sewers, tunnels, and bridges ; and to 
 acquire titles to land for parks and other public purposes. 
 There are the following limitations. If the improvement 
 does not cost over two thousand dollars, the local board 
 passes on it independently ; if more than that sum is to 
 be expended, the resolution of the improvement must be 
 approved by the Board of Estimate and Apportionment ; and 
 if it involves an outlay of five hundred thousand dollars or 
 more, which is to come from the public treasury, it must 
 have the approval of the Board of Aldermen. But before 
 any resolution of the local board can take effect it must be 
 approved by the president of the borough. 
 
 The Necessity of a Borough President. It is necessary 
 for each borough to have a president because the population 
 varies in the different boroughs. Ordinances that are per- 
 fectly just and proper for one borough are wholly unneces- 
 sary in another. Improvements which are desirable in one 
 locality, and for which the people are glad to pay, should 
 not be made to wait until all the boroughs appreciate the 
 need and are willing to vote for it. 
 
80 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. When the first ferry was established between New 
 York City and Brooklyn there was little to suggest that the two cities 
 would ever be united ; yet business became centered in New York City 
 and the consolidation of the surrounding territories followed. The 
 municipality is divided into five boroughs ; each has a local govern- 
 ment connected with the general government of the city, with a borough 
 president at its head. Each borough president is elected by the voters 
 of the respective boroughs, at the time when the mayor of the city is 
 chosen and for the same length of term. By virtue of his office he is 
 a member of the Board of Aldermen and the Board of Estimate and 
 Apportionment. He votes on questions brought before these boards, 
 and thus is not only responsible for the government of his own bor- 
 ough but must share in that of the whole city. He appoints a com- 
 missioner of public works, a number of other borough officials, 
 besides the members of the local school board and a superintendent 
 of buildings. He is chairman of all local boards in his borough. 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 A Glance at the Early History of the Schools of New York 
 City. When Wouter Van Twiller, fourth direcktor of New 
 Netherland, came to the province from Holland, in 1633, 
 he brought the first schoolmaster, Adam Roelantsen, to 
 take charge of the little school which, even at that early 
 date, had been established for the few children of the col- 
 ony. Schoolmaster Roelantsen was a salaried officer of the 
 West India Company, and the tuition was free in the little 
 school. He lived on "The Road to the Ferry," but he did 
 not remain pedagogue long, as he soon became involved in 
 some trouble which caused his dismissal, and the next we 
 hear of him he was eking out his livelihood by taking in wash- 
 ings. That must have been a temporary occupation with 
 him, however, for it is recorded that in 1653 ne was a mem- 
 ber of the burgher corps of New Amsterdam. 
 
 A year or more after Roelantsen's dismissal the sec- 
 ond schoolmaster came from Holland. His pay consisted of 
 two beaver skins annually for each pupil. By this time 
 the little hamlet had taken on quite the air of a village. 
 The fort was still the center of activity; the direcktor's 
 blockhouse and the church were near each other within its 
 quadrangular wall, while on the other side of them was the 
 one-storied prison ; below it on the river bank stood the gal- 
 lows and whipping post, grim reminders of the severity of 
 the times. A huge windmill, so dear to the Dutch eyes, 
 
 81 
 
82 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 also stood within the fort, and beyond it a tall flagstaff, 
 with flying colors in horizontal stripes of white, blue, and 
 orange, could be seen far out at sea. The Dutch House 
 of Entertainment " adorned the fartherest point of land," 
 and between it and the fort were " suitable dwelling houses," 
 among which stood the West India Company's warehouses. 
 North of the little village, but south of where Wall Street 
 is now, stretched the almost unbroken primeval forest, its 
 
 FIG. 48. " The fort was still the center of activity " 
 
 solitude shared by the red man with the bears, panthers, 
 and wolves, whose loud yelps and growls nightly filled the 
 children's hearts with terror. There was no schoolhouse in 
 those days, but school was held in a hired room or in the 
 schoolmaster's house. The schoolmaster was revered next 
 to the minister, and every self-respecting citizen who was 
 able sent his children to school. The first record of a 
 school tax in the little colony was in 1638. 
 
 Schools during English Occupancy of the Island. When 
 the English took possession of New Amsterdam, in 1664, 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 83 
 
 there were three common schools, a Latin grammar school 
 supported by tax and tuition fees, and ten or twelve private 
 schools. The English did not do so much for education, in 
 proportion to their opportunities, as the Dutch had done. 
 They tried to substitute academies and other pay institu- 
 tions for the common schools. For this reason free schools 
 made but little progress until after the Revolution. In 1702 
 the assembly adopted An Act for the Encouragement of 
 
 FIG. 49. Leffert's House, Flatbush 
 
 a Grammar Free School in New York City, and the school- 
 master's salary of fifty pounds was raised by a general tax. 
 Only children whose parents were members of the Episcopal 
 Church could attend this school. 
 
 The Establishment of the Present School System. Public 
 schools, in the sense in which we now use the term, were 
 unknown even for a good many years after the Revolution. 
 It is an interesting bit of history that the first free public 
 school in New York City was established for colored children. 
 Under the auspices of an organization called the Manumission 
 Society, a free school for colored children was opened in 
 
84 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 1787, and this society maintained a number of such schools 
 for a good many years. Up to this time the churches had 
 supported parish schools for the children of their members, 
 
 but the children 
 of poor white 
 parents who 
 were not church 
 members had no 
 schools provided 
 for them. This 
 led some kind- 
 hearted people, 
 in 1 80 1, to start 
 a society, The 
 Association of 
 the Women 
 Friends for the 
 Relief of the 
 Poor, which es- 
 tablished and for 
 more than forty 
 
 FlG. 50. Colonel De Witt Clinton, a Patriotic Citizen ... , 
 
 and the First President of the Free School Society * 
 
 schools for that 
 
 class of children. In 1805 a society was organized which 
 eventually resulted in our present public school system. It 
 was The Free School Society, and that broad-minded, philan- 
 thropic citizen who did so much for New York in its early 
 history, and who at this time was mayor of the city, Colonel 
 De Witt Clinton, was the first president of the society. It 
 was organized "to extend the benefits of education to the 
 numerous class of poor children who were excluded from 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 85 
 
 the various charity schools already established." The good 
 accomplished by this organization can scarcely be estimated. 
 In May, 1806, the society opened its first school in "a 
 small apartment " in Bancker (now Madison) Street, with 
 forty-two scholars. It soon outgrew its accommodations 
 there, and in April of the next year the city allowed the 
 school to use "the building adjacent to the almshouse." 
 This building had room for two hundred and forty pupils, 
 and it was not long before it was overcrowded. In 1808 
 the city gave the ground, and a brick schoolhouse was 
 begun which, when finished in 1809, was considered very 
 
 FIG. 51. Public School No. 137, Brooklyn 
 
 large and handsome, as it could seat more than five hundred 
 pupils in its two rooms. Colonel Rutgers, another generous 
 citizen, gave two lots on Henry Street, and the city raised 
 thirteen thousand dollars for the next school building. This 
 
86 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 was completed in 1 8 1 1 , and the second free school building 
 was opened. Other schools followed until, by 1825, there 
 were six free schools in the city. In 1826 the Free School 
 Society obtained a new charter and changed its name to 
 The Public School Society of New York, a change of 
 name which, as the Honorable Seth Low says in his intro- 
 duction to Mr. Palmer's admirable work, The New York 
 Public School, "marked a great advance in the general 
 understanding of the obligations of the community towards 
 popular education." 
 
 Since that time there have been great changes. Then 
 the city was proud of six public schools ; now it has almost 
 a hundred times that number. Then there were perhaps five 
 thousand pupils ; now there are six hundred thousand, with 
 the number constantly increasing. This wonderful record 
 is due to two things, the growth in population of the city 
 and the generous educational policy of the corporation. 
 
 Educational Advantages of New York City. Besides its 
 public schools the city has almost unequaled educational 
 advantages. Within its five boroughs there are more than 
 three hundred colleges, academies, and private schools where 
 students may be instructed in almost any branch. In con- 
 nection with its higher institutions of learning the state has 
 a system of supervision which is of great advantage. It is 
 conducted by the University of the State of New York. 
 
 The University of the State of New York. This institu- 
 tion is the most powerful educational influence in the state, 
 and yet, strange as the statement may seem to the pupil, 
 it is a university without teachers or buildings. But this 
 does not lessen its useful influence, for what is termed the 
 University of the State of New York is fundamentally a 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 supervisory body. It was established by the legislature in 
 1784 and includes all the incorporated colleges and acade- 
 mies of the state. It is governed by a Board of Regents 
 numbering about eleven persons, with four ex-officio mem- 
 bers, the governor, 
 
 the lieutenant gov- 
 ernor, the secretary of 
 state, and the state 
 commissioner of educa- 
 tion. The regents have 
 a general supervision of 
 higher education in the 
 state. 
 
 Columbia University. 
 Columbia University, 
 on Morningside 
 Heights, founded as 
 King's College in 1 784, 
 is the oldest college in 
 the Empire State. With 
 its magnificent equip- 
 ment, scholarly in- 
 structors, and valuable 
 library, it offers advan- 
 tages which were not 
 dreamed of when it was 
 founded. It comprises nearly a dozen stately buildings. There 
 are more than five hundred instructors in its nine departments. 
 Its three hundred and thirty-six scholarships and fellowships 
 offer generous opportunities to students with limited means. 
 The university Columbia College, Teachers College, and 
 
 J 
 
 FIG. 52. St. Patrick's Cathedral 
 
88 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Barnard College includes schools of applied sciences, law, 
 medicine, philosophy, political science, and pure science. 
 
 The New York University, formerly called the Univer- 
 sity of the City of New York, also affords many opportuni- 
 ties for students. The buildings in which its college and 
 college -extension departments are conducted are on Uni- 
 versity Heights, as well as those of the graduate school 
 and school of applied sciences. The library building, Hall 
 
 FIG. 53. Metropolitan Museum of Art 
 
 of Languages, chemical laboratory, and other edifices be- 
 longing to the university are also on the Heights. The 
 medical college is on Twenty-sixth Street, in connection 
 with Bellevue Hospital. It has fine lecture and dissecting 
 rooms, and there is also a veterinary college as one of its 
 branches. The schools of law, pedagogy, and commerce 
 are in the university building on Washington Square. 
 
 The opportunities for higher education in the city are 
 by no means limited to these universities. The Brooklyn 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 89 
 
 Polytechnic, Pratt Institute, The Brooklyn Institute of 
 Arts and Sciences, and several other kindred institutions 
 have made Brooklyn famous as a technical training center. 
 The American Museum of Natural History in Manhattan, 
 with its wonderful collection of works of art, and its lec- 
 ture courses, provides an avenue for the broad education of 
 the people, as do also the New York School of Design 
 and the New York School of Art. Besides the schools 
 of this class there are many sectarian ones of all grades, 
 notable among which are the parochial schools. 
 
 The College of the City of New York. But the institutions 
 for higher education which are of greatest benefit to the 
 young people of the city are the College of the City of New 
 York and the Normal College. The College of the City of 
 New York developed from a school for higher education 
 called the Free Academy, which was established by the 
 state legislature in 1847. The building for the Free Acad- 
 emy, on the southeast corner of Lexington Avenue and 
 Twenty-third Street, was opened in 1 849. Collegiate powers 
 and privileges were granted to the academy by the state 
 legislature in 1854. It was thus enabled to confer upon its 
 graduates the usual degrees in the arts and sciences. In 
 1866 the legislature made the academy the College of the 
 City of New York, and the Board of Education became 
 the Board of Trustees of the college. In 1900 the legis- 
 lature removed the college from the control of the Board 
 of Education and placed it under a Board of Trustees 
 consisting of nine members appointed by the mayor. 
 
 The full course of study in the college includes three 
 years of preparatory work and four years of collegiate work. 
 In the collegiate department five courses of study may be 
 
90 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 pursued, and every advantage of college education is avail- 
 able. There are forty instructors and about seventy tutors 
 in the college. Any male residing in the City of New York, 
 who passes the prescribed entrance examination, will be 
 admitted to it. The new buildings on St. Nicholas Heights 
 are an ornament to the architecture of the city, and are 
 splendidly equipped. 
 
 The Normal College. In the same year in which the Free 
 Academy was opened for boys, a committee of citizens 
 was appointed to inquire " into the propriety and expedi- 
 ency of establishing a Female Free Academy. For more 
 than twenty years, however, the only school which answered 
 in any way to one of this kind was a Saturday normal 
 
 FIG. 54. The Normal College 
 
 school for women, and it existed only a part of that period. 
 In 1869 the Board of Education established a Daily Female 
 Normal and High School. It was opened in a rented build- 
 ing on the southeast corner of Broadway and Fourth Street 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 in 1870. It was well patronized and the following year it 
 became the Normal College. A building was completed for 
 the college in 1874, on Hamilton Square and Park and Lex- 
 ington avenues. At first the course of study extended only 
 over three years ; this 
 was subsequently 
 raised to four and 
 then to five years, but 
 as the degrees granted 
 by the college were 
 not recognized by the 
 Regents of the Uni- 
 versity of the State of 
 New York, a collegi- 
 ate course occupying 
 seven years was estab- 
 lished in 1902. The 
 next year the Normal 
 College High School was made a separate department and 
 was admitted to the university of the state as a regular 
 high school. 
 
 Educational Societies. There are many religious and phil- 
 anthropic organizations carrying on educational work in 
 New York City. Cooper Institute has branches for mental 
 and spiritual culture, besides a well-equipped library. The 
 University Extension Society sends lecturers to settlements 
 and other centers. The Tombs School is for boy prisoners 
 and is maintained by the Public Educational Association. 
 The People's Institute has numerous classes and lecture 
 courses in which is taught the brotherhood of man. The 
 League for Political Education provides for classes and 
 
 FIG. 55. The Cooper Institute 
 
92 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 lectures on social, industrial, literary, and civic subjects. The 
 City History Club and the Juvenile Citizens' League arouse 
 in their boy and girl members interest and pride in the city's 
 history and welfare. The Educational Alliance helps trans- 
 form the constantly arriving immigrants into loyal Ameri- 
 cans. The New York Kindergarten Association looks after 
 little folks who otherwise would not go to school. 
 
 The Library System of the City. Then there is New 
 York City's wonderful library system, which is almost as 
 
 FIG. 56. The Low Memorial Library of Columbia University 
 
 great an educational medium as the schools themselves. 
 The first library which could have been called a public 
 library was established early in the eighteenth century, 
 although many years before two clergymen willed their 
 books to the growing young town and these volumes were 
 kept for general circulation. Many small libraries came 
 into existence during the first half of the century, but the 
 Astor family gave the first public library of importance. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 93 
 
 When John Jacob Astor died in 1 848 he left four hundred 
 thousand dollars for this purpose. His son, William B. Astor, 
 gave five hundred and fifty thousand dollars ; and his grand- 
 son during his lifetime, and by will after his death, gave 
 seven hundred thousand dollars more towards its mainte- 
 nance. The Astor library building was erected in Lafayette 
 Place and was the first public library building of the city. 
 James Lenox established the second public library. He 
 donated ground in Seventieth Street, erected the handsome 
 
 FIG. 57. The Morris High School in The Bronx 
 
 building there, furnished it at an expense of over one 
 million dollars, and endowed it with a permanent fund of 
 nearly two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Besides 
 many books it has a valuable collection of paintings and 
 other art treasures. 
 
 Samuel J. Tilden provided by his will for still another 
 library, and the city soon after his death decided to con- 
 solidate the Astor and Lenox libraries with the Tilden 
 
94 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 library trust fund. The building for this great library is 
 on Fifth Avenue between Fortieth and Forty-second 
 streets, where one of the first reservoirs of the Croton 
 Aqueduct stood. It is one of the finest buildings in the 
 world, and when finished will have a shelving capacity of 
 over a million volumes. In 1901 Andrew Carnegie gave 
 five million dollars to establish branch libraries, on con- 
 dition that the city provide the sites for the necessary 
 buildings. The corporation accepted the proposition and 
 seventy-five or eighty of the Carnegie libraries are scat- 
 tered throughout the five boroughs. 
 
 Summary. In the early days of the colony the Dutch established 
 a school at Fort Amsterdam, and before the English invasion they 
 had several others in operation. The English did not encourage free 
 schools, but substituted academies and other pay institutions, of 
 which there are now over three hundred. After the Revolution the 
 Free School Society and the Public School Society gave impetus to 
 public instruction by interesting the city and individuals in it. This 
 was the beginning of the present school system. There are numerous 
 organizations and institutions which offer educational advantages in 
 New York City. In connection with these its library system plays an 
 important part. 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION (continued} 
 
 The Organization of the Board of Education. The educa- 
 tional advantages of the City of New York are indeed unsur- 
 passed, and, as we learned in the last chapter, are almost 
 innumerable. But far 
 above all others, for 
 boys and girls, are the 
 magnificent public 
 schools. Under the 
 Free School Society 
 and the Public School 
 Society, New York 
 City had common 
 schools for many 
 years before it had a 
 Board of Education. 
 These philanthropic 
 societies, and particu- 
 larly the latter one, 
 laid the foundation 
 upon which our splen- 
 did public school sys- 
 tem has been built. 
 In 1813 the legislature of the state made an enactment 
 giving to these two societies and certain religious bodies 
 that share of the state's funds apportioned to the City of 
 
 95 
 
 FIG. 58. Building of the Board of Education 
 
96 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 New York. The enactment provided that the funds thus 
 given should be used for the free schools of the city. In 
 1829 the state laid a tax on all city property for school 
 purposes, and this money also was intrusted to the same 
 organizations ; but in 1 842 the legislature made a law 
 authorizing the election of two commissioners from each 
 ward in New York City, to constitute a Board of Educa- 
 tion and to act with these societies in establishing and 
 maintaining the free schools of the city. This plan con- 
 tinued until 1851, when, by another act of the legislature, 
 all of the common schools of the city were placed under 
 the care of the board. The Free School Society continued 
 its schools for some little time afterward, but in 1853 it 
 transferred its rights and property to the city. Since that 
 time the schools have been in charge of the board, and since 
 1869 ''the members have been appointed by the mayor. 
 
 The Board of Education. Until the five boroughs were 
 united under the present charter each town and city in the 
 territory comprised in Greater New York had an inde- 
 pendent school government. There is now one central 
 Board of Education of forty-six members, and each bor- 
 ough is represented in its membership. The members of 
 the board are appointed by the mayor for a term of five 
 years and serve without salary. About nine of the members 
 are appointed annually. The board as a whole meets semi- 
 monthly. Each February it elects a president for the year. 
 The city charter authorizes the appointment of a secretary 
 to the board, the city superintendent of schools, eight 
 associate superintendents, the superintendent of school build- 
 ings, and the superintendent of school supplies. The work 
 of the board is divided among thirteen committees, the most 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF -EDUCATION 
 
 97 
 
 important of which is the Executive Committee. The presi- 
 dent of the board is chairman ex officio of this committee, 
 and each borough is represented by one or more members. 
 Powers and Duties. The Board of Education is a corpo- 
 ration, and may own, lease, or sell property. It represents 
 the school interests before the Board of Estimate and Appor- 
 tionment. It establishes all public schools, not only those 
 
 FIG. 59. Public School No. 153, Andrews and Burnside Avenues 
 
 for pupils but also the training schools for teachers ; it pro- 
 vides the free lecture courses and the recreation centers. 
 It appoints all teachers, who can be removed only upon 
 charges preferred and sustained by the board. It acts as 
 the Board of Trustees for the Normal College. 
 
 The Local School Boards. The charter provides for local 
 school boards, one in each of the school districts of the city. 
 The presidents of the boroughs in which these districts are 
 located appoint five citizens as members of the respective 
 
98 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 local boards. These persons hold office for one, two, three, 
 four, or five years, as the case may be. The president of 
 the Board of Education appoints a member of that body 
 
 FIG. 60. A Public Playground 
 
 to act on a local board in the borough in which he resides. 
 The city superintendent assigns each district superintend- 
 ent to two districts, and he becomes a member for the two 
 districts on the local board. These seven persons consti- 
 tute the local board. 
 
 The Superintendent of School Buildings. No other munici- 
 pality in the country has so many or such fine school 
 buildings as New York City. The city appropriates the 
 money to build them, and the charter provides for the 
 appointment of a superintendent of school buildings under 
 whose supervision they are constructed. The position is an 
 important one, as the man who holds it is responsible for 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 99 
 
 the safety and comfort of the teachers and the pupils. The 
 charter declares that he must be an architect of recognized 
 ability, must take the oath of office ordered by the state, and 
 must give securities to the Board of Education for faithful 
 service. He appoints deputy superintendents of buildings, 
 advertises for bids and designs, and superintends the erec- 
 tion of new schoolhouses or the alteration of old ones. He 
 is the executive officer of the board in respect to all mat- 
 ters relating to the Building Bureau. 
 
 The school population of New York City has increased 
 so rapidly that it has been impossible to house all children 
 of school age. In 1904, when there was an enrollment of 
 six hundred thousand pupils, there were eighty thousand 
 who, from lack of seating room, could attend only a part of 
 the time. Yet in that year alone the city spent more than 
 six million dollars for new school buildings, and every year 
 more are being erected. They are needed most, of course, 
 
 FIG. 61. Children at Play in a Schoolhouse Court 
 
 in the neighborhoods where there are the most people, and 
 the fact that the property in those localities is very expen- 
 sive does not prevent the city from purchasing it. Any 
 city might well be proud of these school buildings. The 
 
100 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 appliances for heat, light, and ventilation are as nearly perfect 
 as science can make them. The schoolrooms are equipped 
 with all modern accessories of teaching. In some of the 
 buildings there are gymnasiums, cooking rooms, and work- 
 shops, as well as large audience rooms where lectures and 
 school exercises are given ; many of them are supplied with 
 inclosed roof gardens, while in others the entire basement 
 
 FIG. 62. Public School No. 175, The Bronx 
 
 floors are reserved for playgrounds. Whenever possible 
 the new buildings open on all sides to the light, with one or 
 more courts in the center. 
 
 In Hester Street, lower Manhattan, a new schoolhouse 
 called the Hester Street School, costing with the site upon 
 which it stands over one million three hundred thousand 
 dollars, was recently erected. It is the largest public school 
 building in the world ; it seats four thousand five hundred 
 pupils, and yet before it was completed more than that number 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 IOI 
 
 had applied for admission. When these palatial buildings are 
 compared to that first little two-roomed, free school building, 
 dedicated with so much pride in 1809, we can realize what 
 strides New York City has made in its school system. 
 
 The Superintendent of School Supplies. The city supplies 
 the public schools with everything needed. The charter 
 of 1901 reads : "The Board of Education shall provide for 
 the purchase of all books, apparatus, stationery, and other 
 things necessary and expedient to enable the schools of the 
 
 FIG. 63. A Class receiving Instruction in First Aid to the Injured 
 
 city to be properly and successfully conducted." To secure 
 these things it provides for the appointment of a superin- 
 tendent of supplies who purchases, stores, and distributes 
 such supplies. He appoints, upon the recommendation of 
 the Board of Education, a deputy in each borough who 
 takes charge of school supplies for that district. 
 
 The City Superintendent and Board of Superintendents. 
 To the city superintendent and Board of Superintendents 
 the schools owe much of their success. The superintendent 
 is appointed by the Board of Education for a term of six 
 
102 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 years. He meets with the board at its monthly meetings 
 and tells of the progress of the' various schools ; he makes 
 recommendations and suggestions, but does not have a vote 
 in the board. He visits the schools, and one of his duties 
 prescribed by the charter is to "advise and encourage the 
 pupils and the teachers and officers." He holds conferences 
 with the superintendents, principals, and teachers, and keeps 
 an unceasing lookout for the general welfare of the schools. 
 He nominates the Board of Examiners, of which he is the 
 chairman ex officio. This board examines all who wish to 
 become teachers, and prepares what is called an eligible list 
 of those who are qualified, which they present to the Board 
 of Education and from which teachers are appointed. 
 
 There are eight associate superintendents, the immediate 
 helpers of the city superintendent, and, with him as chair- 
 man, they constitute the Board of Superintendents. This 
 board recommends to the Board of Education the names of 
 twenty-six persons, who are then elected by the latter board 
 as district superintendents for respective terms of six years. 
 The city superintendent divides the forty-six school districts 
 of the boroughs among twenty-three of these district super- 
 intendents, giving two to each. The remaining three dis- 
 trict superintendents are assigned to special work ; one has 
 the care of summer schools and playgrounds, another the 
 supervision of evening schools, and a third assists in super- 
 vising the high schools. The Board of Superintendents 
 nominates all teachers, recommends supplies and text- 
 books and the courses of study, besides having general 
 oversight of school organization. 
 
 Work of the Directors. The Board of Education employs 
 over fifteen thousand teachers, principals, and directors. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 103 
 
 The many schools under their supervision cover almost any 
 branch of study a young student could desire, and include 
 every grade from the normal college to the kindergarten. 
 There are directors who are assigned by the city superin- 
 tendent to look after special departments and classes in the 
 schools. Among these are the department of drawing and 
 
 FIG. 64. Public School No. 106, Manhattan 
 
 constructive work, which is under the care of three direct- 
 ors ; the cooking classes, where girls are taught the art of 
 preparing food scientifically ; sewing classes, which offer 
 instruction in dressmaking, millinery, and mending ; the 
 department of music, under three directors ; and a depart- 
 ment for truants, where incorrigibles are kept until their 
 conduct proves that they can be trusted to return to the 
 grade school. 
 
104 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Notable also among these departments are the school and 
 classes which are maintained for exceptional children, that is, 
 those who are naturally backward in their studies or who in 
 
 FIG. 65. A Public School Gymnasium 
 
 some manner are defective. The good that has been ac- 
 complished by this branch is remarkable, and has won the 
 commendation of philanthropists in all parts of the country. 
 
 FIG. 66. A Public School Swimming Pool 
 
 The health of the school children is cared for under the 
 physical culture branch of instruction. Through it gymna- 
 siums are maintained, and in connection with the gymnastic 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 
 
 105 
 
 exercises the pupils are given lessons in hygiene and physi- 
 ology. Another unusual feature of the school system of 
 New York is the nautical school conducted on the school- 
 ship S/. Marys. The object of this branch is to provide 
 officers for the ships of our merchant marine. The length 
 of the school course is two years, and under certain con- 
 ditions any male pupil may join the school-ship. Evening 
 schools are established in all parts of the city for those who 
 
 FIG. 67. Vacation School Experimental Work 
 
 cannot attend the clay sessions. They are largely attended by 
 older scholars, usually those working for their own support. 
 Libraries. The pupils have marked advantages in the 
 school libraries. In 1903 there was an accumulative appro- 
 priation of about one hundred and forty thousand dollars, 
 received from the state and city, which was available to buy 
 books for the city schools. A bureau of libraries was estab- 
 lished, a superintendent appointed, and a plan inaugurated 
 for the distribution of the books. Sets of between two and 
 
106 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 three hundred volumes were selected with great care as to 
 the needs of the individual schools, and many such sets were 
 placed in the schoolrooms. These are for general distribu- 
 tion among the pupils and are proving most helpful. 
 
 Department of Lectures. That branch of the school sys- 
 tem which is reaching more pupils than any other, although 
 they are full-grown men and women students instead of 
 boys and girls, is known by the name of The Free Lec- 
 ture Course. The good which this department is doing 
 can scarcely be overestimated. The course was organized 
 in 1889, and an aggregate of over one million persons have 
 heard the lectures given. The object is to give instruc- 
 tion in an interesting form to those who were deprived 
 
 FIG. 68. Recreation Pier 
 
 of early intellectual training, and also to give the latest 
 information in science and art to those who wish to continue 
 their education. The lecturers include well-known college 
 professors, and pulpit and platform speakers ; and many of 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 107 
 
 the lectures are illustrated with stereopticon views. In order 
 to reach the foreigners who have lately come to this country, 
 speakers are provided in the Italian and Yiddish. The course 
 provides a system of adult education which, in the best sense 
 of the word, is the realization of "university extension." 
 
 FIG. 69. Girls exercising in Gymnasium 
 
 Vacation Schools, Public Playgrounds, and Recreation 
 Centers. As there are many children who live in close and 
 confined neighborhoods in the city, where there is little 
 opportunity for recreation or improvement, vacation schools 
 and recreation centers, with public playgrounds, were estab- 
 lished by the Board of Education. The vacation schools open 
 early in July each year and close about the middle of August. 
 They are held in the schoolhouses under the supervision of 
 a large corps of teachers, with an enrollment of thousands of 
 pupils. There are classes in domestic science, mechanical 
 occupations, and nature studies. The little girls are taught 
 to prepare simple foods and remedies for the sick, and how 
 to be of quick aid to the injured. The boys are taught chair 
 caning and similar trades by which they often earn money. 
 The sessions are from nine to twelve o'clock each forenoon, 
 while the playgrounds are used from one to five in the after- 
 noon. The recreation centers are open all the year round, 
 except during the summer months. 
 
108 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 With many of the schoolhouses open-air playgrounds 
 are maintained ; and there are a number of recreation piers 
 down in the harbor of the city, which are provided and 
 maintained by the Department of Docks and Ferries. 
 Each of them is in charge of directors and teachers, and 
 they are always crowded with school children and their 
 parents. These vacation schools and recreation centers are 
 solving one of the serious problems confronting the Amer- 
 ican people, that of the Americanization of the foreigners 
 who come to our shores. The Association for Improv- 
 ing the Condition of the Poor first organized the summer 
 schools. When the Board of Education saw the good which 
 was being done in that manner it used the plan in connec- 
 tion with the city schools. In both Manhattan and Brooklyn 
 the schoolhouses in the most crowded districts have been 
 selected for recreation purposes. 
 
 Summary. The public schools of New York City offer unusual 
 advantages for pupils. The present system is built upon the founda- 
 tion laid by the Free School Society and the Public School Society, 
 especially the latter. Assistance from the state funds was first given 
 the common schools in 1813. The Board of Education was organized 
 in 1842 by the election of two commissioners from each ward in 
 New York City. The important officers in connection with the public 
 schools are the city superintendent, Board of Superintendents, superin- 
 tendent of school supplies, and the district superintendents. The city 
 superintendent, appointed by the Board of Education, holds the most 
 responsible position of any school officer. The Board of Education 
 employs directors to look after special departments and appoints the 
 teachers. Through the Bureau of Libraries books are distributed among 
 the pupils. Besides the regular day schools the system includes evening 
 schools, vacation schools, a nautical school, and classes for defective 
 children ; there are also departments of music, drawing and constructive 
 work, cooking, and sewing. The system also includes an extensive 
 lecture bureau, vacation and summer schools, and recreation centers. 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING 
 
 Origin and Organization of the Department. Street clean- 
 ing in the days of our forefathers was a matter which was 
 largely left to the individual householders. The annals of 
 New Amsterdam record that in 1656 the burgomasters 
 
 FIG. 70. Mulberry Bend Park 
 
 made an ordinance that all haystacks, henhouses, and pig- 
 pens on the principal streets should be relegated to the 
 back yards of the owners. The next year the village was 
 surveyed and several streets were established and named. 
 It is interesting to know how the first of these came to 
 be paved. It was a much-used thoroughfare and in conse- 
 quence was usually very dusty or else very muddy. This 
 
 109 
 
110 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 was such an annoyance to one of the cleanly Knickerbocker 
 housewives, whose front door opened upon it, that she gave 
 the good burgomasters no rest until they had had it covered 
 with cobblestones. As it was the first street in the little 
 town to have any paving, it soon began to be called Stone 
 Street, a name which it still bears. A few years later 
 nearly all of the seventeen streets were similarly paved, 
 and each one had a gutter running down its center. Side- 
 walks were unknown luxuries in the hamlet at that time. 
 
 FIG. 71. A Street Sweeper 
 
 Toward the end of that century street cleaning became 
 the subject of city legislation. A law was passed requiring 
 every citizen to keep the street in front of his residence in 
 a cleanly condition, and the street surveyor was notified to 
 " cause all stramonium and other poisonous weeds rooted 
 up within the city." It was not, however, until 1795 that 
 sewers were introduced, and until the middle of the next 
 century the streets were badly paved and but rarely cleaned. 
 
 The first regularly appointed official designated for the 
 specific duty of looking after the cleanliness of the streets 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING in 
 
 was the city inspector. In course of time this duty was 
 taken away from him and placed in charge of a bureau 
 under the Department of Health. With the change from 
 state to city control of that body it was transferred to the 
 Police Department. In 1881 a new bureau was organized 
 for the purpose of cleaning the streets and disposing of the 
 city's wastes. Even then the work was not done satisfac- 
 torily, so about ten years later the Department of Street 
 Cleaning was organ- 
 ized very much on 
 its present plan. 
 
 The Commissioner 
 of Street Cleaning 
 has the control of 
 the department. He 
 is appointed by the 
 mayor, to whom he 
 is responsible for 
 the cleanliness of 
 the streets of the 
 boroughs of Man- 
 
 FIG. 72. Sweeping by Hand 
 
 hattan, The Bronx, and Brooklyn. The street cleaning of 
 Queens and Richmond is in charge of the presidents of 
 those boroughs. Besides seeing that the streets are kept 
 clean, the commissioner must also remove and dispose of 
 all rubbish, garbage, and ashes. It is not an easy matter 
 to collect such an enormous amount of refuse as New York 
 City gathers each day, nor to decide where to take it and 
 what to do with it. 
 
 Cleaning the Streets. You know the street cleaner when 
 you see him by his white suit and badge, even without his 
 
112 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 broom and shovel. He is one of more than three thou- 
 sand men employed in keeping the streets of the city clean. 
 The twelve hundred miles of paved streets are divided into 
 districts, with a superintendent in charge of each. These 
 districts are subdivided, and a fixed portion is assigned to 
 each sweeper, so that when a street is not kept clean it is 
 at once known which sweeper is neglecting his duties. All 
 streets must be cleaned at least once a day. Those in the 
 crowded portions are cleaned twice or even three times 
 
 FIG. 73. The Street-Cleaning Implements 
 
 a day. Have you ever watched the street cleaner ? He 
 sweeps by hand because the cracks and crevices are more 
 thoroughly cleaned in this way, although a sweeping ma- 
 chine assists him whenever possible. After collecting the 
 sweepings into a pile he shovels them into a can attached 
 to his cart ; when the can is filled it is placed on a curbing 
 for a wagon to gather up and carry off to the city dumps. 
 In warm weather asphalt pavements are washed either by 
 hose or flushing carts. One reason the streets are washed is 
 because the air of crowded sections has been photographed, 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING 113 
 
 and after washing has been found to be much purer and 
 freer from the harmful bacteria which come from dirt and 
 decaying matter. This is why the city water carts so fre- 
 quently flood the thoroughfares during the hot weather. 
 
 Removing Ice and Snow. It is far easier to keep the 
 streets clean in summer than in winter, because of the ice 
 and snow. Yet it is done more speedily if the snow is 
 removed at once before it packs and hardens and becomes 
 a hindrance to traffic. After a storm the street railways 
 clear their own tracks, and if there has been a heavy fall of 
 snow the Department 
 of Street Cleaning 
 engages private com- 
 panies to help remove 
 it at a specified sum 
 per cubic foot. If the 
 snow melts rapidly it 
 is swept into the gut- 
 ters, allowed to drain, 
 and the sweepings FIG. 74- A Hose Cart 
 
 carted off. If the weather is severe the snow must be 
 shoveled, carted off, and dumped into the river. While the 
 snow is still falling gangs of workmen, a quarter of a mile 
 apart, begin to clear the streets. Those most used are first 
 cleared. All snow too filthy to be dumped into the river 
 must be taken out to sea upon department scows. 
 
 Disposing of the Wastes of the City : Rubbish. The care- 
 fully covered steel rubbish carts passing in the streets give 
 no idea of their queer contents. They contain old papers, 
 store sweepings, tin cans, bottles, broken furniture, boxes, 
 and barrels, all of which is seemingly worthless trash. But 
 
114 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 it is not ; it is of so much value that certain business firms 
 pay the city a good round sum for the right of picking over 
 the city dump heaps, to take out whatever they desire. 
 
 Paper and rags are sold to paper manufacturers, tin cans 
 to solder factories, while old shoes are patched and sold to 
 needy people. Uses are found for bottles and all sorts of 
 articles. The refuse is taken to Forty-seventh Street and 
 
 FIG. 75. Picking over Street Refuse 
 
 North River, where it is separated in the following manner. 
 It is first disinfected, after which it is placed upon a trav- 
 eling belt, on either side of which stand pickers who care- 
 fully sort out and throw into piles the desired articles. 
 Everything which can be sold is taken out. Paper and rags 
 are dropped through hoppers into the rooms below, where 
 they are baled. The refuse remaining on the belt is fed 
 through a hopper into three furnaces below. This, with 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING 115 
 
 all heavy material, such as boxes, supplies fuel for the plant, 
 or incinerator, as the plant is called. The heat thus gener- 
 ated furnishes sufficient 
 power to run all the 
 machinery of the incin- 
 erator, to light it, to 
 operate its electrical 
 plant, and also to light a 
 neighboring stable of the 
 department. And all this 
 takes but forty of the two 
 hundred and forty horse 
 power generated ; the 
 rest of the power will 
 probably be used in the 
 
 near future to generate electricity for lighting other de- 
 partment stables and neighboring recreation piers. 
 
 Ashes and Sweepings. The two million cart loads of ashes 
 
 gathered every year in 
 the city, which used to 
 be dumped at sea, are 
 now used to fill in low 
 lands. In Brooklyn ashes 
 and street sweepings are 
 carried to receiving 
 stations. These stations 
 are placed for conven- 
 FIG. 77. Dumping Street Refuse to build ience in the center of the 
 up New Land districts into which the 
 
 city is divided. Inside the station are sunken metal bins, 
 each holding ten cubic yards. When filled they are securely 
 
Il6 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 covered to prevent the escape of odors. At night the bins 
 are hoisted upon flat trolley cars and carried to the marshes. 
 In the morning unloading begins. A derrick lifts the bin 
 from the car, swings it out over the meadow, empties, and 
 returns it ; or the bin is lifted upon a raised cable, carried 
 out, and emptied by tripping. The "mosquito beds" back 
 of Coney Island are in this way being filled in, and may one 
 day become pleasant resorts. 
 
 From the ashes of Manhattan and The Bronx a valuable 
 island belonging to the city is being enlarged. This is 
 Riker's Island, lying in the East River between Long Island 
 City and the mouth of the Bronx River. A few years ago 
 only eighty-seven acres were above water; the remaining 
 
 two hundred and 
 forty-two were 
 mud lands varying 
 in depth below the 
 surface. Already 
 sixty-three acres 
 have been re- 
 claimed, adding 
 six hundred and 
 thirty thousand 
 dollars to the 
 city's wealth. The 
 remaining one hundred and seventy-nine acres will be 
 reclaimed in the same way. Is it not a fine thing to see 
 worthless lands built up and made valuable by material 
 which was once wasted? 
 
 Other Uses for the City's Wastes : Street Sweepings and 
 Ashes. There are other methods of disposing of the city's 
 
 FIG. 78. Garbage Cart 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF STREET CLEANING 117 
 
 wastes which, while not yet in use, may some day add to 
 the city's income. A fertilizer could be separated from 
 street sweepings, and, were the quantity large enough, sold 
 to enrich farm lands. Ashes could be sifted and the bits 
 of coal and cinders sold as cheap fuel. The powdered ash 
 from the incinerator mentioned is a vegetable ash, and 
 makes another fertilizer. The ashes from furnaces where 
 
 FIG. 79. A View on the Hudson River 
 
 coal is burned may be used in making fireproof floors, in 
 making brick or mortar, cement, or artificial stone. 
 
 Garbage. Have you ever wondered what became of the 
 food left on our plates at the table, the orange skins and 
 banana peel ? You say it goes into the garbage can and a 
 man takes it away in a cart every day. Yes, but after that 
 it is carted to the department dumps, loaded upon scows, 
 and towed to Barren Island in the harbor. There the cans, 
 
Il8 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 bottles, and bones are taken out and sold. The garbage 
 itself is put into tanks fifteen feet deep, called digesters, and 
 cooked by steam from ten to twelve hours. First the oil 
 and fat are separated; then the garbage is drawn off and 
 the oily substance pressed out. What is left, the tankage, 
 is dried, sifted, and sold for a fertilizer. The oil is pressed 
 out, refined, and used in soap and also in making perfumery. 
 A city ordinance requires that garbage, rubbish, and ashes 
 be kept separate. This is necessary, as garbage mixed with 
 ashes cannot be reduced into useful products, nor can it be 
 used to fill in waste land, for then it would decay and cause 
 unhealthful conditions, and perhaps disease. 
 
 Summary. Street cleaning in colonial days was the work of the 
 individual householders. When the city first took it in charge it was 
 under an inspector ; next it became a bureau of the Board of Health ; 
 then it was under the Police Department. In 1881 the Street Cleaning 
 Department was organized. The head of the department is the com- 
 missioner ; there are more than three thousand street cleaners in the 
 department, who clean the city streets daily. The waste of the city is 
 valuable. Parts of it are sold, and parts are used in building up sunken 
 portions of the city streets and in filling in low lands. Garbage is 
 used in the manufacture of soaps and oils, and for fertilizing. 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY, GAS, AND 
 ELECTRICITY: THE WATER SUPPLY 
 
 Water Supply of New Amsterdam. When the little 
 Dutch colony established the first trading post on the south- 
 ern end of Manhattan Island it was almost surrounded by 
 water; but, like the Ancient Mariner, the colonists might 
 have cried, Water, water everywhere, 
 
 Nor any drop to drink ; 
 
 for the waters of the East and North rivers were then, 
 of course, as now, made unfit for use by the salt tides of 
 the ocean. 
 
 One of the things they did immediately, therefore, was 
 to dig a deep well just in front of the fort, which for the 
 time being supplied their common need. As more families 
 arrived from Holland and the settlement grew beyond the 
 fort, the public well became insufficient. Then the burghers 
 dug wells in their dooryards, and these wells, with their 
 curbing of earth and stone, and long sweeping bucket poles, 
 made one of the picturesque features of the quaint village. 
 
 Presently there was need for a larger public water supply, 
 but how to obtain it was a vexed question even at that day. 
 Until long after the province had passed under the English, 
 public wells were dug on the leading thoroughfares and 
 supplied the town with water. By the time the population 
 had spread northward as far as Wall Street the waters 
 of Collect Pond were being used. Collect Pond was a sheet 
 
 119 
 

 120 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 
 
 121 
 
 of fresh water sixty feet deep and seventy acres in area, 
 covering the streets now occupied by the city prison and 
 other great buildings in that neighborhood. For many years 
 it supplied the need for water, but eventually the pond 
 became unwholesome and the town authorities ordered its 
 mammoth bed filled in. To carry away the water a canal was 
 
 FIG. 81. Collect Pond 
 
 dug from the pond to the river, but afterwards this canal was 
 filled in also, and a wide, handsome street took its place and 
 name, the present Canal Street. When we look at the city 
 prison and the surrounding great buildings it is hard for us 
 to realize that they stand where was once a deep sheet of 
 water. Yet even at the present day this section, far beneath 
 the surface of the ground, is still a wet, swampy region, and 
 is drained by many huge pipes of the city sewer system. 
 
122 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Aaron Burr Waterworks. By the beginning of the 
 nineteenth century the question of a water supply for New 
 York City had become a very serious one, and many plans 
 were devised whereby pure water could be obtained. Some 
 proposed building reservoirs and piping the water through 
 
 wooden conduits 
 from the inland 
 streams, and at 
 about the time 
 of the Revolution 
 an attempt was 
 made to put this 
 plan into execu- 
 tion, but it did 
 not prove suc- 
 cessful. A little 
 later one of New 
 York's citizens, 
 who had long 
 been identified 
 with its activities, 
 became inter- 
 ested in securing 
 a water supply. 
 This was Aaron Burr, who will always be connected in his- 
 tory with the tragic death of the gifted Alexander Hamilton, 
 but whose name in New York City is to this day linked with 
 the scheme by which he secured the right to establish a 
 bank there, through the ostensible purpose of supplying 
 the city with water. It was a shrewdly laid scheme, and 
 was executed as skillfully as it was planned. 
 
 FIG. 82. A House of the Knickerbocker Days 
 in Weehawken, New York City 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 123 
 
 Burr was a politician and was closely associated with 
 the events of that period. It chanced that both of the 
 banks in New York City at that time were controlled by 
 the political party to which Burr did not belong. He was 
 exceedingly anxious to start one which his party could 
 dominate ; but there was a sentiment against banks, and 
 the state legislature firmly refused to allow the city to 
 charter another one. Burr was a member of the legisla- 
 ture, and at last he devised a plan by which he outwitted 
 
 FIG. 83. Titicus Dam 
 
 those who opposed the bank charter. New York City's 
 need of water was well known, and one day in the legis- 
 lative chamber Burr made a great speech on that sub- 
 ject. In thrilling terms he pictured the awful danger that 
 menaced America's leading metropolis. He told how a 
 scourge of cholera would sweep over it, with the people 
 falling like grass before the mower. He ended in a burst 
 of eloquence, pleading with his fellow-statesmen to grant 
 the needed protection. This speech moved them mightily, 
 and when a few days later a bill was introduced to charter 
 a water company for the city, it passed with scarcely a dis- 
 senting vote. Burr and several others were the incorporators 
 
124 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of the company, and it was not long before the legisla- 
 tors discovered that a trick had been played upon them 
 whereby they had granted not only a charter for city water- 
 works but a bank charter as well. One of the adroitly 
 worded paragraphs of the charter for the waterworks pro- 
 vided that the surplus capital accruing from it could be 
 used " in purchasing public stock or in any other moneyed 
 transaction," It was this skillful wording that permitted 
 Burr and his colleagues to establish their bank. 
 
 That they had no intention of giving the city an ade- 
 quate water supply was soon demonstrated by the small and 
 insufficient plant which they installed, but the bank which 
 they established was a very different matter. They laid the 
 foundation for it so substantially that it still exists and is 
 the second in importance in the city to-day, the Manhat- 
 tan Bank on Wall Street. In the heart of the business 
 section of the city there still remains a curious relic of the 
 Burr waterworks. By the charter which was obtained to 
 establish these waterworks, and by which the Manhattan 
 Bank was also established, it was pledged that a reservoir 
 to supply the city with water would be maintained in per- 
 petuity. In fulfillment of this contract the banking com- 
 pany have always kept the little reservoir, which the Burr 
 Company erected so many years ago, filled with water. It 
 stands on the corner of Center and Reade streets, but its 
 primitive appearance caused so much curious comment that 
 a few years ago the banking company had it inclosed in a 
 building which now hides it from public gaze. 
 
 The Commencement of the Croton Water System. For 
 over thirty years the people of the city endured the badly 
 managed, meager supply of the Burr waterworks. Time 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 
 
 125 
 
 and again plans were proposed to the city council and the 
 state assembly for new waterworks companies, yet each 
 time they failed of execution. In 1832 the city suffered 
 from a cholera scourge quite as dreadful as Aaron Burr had 
 pictured in his famous speech. Then a vigorous and finally 
 successful effort was made to secure an adequate water 
 supply. The council appointed a commission, of which 
 
 FIG. 84. A Part of the Croton River Watershed 
 
 Colonel De Witt Clinton was chairman, to find a source 
 where such a supply could be secured, and to present a plan 
 whereby it could be introduced into the city. After months 
 of investigation the commission presented a detailed plan 
 for conducting the water of the Croton River a deep, 
 clear stream in Putnam and Westchester counties through 
 an aqueduct to the city. The distance of the Croton River, 
 forty miles, was thought to be too great, and the enterprise 
 
126 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 was so bitterly opposed that for some time it could not be 
 put into execution. But in 1834 the governor of the state 
 named a commission of five men, empowering it to construct 
 a waterworks plant of sufficient magnitude to bring the 
 waters from the Croton River to the city. The commission 
 met so many obstacles that the actual work of construction 
 was not commenced until 1837. 
 
 Construction of the First Dam and Aqueduct. In order to 
 build the original Croton dam and aqueduct, the land for 
 
 FIG. 85. Old Croton Dam 
 
 the right of way and watersheds had to be purchased, and 
 as many of the people living along the route thought New 
 York was trying to rob the country of water, much difficulty 
 was encountered in securing the necessary lands. After 
 that was settled the construction of the reservoir, the build- 
 ing of the aqueduct, and the digging of the tunnels involved 
 enormous labor and a vast outlay of money. The reservoir 
 was made by building a dam across the Croton River, six 
 miles from its mouth, which raised the water back of it 
 forty feet and produced a lake four miles in extent, holding 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 
 
 127 
 
 three hundred and ninety-five million gallons of water. The 
 
 aqueduct was horseshoe 
 
 in form, about eight and 
 
 a half feet high by seven 
 
 and a half wide, and 
 
 arched at the top. It 
 
 was made of stone, 
 
 brick, and cement, and, 
 
 except where it was 
 
 inclosed in the tunnels, 
 
 was carried down to the 
 
 city on the surface of 
 
 the ground. Sixteen 
 
 tunnels were built in 
 
 the course of the forty- 
 
 two miles to the city. 
 
 To carry the aqueduct 
 over the Harlem River 
 the High Bridge was 
 built at One Hundred 
 and Seventy-fifth 
 Street. It stands one 
 hundred feet above low 
 tide, with stately arches 
 and piers extending a 
 length of fourteen 
 hundred and fifty feet. 
 From the High Bridge 
 the water was carried to 
 two great receiving res- 
 ervoirs, one in Central Park and the other at Forty-second 
 
 
128 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Street and Fifth Avenue. The latter was abandoned in 
 1903 in order that the new public library might be erected 
 on its site. When the waterworks were completed in Octo- 
 ber, 1842, the event was commemorated by one of the 
 greatest celebrations that has ever taken place in the city. 
 
 The Need for More Water. At the time the original Cro- 
 ton Aqueduct was finished there were many people who 
 thought that it would be at least one hundred years before 
 
 FIG. 87. The New Dam in Course of Construction 
 
 a larger water supply could possibly be needed. But they 
 did not realize how rapidly the city would grow. In 1840 
 it had a population of about four hundred thousand ; by 1 860 
 this number had leaped to over a million, and consequently 
 the water supply was again inadequate. A new reservoir 
 in Central Park, standing at the north of the first one, 
 was therefore completed in 1864. It supplied the demand 
 for a good many years, and then it was found that the water 
 did not reach some of the houses in the higher localities of 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 129 
 
 the city. To meet this need a high-tower reservoir two 
 hundred and sixteen feet high and three hundred and six- 
 teen feet above water tide was erected at the High Bridge. 
 When the new reservoir in Central Park was built it was 
 the largest receiving and distributing reservoir in the world, 
 yet by 1873 it had become too small to meet the demands 
 made upon it for water. So in the ten years following four 
 more reservoirs were constructed. One was built on the 
 west branch of Croton River at Boyd's Corners, another 
 
 FIG. 88. High Bridge Reservoir and Tower 
 
 farther in the country on the middle branch, and two, the 
 'Kensico and Williamsbridge, were formed by damming the 
 waters of the Bronx and By ram rivers. The many-storied 
 buildings which had begun to appear in the lower part of 
 the city created the necessity for another high-service plant. 
 Accordingly, in 1866, a water tower and reservoir were 
 erected at Ninety-seventh and Ninety-eighth streets, west 
 of Columbus Avenue. 
 
 The New Croton Dam. Notwithstanding all these sources 
 of supply, by 1883 the city was once more suffering from a 
 
130 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 scarcity of water. The state legislature of 1883, therefore, 
 appointed an Aqueduct Commission, empowering it to build 
 another dam at Croton River and another aqueduct leading 
 from it. The new dam was built three miles below the old 
 one. It was begun in 1892 and consumed about fourteen 
 years in building. This vast reservoir with its outlying 
 banks covers eight thousand acres and has a capacity of 
 the almost inconceivable quantity of twenty-four thousand 
 
 million gallons of water. 
 It lies one hundred and 
 ninety-six feet higher 
 than water tide and 
 thirty feet higher than 
 the old dam, which it 
 submerges. To supply 
 the water for the vast 
 reservoir additional 
 land was purchased in 
 Westchester and Put- 
 
 FIG. 89. Section of Reservoir where Water nam counties, and the 
 can be shut off while Repairs are being city nOW Owns Over 
 
 three hundred and sixty 
 miles of the rivers draining the Croton watershed. 
 
 Reservoirs. In connection with the new dam several 
 storage reservoirs located in the Croton watershed will be 
 operated. The distributing one is at Jerome Park. It 
 covers two hundred and seventy acres of land, is thirty 
 feet deep, and has a capacity of one billion eight million 
 gallons of water. Besides this one there are several other 
 storage reservoirs in the watershed and a number of natu- 
 ral lakes. 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 131 
 
 New Aqueduct and the Route. There are many points of 
 difference between the old aqueduct and the new one. The 
 old aqueduct was brought to the city the greater part of the 
 way on the surface of the ground; the new aqueduct lies 
 far beneath the surface in a tunnel, which makes the con- 
 duit much less liable to accident. As far as the Jerome Park 
 
 FIG. 90. Horseshoe Section of Aqueduct 
 
 reservoir the conduit is in the shape of an inverted horse- 
 shoe, a little more than thirteen feet high and fourteen feet 
 wide ; from there into the city it is circular in form and 
 twelve feet in diameter. The entire conduit is of solid 
 masonry, and so large that a boat holding twelve men could 
 row through it from the inlet gatehouse at Croton Lake to 
 the gatehouse at One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Street. So 
 great is the consumption of water in Manhattan and The 
 Bronx that after the water leaves the receiving reservoirs it 
 
132 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 requires one thousand miles of water mains to distribute it 
 through the streets and to the buildings of these boroughs. 
 Other Waterworks. Neither Brooklyn, Kings, nor Rich- 
 mond is so fortunate in its water supply as are the boroughs 
 of Manhattan and The Bronx. Brooklyn's water supply 
 comes from the streams which drain the southern slope 
 of Long Island, and from a large number of wells driven 
 at different points in the same neighborhood. The water 
 
 FIG. 91. Gatehouse at One Hundred and Fifty fifth Street 
 
 is conducted through iron pipes or brick conduits to the main 
 pumping station at Ridgewood, and thence to the reser- 
 voirs. There is also a reservoir and high-water tower near 
 Prospect Park. Besides these there are other private water 
 plants which derive their supply from deep wells. The 
 boroughs of Queens and Richmond have several private 
 water plants. 
 
 The Care of the Water Supply. The city uses every pos- 
 sible precaution to keep the water supply pure and clean. 
 It maintains the strictest surveillance over the Croton 
 
THE WATER SUPPLY 133 
 
 watershed. A force of men from the water department 
 watches the land, the reservoirs, the rivers, and streams, to 
 see that nothing goes into them which would pollute the 
 water. They also enforce strict rules of sanitation through- 
 out the entire district. All the sewage from the towns, 
 villages, and farms is carefully kept from passing into or 
 near any of the water which flows into the Croton Dam. 
 In Brooklyn the department has large filtering plants to 
 cleanse portions of the water used by that borough, and 
 also to test the water used by the others. 
 
 Summary. Until the Revolution the water supply of New York 
 City was secured from public wells, Collect Pond, and other insufficient 
 sources. The Aaron Burr waterworks resulted in establishing a bank, 
 but did not adequately supply the city with water. After years of effort 
 the Croton system was put into operation. From the original dam at 
 the head of Croton River water is conducted into the city through 
 forty-two miles of conduits. Several other reservoirs and a large dam 
 have since been constructed. The other boroughs are supplied by 
 private water companies. 
 
FIG. 92. The Van Wyck House, Flatlands, L.I. 
 One of the remaining Dutch houses of Knickerbocker days 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER SUPPLY, GAS, AND 
 
 ELECTRICITY: THE BUREAU OF GAS 
 
 AND ELECTRICITY 
 
 Early Dutch Methods of Lighting. When nightfall came 
 upon New Amsterdam tallow candles in metal candlesticks 
 were taken from the high mantles over the broad fireplaces 
 and placed on the center tables beside the huge snuffers 
 that were used to snip off the burned ends of the woolen 
 wicks after the candles were lighted. If the hospitable 
 burgher intended to give an evening entertainment, doz- 
 ens of these candles were placed about the roomy apart- 
 ment, their flickering flames protected from draughts by 
 high, chimney-shaped glass covers. Many of these quaint 
 colonial relics are still owned by the descendants of the 
 
THE BUREAU OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY 135 
 
 Knickerbocker families in New York City, who preserve 
 them with much pride and veneration. 
 
 The method of lighting the streets in those days was 
 even more primitive than that of lighting the houses. 
 There were no lamps or lamp-posts on the street corners, 
 but to take their place the burgomasters passed an ordi- 
 nance that " for want of light 
 in the dark times of the moon 
 in the winter season," the 
 burgher living in every 
 seventh house was to put a 
 lighted candle in a lantern 
 and hang it on a pole from 
 one of the upper windows of 
 his dwelling. To meet the 
 requirements of this public 
 lighting, the families living 
 in the intervening six houses 
 provided the candles, but the 
 burgher who attended to the 
 lantern was exempt from 
 the candle taxation. This 
 method of lighting continued 
 for many years, but about 
 1750 the annals of the town record that the aldermen 
 ordered lamp-posts to be placed on the more public thor- 
 oughfares, which were supplied with lamps burning various 
 kinds of animal oil. 
 
 The Introduction of Oil, Gas, and Electricity. After the 
 discovery of petroleum wells in Pennsylvania, New York, 
 and other sections of the country, in the middle of the 
 
 FIG. 93. Old Colonial Lantern 
 
 This hung in the main hall at Mount Ver- 
 non during Washington's lifetime 
 
136 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 nineteenth century, kerosene lamps gradually superseded 
 those in which the animal oil was used. This was a great 
 improvement over the " tallow dips " of the earlier period, 
 but it was scarcely as radical a change as that brought 
 about by the introduction of gas. When that vaporous 
 medium of illumination was introduced the people regarded 
 it with profound distrust. They considered it a " highly 
 dangerous and combustible compound." The feeling was 
 so general that when a gas company was organized in New 
 York City, in 1824, for the purpose of piping gas into the 
 residences, the citizens would have none of it. The presi- 
 dent of the company, Samuel Leggitt, was living in a fine 
 ^colonial mansion on Cherry Street, within a door or two 
 of where George Washington resided while New York 
 City was the federal capital. In order to overcome the 
 prejudice against the gas he had it piped into all parts of 
 his own residence, which he kept brilliantly lighted every 
 night for several weeks. He invited everybody to come 
 and see the light which the gas produced. By this prac- 
 tical demonstration he overcame the objections to it, 
 but it was many years before it came into general use. 
 When the wonderful power of electricity began to be 
 known, between 1880 and 1890, and electric lights were 
 being introduced into all parts of the country, it was pre- 
 dicted that electricity would entirely supplant gas. But 
 this has not been the case; every year the demand for 
 artificial light increases, and seemingly gas remains in 
 as much favor as its more recent competitor.' 
 
 The Department of Water Supply, Gas, and Electricity. 
 The last chapter told of the work it requires to supply 
 New York City with water. The department which has 
 
FIG. 94. Some Sky Scrapers 
 '37 
 
138 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 charge of the water supply also has charge of lighting the 
 city, and you will not be surprised to learn that it alone 
 employs several thousand people. At its head is a commis- 
 sioner who is appointed by the mayor at a salary of seven 
 thousand five hundred dollars per year. The main office 
 is in Park Row Building, Manhattan, and each of the other 
 boroughs has a branch office. These branch offices are 
 in charge of deputy commissioners, who are appointed by 
 the commissioner, and who have control of all matters 
 pertaining to the department in their respective boroughs. 
 The commissioner is responsible for the work of his 
 bureau. Besides the duties involved in supplying the city 
 with water, he must see not only that it is properly lighted 
 but also that all electrical plants are so conducted that they 
 do not endanger the lives of citizens. The department also 
 watches the electric and gas lights installed for the city 
 by private companies. As the gas must be of standard 
 quality, it is tested at least once every month. If on three 
 occasions it is found to be below the required standard, 
 the city fines the gas company one hundred dollars. Elec- 
 tric and gas meters are similarly inspected. All meters 
 found to be of the proper kind and accurate in report are 
 stamped with the inspector's name and the date of the 
 inspection. If a citizen thinks there is anything wrong 
 with the meter on his premises, and that he is paying more 
 for lighting than he should, he can write a letter to the 
 state inspector of meters and have his meter inspected 
 in the presence of some member of the lighting company 
 and himself. But if it is found accurate, the citizen 
 .who requested the inspection must pay for the expense 
 attending it. 
 
THE BUREAU OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY 
 
 139 
 
 Lighting the City at the Present Time. Let the pupil go 
 up to the roof of his home some evening, and, after looking 
 as far as his eye can reach in every direction, let him try 
 to calculate how many street lights are in range of his 
 vision. From this let him estimate how many public 
 lamps there are in 
 the streets and parks 
 of New York City. 
 Unless he makes a 
 very large estimate 
 he will miss his cal- 
 culation, for there 
 are about seventy- 
 five thousand public 
 lamps on the thor- 
 oughfares. This 
 single item will give 
 him an idea of what 
 an immense under- 
 taking it is to light 
 the metropolis. 
 Where a century ago 
 it was a simple pro- 
 
 .,_, , FIG. 915. City Lamp-Post 
 
 cess, now, with the 
 
 hundreds of miles of streets which extend through the 
 city, the " sky-scraping" business blocks, and the thousands 
 of private residences and tenements, it has become one of 
 the greatest undertakings of the corporation. Underneath 
 the surface of the ground, throughout the five boroughs, 
 is a perfect network of gas pipes and electric wires. 
 There are, in fact, more miles of them than there are 
 
140 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of the water mains, and it will be recalled that there are 
 more than one thousand miles of those. 
 
 What is the source of all the gas and electricity re- 
 quired ? The city itself does not own any gas factories or 
 electric plants ; they are the property of private individ- 
 uals and companies. There are between twenty and thirty 
 such gas factories, with about a third as many electric 
 
 plants. It costs the 
 corporation more 
 than three million 
 dollars annually to 
 light the public 
 thoroughfares and 
 public buildings. 
 
 Public Lamps in 
 the Parks. Have the 
 pupils noticed that 
 the light in many 
 of the lamps in the 
 parks has a different 
 appearance from the 
 light in the street 
 lamps ? This is because in some of the lamps naphtha is 
 burned instead of gas. The reason for this is that it was 
 found that the use of gas is injurious to the trees and foli- 
 age. In spite of the greatest care gas pipes underneath 
 the ground sometimes break. When this happens the gas 
 escapes and, where such a break occurs, the trees and 
 shrubbery near it die, for illuminating gas will destroy 
 vegetable life just as it does human life. To prevent that, 
 the department is replacing the gas lamps in the parks 
 with naphtha lamps, as rapidly as is practicable. 
 
 FIG. 96. A Gasometer 
 
THE BUREAU OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY 141 
 
 The Electrical Bureau. The duty of the Electrical Bureau 
 of the department is to guard the city from the dangers 
 attending the use of electricity. The need for this bureau 
 is apparent when one stops to think of the vast amount of 
 electrical power generated and in use in the five boroughs. 
 The Metropolitan Railway, whose surface lines span all 
 sections of Manhattan and The Bronx, has its own pro- 
 ducing plant of eleven-thousand-volt power; the New York 
 
 FIG. 97. A Scene in Riverside Park 
 
 Edison Company carries numberless electric cables, with a 
 producing power of over six thousand volts ; the Fifty-ninth 
 Street power house of the Interborough Company has a 
 producing plant greater than either of the other two. In 
 addition to these there are more than twenty-five thousand 
 dynamos in the city, and more than three hundred thousand 
 arc lights, and hundreds of miles of electric wires are laid 
 each year in its streets and houses. The bureau has been 
 placing safeguards about all this electricity ever since it was 
 
142 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 established in 1 897. At that time certain sections of Broad- 
 way, even as far north as Fifty-ninth Street, was a close 
 network of overhead wires, a continuous menace to the life 
 of man and beast on the streets below. Now there is not 
 
 an overhead wire 
 between Houston 
 Street and Harlem, 
 and the number in 
 the lower part of the 
 city has been greatly 
 lessened. Eventually 
 all the overhead wires 
 will be placed under- 
 ground. 
 
 Every company and 
 every man that lays an 
 electric wire in New 
 York City must have 
 a properly signed 
 license from the 
 Bureau of Electricity 
 of the department. 
 The bureau keeps a 
 large force of inspect- 
 ors whose only duty 
 is to watch electric plants, cables, and wires, to see that 
 the city regulations in regard to them are obeyed. Two 
 dozen or more of these inspectors spend their time on the 
 roofs of buildings in order to prevent " pirates," that is 
 persons without licenses, from surreptitiously laying wires 
 for telephones, electric lights, and other devices, from roof 
 
 FIG. 98. One of the Older Schoolhouses 
 of Manhattan 
 
THE BUREAU OF GAS AND ELECTRICITY 143 
 
 to roof. Another set of inspectors watches the hotels, 
 theaters, and large public buildings, to see that the elec- 
 trical appliances in them are kept in proper condition. 
 
 The Third Rail. Have you noticed on the roadbed of the 
 elevated railways in Manhattan an object that seems to be a 
 wooden rail running parallel with the traces ? This wooden 
 rail protects what is known as the " third rail." The third 
 rail carries the electric power for propelling the elevated 
 trains. The wooden rail is higher and larger than the steel 
 one, and thus in crossing the tracks the danger of touching 
 the latter is greatly lessened. Should a workman happen 
 to touch the third rail, he would receive a severe shock, 
 which, while it might not kill him outright, would be very 
 apt to throw him over from the great height of the roadbed 
 into the streets below. A few years ago this third rail was 
 left uncovered throughout Manhattan, as it still is in 
 Brooklyn, but through the efforts of the Bureau of Elec- 
 tricity it was finally protected. These are but a few of the 
 many safeguards which this bureau puts around the use of 
 electricity in the city. 
 
 Summary. In the early days of the Dutch colonization of New 
 Amsterdam candlelight was used in the homes and the streets were 
 lighted by a very unique method. The introduction of oil, gas, and 
 electricity successively revolutionized -the methods of lighting the city. 
 The water supply and the lighting of New York City are under the 
 same administrative department. This department is supervised by 
 a commissioner, who has control of all property connected with the 
 water supply and is responsible for the lighting of the city. The 
 department has a large number of inspectors, some of whom guard 
 the lives of citizens from the dangers engendered by the use of so 
 much electricity. Naphtha and electric lights as well as gas are used 
 in the public parks. 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
 THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 
 
 The Army of Public Safety. " Somebody 's hurt ! Some- 
 body 's hurt ! There 's been a runaway and somebody 's 
 
 hurt ! " The words fly from lip 
 to lip in the crowded city street, 
 and how quickly a surging mass 
 of excited people gather around 
 the prostrate form of the unfor- 
 tunate man who has been thrown 
 from the wrecked carriage. 
 
 Every one suggests something 
 which should be done, but no 
 one does anything until a broad- 
 shouldered man pushes his way 
 authoritatively through the 
 crowd and raises the man in his 
 arms, and when a few moments 
 later a black-covered wagon 
 dashes up, he assists the attend- 
 ant, who springs from the convey- 
 ance, to lift the man in ; and then 
 as they drive away he disperses 
 the crowd with the stern com- 
 
 Move On ! " 
 
 FIG. 99. A Patrolman on Duty 
 
 Who is the man who seemed to have so much authority ? 
 He is tall and broad-shouldered, wears a blue uniform with 
 
 144 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 
 
 brass buttons, and his head is covered with a blue helmet. 
 Yes, you have guessed correctly. He is a patrolman, or a 
 policeman, as we call him more familiarly. He is a member 
 of what might be termed New York City's army of public 
 safety, the police force. It is a large army now, number- 
 ing over eight thou- 
 sand ; and this chap- 
 ter will tell you how 
 it became so large, 
 and what it is. 
 
 How New York 
 City's Police Force 
 has Grown. During 
 the days of Dutch 
 colonization at Fort 
 Amsterdam there 
 was not much neces- 
 sity for a police force 
 except to resist an 
 Indian outbreak. 
 The colonists made 
 common cause when 
 that occurred, any or 
 all of them coming 
 to the rescue. HOW- 
 
 FIG. 100. Grant's Monument, Brooklyn 
 
 ever, as the colony grew a few men were appointed as burgher 
 corps, or guards, whose duty was to act as night watchmen. 
 The regulations of the little hamlet required that no person 
 should be on the street at night after the bell at the fort 
 rang for nine o'clock, at which hour all good burghers were 
 supposed to be in bed ; and that the burgher corps should 
 
146 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 not only call the hours of the night on the street corners 
 but should " proclaim the season of the weather." 
 
 The Beginnings of the Present Police System. When the 
 town grew larger The Rattle Watch, composed of from 
 four to six men who also did night duty, followed the 
 burgher guard. In 1665 the first "concierge," or high 
 constable, was appointed, an official at one time of such 
 importance that he named the colony's magistrates. There 
 was also what was termed The Corporal's Guard, which 
 seems to have been a little body of men who watched to 
 see that the Indians did not surprise the fort ; but one of 
 their duties, we are told, was to parade the streets on " the 
 mornings of the Sabbath days, armed with their staves to 
 preserve quiet during the hours of divine service." In the 
 latter part of the seventeenth century the Dongan Charter 
 introduced several features of the present police system. 
 It provided for one sheriff, one high constable, several sub- 
 constables, and one marshal. The constables were required 
 to " make a presentment of all such persons as shall neglect 
 or refuse to clean their streets, and of all such as in any 
 way break the Holy Sabbath, or commit other misdeeds." 
 
 The Montgomerie Charter of 1730 provided for a sheriff, 
 a high constable, and fifteen other constables, who were 
 assigned to the various city wards. Until after the Revo- 
 lution the provision of this charter controlled the system 
 of policing the town. When the federal government be- 
 came established the State Committee of Appointment 
 named the city officers. Two justices of the peace were 
 appointed, one of whom had to be in his office every morn- 
 ing to try cases. This was the beginning of the police 
 court. In 1 80 1 the city was divided into three police 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 
 
 147 
 
 districts, and from that time forward the number of police 
 courts increased. In 1836 the police force was enlarged by 
 the addition of many patrolmen. Until 1837 the patrol- 
 men had been on duty only during the night hours, but by 
 that time the city was growing so rapidly that the council 
 decided that it needed the protection of the officers during 
 the daylight as well as during the darkness, and for the first 
 
 FIG. 101. The Palm Building of the Zoological Garden 
 
 time they began patrolling the streets during the daylight 
 hours. It was then also that station houses were first opened. 
 In 1857 tne police force was transferred from city to 
 state control, and the governor appointed a Board of 
 Metropolitan Police. The force was then organized into a 
 department quite similar to the present one. The next 
 year the Pension Bureau was established, which has since 
 become so important that each commissioner, when he 
 takes the office, must give a hundred-thousand-dollar bond 
 for the safe-keeping of the pension fund. The state 
 
148 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 legislature established the Pension Bureau in recognition of 
 the bravery of the members of the department. It is now 
 maintained by certain moneys which the city sets aside 
 for it, together with two per cent of the salaries of all 
 the members of the force. The state retained control of 
 the department until January i, 1870, and then the city 
 objected so seriously that it once more came under city 
 control. From that time until the present city charter 
 went into effect, in 1901, it remained in charge of four 
 commissioners. The charter provided that one commis- 
 sioner should succeed to the duties of the board of four, 
 but with the provision that he should have the power to 
 appoint three deputies to help perform the work of the 
 former four commissioners. 
 
 The Duties of .the Police Commissioner. Down on Mul- 
 berry Street in Manhattan is the main office of the 
 department, and there are branch offices under deputy 
 commissioners in each of the other boroughs. The police 
 commissioner, the man who is at the head of this big army 
 of public safety, is appointed by the mayor at a salary of 
 seven thousand five hundred dollars per year. It is he who 
 fixes the number and boundaries of the police precincts, 
 and under civil service regulations he may appoint almost 
 all the people who are in the department. With the au- 
 thority of certain city officials, called the Commissioners of 
 the Sinking Fund, who have charge of a great deal of the 
 city's money, the police commissioner purchases everything 
 for the department. He establishes and furnishes the sta- 
 tion houses and buys the patrol wagons and horses, which 
 you see rush through the streets^when there has been an 
 arrest or an accident. He makes the promotions in the 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 
 
 149 
 
 department from an eligible list furnished by the civil 
 service commission. The names are sent him in the order 
 in which they rank on the list, and he must appoint at least 
 three out of every five of the men whose names are thus 
 presented to him. If an officer performs a brave deed while 
 on duty, it stands to his credit for promotion. 
 
 The Police Inspectors. Each one of the patrolmen, as 
 well as the officers of the police force, is assigned to spe- 
 
 "FiG. 1 02. Interior of a Police Station 
 
 cific duty, and for this reason New York City is divided 
 into sections called police precincts. The men who have 
 the highest positions in the force are the police inspectors. 
 Each inspector is in charge of a district which includes 
 several precincts, and he is responsible for the law and 
 order in the territory to which he is assigned. In each pre- 
 cinct there is a station house, and the inspector sees that 
 
150 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 it, as well as every other building in his district belonging 
 to the department, is kept in good condition. He must be 
 at his office every morning to receive the reports of the 
 captains ; he keeps a record of everything that concerns his 
 work, and makes regular reports of it to the commissioner. 
 He is the officer who preserves peace at the polling places 
 on election days. 
 
 The Captains. The captains 0f the police force rank next 
 to the inspectors. Every morning they go to the station 
 houses, call the roll, and assign the officers for the day to 
 their different posts of duty. It is quite an imposing mili- 
 tary sight to see a captain of police send out the platoons 
 of patrolmen, the men in their bright uniforms marching 
 away in well-regulated companies. But all that the captains 
 have to do is not quite as military as that. They have 
 charge of the precincts and the station houses and must 
 keep all records of them. They also inspect junk shops, 
 second-hand shops, pawnbrokers' shops, and intelligence 
 offices in the city, because it has been found that dishonest 
 persons use these places to deliver stolen goods, and for 
 other bad purposes. In the same way the captains of police 
 raid the gambling places, and articles found in them are 
 taken to the police headquarters and destroyed. They also 
 have charge of the station-house libraries, which are main- 
 tained for the patrolmen. In their daily reports to police 
 headquarters they specify all cases of contagious diseases 
 in their precincts. 
 
 The Sergeants and Other Officers. The officers who come 
 next to the captains are the sergeants, and it is their duty 
 to take the captains' places whenever the latter are absent. 
 They are the officers who stay at the desks in the station 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 151 
 
 houses or patrol the precincts to see that under officers 
 are doing their duty. They are the instructors in the 
 schools maintained in the station houses, where the patrol- 
 men are taught how to become efficient in the service. 
 Next to the sergeants are officers called roundsmen. Their 
 duty is to stay on the streets in order to see that the 
 patrolmen are faithfully watching the posts at which they 
 are stationed. It is the roundsmen who take immediate 
 charge when a fire breaks out, in order to protect property 
 and to assist the firemen until the arrival of a ranking 
 
 FIG. 103. Policemen on Horseback 
 
 officer. Besides the officers who have been named there are 
 in the force a superintendent of telegraph, surgeons, boiler 
 inspectors, doormen, battery men, and also police matrons. 
 The surgeons take care of the patrolmen without charge 
 when they are sick. They also treat the people who are 
 arrested when they are injured or ill. The patrolmen enter 
 the force at a salary of eight hundred dollars per year, 
 and, at the expiration of five years, by efficient service can 
 advance to a yearly salary of fourteen hundred dollars. 
 
 The Telephone and Telegraph Bureau. All of the offi- 
 cers of the Police Department make daily reports of their 
 movements while on duty. These reports are sent to the 
 
152 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 headquarters in Mulberry Street, from whence the work of 
 the force is directed and the orders sent out through the 
 Telephone and Telegraph Bureau. This bureau occupies 
 the ground floor of the headquarters. It contains a telephone 
 switchboard at which a corps of operators receive and 
 send messages day and night. Through this bureau the 
 commissioner and his assistants are kept in constant touch 
 with every district, precinct, and station house in the city. 
 If a fire breaks out in any part of the city, the patrolman 
 on duty in the neighborhood of the fire hurries to the near- 
 est fire box and sends in an alarm. From there he rushes 
 to the nearest patrol box and notifies his precinct, where, 
 in turn, the Telephone and Telegraph Bureau is immedi- 
 ately informed of the fire. Almost before the words are 
 over the wire the inspectors are telephoning instructions 
 to the station houses in the vicinity of the fire, and police- 
 men are hurried to the scene of the disaster. If it proves 
 to be a great fire, the orders are sent from headquarters to 
 other policemen in that part of the city. Or if a murder 
 or a robbery is committed and the criminal escapes, a 
 description of him is telephoned to headquarters, and from 
 there sent to every station house in the city. Before the 
 captains of police send out the platoons of patrolmen they 
 read to them the description of the criminal, and within a 
 short time all of the patrolmen on duty are on the lookout 
 for him. If any one is hurt or taken sick in the street, a 
 patrolman goes to a near-by patrol box and notifies the 
 superintendent of telegraph ; within a few minutes a patrol 
 wagon is on the spot. All precincts are provided with 
 patrol wagons, and there are more than five hundred patrol 
 boxes on the lamp-posts of the city. All of the great 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 
 
 153 
 
 banks in the city, the exchanges, and the public buildings 
 are connected with the police precincts in which they 
 are located. If, out of office hours, an attempt is made 
 to open the doors of a safe in one of these buildings, an 
 alarm is sounded instantly in the office of the station house 
 of the precinct. Almost as quickly the patrolmen on the 
 beat in the vicinity are notified, and they speedily surround 
 
 FIG. 104. A Patrol Wagon 
 
 the building and prevent any one within from escaping. 
 In all the great city but little which needs the attention 
 of the police force can occur without being known almost 
 immediately at headquarters, and, through its telephone 
 system, at all its branch offices. 
 
 Other Bureaus. It would seem impossible for anything 
 to go amiss in the city of New York with so many bureaus 
 in the Police Department to look after the public welfare. 
 We will now see what some of them do. Perhaps that one 
 
154 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 which would interest the boys and girls most is the Bureau 
 for Lost Children. It is in charge of a police matron, who 
 lives on the upper floor in the headquarters building. Any 
 little child lost in the city and found wandering on the 
 streets by the patrolmen is taken to the matron's rooms 
 and there cared for until claimed by relatives. Another 
 bureau looks after grown people who are reported miss- 
 ing, and still another hunts up the boys and girls, and 
 sometimes older people, who run away from their homes. 
 There is a bureau which has several boats manned with 
 policemen in New York harbor. The men in these boats 
 watch for fires which may break out in the harbor, and 
 are known as the harbor police. They also try to rescue 
 any who chance to fall into the water. The Bureau of 
 Engineers has expert engineers, who inspect all of the steam 
 boilers in the city, as no factory or business house can run 
 a steam engine without a certificate from the department. 
 
 Then there is a bureau which devotes its entire time to 
 answering letters and inquiries about persons who have 
 committed crime or who have wandered away from their 
 homes. There is a detective bureau, which has a large 
 force of officers who wear civilian clothing and who ferret 
 out places where the law is broken, and find the people 
 who break it. Besides all of these there is a bureau which 
 issues licenses for certain business enterprises and for 
 certain occasions. Did you know that a funeral procession 
 in New York City could not be accompanied by a band of 
 music unless it had secured a license from this bureau 
 of the Police Department ? 
 
 Other Features of the Department. The department has 
 a prison ward at Bellevue Hospital, where persons who 
 
THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 155 
 
 have been hurt in the streets can be cared for. Stationed 
 in the city courts are a squad of patrolmen to assist the 
 magistrates, in any way needed, with the prisoners who are 
 there under arrest. There are also patrolmen who are 
 mounted on horseback for suburban duty, and still others 
 
 FIG. 105. A Mounted Policeman on Suburban Duty 
 
 are provided with bicycles and motor cycles, to stop 
 runaway horses and to prevent too fast driving or auto- 
 mobiling. There are mounted men who regulate street 
 traffic, and patrolmen, both on foot and horseback, who 
 are assigned to the city parks to maintain order there. At 
 each station house there are two police matrons, who have 
 charge of women who are arrested. 
 
156 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. A police force is necessary because of the elements of 
 danger in a city. The present system in New York City, with more 
 than eight thousand patrolmen, is a development out of the old Dutch 
 and English customs. The burgher corps, Rattle Watch, and Cor- 
 poral's Guard were details of men who did police duty during colonial 
 days. Until after the Revolution the provisions of the Montgomerie 
 Charter regulated the police system. When the federal government 
 became established the State Committee of Appointment named the 
 city officers, and at about that time the police court came into exist- 
 ence. The police force has been under state and then city control 
 several times in its history, but since 1870 it has been under the juris- 
 diction of the latter. By the charter of 1901 the executive of the 
 Police Department is the commissioner, who is responsible for the 
 order of the city. Over each police district is an inspector ; the next 
 ranking officers are the captain, the sergeant, and the roundsmen. 
 The work of the department is directed through the Telephone and 
 Telegraph Bureau, located at the police headquarters in Mulberry 
 Street. In the department there are many other bureaus with specific 
 duties. 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
 THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 
 
 "Fire! fire!" What boy has not heard that cry with 
 mingled feelings of pleasure and alarm? And who has not 
 run to a fire ? How exciting to join the hurrying throng, 
 guided by the sound of clattering hoofs or the sharp clang 
 of the gong ! When one reaches the scene he is thrilled 
 by both the spectacle itself and the daring work of the 
 firemen. In this chapter you will learn how the Fire 
 Department of New York City was established and grew 
 to its present size, and how it is conducted. 
 
 The Earliest Fire Regulations. In colonial times the fire 
 regulations for the little city were very simple. The Dutch 
 houses had thatched roofs and wooden chimneys, which 
 easily caught fire. In 1648 an ordinance was passed pro- 
 hibiting the building of new wooden chimneys between 
 Fort Amsterdam and fresh water. If a fire occurred 
 through neglect of a chimney, the owner had to pay a fine, 
 the amount of which was used to maintain fire ladders, 
 hooks, and buckets. Four wardens were appointed by the 
 Dutch government to inspect chimneys and enforce this 
 ordinance. This was the beginning of the inspection for 
 the prevention of fires. The chimney fine has come down 
 to our own time. If a fire occurs through a defective flue, 
 the tenant of to-day must pay a fine of five dollars. 
 
 Fire Buckets and the First Fire Company. In the early 
 days there were no fire companies; in case of fire every 
 
 '57 
 
158 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 man helped his neighbor. In 1657 two hundred and fifty 
 leathern fire buckets, with some fire ladders and hooks, 
 were brought from Holland. Eight men, called the " Prowl- 
 ers," were appointed to walk the streets from nine o'clock 
 at night until morning drumbeat, to sound the alarm if a 
 fire broke out. Buckets of water, three upon each door- 
 step and ten at the town pump, furnished the water 
 
 supply. After the English 
 took possession of the col- 
 ony, when a fire broke out 
 the night watchman knocked 
 upon the doors, crying, 
 " Throw out your buckets." 
 These were thrown from the 
 passageways where they 
 were kept, their owners 
 quickly following, and two 
 lines were formed, reaching 
 to the nearest well. Full 
 buckets were passed along 
 one line, which came back to 
 be refilled along the other. 
 
 Origin of the Fire Department. In 1730 the city was 
 divided into wards, and a committee was appointed by the 
 Board of Aldermen to procure from London, " by the first 
 conveniency, two of Mr. Newsham's new inventions for 
 putting out fires, which have suction leather pipes and caps, 
 and other material belonging thereto." The two wonder- 
 ful inventions arrived by the good ship Beaver in the fol- 
 lowing spring, and were given a place of honor in the city 
 hall. They were pumped by hand at one end to force the 
 
 FIG. 106. A Colonial Fire Bucket 
 
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 
 
 159 
 
 water through a short hose at the other, and were under 
 the special care of the aldermen, who, with the mayor, 
 assumed control of fires. In those days all citizens lent 
 a helping hand to put out fires, but in 1736 an engine 
 house was built, and the next year twenty-four able-bodied 
 men were appointed to operate the engines. For one hun- 
 dred and thirty years the city was served by volunteer 
 
 FIG. 107. A Volunteer Fire Company and Engine in the Middle 
 of the Last Century 
 
 firemen, and it was thought an honor to belong to this body. 
 In return for duties which hurried them from business in 
 the daytime, or from their beds at night, the firemen were 
 excused from acting as jurors, militiamen, or constables, 
 and a certain amount of money was set aside to maintain 
 the company. In Richmond and Queens to-day members 
 of volunteer companies still have these exemptions, and 
 enjoy the added privilege of preference of city positions, 
 after passing the civil service examinations. The volunteer 
 
160 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 fire department continued until steam fire engines were 
 introduced soon after the close of the Civil War. There 
 were then four thousand volunteer firemen in Manhattan 
 alone, and it was decided to have fewer firemen and to pay 
 them to devote their entire time to the service. The state 
 legislature first put this into effect, forming a paid metro- 
 politan fire department, 
 which controlled both 
 Manhattan and Brook- 
 lyn. A few years later 
 each city took charge 
 of its own paid depart- 
 ment. 
 
 The Present Fire 
 Department. The Fire 
 Department as now or- 
 ganized is under a fire 
 commissioner appoint- 
 ed by the mayor. He is 
 responsible for putting 
 out fires, for seeing that 
 
 the city fire regulations are followed, and for managing all 
 business of his department. He plans the location of fire 
 alarms, decides upon proper uniforms and badges for the 
 force, and receives all moneys collected by the depart- 
 ment. His headquarters are in Manhattan. The boroughs 
 of The Bronx and Richmond come under his supervision. 
 A deputy is in charge of the Brooklyn office and manages 
 the affairs of Brooklyn and Queens. The three bureaus 
 of this department are the Bureau Chief of Department, 
 Bureau of Combustibles, and Bureau of Fire Marshals. 
 
 FIG. 1 08. A Fire Boat subduing a Fire 
 on One of the Wharves 
 
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT l6l 
 
 Bureau Chief of Department is the name given 'to the 
 bureau charged with putting out fires, because its principal 
 officer is called Chief of Department. Under him are the 
 firemen in their blue uniforms and helmets. They are formed 
 into companies, each of which has the care of some special 
 piece of fire apparatus, as an engine or truck wagon. Over 
 these firemen are officers, as in a military organization. 
 
 Station Houses and Fire Apparatus. You have often looked 
 through the doorway of a fire station and longed to enter 
 
 FIG. 109. Inside View of a Fire Station 
 
 to examine the shining engine and hose wagon, or perhaps 
 the hook and ladder or truck wagon. Some stations have 
 but one piece of apparatus, while others have several, as 
 necessity demands. With the increasing height of build- 
 ings fire companies must have new apparatus and new 
 methods of handling fires. The hose tower, requiring sev- 
 eral engines to furnish power, is used to throw water upon 
 tall buildings. The city owns a number of fire boats, each 
 of which patrols a certain district of the water front to 
 pump water for neighboring fires. In the station houses 
 members of the companies take turns in acting as "house 
 
162 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 watch/' to see that this apparatus is in perfect condition, 
 to keep the records, and to summon the company in case 
 of a fire alarm. 
 
 Fire Alarm and Telegraph. If a fire should occur in your 
 neighborhood, could you ring in the alarm ? On many of 
 the lamp-posts of the city are bright red alarm boxes, and 
 these lamp-posts are supplied with red globes at night. The 
 instant the alarm is sent from any one of these boxes the 
 underground telegraph records the number of the station 
 in the office of the Fire Department. The operator there 
 sends out the message, and the companies near the fire 
 respond to the call. If it is night, the firemen who sleep 
 in the engine houses leap from their beds at the sound of 
 the station gong and jump into their clothes. They do not 
 take time to go down the stairs, but slide down a smooth 
 post through an opening in the floor, and in an instant 
 are ready to spring to their positions. The trained horses 
 have already dashed to their places, and the harness has 
 dropped upon their backs from overhanging hooks and is 
 snapped into place. At the call of " Ready ! " the doors 
 swing back, and with " Go ! " the engine or truck wagon 
 dashes down the street with the gong ringing. The Fire 
 Department has the right of way before all other vehicles 
 except those carrying United States mail. Should more 
 companies be needed, other alarms are sent in. The simul- 
 taneous call, or " two nines," if sent out, will bring to the 
 scene of a fire a total of from thirty to thirty-five appa- 
 ratus companies, with an average force of between two 
 hundred and seventy-five and three hundred and twenty- 
 five men. A corps skilled in the use of explosives, con- 
 sisting of a number of assistant firemen in each borough, 
 
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 
 
 I6 3 
 
 under the command of a deputy chief of department, can 
 on a special call be brought to the scene of a fire to 
 demolish buildings, if necessary, by the use of explosives, 
 in order to prevent the spread of fire. 
 
 Training of Firemen. To become a fireman a man must 
 be between the ages of twenty-one and thirty when he 
 
 FIG. no. Fire Engine rushing to a Fire 
 
 enters the service. If he is found to be strong physic- 
 ally, of good character, and of industrious habits, he 
 takes the civil service examination. Aside from writing, 
 spelling, and arithmetic, he must have a knowledge of 
 streets, ferries, and buildings, and the quickest route to 
 each of them. After passing this examination he becomes 
 a fireman on probation. He spends his nights in the fire 
 station and his days in the drill yards at headquarters. He 
 
164 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 learns how to fasten a scaling ladder and how to climb; 
 how to jump from a height into a life net, and to hold it 
 for others ; he learns the apparatus and everything con- 
 nected with it. After thirty days he enters the fourth or 
 lowest grade, wears the uniform, and is put on a salary of 
 eight hundred dollars a year. With each promotion two 
 hundred dollars is added to his salary until he reaches the 
 first grade. With the next promotion he becomes an officer. 
 
 Bureau of Combustibles. It is easier to prevent a fire 
 than to put one out after it has started. To remove the 
 cause of fire is the work of the Bureau of Combustibles. 
 The chief, called the Inspector of Combustibles, with his 
 assistants, enforces the laws relating to the sale, storage, 
 and use of all materials which burn easily. For example, 
 only a given quantity of chemicals, explosives, fireworks, or 
 kerosene may be stored in the same building, and a license 
 must be obtained to , sell any of them. Or, should a work- 
 man need to blast in digging for a foundation, he must show 
 that he is familiar with the use. of explosives before he can 
 obtain a permit. Any building where such goods are stored 
 may be entered to see if the laws are observed. If the 
 owner refuses to comply with the law, he may be fined and 
 the goods cared for and the cost charged to the owner. 
 Violations of the law are reported to this bureau. 
 
 The Bureau of Auxiliary Fire Appliances and Violations 
 is a part of the Bureau Chief of Department. Have you 
 ever noticed in the halls of hotels, theaters, schools, or other 
 public buildings, bottles in racks, long metal tubes, hose, 
 and other appliances ? These are to be used in case of 
 fire, and it is the duty of this bureau to inspect all public 
 buildings at regular intervals, and to recommend to the 
 
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 
 
 165 
 
 commissioner what fire appliances are needed and where 
 they should be placed. The owner must then supply them. 
 If a building is over one hundred feet high, it must also have 
 a standpipe either inside or outside. This is a tall iron pipe 
 with an opening on each floor where a hose may be attached, 
 and one or two places at the bottom where engines may 
 
 FIG. in. A Reservoir on the Roof of a City Building for the 
 Prevention of Fire 
 
 be connected so as to pump water through it. If a store- 
 room contains a great quantity of material easily burned, as 
 cotton or wool, automatic sprinklers or perforated pipes usu- 
 ally encircle the ceiling. This bureau also sees that certain 
 parts of buildings are fireproof and that there are a sufficient 
 number of fire escapes. These must have easy entrances 
 and exits, and must be kept free from all obstructions. 
 
166 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Bureau of Fire Marshals reports the number of fires 
 in the city and, if possible, their cause, origin, and amount 
 of property destroyed. In investigating fires marshals 
 attempt to find out whether they were caused by careless- 
 ness or whether the buildings were set on fire. Any one 
 who purposely sets a building on fire is an incendiary and 
 his act is called arson. Arson is a crime punishable by 
 
 FlG. 112. A Fire in Winter 
 
 imprisonment. There are two fire marshals, one for Man- 
 hattan, The Bronx, and Richmond, the other for Brooklyn 
 and Queens. The fire marshals also receive complaints 
 against firemen who fail to do their duty. 
 
 Relief Fund and Pensions. A fireman must be daring to 
 rescue people from burning buildings, and he must often 
 risk his life to protect property. For this reason there is a 
 regular pension system for members of the uniformed force 
 who become injured. If a fireman is partially disabled, he 
 is given lighter work ; if permanently disabled, he is retired 
 
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT 167 
 
 on not less than half pay. In case of his death his widow 
 and children receive not less than three hundred dollars. 
 Should his death occur while on duty, his nearest relative 
 receives annually an allowance of not more than half his 
 salary. After twenty years of continuous service he can 
 retire on half pay. 
 
 Summary. The increasing needs of a large city have built up a 
 thoroughly organized Fire Department. Certain of its members are 
 constantly on the alert to prevent fires ; others see that auxiliary fire 
 appliances are provided for unexpected need. If a fire breaks out 
 despite these precautions, there is a large force of men ready day or 
 night to put it out. After this has been done still others investi- 
 gate the fire to discover its origin, that no other fire may come from 
 the same cause. The Fire Department is one of the fifteen admin- 
 istrative departments of the municipal government, and the work it 
 performs is accomplished through three bureaus. 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
 TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS OF NEW YORK CITY 
 
 Early Methods of Transportation. In the days of long ago, 
 when steam and electricity were undreamed of, the little 
 Dutch colony at New Amsterdam had only slight communi- 
 cation with the outside world and but comparatively little 
 with the hamlets lying on the Hudson River, or with the 
 New England colonies still farther 
 away. Travel was a serious under- 
 taking in those days. The direcktors- 
 general and a few of the wealthiest 
 of the burghers had ponderous 
 coaches drawn by two or four horses ; 
 but usually when one of the colonists 
 had occasion to travel he packed his 
 saddlebags and went on horseback, 
 a far easier method of following 
 the bridle paths through the unbro- 
 ken forests than to attempt it with 
 a coach and even four horses. If the 
 young people planned a frolic at a 
 country house, the huge, unwieldy farm ox cart was called 
 into requisition, but the slow method of locomotion was 
 compensated for in the fun enjoyed by the wagonload of red- 
 cheeked girls and sturdy young men. The cariole sleigh, a 
 deep-bedded wagon box fastened on high runners and drawn 
 by two horses, was very popular in the winter months. 
 
 1 68 
 
 FIG. 113. An Old 
 Milestone 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 169 
 
 It was not until 1672 that a mail route was established 
 between New York City and Boston, and the eighteenth 
 century was several years old before one extended far- 
 ther north than Boston or farther south than Philadelphia. 
 In 1753 the British crown appointed Benjamin Franklin 
 colonial postmaster-general. He made the trip through the 
 country from New York City to Boston and had num- 
 bered stones erected at each mile of the route, and some 
 of these quaint milestones can still be seen on the country 
 roadsides. He provided three mails a week between New 
 York and Philadelphia, and reduced nearly one half the 
 time consumed by the postrider between New York City 
 and Boston. A few years later the post road was built from 
 the city tavern in the lower part of New Amsterdam, up 
 Broadway, and out the old Marlborough road to the pike 
 which extended from Albany to Boston, and then mail 
 stages replaced the postriders. 
 
 The introduction of stages made a decided revolution 
 in travel. At first there was but one line, but gradually 
 numerous stages were used. They were great bulky con- 
 veyances painted in the gayest colors, and bore high-sound- 
 ing names, such as Lady Washington, The Knickerbocker, 
 The High and Mighty, and so on. As the population grew 
 and the town spread out toward the northern part of the 
 island, where the wealthy patroons had their large estates, 
 the stages made daily trips ; and presently they ran hourly 
 between the tavern at Bowling Green and Greenwich 
 Village, Harlem, and other near-by settlements. By that 
 time public stages, as well as private coaches drawn by 
 two, four, or even six horses, fairly blocked Broadway. 
 In those simple days the trip to Boston in one of these 
 
I/O GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 coaches was the red-letter event of a lifetime. Omnibuses 
 were first used in New York City in 1830. 
 
 The Beginning of Street Railways in the City of New 
 York. Not only in Europe but also in the colonies of 
 America inventive minds were trying to solve the prob- 
 lem of steam transportation. As early as 1796 John Fitch 
 successfully sailed a small steamboat of his own invention 
 
 FIG. 114. One of the First Street Cars used in New York City 
 (From an old photograph) 
 
 on Collect Pond. In 1807 Robert Fulton ran the Clermont 
 on the Hudson, and a few years afterwards river naviga- 
 tion by steamboats became a reality. But steam railway 
 locomotion was of much later introduction. In 1829 a 
 steam locomotive made by George Stephenson, of Eng- 
 land, was exhibited for some time in Water Street, New 
 York. The Albany and Schenectady Railway, chartered in 
 1826, made its first trip with a steam locomotive in 
 1832. In 1831 the New York and Harlem Railway was 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 I/I 
 
 incorporated for the purpose of laying a track from the 
 lower part of New York City to Harlem. It was run at one 
 time as a horse-car line, and at another with steam engines, 
 and was the first railroad in the city. Under the former 
 system the coaches were very much like the old stages ; they 
 
 FIG. 115. The Home of the Tropical Birds in the New York 
 Zoological Park 
 
 were balanced on leather springs and had three compart- 
 ments. The driver sat on the high seat overhead and regu- 
 lated the speed by the brake at his feet. In a few years 
 similar lines were running through all the thickly settled parts 
 of the town. Gradually, however, the stagecoach cars were 
 abandoned and more modern street cars took their place. 
 
 Street Railway Franchises. Peter Cooper built the first 
 railway steam engine in America, at his shop near Balti- 
 1830. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, which 
 
1/2 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 at about that time began running as a horse railway, sub- 
 sequently used the Peter Cooper engine. The demand for 
 franchises to build street railroads soon after this became 
 general in all the larger cities of the country. In 1851 and 
 1852 franchises were granted for building horse-car lines 
 on Sixth and Eighth avenues. A few years later tracks 
 were also laid on Second, Third, and Ninth avenues. For 
 more than twenty years the project to build a street-car 
 line on Broadway was bitterly contested. At one time 
 a scheme devised by unscrupulous parties to obtain the 
 franchise involved the Board of Aldermen in one of the 
 most dishonest transactions that ever disgraced the city. 
 After the exposure of this unhappy affair the plan to 
 build a Broadway road was dropped. "Finally, in the latter 
 part of the eighties the franchise was granted and the 
 road built. Soon afterward roads began multiplying in all 
 sections of the city. When cable power came into use it 
 very largely supplanted horses as a means of locomotion. 
 But 'cables as motive power were of short duration ; within 
 a few years the discovery of electricity drove the*n from 
 the field. It has so far superseded all other power that, 
 with the exception of a very few lines which still use 
 horses, all the street railways of New York City are now 
 run by electricity. By a series of combinations the surface 
 roads have consolidated until almost all of them belong to 
 the Interurban Railway Company. 
 
 The Elevated Railway. New York has also the distinc- 
 tion of having had the first elevated railway in the world. 
 In 1867 Charles C. Harvey, the inventor, obtained per- 
 mission from the city to build an experimental track for 
 an elevated cable road along Greenwich Street from the 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 173 
 
 Battery to Twenty-ninth Street. If it succeeded, it was to 
 be extended to Harlem. At first it was not a success, and 
 the gaunt track stood unused in mid-air for three years. In 
 1870 the New York Elevated Railway Company organized 
 and began running trains propelled by small steam engines 
 on this track. In 1875 the Rapid Transit Act passed the 
 state legislature, and the elevated road then became a great 
 success. A few years ago the steam engines were discarded 
 
 FIG. 116. Section of the Interborough Elevated Railway 
 
 and electricity was made the motive power. The line extends 
 to Brooklyn and The Bronx, and it is but a matter of time 
 until it will reach all the boroughs. The elevated trains do 
 not make as frequent stops as the surface cars, and they 
 can therefore run at greater speed. 
 
 How and When the Rapid Transit Commission was Ap- 
 pointed. For many years the problem of interurban railway 
 transportation has been one of the most serious which has 
 confronted the City of New York. This is not surprising, con- 
 sidering the fact that the street railways throughout the city 
 carry more passengers annually than all the steam railways 
 
1/4 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 in both North and South America combined. They carry, 
 in round numbers, a billion paying passengers every year. 
 
 Very soon after the Civil War the need of greater facil- 
 ity for street travel in New York City became apparent, 
 and several plans were then proposed for an underground 
 
 railway. Finally, in 
 1868, the state legis- 
 lature granted a 
 charter for such 
 a road to an organi- 
 zation of business 
 men, but they were 
 unable to put the 
 project into execu- 
 tion. Many other 
 plans were as unsuc- 
 cessful. In 1872 the 
 first New York City 
 Rapid Transit Company was incorporated. It was composed 
 of wealthy New York men, who could have built the road, 
 but they met with so much criticism from the press that 
 they dropped the enterprise. Three years later the elevated 
 roads were put into operation, and, as for the next decade 
 they supplied the transportation needs, the project of the 
 underground road passed from the public mind. 
 
 By 1894 both the elevated and surface roads were 
 crowded beyond their carrying capacity, and the con- 
 struction of a subway was again agitated. Winter after 
 winter bills for its construction were introduced in the 
 legislature, but each time failed of enactment, or the com- 
 panies which organized were unable to put their plans into 
 
 FIG. 117. The Hanging Rock in the New 
 York Zoological Park 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 175 
 
 execution. The late Mr. Abram S. Hewitt, who was mayor 
 of the city in the latter part of the eighties, had unlimited 
 faith in an underground railway, and it was largely through 
 his efforts that the Rapid Transit Commission was created 
 
 FIG. 118. Some of the Rock through which the Subway was Built 
 
 by the state legislature in 1894. The governor appointed 
 a commission of six members, with the mayor, the comp- 
 troller, and the president of the Chamber of Commerce 
 of New York City as ex-officio members. 
 
 Powers and Duties of the Commission. The commission 
 was empowered to take all preliminary steps and build an 
 underground railway through the City of New York. It 
 first engaged able civil engineers to make surveys through 
 Manhattan Island and to prepare plans and specifications. 
 For six years the engineers were at work on those surveys, 
 and made accurate plans for the prospective line. Every 
 
176 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 foot of the intended route was gone over with such care that 
 the deep underground soil of Manhattan was as familiar 
 to them as the pages of an open book. They knew where 
 every sewer pipe and every gas or electric main lay along 
 the different projected routes. They knew to a nicety the 
 nature of the soil ; where rock would be encountered and 
 what kind it would be; where sand was to be expected, 
 and where quicksand and quagmire were to be overcome ; 
 they knew also the exact depth and characteristics of the 
 foundations of all the buildings near which the road would 
 have to tunnel or pass under. It was the wide knowledge 
 thus gained which made the actual construction of the 
 work so rapid and attended by so few mistakes. 
 
 Manner in which the Railway was Built. The contract for 
 the actual construction of the railway was let in February, 
 1900, and the following month the work was inaugurated 
 with impressive ceremonies. As projected by the Rapid 
 Transit Commission, the underground road was to cover 
 about twenty-one miles, but during its construction the city 
 decided to build a tunnel beneath the East River and to 
 extend the railway through Brooklyn, making it, when com- 
 pleted, the longest subway in the world. The greater part of 
 the roadbed is through a subway the roof of which is within 
 a few feet of the surface of the street. The minimum depth 
 of the roadbed is eighteen feet, but at some points it passes 
 through tunnels which are built far deeper underground. 
 The greatest depth is at Washington Heights, where the sta- 
 tion lies more than one hundred feet beneath the surface. 
 
 In building the subway great steel ribs, or girders, were 
 placed five feet apart in an open tunnel, through its entire 
 length. Five rows of steel columns uphold the subway 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 177 
 
 where four tracks are laid, and three rows of columns are 
 used where there are but two tracks. The pupils can see 
 these whenever they ride through the subway. The columns 
 uphold massive steel ribs, which, with concrete masonry, 
 form the roof of the structure. The spaces between the 
 
 FIG. 119. Underground Water and Gas Pipes which had to be 
 moved for the Construction of the Subway 
 
 side columns are also filled with concrete masonry, forming 
 the ribs of the tunnel, and the floors are concreted in the 
 same manner. This method of building made the subway 
 as strong as though it were built through solid rock. 
 
 The Waterproofing Process. During the construction, as 
 briefly described in the last paragraph, the subway was com- 
 pletely enveloped with a system of waterproofing. Out- 
 side of the steel and concrete work it was covered with felt 
 
178 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 laid in asphalt ; from two to six layers were applied accord- 
 ing to the conditions of the surrounding earth or rock and 
 the amount of water found. Outside of this waterproofing 
 hollow bricks or tiles were laid on the sides of the subway; 
 
 these served as 
 
 rH^p.ji.. """ '' ^^B drains to carry off 
 _JP . the ground waters, 
 
 as well as a protec- 
 tion to the water- 
 proofing. On the 
 roof the waterproof- 
 ing was protected by 
 a thick coating of 
 cement, and by these 
 combined processes 
 the subway was 
 made impervious to 
 water. 
 
 TheRoadbed, 
 
 -Fie. 1 20. Inside View of the Subway _ , _ 
 
 Trains, and Street 
 
 Stations. The average height of the subway is thirteen feet, 
 and there is a width of twelve and a half feet to each track, 
 making it twenty-five feet wide at its narrowest point and 
 about fifty at its widest. The majority of the stations and 
 station approaches are placed at the intersection of the 
 streets. For ventilation, frequent openings, guarded by 
 ornamental inclosures, have been made in the surface of 
 the ground. The cars, some of which are entirely of steel, 
 forty-six feet in length and weighing forty tons when 
 loaded, are run by electricity, thus doing away with smoke 
 and reducing dirt and dust to a minimum. By the terms 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 179 
 
 of the contract, however, the city can change the motive 
 power at any time, should a better medium be discovered 
 in the future. In the building of the railway every precau- 
 tion was taken for safety and comfort. In its entire length 
 there is no point where one track crosses another at grade. 
 All electrical apparatus is carefully insulated to guard 
 against fire, while the third rail, the one which transmits 
 the electrical power, is protected by a hood. The main line 
 of the route in Manhattan extends the length of the island, 
 north and south, reaching to Kingsbridge, via Fort George ; 
 while an East Side branch from One Hundred and Fourth 
 Street and Broad- 
 way carries passen- 
 gers as far as Bronx 
 Park, in the borough 
 of The Bronx. 
 
 The Brooklyn 
 Division. The 
 Brooklyn division 
 connects with the 
 main line at the loop 
 in front of the city 
 hall in Manhattan 
 and extends down 
 Broadway to Bowl- 
 ing Green, through 
 Whitehall Street, to South Ferry. From there it passes 
 under the East River in two immense tubular tunnels 
 and runs into Brooklyn at Joralemon Street. From there 
 it runs under Fulton Street and Flatbush Avenue, to 
 Atlantic Avenue. 
 
 FIG. 121. A Curve in the Subway 
 
180 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Terms of the Contract. By the terms of the contract, for 
 the Manhattan branch of the road the city paid the sum 
 of thirty-five million dollars, in consideration of which the 
 contracting company builds, equips, and is to run the road 
 for a term of years. During the progress of the contract 
 the company secured the right to build the Brooklyn divi- 
 sion and also formed a combination with the elevated roads 
 of the city, after which it took the name of the Interbor- 
 ough Rapid Transit Company. The contract of the lease 
 
 FIG. 122. An Underground Entrance to the Subway 
 
 for the railway running through Manhattan is for a term 
 of fifty years, with the privilege of renewing it for twenty- 
 five years. For this leasing privilege the company gave 
 the city a lien upon the plant and agreed to pay a rental, 
 during each of the fifty years, of three and one-half per 
 cent of the money expended upon its construction, and 
 one per cent of the capital invested in the road. At the 
 expiration of the contract the entire Manhattan subway is 
 to revert to the city, and the railway company will then 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 181 
 
 have paid back to the city the thirty-five million dollars 
 which it advanced for the construction of the road. The 
 terms of the franchise for the Brooklyn division were even 
 more favorable to the city. The lease is for thirty-five 
 years instead of fifty, the rate of interest is higher, and 
 the plant also eventually reverts to the city. There is no 
 doubt that many of the boys and girls who are studying 
 this lesson will live to see the subway revert to the city. 
 
 FIG. 123. A Viaduct 
 
 Some of the Wonderful Features of the Railway. When 
 we enter the subway and take its comfortable cars, in which 
 we can ride with such ease and speed from one end of the 
 city to the other, we seldom think of the magnitude of the 
 work accomplished in constructing it. The building and 
 equipment of its twenty-five miles, including the tunnels 
 under the Harlem and East rivers, and the power houses, 
 involve the expenditure of the enormous sum of more than 
 
182 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 seventy million dollars. The labor involved is shown by 
 the fact that four million cubic yards of stone and earth 
 were removed in making the roadbed. This almost incal- 
 culable amount of earth and stone was removed, and the 
 subway and tunnel were built with such skill that, although 
 the work took place right through the busiest portions of 
 
 FIG. 124. A Surface Station at one of the Street Intersections 
 
 New York City, the travel on the surface railways was not 
 delayed materially during its progress. In many places the 
 contractor was obliged to move the tracks of the surface 
 roads, and in some instances to support those of the ele- 
 vated road. Sometimes this was done by moving them from 
 one side of the street to the other, and sometimes it was 
 necessary to build a temporary viaduct for the surface 
 roads while the subway was tunneled beneath them. To 
 remove the earth and stone required almost constant blast- 
 ing. Whenever this was necessary a thickly woven net of 
 rope was fastened across the surface above the place where 
 
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS 
 
 183 
 
 the blasting was to be done ; this net kept the rock and 
 
 earth from flying into the street and so prevented accidents. 
 
 Another evidence of engineering ability was shown in 
 
 connection with the water, gas, and other underground 
 
 FIG. 125. Power House of the Interborough Railway, Fifty -ninth 
 Street and Eleventh Avenue 
 
 pipes which the railway was constantly encountering. 
 Often these pipes had to be taken up and placed in 
 entirely new positions, but this was done so deftly that 
 their ordinary use was not interrupted even for a day. The 
 very nature of the construction was one of the interesting 
 features of the railway. Sometimes between two streets 
 the line changed from a tunnel to a subway, and then from 
 a subway and tunnel to a bridge. The longest tunnel is at 
 Washington Heights, where a double track passes entirely 
 
1 84 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 through that elevation. With the exception of the Hoosac 
 this is the longest tunnel in the country. 
 
 The tubular tunnels under the East River and those 
 portions of the roadbed built under or close beside the 
 foundations of some of the highest buildings in the world 
 are among the remarkable features of the subway. One of 
 the most notable of these achievements was the construc- 
 tion of the subway through the New York Times building, 
 
 FIG. 126. A Car of the Interborough Railway 
 
 at Forty-second Street and Broadway. Here the subway 
 passes through the building, the press rooms being partially 
 underneath it, while the main building rises high above it ; 
 yet the two structures are so separated that either could 
 be removed without interfering with the operations of the 
 other. The crowning feature about the railway is the time 
 saved in transit. Formerly it required forty-five or fifty 
 minutes to go from the city hall to Harlem. By the subway 
 express this distance can now be covered in fifteen minutes. 
 
FIG. 127. The New York Times Building beneath which runs 
 
 the Subway 
 
 185 
 
186 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The entire line of the structure is embraced in subways 
 and tunnels, excepting the Manhattan Valley Viaduct, which 
 spans a distance between Fort George and Kingsbridge 
 on the main line, and from West One Hundred and Forty- 
 ninth Street to Third Avenue, over Westchester Avenue, 
 Southern Boulevard, and Boston Road to Bronx Park oh 
 its east branch. 
 
 Summary. Early transportation in New York City was by means 
 of horseback riding and stagecoaches. Horse and steam cars followed, 
 then cable cars were used, and finally electric surface cars were intro- 
 duced. The first elevated roadbed was built in 1870. As the surface 
 and elevated roads proved inadequate for transportation in the city, 
 the state legislature in 1 894 created the Rapid Transit Commission and 
 empowered it to make all necessary arrangements to build and equip 
 an underground railway through the borough of Manhattan. After 
 years of preliminary work the contract to construct the railway was 
 let in February, 1900. 
 
 By the terms of the contract the city paid the construction company 
 thirty-five million dollars ; at the end of fifty years this amount will have 
 been paid back, and at the expiration of the lease the whole plant will 
 revert to the city. The railway is to extend through Brooklyn, where the 
 franchise is even more favorable to the municipality, both in regard to 
 the term of the lease and the rate of interest on the money invested. 
 The entire roadbed covers twenty-five miles ; it extends through a 
 subway for the greater part of its length. 
 
FIG. 128. Soldiers and Sailors' Arch, Prospect Park 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 THE PARK DEPARTMENT AND THE ART COMMISSION 
 
 Older Parks of the Five Boroughs. Greater New York 
 devotes more land to " the breathing places of the people " 
 than any other city in the Union, yet the development of 
 its park system is comparatively recent. For many years 
 the thriving towns which sprung up on Manhattan Island 
 were so surrounded with God's green fields and forests 
 that the need of parks and public reservations was not felt. 
 
 187 
 
188 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Bowling Green. The old fort established by the first 
 Dutch trading company stood upon the ground now occu- 
 pied by Bowling Green. It was the center of New Amster- 
 dam's activities in those days. By the time of the English 
 invasion the little hamlet had grown to a flourishing town, 
 and the space in front of the fort had become a public com- 
 mon. It was used as a drill ground for the soldiers ; on 
 it was the market place, and there too the children found a 
 playground. There, after a bloody war with the Indians, 
 a treaty of peace was made, the pipe of peace smoked, 
 and the tomahawk buried. In 1730 part of it was leased 
 by certain citizens for the favorite out-of-door game, bowls. 
 " Bowling Green," the citizens called it in their petition, 
 a name which has clung to it ever since It was laid out 
 as a park in 1786, and is the oldest one in the city. -It was 
 much larger then, for now the greater part of it is covered 
 by mammoth business houses, and all that is left of the 
 original Bowling Green is a little green space, in the midst 
 of these great buildings, inclosed by an iron railing. In 
 the center of the space is a fountain, and under one of the 
 green spreading trees is a statue of Abraham de Peyster. 
 The old fort itself stood on the present site of the new 
 customhouse. 
 
 Battery Park. Just below Bowling Green, at the south- 
 ern extremity of the island, is the Battery. When the 
 island was first settled there was a ledge of rocks extend- 
 ing three hundred feet out into the water at this point. 
 
 Toward the close of the eighteenth century there was 
 a rumor that a French fleet was coming to attack New 
 York, and the English governor built a platform on this 
 ledge and there placed a battery (that is, several cannon), 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 189 
 
 commanding both rivers. From this incident that part of 
 the island became known as " the Battery." Later the 
 space between the rocks and the mainland was filled in 
 with earth, and on the street in front of the fort and Bowl- 
 ing Green many aristocratic houses were erected. For a 
 long time it was the fashionable section of the little city. 
 
 During the War of 1812 the fort at the Battery was 
 the scene of great military activity. It was enlarged and 
 
 FIG. 129. A Mother and Baby Elephant in the New Voik 
 Zoological Park 
 
 fortified, troops were drilled there, and it became the cen- 
 ter of a chain of forts which protected the city. In 1822 
 it was deeded to the state, and later, under the name of 
 Castle Garden, it was a place of popular amusements. 
 Here Lafayette landed when he came as the guest of 
 the nation in 1824; and in it Jenny Lind, " the Swedish 
 Nightingale," and many other notables sang or performed. 
 About the middle of the century it reverted to the national 
 government and was used as an immigrant station. Until 
 
190 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 1891 millions of the foreigners who came to our shores 
 landed there. It then reverted to the city, and its twenty- 
 one acres were transformed into a sightly park. Tlic old 
 fort was changed into an aquarium, where an interesting 
 aquatic collection is on exhibition. On the ground floor 
 
 are tanks filled with sea 
 water containing many 
 large marine animals. 
 Around the walls are a 
 hundred glass tanks 
 holding fresh- and salt- 
 water fishes. On the 
 second floor there is a 
 fine but smaller exhibit 
 of various other forms 
 of sea life. 
 
 City Hall Park is the 
 second oldest park of 
 Manhattan. It was a 
 part of the Common of 
 the Dutch and English 
 periods. When the city 
 hall was erected, in 1812, 
 the grounds around it 
 were laid out as a park. 
 Unfortunately, a few years ago a large part of it was 
 ceded to the federal authorities for the city post office. 
 
 Madison and Other City Squares. When New York was 
 a far smaller city than it is now it became a custom to 
 locate the cemeteries, containing the bodies of the pauper 
 dead, on grounds lying at the edge of the town. As the 
 
 FIG. 130. Corner of Madison Square 
 showing the Theater Tower 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 191 
 
 population grew and houses were built up around them, 
 the bodies in these cemeteries were removed to new bury- 
 ing grounds still farther out, and the grounds were con- 
 verted into public parks. Madison Square was first a 
 potter's field, but just before the second war with Eng- 
 land the national government built an arsenal there and 
 bodies were moved to the present site of Bryant Square. 
 As the city grew around it the arsenal was removed, and 
 in 1870 the park, took its place. Union and Washington 
 squares as well as Bryant Square were also once burial 
 places for the pauper dead. 
 
 Early Brooklyn Parks. During all this time Brooklyn 
 was as progressive in the matter of public parks as its 
 neighbor across the river. In 1835 the city appointed a 
 commission to provide a park system, and four years later 
 the commission selected and laid out Tompkins, Washing- 
 ton, and City parks. The ground for Fort Green Park was 
 purchased in 1847, an d the state legislature authorized the 
 acquirement of Prospect Park, one of the most beautiful 
 public grounds in the world, in 1859. 
 
 Park Department. Until the charter of 1898 the care 
 of the parks had been intrusted to commissions appointed 
 sometimes by the governor and sometimes by the mayor. 
 By the charter of that year the Park Department became 
 one of the fifteen administrative departments of the city 
 government, and a Park Board of three commissioners was 
 placed at its head. This board was given control of the 
 parks and of all business connected with them. The mem- 
 bers are appointed by the mayor at a salary of five thou- 
 sand dollars each. He designates one of them commissioner 
 of parks for the boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens, another 
 
192 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 commissioner for The Bronx, and the third commissioner 
 for the boroughs of Manhattan and Richmond. The last- 
 named is the president of the board. Subject to civil ser- 
 vice rules, the Park Board appoints the clerks and employees 
 needed in the department, supervises such members of the 
 police force as are assigned to park duty, and permits the 
 Fire Department to put up such buildings as it needs in 
 
 FIG. 131. The Arsenal Building at Central Park, in which are the 
 Offices of the Park Board 
 
 the parks. Each commissioner keeps a detailed account of 
 all the money he receives and spends on the parks, and 
 submits it to the comptroller. Subject to the approval of 
 the Board of Aldermen, the Park Board makes all rules for 
 the government and protection of the parks and all other 
 property placed in its charge, which includes the streets 
 immediately adjoining the parks and the buildings built 
 within them which belong to the city. - By the provision of 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 193 
 
 the charter the board must make the parks beautiful, but 
 at the same time they must be useful and pleasant resorts 
 for the people. 
 
 Other Parks of the City : Central Park. There are over 
 one hundred parks in the city, covering nearly seven thou- 
 sand acres of land, besides 
 sixty miles of parkways. 
 The state legislature of 
 1853 provided for the 
 establishment of Central 
 Park, and the Supreme 
 Court appointed five com- 
 missioners to secure the 
 title to the land. It re- 
 quired three years to 
 accomplish this, and the 
 contract to make, design, 
 and lay out the improve- 
 ments of the park was 
 then awarded to the dis- 
 tinguished landscape 
 artists, Frederick Law 
 Olmsted and Calvert 
 Vaux, but the actual work 
 of improvement was not 
 begun until 1858. The park covers eight hundred and 
 forty-three acres, extending from Fifty-ninth Street to One 
 Hundred and Tenth Street, between Fifth and Eighth 
 avenues. It has ten miles of drives and over five miles of 
 bridle paths. Within it are innumerable walks and footpaths 
 and beautiful green stretches of lawn. Many of the ten 
 
 FIG. 132. Statue of Sherman and the 
 Angel of Victory, Fifty-ninth Street 
 Entrance, Central Park 
 
194 
 
 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 thousand seats in the park are in picturesque vine-covered 
 arbors. There are four hundred acres of wooded ground 
 containing over five hundred thousand trees. As many of 
 the trees are labeled, any one may learn to recognize the 
 various species. There are six lakes in the park, besides 
 the two great reservoirs of the Croton Aqueduct. Bethesda 
 Fountain, in the center of the grounds, is one of great 
 beauty. The menagerie, with its birds and animals, is a 
 
 popular feature of the 
 park, and in the "Car- 
 rousel " are merry-go- 
 rounds, swings, and 
 games for little people. 
 There is a large Com- 
 mon for baseball, 
 cricket, and lawn ten- 
 nis. On the mall is the 
 band stand, where a 
 band plays on summer 
 afternoons. Among the 
 buildings are the Metro- 
 politan Museum of Art, 
 established in 1869, and the American Museum of Natural 
 History. The Museum of Art contains a magnificent col- 
 lection of art treasures. It has a fine studio and a large hall 
 for public entertainment. The American Museum of Natural 
 History is filled with interesting specimens from all sections 
 of the globe. 
 
 Prospect Park. The ground for Prospect Park in Brooklyn 
 was acquired at about the same time that New York City 
 bought Central Park, but it was not laid out and improved 
 
 FIG. 133. Driveway leading into Prospect 
 Park 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 195 
 
 until the latter part of the sixties. Park Plaza on Flat bush 
 Avenue leads to the main entrance of the park. The 
 plaza itself is a very attractive feature of that part of the 
 city. Its approach is marked by ornamented stone kiosks 
 and four great granite pillars. In its center is an electric 
 fountain, which is often illuminated during summer even- 
 ings. At the main gateway leading into Prospect Park is 
 a handsome memorial arch in honor of the soldiers and 
 sailors of the Civil War. It is surmounted by a colossal 
 
 FIG. 134. Herd of Buffalo at the New York Zoological Park 
 
 bronze group representing the Chariot of Victory led by 
 the Herald of Peace. In the wooded park are miles of 
 driveways, as well as paths for pedestrians, lined with over- 
 arching trees. Here also are seats, arbors, and rustic 
 shelters, besides several fountains. A large lake affords 
 opportunities for boating and skating. Fine views of the 
 harbor and its environments can be had from elevated 
 sections of the park. The menagerie, the Palm House, and 
 the Colonial Gardens are other charming features. The 
 park covers five hundred and sixteen acres, and the Shore 
 Drive leading from it extends ten miles along the ocean 
 beach. 
 
196 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Parks of The Bronx. The larger and also the newest 
 parks of the city are in The Bronx, but it was not until 
 1883 that the state legislature empowered the mayor to 
 appoint a commission to select lands for parks in that local- 
 ity. A year later the commission, composed of seven 
 citizens, reported its selection ; and the city proceeded to 
 take the lands which comprise Pelham Bay, Van Cortlandt, 
 Bronx, Crotona, Claremont, and St. Mary's parks, with the 
 parkways of Pelham Bay, Bronx, Mosholu, and Crotona. 
 All the parks are to be connected by a boulevard, which, 
 when completed, will be a magnificent driveway. 
 
 Pelham Bay Park faces the water and has nine miles of 
 shore line. With its picturesque bays and inlets and open 
 water front, it has more natural beauty than almost any of 
 the other parks. It contains seventeen hundred and fifty 
 acres of land and includes large tracts of woodland with 
 trees which are centuries old. Its drives are notable for 
 their rugged scenery. Plats have been laid out for a golf 
 course, baseball grounds, and other amusements. 
 
 Van Cortlandt Park, lying at the extreme northern end of 
 the city, ranks next to Pelham in size. It contains eleven 
 hundred and thirty-two acres, comprising some of the most 
 historic ground in the state. It was the Van Cortlandt 
 estate, and the manorial residence on it, now a museum in 
 care of the Society of Colonial Dames, was erected in 1748. 
 It was occupied by Washington and his staff during the Rev- 
 olution, and was also headquarters for the British. The old 
 gristmill and sawmills are still standing. The park contains 
 a very large parade ground for the militia, and the lake lying 
 beyond it covers seventy-five acres. Besides, there are many 
 recreation centers as well as bathing places on the beach. 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 197 
 
 The Bronx Park. Jonas Bronck, the founder of the fam- 
 ily in America, purchased from the Indians, about 1640, 
 the land now occupied by the borough of The Bronx. The 
 park lies on both sides of Bronx River, between Williams- 
 bridge and West Farms. The river here contains several 
 falls and cascades which add materially to its beauty. On 
 one of the banks is the Lorillard mansion, another historic 
 house of this neighborhood. The park is divided into three 
 
 FIG. 135. Bengal Tiger at the New York Zoological Park 
 
 sections, the most northerly of which is the Botanical 
 Garden belonging to the New York Botanical Society. It 
 contains many rare collections. The southern end of the 
 park is devoted to the collection of the Zoological Society, 
 which has the finest aggregation of animals on this side 
 of the Atlantic, with the best equipment for them. The 
 middle section of the park covers one hundred and fifty 
 acres and is under the control of the Park Board. 
 
 There are many smaller parks scattered throughout the 
 five boroughs. In the crowded districts of both Manhattan 
 and Brooklyn whole blocks have been razed in order to make 
 
198 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 space for them. They are well supplied with shade trees, 
 fountains, and seats. Bands of music are present on cer- 
 tain afternoons and evenings during the summer months, 
 and space is provided where children can play games and 
 older boys and girls have tennis courts and ball grounds. 
 Statuary of the Parks. In many ways the parks are 
 
 educational. This is 
 especially true of the his- 
 torical and mythological 
 statuary which is to be 
 found to a greater or less 
 extent in all of them. 
 St. Gaudens' heroic sta- 
 tue of Sherman led by 
 the Angel of Victory at 
 the Fifty-ninth Street 
 entrance to Central Park, 
 the stately Washington 
 Arch at Washington 
 Square, the equestrian 
 statue of Washington 
 in Union Square, the 
 marble effigy of Direck- 
 tor Peter Stuyvesant in the outer wall of St. Mark's Church 
 on Second Avenue and Tenth Street, the bronze statue of 
 Abraham de Peyster in Bowling Green, Ward's Indian Hun- 
 ter at the west of the mall in Central Park, the statue of 
 Nathan Hale in City Hall Park, Bartholdi's stately figure 
 of Lafayette in Union Square, and the monument to the 
 Maryland soldiers in Prospect Park, all these breathe of 
 heroism and teach patriotism. 
 
 FIG. 136. The Grant Mausoleum 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 199 
 
 Does not the statue of Columbus which faces the mall, 
 as well as the exquisite rostral shaft at the west entrance 
 to Central Park, awaken in the youthful beholder a desire 
 to know more of the discoverer of his country ? Does not 
 Ward's Pilgrim, in the same park, bring to memory that 
 famous landing on Plymouth Rock ? The events of the 
 Civil War are brought home to him in the superb mauso- 
 leum on Riverside Drive, which holds the body of General 
 Grant ; in the stat- 
 ues of the immortal 
 Lincoln in Union 
 Square and Prospect 
 Park ; in the impos- 
 ing arches to the 
 soldiers and sailors 
 of that period, at 
 both Prospect Park 
 and Riverside ; in 
 the statue of Far- 
 ragut in Madison 
 Square, of Hancock FlG " I37 ' One of the Lakes in Central Park 
 in Hancock Square, of Porter in Van Cortlandt Park, and 
 that of the Seventh Regiment heroes in Central Park. The 
 faces of Mozart and Beethoven are reproduced so many 
 times in the parks that they cannot but be familiar to every 
 music lover. Yet all of these are but a few of the pieces 
 of statuary in the various parks and streets. 
 
 Art Commission. As New York City is constantly acquir- 
 ing works of art, and as constantly erecting public build- 
 ings, bridges, and other structures which add to or lessen 
 the beauty of the city, the framers of the charter of 1898 
 
200 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 directed the creation of an Art Commission, to be composed 
 of a painter, sculptor, architect, and three laymen, with the 
 mayor, the president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, 
 the president of the Public Library, and the president of 
 the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences as ex-officio 
 members. All vacancies in the membership of this com- 
 mission are filled by the mayor from a list of names pro- 
 
 FIG. 138. Brooklyn Bridge 
 
 posed by the Fine Arts Federation. This list must contain 
 the names of not less than three times the number of 
 persons to be appointed. 
 
 Its Powers and Duties. The commission passes judg- 
 ment upon all works of art which are to be purchased by 
 the city, and decides where they are to be placed. No 
 change of location for any work of art can be made without 
 the consent of the commission. If the Board of Aldermen 
 requests it, all designs for municipal buildings, bridges, 
 approaches, gates, fences, lamps, or other structures belong- 
 ing to the city are passed upon by the commission before 
 they are accepted. No bridge or other structure costing 
 one million dollars or more can be erected until the 
 commission has approved of the design for such structures. 
 
PARK DEPARTMENT AND ART COMMISSION 2OI 
 
 The appointment of this commission is most fortunate for 
 the city, and each year adds to its usefulness. 
 
 The City Improvement Commission is another board ap- 
 pointed by the mayor for the purpose of civic betterment. 
 It is the object of this commission to bring about a con- 
 certed plan for the architectural improvement of the city, 
 and to attain uniformity of beauty in its buildings and in 
 the streets. 
 
 Summary. The need for park area was not felt until two centuries 
 after the Dutch settled on Manhattan Island. Among the older parks 
 of Manhattan are Bowling Green, the Battery, and City Hall Park. 
 Before the charter of 1898, which created the Park Department, the 
 care of the parks of the city was intrusted to various commissions. 
 By the provision of the charter the head of the department is the 
 Park Board of three commissioners, who have full charge of all 
 parks in the five boroughs. Central and Prospect parks are the most 
 notable of the public reservations, but in The Bronx are some of the 
 larger and newer parks, which, in course of time, will be connected by 
 a grand boulevard. The statuary of the city has educational value 
 because of historic associations. The Art Commission and the City 
 Improvement Commission look after municipal improvements. 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 
 
 The Need of Bridges. It must have been very inconven- 
 ient for our Dutch forefathers to have so much water 
 between Manhattan Island and the neighboring Breuckelen, 
 Paulus Hook (Jersey City), and Monacknong (Staten Island), 
 
 FIG. 139. The Chicago Limited 
 A Pennsylvania special running at the rate of sixty miles an hour 
 
 with no bridges to span it and so few ferries. Of course, 
 the waters of the ocean and rivers swept round the islands 
 then, as they do now, the coasts of the mainlands were 
 indented with inlets and bays, while across their surfaces 
 ran the many streams of varying size which intersect them 
 to-day. For almost two centuries the waters practically 
 shut the inhabitants of each province within its own limited 
 
 202 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 203 
 
 borders. Brooklyn was nearly as remote from New York, 
 as far as reaching it was concerned, as Philadelphia is at 
 this time, for it took the slow-going, rude rowboat ferries 
 about as long to make the trip across the river, especially 
 if the weather chanced to be a bit rough, as it takes the 
 Chicago Limited now to cover the distance between the 
 two cities. 
 
 Origin and Organization of the Department. Previous 
 to the establishment of the Greater New York Charter, 
 January i, 1898, some of the bridges of the city were 
 
 FIG. 140. The Oldest Bridge on Croton River 
 
 under the Bureau of Highways, others under the Park 
 Department, while the Brooklyn and the new East River 
 bridge were under a special commission. When consolida- 
 tion took place a department was created for the care and 
 maintenance of bridges. This department is administered 
 by a commissioner appointed by the mayor. 
 
 Powers of the Department. The department has charge 
 of all bridges over navigable streams and all those having 
 
204 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 a terminus in two or more boroughs, owned in whole or in 
 part by the City of New York. It also has control of all 
 tunnels built in whole or in part at the expense of the city, 
 except those owned and constructed by the Rapid Transit 
 Commission. When bridges are considered necessary the 
 commissioner recommends their construction to the Board 
 of Estimate and Apportionment, which, if the scheme is 
 approved, appropriates money for the purpose. All the 
 public works, including bridges, which cost more than one 
 million dollars must be approved by the Art Commission. 
 
 System of Bridges. There are about fifty bridges under 
 the control of the department. They comprise those over 
 the East and Harlem rivers and smaller streams, among 
 which are the Bronx River, Spuyten Duyvil, Newtown, 
 Flushing Creek, and Gowanus Canal. These are of all 
 kinds of bridge construction, suspension, cantilever, tres- 
 tle, steel arch, bascule, and swing bridges, each adapted to 
 the location, the width of the stream, and the purpose for 
 which it is used. There are several good bridges over the 
 Bronx River. Many of the smaller bridges of the city -are 
 interesting and unique, but space here will be given only 
 to the historical bridges and the more remarkable ones 
 over the Harlem and East rivers. 
 
 Historic Bridges : Kingsbridge. The island of Manhat- 
 tan itself is shut off from the mainland by the winding river 
 at its northern extremity which still bears the good old 
 Dutch name of Harlem. In colonial days the land of the 
 Hudson valley was occupied by the manorial lords, the 
 patroons and their successors, and toward the latter part 
 of the seventeenth century a wealthy landowner by the 
 name of Phillipse built the first bridge which connected 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 
 
 205 
 
 Manhattan Island with the mainland. His estate lay in 
 what is now Yonkers, on the old post road leading from 
 Bowling Green to Fort Orange (the present Albany) ; and 
 there was sad need of a bridge over the Harlem River at 
 this point, for just beyond it the post road branched into 
 the highway which led to Boston. So in 1693 good Burgher 
 Phillipse built the bridge, and with true loyalty named it 
 
 FIG. 141. Old King's Bridge 
 
 King's Bridge, an appellation which has since been con- 
 tracted into Kingsbridge. During the Revolution, nearly 
 a hundred years afterwards, this bridge was one of the 
 important scenes of the conflict. It was commanded by 
 Coxhill Fort from the northern end of the island, and by a 
 line of forts from the mainland. The Hessians marched 
 over it to plunder the farms of Westchester County, and the 
 soldiers of the Continental Army crossed it many times. 
 By 1812 it had grown too time-worn for safety, and when 
 
206 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 it was rebuilt in that year the original location was slightly 
 changed. Now, as in its early history, Kingsbridge is a 
 much-used highway. 
 
 Farmers* Bridge. Every one who crossed the bridges in 
 those days had to pay toll, and it is said that the toll over 
 King's Bridge added not a little to Burgher Phillipse's 
 wealth. Long after he was dead and gone, however, the toll 
 
 FIG. 142. Farmers' Bridge 
 
 went on. The farmers of Westchester County always grum- 
 bled about the toll, and finally, in 1759, they built a bridge 
 over which every one was allowed to pass free, and in honor 
 of themselves they called it Farmers' Bridge. It has been 
 rebuilt repeatedly since then, but it has always stood where 
 it stands to-day, near the head of Harlem River, not far from 
 Spuyten Duyvil Creek. Washington Irving, in one of the 
 most humorous of his Knickerbocker Tales, tells the way in 
 which this creek got its name. Do you know the story? 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 20? 
 
 Macomb's Dam Bridge crosses the Harlem River at One 
 Hundred and Fifty-fifth Street. It was first built in 1812, 
 and there is an interesting little story of how it received its 
 name. A farmer whose lands extended to the river banks 
 wanted to build a dam over the river at this point for his 
 mill, but his neighbors were unwilling that he should dam 
 up the waters. Apparently agreeing to their objections, he 
 applied to the assembly for permission to build a bridge, 
 but instead of doing so, when the permission was granted, 
 
 FIG. 143. Macomb's Dam Bridge 
 
 he constructed a dam. His indignant neighbors got together 
 one night and tore out the dam, but the persistent farmer 
 deliberately rebuilt it. This was repeated twice, and in 
 fact the contest lasted for twenty years, and then a bridge 
 was erected which stood until 1892. At that time it was 
 replaced by the Central Bridge, a swing draw, which, at the 
 time it was built, was the heaviest drawbridge in the world. 
 The original name, Macomb's Dam, has been restored to 
 the bridge by an ordinance of the Board of Aldermen. 
 
 Third Avenue Bridge. Coming down the Harlem River, 
 the next historic bridge is the Third Avenue. For over 
 three quarters of a century all the overland traffic had to 
 
208 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 go up to the north end of the island and pass over either 
 Farmers' Bridge or Kingsbridge, and then down again into 
 Westchester County. In 1795 permission was granted by 
 the Common Council to build a bridge at Third Avenue and 
 to collect tolls. At the same time roads from the Battery 
 were laid out to the bridge, thus saving many miles of 
 travel to Westchester. This bridge was used until 1867, 
 
 FIG. 144. Washington Bridge 
 
 when it became unsafe and another one took its place. The 
 present structure was completed in 1898. 
 
 Williamsbridge. Another historic bridge, built over Bronx 
 River before the Revolution, is Williamsbridge, north of 
 Bronx Park. Historians record that in 1776, when partisan 
 feeling ran high, fifty guns were stationed at the house of 
 a near-by farmer, whose name was John Williams, to pro- 
 tect this bridge. The farmers of Westchester and neighbor- 
 ing counties had to cross it whenever they came into the 
 city, and for that reason they made a valiant effort to save 
 it from destruction at the hands of the British soldiers. 
 The Williamsbridge of to-day is in the same location as in 
 earlier times. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 
 
 20 9 
 
 Other Harlem River Bridges. Aside from the historic 
 bridges mentioned, and their successors, there are several 
 others of interest over the Harlem River. From West One 
 Hundred and Eightieth Street, in Manhattan, to Aqueduct 
 
 FIG. 145. Brooklyn Bridge from the New York Side 
 
 Avenue in The Bronx extends the artistic Washington 
 Bridge, with its graceful steel and stone arches. High 
 Bridge, for pedestrians only, carries the Croton Aqueduct 
 underneath its roadway, and is under control of the Depart- 
 ment of Water Supply, Gas, and Electricity. Its symmetrical 
 stone arches rising one hundred and twenty-five feet above 
 the river make it one of the most attractive bridges of the 
 city. The remaining Harlem River bridges, at Madison 
 Avenue, Willis Avenue, and the newer ones at One Hundred 
 
210 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 and Forty-fifth Street and at Fordham Heights, are draw- 
 bridges to allow the passage of ships. The oldest drawbridge 
 on the Harlem River is the Madison Avenue Bridge. Bridges 
 over navigable streams must now be built either one hun- 
 dred and thirty-five feet above the water or must be draw- 
 
 bridges to allow the 
 passage of ships. 
 On a narrow river 
 like the Harlem 
 drawbridges are 
 more practicable. 
 
 East River 
 Bridges ; Brooklyn 
 Bridge. The East 
 River is so wide 
 that it requires 
 great engineering 
 skill to span it with 
 bridges high 
 enough to allow the 
 passage of ships 
 underneath. The 
 
 FIG. 146. Williamsburg Bridge 
 
 this river was the famous Brooklyn Suspension Bridge, con- 
 sidered at the time one of the wonders of the world. Sus- 
 pension bridges originated out of the necessity for longer 
 bridges. In this form of bridge the weight is carried by pow- 
 erful cables securely anchored on either shore and swung over 
 strong towers on solidly planted piers. After the Civil War 
 a suspension bridge was authorized by the New York legis- 
 lature. The work was intrusted to John A. Roebling, who 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF BRIDGES 
 
 211 
 
 had built the suspension bridge 
 across the Niagara River. When 
 this beautiful and artistic bridge 
 was opened for traffic in 1883 it 
 was the largest bridge of any kind 
 in existence. It is still the long- 
 est suspension bridge, with the 
 exception of the Williamsburg 
 Bridge. 
 
 Williamsburg Bridge. The 
 rapid growth of the borough of 
 Brooklyn soon necessitated other 
 bridges across the East River. 
 In 1895 the Williamsburg Bridge 
 was commenced, but it was not 
 open to traffic until December, 
 1903. It is not generally con- 
 sidered as fine in design as the 
 Brooklyn Bridge, nor as hand- 
 some as the Manhattan Bridge, 
 under construction, yet it is the 
 heaviest suspension bridge ever 
 built, and will greatly aid in the 
 development of the districts 
 which it serves. 
 
 Manhattan Bridge is nine hun- 
 dred feet northeasterly from 
 Brooklyn Bridge, between it and 
 Williamsburg Bridge. It was be- 
 gun in 1899 and its completion 
 is looked for in 1907. This bridge 
 
212 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 is very much needed and will furnish additional connection 
 between the crowded parts of Brooklyn and New York. It 
 will have a roadway with two trolley tracks on either side 
 and foot walks outside of these, commanding views of the 
 river. On the second floor there will be four elevated rail- 
 way tracks over the trolley tracks. The anchorages will be 
 heavier than those of the other suspension bridges and will 
 cross the intersecting streets with great arches. Above 
 these will be colonnades, which will form resting places and 
 points of observation. The Manhattan terminus will be near 
 the corner of Canal Street and the Bowery, the Brooklyn 
 terminus near the corner of Nassau and Bridge streets. 
 
 Blackwell's Island Bridge. The fourth of the East River 
 bridges, Blackwell's Island Bridge, crosses the river from 
 Second Avenue in the borough of Manhattan to Thompson 
 Avenue in the borough of Queens, and about midway across 
 the stream it rests upon Blackwell's Island. This bridge 
 has five spans and is cantilever in form. When completed 
 the Blackwell's Island Bridge will be seven thousand four 
 hundred feet in length, and will have the longest cantilever 
 span in this country. It will be second in size only to the 
 bridge over the Firth of Forth in Scotland, and the one 
 over the St. Lawrence River at Quebec. 
 
 Summary. Greater New York is cut up by numerous rivers, creeks, 
 and canals, and the boroughs are separated by the waters of the bay 
 and the East, the Hudson, and the Harlem rivers. A complete system 
 of bridges is therefore necessary to bind the city together, and to afford 
 transit facilities from one part to another. There are a number of 
 interesting historic bridges in the city. The East River has four 
 bridges, either completed or in course of construction, which will 
 connect Manhattan and Brooklyn. 
 
FIG. 148. A Part of New York Harbor 
 Showing the building of the Department of Docks and Ferries 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 
 
 The Water Front of the City of New York. Down at the 
 extreme southern end of the city, just west of Battery 
 Place, is a long, two-story, brown, frame structure facing 
 towards Whitehall Street. It is built on a pier of the 
 municipal government's Department of Docks and Ferries. 
 Here the commissioner, with a large force of clerks, has his 
 office in the very heart of the docks and ferries of which he 
 has charge. For the reason that New York City has such 
 a tremendous water frontage the Department of Docks and 
 Ferries is one of the most important departments of the 
 municipal government. On the frontispiece map of this 
 
 213 
 
214 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 book you can trace the various harbors, bays, and rivers 
 which indent and cross the five boroughs. When you have 
 done this you will not be surprised to learn that the water 
 front to the city embraces three hundred and fifty-three 
 miles. It includes one of the finest harbors in the world. 
 
 FIG. 149. A Wet Dock 
 
 Docks and Piers. In crossing the Brooklyn Bridge the 
 myriads of docks and piers which line New York harbor 
 can be seen to advantage. Piers are structures extending 
 out into the water, to which vessels can be moored, and 
 from which they load and unload. Docks are of two kinds, 
 wet and dry. A wet dock is a harbor basin where a vessel 
 may enter at any time. A dry dock is a basin of special 
 
DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 215 
 
 shape, from which, after the vessel has entered it, the 
 water may be forced out and the vessel repaired, painted, 
 or generally overhauled. The New York docks are a series 
 of elongated water basins formed between the piers project- 
 ing into the water from the bulkhead lines of the harbor. 
 
 Features of the Harbor of New York. The docks and 
 piers of New York harbor are of such size that the largest 
 passenger steamer plying the ocean can come to anchor 
 
 FIG. 150. One of the Largest and Swiftest of Ocean Steamers, 
 Kaiser Wilhelm II, of the North German Lloyd Line 
 
 in them. All the principal railroads running into New 
 York City own or control freight docks, and some of these 
 are the most expensive ever built. Their piers extend 
 into the water eight hundred feet ; and a few of them, 
 by including their shore indentures, measure a thousand 
 feet. On the bulkheads of these piers immense granite 
 and steel warehouses have been erected. Not only can 
 the largest vessel enter any of their basins, but in some 
 instances twelve of them can do so at one time. Railroad 
 tracks encircle both sides of the piers, with inward- and 
 outward-bound freightage, and twelve great steamships 
 
2l6 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 can be moored to them at once to be loaded or unloaded. 
 Besides these, on the shores of the East River are the dry 
 docks of the Erie Basin, the largest in the United States. 
 But the railroads by no means occupy all the docks and 
 piers of New York harbor. There are shipyards, marine 
 railways, and commercial wharves of all kinds. Mammoth 
 rafts of timber and lumber are floated down from northern 
 waters and brought to harbor there. There are grain eleva- 
 tors, sugar refineries, and hundreds of factories which send 
 out and receive their products from all sections of the globe. 
 There are innumerable summer resorts and many govern- 
 ment posts and reservations, as well as recreation piers. 
 
 How the Docks and Ferries were Established. At about 
 the time when the colony of Dutch traders were establish- 
 ing themselves at New Amsterdam some of their kindred, 
 as well as people of other nations, settled on Long Island, 
 Staten Island, and the Jersey shores. This soon created 
 the need of ferries, and we are told that as early as 1640 
 Cornelis Dircksen built a boat and became the ferryman 
 on the East River. In 1658 the first public wharf was 
 built not far from the old fort. It was a big moon-shaped 
 dock called The Hooft, and the river in front of it was 
 The Roadstead. The first ferry house was built on Peck's 
 Slip, but after a while ferries began running to Paulus 
 Hook, Elizabethtown, and Staten Island. They added 
 greatly to the commercial importance of the province. In 
 the latter part of the seventeenth century the Dongan 
 Charter gave the little city liberal harbor privileges. A few 
 years later, in 1691, it received an additional grant from 
 the English crown, which it has held ever since, to hold all 
 lands between high- and low-water mark. From that time 
 
DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 2 I/ 
 
 until now riparian owners, that is, the people who own the 
 land facing the water front, have not been permitted to 
 establish a wharf or dock, or to build a pier, without per- 
 mission from the city. During the Dutch and English 
 supremacy franchises were carefully guarded for the benefit 
 of the colony, but the struggle which then began for the 
 harbor franchises has continued from that day to this. 
 
 FIG. 151. The Hooft 
 The big moon-shaped dock built in 1658 
 
 For many years after the ferry was established a rule was 
 enforced prohibiting any person to ferry from one side of 
 the river to the other without a license. 
 
 In the Days of the Revolution and After. The custom of 
 raising revenue on the docks and ferries was of English 
 origin. In 1694, when money was needed for city defense, 
 a mortgage of two hundred pounds was placed on the ferry 
 plying between Brooklyn and New York. A few years 
 later, when a new city hall was to be erected, the ferry was 
 
218 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 again mortgaged to supply the necessary funds. Indeed, 
 from that day to this the docks and ferries have been a 
 source of revenue to the city. After the Revolution the 
 colonial policy of municipal ownership of ferry privileges 
 was continued. When the adoption of the state consti- 
 tution had gone into effect the legislature regulated the 
 rates of ferriage and forbade competition with the city's 
 ferry monopoly. Up to this time pirogues, rowboats, or 
 sailboats of antiquated style were used for water trans- 
 portation. After them came the side-wheel, horse-power 
 boats, but in 181 1 leases were granted for steam ferries to 
 Hoboken and Paulus Hook. In 1814 the year before 
 the first named died Robert Fulton and William Cut- 
 ting obtained a twenty-five years' lease of the ferry between 
 New York and Brooklyn. Since then the franchise of the 
 ferries has been a growing source of revenue and has been 
 eagerly sought by both private citizens and corporations. 
 The Department of Docks and Ferries. By 1845 tne 
 docks and ferries figured so largely in the commerce of 
 the city that the governor of the state appointed three 
 commissioners to take charge of them. This commission 
 was empowered to establish ferries, to grant licenses for a 
 term of not longer than ten years, and to have the general 
 management of the city's docks and wharves. During that 
 time the commission was under the Department of Public 
 Works, but in 1871 the Department of Docks and Ferries 
 was established. Three commissioners remained in charge 
 of the department until the adoption of the charter of 
 1898. This charter abolished the commission of three 
 and vested all the power of the office in one official, called 
 the Commissioner of Docks. This was done on the same 
 
DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 219 
 
 principle that the responsibility of the city government is 
 centered upon the mayor, because it is thought wiser that 
 one man rather than several should be held responsible for 
 the administration of an office. 
 
 Commissioner of Docks. The great value of the harbor 
 property makes the importance of the position held by the 
 Commissioner of Docks. His duties are defined in the 
 
 FIG. 152. Fulton Ferry in 1740 
 
 charter, which stipulates that he must be a resident of the 
 city and provides that he shall be appointed by the mayor 
 at an annual salary of six thousand dollars. He appoints 
 a deputy commissioner and the secretaries in his own 
 office, and, under civil service regulations, he has the super- 
 vision of appointment of all employees of the department, 
 which includes nearly two thousand men. The department 
 controls all the water front of New York City and the 
 property upon it. The commissioner, with the approval of 
 the Commissioners of the Sinking Fund, executes plans for 
 
220 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 the improvement of this property. Subject to their approval 
 also, he grants harbor franchises and privileges. 
 
 The Divisions and Officers of the Department of Docks 
 and Ferries. The work of the Department of Docks and 
 Ferries is performed through five bureaus. One of these 
 is connected with the commissioner's office ; another, with 
 the secretary's ; the third is under the Bureau of Con- 
 struction and Repairs, which, in turn, is under the imme- 
 diate care of the chief engineer of the department ; the 
 fourth is in charge of the superintendent of docks in 
 the Bureau of Superintendents ; and the fifth constitutes 
 the Bureau of Accounts under the auditor. 
 
 The chief engineer prepares the plans for all buildings 
 on the water front and submits them to the commissioner. 
 If they carry an expense in excess of one hundred thou- 
 sand dollars, the commissioner refers them to the Com- 
 missioners of the Sinking Fund, who must act upon them 
 favorably before the contract can be let. All work is ad- 
 vertised and the contract is awarded to the lowest reli- 
 able bidder. The superintendent of docks has charge of 
 the wharf property in the five boroughs. He appoints 
 about twenty dock masters, who are responsible to him for 
 the condition of the wharves. In addition to these there 
 are a large number of assistant engineers, draughtsmen, 
 ship carpenters, and builders. 
 
 The Length of the Piers and Why. With all the author- 
 ity which is invested in the Commissioner of Docks, he 
 has not the power to change the exterior line of the piers. 
 That is under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of War at 
 Washington, because the United States government owns 
 the rivers and harbors of the country and their boundaries 
 
DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 221 
 
 are defined by its laws. To 
 explain why this is so, let us 
 suppose that two cities are 
 located on opposite sides of a 
 river and that one of them 
 wants to make a change in its 
 harbor which would be detri- 
 mental to the other. The fed- 
 eral government, as arbitrator, 
 would prohibit it from doing so. 
 When the great piers were 
 being built in the Chelsea dis- 
 trict of New York City a few 
 years ago, the men who were 
 interested wanted them to ex- 
 tend a thousand feet into the 
 water. The Commissioner of 
 Docks saw no objection to this 
 and the plans were so drawn ; 
 but when they were submitted 
 to the Secretary of War, as all 
 such plans must be, he refused 
 to allow the piers to extend into 
 the water beyond eight hundred 
 feet. He based his refusal on 
 the ground that a thousand-foot 
 pier would impede the progress 
 of the largest war vessels, 
 should it ever happen that the 
 country were engaged in a war 
 in which it would be necessary 
 
 *on 
 
222 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 to send battle ships through the North River. Sometimes 
 the piers are a thousand feet in length, but the two hundred 
 additional feet are obtained by building the piers back into 
 the abutting street. 
 
 Harbor Franchises. Within the last fifty years the city 
 has not sold any of its harbor property, but prior to that 
 time much of it was sold, or leased for a long term of years. 
 In consequence of this it frequently happens that the city 
 now, with its enlarged shipping business, must have the 
 
 FIG. 154. Recreation Pier 
 
 same property back. When this is the case the city makes 
 an application for the property. Sometimes the parties 
 who have possession are willing to give it up, but it more 
 often happens that the city has to condemn it and take it 
 through process of law. By whichever method it is re- 
 gained, the city is obliged to pay large sums of money for 
 property which it originally owned. The commissioner has 
 the power, with the approval of the Commissioners of the 
 Sinking. Fund, to grant harbor franchises; but far more 
 care in such matters is exercised now than in the early 
 days of the republic. 
 
DEPARTMENT OF DOCKS AND FERRIES 223 
 
 Recreation Piers. Following a plan which has been in prac- 
 tice for a good many years in some of the coast cities of 
 Europe, New York City sets aside certain piers in the har- 
 bor for recreation purposes. As we learned in the chapter 
 on the Board of Education, these piers are under charge 
 of that board, but they are maintained and kept in repair 
 by the Department of Docks and Ferries. They make de- 
 lightfully cool recreation centers, where all may go and 
 spend the hot summer afternoons and evenings. 
 
 Summary. The Department of Docks and Ferries is one of the 
 most important in the municipal government, because of the vast amount 
 of traffic transacted on the three hundred and fifty-three miles of water 
 frontage of New York City. Ferries were first established after the 
 settlement of Fort Amsterdam. As early as 1694 the ferries were 
 mortgaged by the city. They have always been a source of revenue 
 to the corporation. Three commissioners were appointed originally 
 to take charge of the docks and ferries. The department was estab- 
 lished in 1871. One commissioner succeeded to the power of the 
 three by the charter of 1898. 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 
 
 How the Health of the City is Maintained. You have per- 
 haps often noticed large white placards fastened on the 
 doors of apartment houses and bearing the words SCARLET 
 FEVER, or a placard of similar size labeled DIPHTHERIA. 
 Do you know who put up these notices, and why ? They 
 were put up by the Department of Health of the municipal 
 government as a warning of contagious diseases within. 
 This is one of the many ways in which the department 
 cares for the health of the citizens. It also tries to keep 
 the city in a sanitary condition and to prohibit the sale 
 of harmful or impure food and drink. To accomplish this 
 the department has over one thousand employees, among 
 whom are physicians, trained nurses, chemists, sanitary 
 inspectors (such as plumbers and engineers), food inspectors, 
 disinfectors, laborers, drivers, domestics. 
 
 Origin and Organization of the Department. Until as late 
 as 1 866 there was no Department of Health in the old City 
 of New York. The public health was under the care of a 
 city inspector, aided by one assistant and four wardens. 
 This small number of men, having but few health laws to 
 enforce and lacking the knowledge which exists to-day for 
 the prevention of disease, was unable to check the epidemics 
 that swept over the city. Complaints of the unhealthfulness 
 of New York City grew so numerous that at length the state 
 legislature appointed a Metropolitan Health Department, 
 
 224 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 225 
 
 which was to include both New York and Brooklyn. In 
 1873 separate Departments of Health were organized in 
 the two cities. The Health Department of Brooklyn had 
 been established as early as 1824 and continued until 1898, 
 when the boroughs were united under the Greater New 
 York charter. The present Department of Health was then 
 established and placed under the charge of three commis- 
 sioners, the Commissioner of Health and the Police Com- 
 missioner, both appointed by the mayor, and the Health 
 Officer of the Port, who is appointed by the governor, and 
 who is at the head of the quarantine station in the harbor. 
 The Commissioner of Health is the president of the board 
 and manages the work of the department. 
 
 Duties and Powers. The duty of the Board of Health is 
 to protect the people of the city, so far as possible, from sick- 
 ness, injury, and death, and to abate common nuisances 
 even when not detrimental to health. It may regulate or 
 prohibit any one's business or pleasure, if there is reason to 
 think that these affect the health of the community or are 
 nuisances. It enforces the Sanitary Code, as the health 
 laws of the city are called, and to do this its officers have a 
 right to enter premises where they think these laws are being 
 violated. The board may cause any unsanitary building to 
 be cleaned, repaired, or vacated. It has authority in regard 
 to contagious diseases, even to closing buildings and streets 
 for quarantine purposes. Extraordinary powers are given 
 to it in case of epidemics. It enforces the laws prohibit- 
 ing the sale of poisonous, harmful, and adulterated drugs, 
 medicines, and foods. It also enforces all state laws which 
 apply within the city regarding the care and protection of 
 health, such as the laws regulating child labor ; also those 
 
226 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 in regard to offensive trades, such as butchering cattle for 
 the market, and like occupations. 
 
 The Sanitary Code. That every one may know just what 
 regulations must be followed to insure public health and 
 safety, the Department of Health publishes the Sanitary 
 Code, which may be obtained free upon application to that 
 department. The decrees in the code relate to almost 
 
 FIG. 155. Corner of Bacteriological Laboratory of Board of Health 
 
 everything that affects the public health or safety. One 
 of its regulations is that street cars must not go faster than 
 a given rate around curves ; another is that owners of bath 
 houses must fence in that part of the beach known to be 
 safe for surf bathing. It prohibits spitting upon sidewalks 
 or upon floors in public buildings, a practice which sets free 
 germs of disease to float in the air and to be breathed into 
 the lungs. The code has the force of city ordinances, and 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 227 
 
 any violation of it is a misdemeanor and is punishable by fine 
 or imprisonment. Certain patrolmen of the Police Depart- 
 ment are assigned to duty in the Department of Health, for 
 the purpose of enforcing its orders. These men are known 
 as the Health Squad, and wear green bands with red crosses 
 on the sleeves of their uniforms. 
 
 The Sanitary Bureau. There are two bureaus in the De- 
 partment of Health, the Sanitary Bureau and the Bureau 
 of Records. The Sanitary Bureau has charge of everything 
 that pertains to the healthful condition of the city, while the 
 Bureau of Records classifies and keeps the statistics of the 
 department. The Sanitary Bureau is under the control of 
 a sanitary superintendent, who has an assistant in each bor- 
 ough. The work is subdivided into several divisions, those 
 of inspection, of contagious diseases, of communicable dis- 
 eases, laboratories, and of hospitals. Each division has its own 
 interesting and important work and is in charge of a chief. 
 
 Division of Inspection. Sanitary inspection consists in 
 inspecting the entire city regularly to keep it a healthful 
 place in which to live. For this purpose the city is divided 
 into districts with an inspector in charge of each. The 
 inspector looks out for overcrowding in his districts, for 
 proper ventilation and light, for accumulations of filth and 
 rubbish, and for other violations of the Sanitary Code. He 
 also investigates special complaints of citizens who call 
 attention to unhealthful conditions. If a man reports a 
 pool of stagnant water in his neighborhood, it is at once 
 visited by an inspector, and if found unsanitary an order 
 is issued to the owner that it must be drained or filled in. 
 
 Inspection of Foods. The food which we eat goes to build 
 up our bodies and to furnish us with strength. If, however, 
 
228 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 the food is unwholesome, not only do we fail to receive 
 the needed nourishment, but often illness is caused. To 
 prevent the sale of such unwholesome food, one set of 
 inspectors from the Division of Food Inspection is con- 
 stantly examining foods. The slaughterhouses, markets, 
 and commission houses are visited regularly, and all un- 
 sound meat, fish, poultry, eggs, vegetables, and fruits are 
 seized and destroyed. The early morning finds inspectors 
 at the harbor ports, through which pass great quantities of 
 
 FIG. 156. Where the Food is inspected before it leaves the 
 Railway Station 
 
 fruits from Italy, Sicily, and other Mediterranean ports, and 
 from various parts of our own country. Inspectors remain 
 at the markets all day to prevent the sale of unwholesome 
 food. Milk is examined at the railroad stations and docks 
 where it comes in, as well as at the various stores and milk 
 depots. All food must come up to the standard of purity 
 given in the Sanitary Code ; if it does not, it may be de- 
 stroyed by the inspectors. Every year thousands of pounds 
 of unwholesome meats, fruits, and other foods are destroyed, 
 as well as quantities of adulterated milk and other liquids. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 229 
 
 Division of Contagious Diseases. If a person is ill of a 
 contagious disease, and is not at once put into a room apart, 
 with only his nurse to care for him, he may give the disease 
 to every one coming in contact with him. If these precau- 
 tions are not taken, the district medical inspector warns the 
 family that if the patient is not at once secluded he will be 
 removed to a hospital. In seriously contagious diseases, 
 like smallpox, no risk is taken of exposing others ; the 
 patient is at once removed to a hospital. When any case 
 is reported to the department the patient is visited in his 
 home by the district medical inspector. If other families live 
 in the house, they are warned of the disease. All cases of 
 contagious disease must be reported to the department, that 
 every safeguard may be taken to prevent their spread. 
 
 Medical School Inspectors. Children of the public schools 
 have a special corps of medical inspectors who visit the 
 various schools every morning. If an ailing child, called to 
 the attention of the medical inspector by the teacher, has 
 a contagious disease, he is sent home until he has recovered 
 and all danger of communicating the disease is past. At 
 intervals the medical inspector makes a round of all the 
 class rooms, personally examining the eyelids, throat, hair, 
 and skin of each pupil. 
 
 School Nurses. After a child is excluded from the public 
 school because of minor contagious disease it is the duty of 
 the school nurse to visit him in his home in order to make 
 sure that his parents understand his ailment. In case no 
 physician is in charge, the nurse explains the remedies 
 and treatment prescribed by the medical school inspector. 
 Each nurse has from three to five schools which she visits 
 each day in turn, receiving a list of the ailing children from 
 
230 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 the medical inspector. By this system of medical inspection, 
 followed by nursing, the sick children are cared for and the 
 well children are protected. 
 
 Employment Certificates. Many children used to leave 
 school early to go to work, assuming tasks which often 
 stunted their growth and weakened their health. These 
 children lost the pleasure and health of childhood. To pro- 
 tect the child the state passed a child-labor law, applying 
 
 FIG. 157. Vaccination Office of the Board of Health 
 
 to all children under sixteen. This prohibits any child 
 under fourteen years of age from going out to work under 
 any circumstances, and only those between fourteen and 
 sixteen can go who obtain employment certificates. These 
 may be had after passing a simple examination in reading, 
 writing, and spelling, in English. The child is permitted to 
 take this examination on bringing a written statement from 
 the principal of his school saying that he has attended 
 school for one hundred and thirty days after his thirteenth 
 birthday, and is competent to take the examination. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 231 
 
 Vaccination. All school children are required to be 
 vaccinated by their own physicians or by those of the 
 Department of Health, in order to make them immune to 
 smallpox. This disease, which used to be so dreaded, is now 
 practically under control, through a system of quarantine 
 which makes an epidemic impossible, and through the prac- 
 tice of vaccination. It is considered wiser to be vaccinated 
 every two or three years, and vaccinators of the depart- 
 ment are always ready to vaccinate any one on request. 
 
 FIG. 158. Riverside Hospital 
 
 Whenever a case of smallpox occurs in the city a squad 
 of vaccinators visit the locality to vaccinate all the people 
 living on that block. Care is taken to keep the inmates of 
 all charitable institutions immune to smallpox. When the 
 disease is prevalent in the city extra precaution is taken ; 
 several squads of vaccinators are formed, who visit, on 
 request, all the stores, factories, and hotels, vaccinating the 
 people free of charge at any hour of the day or night. 
 
 Hospitals. Any person ill with a contagious or other dis- 
 ease may be cared for in one of the hospitals connected with 
 the department. This privilege is a blessing to a patient 
 
232 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 who cannot be properly cared for at home ; perhaps he 
 cannot be properly isolated, or he may be living in a hotel 
 or boarding house, or may be poor or friendless. In any 
 one of these cases an ambulance is sent to carry him to 
 the hospital, which is supplied with physicians and nurses 
 and adequate means of caring for him. 
 
 Division of Laboratories. In the chemical laboratory of 
 the Sanitary Bureau samples of food are tested. If they are 
 found to contain anything hurtful, which causes them to 
 
 FIG. 159. Hospital Ambulances 
 
 fall below the standard of the Sanitary Code, the goods are 
 seized Wherever found, and destroyed. Croton and other 
 water supplies of the city are examined every week, that 
 the condition of each reservoir and pumping station may 
 be known and the water kept pure. Another important 
 part of the work is to analyze milk. When so many little 
 children are dependent on this food, there must be no risk 
 that it is adulterated or spoiled. In short, the work of the 
 laboratories is to detect adulterations in foods, that they 
 may contain nothing injurious to health. 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 
 
 233 
 
 On an upper floor of the building belonging to the 
 Department of Health is the diagnosis laboratory, in which 
 fluids of the body are examined to see if they contain the 
 germs of disease. For example, a few drops of blood from 
 a needle prick show whether or not the patient has malaria. 
 Small quantities of other fluids reveal traces of tuberculosis 
 or typhoid fever. There are laboratories at the foot of 
 East Sixteenth Street where interesting experiments are 
 made. In one of 
 them a large number 
 of rabbits, guinea 
 pigs, calves, and 
 horses are kept by 
 the department. 
 Upon these animals 
 experiments are 
 made for manufac- 
 turing the serums 
 and virus which sci- 
 entists have found 
 will cure or prevent 
 diseases such as 
 diphtheria, hydrophobia, or typhoid fever. Physicians of the 
 city are given serums and virus free in order that they may 
 administer them to poor people without charge, and upon 
 application to the Board of Health these are administered 
 free to those who have no physician. 
 
 For the study of bacteria experiments are made in the 
 research laboratory with different kinds of milk, bottled, 
 condensed, and other kinds. After watching a number of 
 children both summer and winter, who were fed on milk 
 
 FIG. 160. Chemical Laboratory where 
 Water is Analyzed 
 
234 
 
 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 from these sources, a helpful report was issued to mothers 
 and physicians, giving the results from pure and impure 
 milk used in the tenement houses and various institutions 
 of the city. At another time malaria, a disease common in 
 some parts of the city, was studied, with the result that 
 people were cautioned against a variety of mosquito which 
 often caused that disease, while simple remedies for the 
 
 FIG. 161. Animals kept by the Board of Health for testing Serums 
 
 cure of the disease, and means of exterminating the mos- 
 quito, were suggested. Much is learned about caring for 
 contagious diseases from the helpful investigations of the 
 research laboratory. 
 
 Disinfection. After a case of contagious disease the pa- 
 tient's room and clothing are disinfected, that any remaining 
 germs of the disease may be destroyed. While the depart- 
 ment is willing to disinfect after any contagious disease, it 
 insists upon doing so after the more serious diseases, ex- 
 cept in private homes, when the work is occasionally 
 intrusted to the attending physician. Under the process 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH 235 
 
 of disinfection all washable goods are either burned or 
 soaked for several hours in a strong disinfectant solution. 
 Nonwashable goods, such as rugs, mattresses, and pillows, 
 are removed in bags by special wagons to the disinfecting 
 station. Here, in separate rooms, wagon and goods are dis- 
 infected by steam or by gas. Meantime the patient's home 
 is disinfected. The woodwork and windows are washed 
 with a solution, after which the room is sealed and exposed 
 to the disinfecting gas. The room is known to be thoroughly 
 safe if other bacteria of the disease, placed alive in it, are 
 found to be destroyed when the room is opened. Stores, 
 steamboats, and even railroad cars are disinfected whenever 
 it is necessary. 
 
 Bureau of Records. A registry of births is kept by phy- 
 sicians and nurses, and these are submitted to the Depart- 
 ment of Health. The birth of every child born in the city 
 is required to be reported to the Department of Health 
 within ten days. When the child grows up, if he marries 
 this fact is also recorded, with his name, age, and place of 
 residence, by the person performing the marriage ceremony. 
 When death comes it should be reported within five days 
 by the next of kin, as well as noted in the registry of the 
 physician, giving the age, color, nativity, last occupation, 
 the cause of death, and the borough, street, and residence 
 where it occurred. Failure to report births, marriages, or 
 deaths is a misdemeanor. These records are preserved 
 at the Department of Health, and any one may have a copy 
 for a fee of fifty cents, this being the only charge that is 
 made by the department for services of any kind. The 
 money thus obtained goes toward the pension fund of the 
 department. 
 
236 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. The Department of Health was established to protect 
 the people of the city from nuisances, sickness, injury, or death. The 
 department tries to keep the city in a healthful condition and to pre- 
 vent the sale of unwholesome and harmfully adulterated foods. It 
 looks after contagious diseases, guards against their spread, and 
 manufactures means for their check, in such remedies as antitoxins 
 and virus. It experiments to discover further knowledge of the nature 
 of contagious diseases and better methods for their control. The 
 department is under the charge of three commissioners and has a 
 large force of sanitary and medical inspectors, chemical and bacterio- 
 logical laboratories, and well-equipped hospitals. A Sanitary Code, 
 having the force of city ordinances, is issued by the department, that 
 the citizens may cooperate in things necessary for the city's health. 
 Great care is exercised in keeping the food pure which is on sale in 
 the city markets. Inspectors examine it as it arrives at the railway 
 stations and boat landings, while samples of suspected food are tested 
 in the laboratories of the department. Disinfection is one of the 
 health regulations of the Sanitary Code and is effectual in preventing 
 the spread of disease. The Bureau of Records keeps a record of all 
 births, marriages, and deaths in the city. 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
 THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT 
 
 The Necessity of the Tenement House Department. It has 
 
 been found that people cannot be healthy if they live in 
 unhealthful homes. They need plenty of light, fresh air, and 
 room. Their houses should be clean and free from damp- 
 ness, the plumbing should be sound and tight to prevent 
 the entrance of 
 sewer gas, there 
 should be a good 
 supply of fresh 
 water, and also 
 sufficient ventila- 
 tion and light. In 
 short, homes 
 should be sanitary. 
 
 The fact that just 
 
 I 
 
 the opposite of 
 such conditions 
 long existed in 
 most of the tene- 
 ments of New 
 
 FIG. 162. Fireproof Hall and Stairway built 
 according to the Tenement House Law 
 
 York City led to the origin of the Tenement House Depart- 
 ment. Certain sections of the city became densely settled, 
 and in these overcrowded sections the homes of the very 
 poor were known as "tenement houses." In recent years 
 the name "tenement house" has been broadly denned by 
 
 237 
 
238 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 law to include also the luxuriant apartment houses on the 
 more fashionable streets, but then it had a narrower mean- 
 ing. The law defines a tenement house as any building 
 occupied, or designed for occupancy, by three or more fam- 
 ilies living independently of each 
 other and doing their cooking 
 on the premises. 
 
 Thousands of these early tene- 
 ment houses were poorly venti- 
 lated, dark, and unsanitary. The 
 condition of these wretched 
 houses first attracted the atten- 
 tion of public-spirited citizens 
 about fifty years ago, and a com- 
 mission was appointed to investi- 
 gate the problem and to suggest 
 a remedy. From time to time 
 other commissions were ap- 
 pointed to look into the matter 
 and various laws were passed for 
 
 FIG. 163. Hallway and Entrance the better housing of the people, 
 of a Neglected House ~ \ 
 
 These laws were finally collected 
 
 and codified, and are known as the Tenement House Law. 
 Since then better houses have been built, many of which 
 are costly and artistic. It was estimated that in 1906 there 
 were a hundred thousand tenement houses in the city of 
 New York, and that more than two million four hundred 
 thousand people reside in them. Since so large a number 
 of the citizens live in tenements, it is plainly necessary that 
 there should be laws requiring that they should be erected 
 and maintained in a sanitary manner'. When these laws were 
 
THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT 239 
 
 first made, power to enforce them belonged to different de- 
 partments, some to the Department of Health, others to the 
 Police Department. But these departments already had so 
 much to look after that in April, 1901, the state legislature 
 passed an act creating the Tenement House Department, 
 which was to have entire control of enforcing the law. 
 
 The Tenement House Commissioner. Under that act a 
 commissioner of the Tenement House Department is ap- 
 pointed by the mayor; this commissioner has charge of the 
 department and of 
 the enforcement 
 of the law. He has 
 over four hundred 
 officials to assist 
 him, most of whom 
 are appointed and 
 promoted by civil 
 service regula- 
 tions. He appoints 
 the first and sec- 
 ond deputy com- 
 missioners. The 
 first deputy assists 
 him in the main 
 office in Manhattan ; the second has charge of the Brooklyn 
 office, which also has under its supervision the tenements of 
 Queens and Richmond. A third office, which has charge 
 of the tenements of The Bronx, is under a superintendent. 
 
 Organization of the Department into Four Bureaus : the 
 Executive Bureau. Each of the four bureaus of the depart- 
 ment enforces some special part of the Tenement House 
 
 FIG. 164. Staircase of a House built before the 
 Enactment of the Tenement House Law 
 
240 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Law. The Executive Bureau carries on the correspondence 
 of the department with the public, so it is with this bureau 
 that the citizens come in contact. Complaints "are received 
 here. If the cellar of a tenement is damp, imperiling the 
 health of the people in the house, they may report it. The 
 
 matter is then referred 
 to another bureau for 
 investigation. If found 
 as complainant stated, 
 the Executive Bureau 
 issues an order to the 
 owner to have the cellar 
 made dry, as he is violat- 
 ing a part of the Tene- 
 ment House Law. 
 
 The New Building 
 Bureau. No owner may 
 build a new tenement 
 house, or even alter an 
 old-style tenement, with- 
 out first submitting his 
 plans for approval to the 
 New Building Bureau. 
 By old-style tenements 
 is meant all those built prior to the law of 1891 ; new tene- 
 ments, those built since. The plans submitted must give 
 the size of rooms, width of hall, size of courts, depth of 
 yards, and the provisions for fireproofing. The plans must 
 also show arrangements for an adequate amount of light and 
 air, and means of ventilation. If all these conform to the 
 required regulations, a certificate is issued to the persons 
 
 FIG. 165. House Area: Drain covered 
 with Dirt 
 
THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT 241 
 
 submitting the plans. But the work of this bureau does not 
 stop here. It sends out inspectors from time to time during 
 the progress of the building to see that there are no devia- 
 tions from the plans. If there are such, they are reported, 
 and must be changed before the work may continue. Even 
 when completed the 
 building may not be oc- 
 cupied by tenants until 
 a final inspection has 
 been made to see that it 
 complies in all respects I r < 
 
 with the Tenement 
 House Law. Then a cer- 
 tificate is issued to that 
 effect. If a house is 
 rented before the cer- 
 tificate is issued, the 
 Department of Water 
 Supply, Gas, and Elec- 
 tricity cuts off the water 
 from the building, rent 
 cannot be recovered by 
 the owner, and other 
 means are taken to prevent occupancy. 
 
 The Old Building Bureau, or Inspection Bureau. After 
 tenements are completed the inspectors from the Old Build- 
 ing Bureau see that they are kept in good condition. Inspect- 
 ors are sent out in answer to complaints made by citizens 
 to the Executive Bureau, but the department divides the 
 city into inspection districts and has inspectors in each of 
 them. If a woman writes that the owner refuses to repair 
 
 FIG. 1 66. Same Area Cleaned 
 
242 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 a leak in the roof of the house she is occupying, the in- 
 spector in that district goes and examines the house. If 
 its condition shows a violation of the law, the inspector fills 
 out a printed card notifying the owner of the house that 
 repairs must be made or he will be subject to the law. The 
 
 FIG. 167. A Neglected Back Yard 
 
 inspectors make a regular " house-to-house " canvass in 
 each of their districts and keep records of good as well as 
 bad conditions, such as the dryness of the cellar, the clean- 
 liness of the halls, the condition of the plumbing through- 
 out the house, whether there are enough cans for garbage 
 and rubbish, and where they are kept. If these records 
 show any violation of the law, then orders are issued by 
 the department to the owner. If the owner refuses to 
 remedy it, as seldom happens, he is brought into court for 
 breaking a city ordinance. When a serious condition exists 
 in a tenement, photographs of defects are taken so that the 
 
THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT 243 
 
 facts cannot be disputed. Work does not stop here. After 
 a few days reinspections are made to find out whether the 
 orders issued by the department have been complied with 
 by the owner. Wherever photographs of the defects have 
 
 FIG. 168. The Same Yard Cleaned and Concreted 
 
 been taken, new ones are made of the improved conditions, 
 when the repairs are completed, 
 
 The Bureau of Records gathers and arranges statistics in 
 regard to tenement houses. It keeps open files containing 
 the printed cards made out by the inspectors These are 
 arranged in alphabetical lists according to streets, with the 
 tenements in the order in which they come in the blocks. 
 Aside from these the bureau keeps the sanitary reports, on 
 different colored cards, of all the contagious diseases occur- 
 ring in the tenement houses. Every morning a clerk from 
 
244 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 FIG. 189. Public Sink in a Tenement House 
 
 FIG. 170. A Sanitary Sink 
 
 the Bureau of Records 
 goes to the Depart- 
 ment of Health to 
 copy the record of all 
 cases where tenement 
 houses have been dis- 
 infected after disease. 
 Then an inspector is 
 sent out from the Old 
 Building Bureau to 
 examine the plumbing 
 of the house where the 
 illness occurred, for 
 the cause of certain 
 diseases has often 
 been traced to gas from 
 sewers. If several cases 
 of illness occur in the 
 same house, a more 
 thorough examination is 
 made to see if anything 
 further is unsanitary. 
 When several orders of a 
 serious nature have been 
 issued from time to time 
 to improve the same 
 house, it is marked 
 "neglected house" in 
 the records. It is then 
 closely watched until all 
 violations are removed 
 
THE TENEMENT HOUSE DEPARTMENT 245 
 
 and it is again in a sanitary condition. Various other records 
 are kept bearing on the work of the department. For ex- 
 ample, ward maps have been made, showing the location of 
 the tenement houses, the amount of ground occupied by 
 each, the number of persons to an acre, and the number 
 of families and their nationalities. Thus the Bureau of 
 Records has a complete directory of the tenement houses, 
 with various kinds of information concerning each. In this 
 way the work of the department is done with an intelli- 
 gent knowledge of past and present conditions. 
 
 Summary. The Tenement House Department has charge of the 
 enforcement of the Tenement House Law. This law is needed to insure 
 the erection of safe and sanitary tenement houses, and the keeping of 
 them in good condition. Statistics show that before the enforcement 
 of the law many buildings were dark, poorly ventilated, overcrowded, 
 and dirty. Since the enforcement less sickness and fewer deaths occur 
 because of the more healthful conditions. While there is still room for 
 improvement, tenement houses are becoming pleasanter, safer, and more 
 comfortable homes. The Tenement House Department was established 
 by the charter of 1901. It is under the supervision of a commissioner 
 and its work is divided among four bureaus. 
 
FIG. 171. Patients at City Hospital leaving for a Day's Outing 
 down the Bay 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 
 
 The Dependent Classes of New York City. In accordance 
 with the provision of the Poor Law of the state of New 
 York, poor persons are maintained by the town, city, county, 
 or state in which they reside. In New York City there is a 
 large number who come under the head of "poor persons." 
 There are those who have but little money and who depend 
 from day to day upon the wages they earn for the necessities 
 of life. If work is scarce, or if they are ill, they must have 
 aid from some outside source, or they and those dependent 
 upon them suffer want, or even starve to death. 
 
 Early Charity Organizations. For many centuries poverty 
 was looked upon as though it were a crime. People who were 
 unsuccessful were not given much sympathy. Those who 
 had money did not feel obliged to supply the needs of those 
 who had but little. It has taken the world nineteen hundred 
 years to learn the lesson of the brotherhood of man as it was 
 
 246 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 247 
 
 taught by the Teacher of Nazareth so long ago on the green 
 Galilean hills. Happily it has been learning that lesson more 
 rapidly in recent years than in all the centuries which pre- 
 ceded them. 
 
 As New York City has always been the leading seaport 
 town in America, its population has necessarily been made 
 up of people of many nationalities. When immigrants come 
 to our shores the majority of them bring but little money, 
 and until they can earn the means with which to establish 
 themselves in their new homes, they are usually very poor. 
 It follows that they constitute a large part of New York 
 City's dependent classes. In colonial days there were com- 
 paratively few poor people among the colonists, and those 
 few were cared for by the churches. In 1691 Mayor De 
 Peyster suggested that the city, instead of the churches, 
 should have the charge of paupers. Each alderman was 
 instructed to make a list of the poor in his ward. By the 
 middle of the seventeenth century the first almshouse had 
 been established in New Amsterdam, and in 1658 the first 
 hospital in America was opened in connection with it. 
 
 The Establishment of Bellevue Hospital. The almshouse 
 stood on the west side of Broad Street, just north of Beaver 
 Street. The hospital remained a part of it until, from long 
 usage, the buildings became uninhabitable. This led the Com- 
 mon Council, in 1734, to provide for the erection of a new 
 almshouse. The location selected was the open space north of 
 town known as The Commons. When this almshouse was 
 completed in 1736 a large room containing six beds was set 
 aside as an infirmary where charity patients were cared for. 
 
 This was the beginning of one of New York's greatest 
 charity institutions, Bellevue Hospital. It was the only 
 
2 4 8 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 249 
 
 provision which the town made for its sick poor for many 
 years, but after a dreadful scourge of cholera, a disease 
 very prevalent in those days, the city bought property and 
 established a hospital as a separate institution from the alms- 
 house. Five acres of the Kip Bay Farm, a large estate lying 
 in the northeast of the town, were purchased and the house 
 upon it converted into a hospital. The land faced the East 
 River between the streets which have since become Twenty- 
 sixth and Thirtieth. The hospital took the name of the 
 estate, Bellevue. Many other charitable institutions were 
 established during the first half of the eighteenth century. 
 The Department of Public Charities. For forty years the 
 municipal government of New York City had an organiza- 
 tion, usually as a bureau of some department, to look after 
 the welfare of the less fortunate classes among the people. 
 With the adoption of the charter of 1901 this bureau was 
 made one of the fifteen administrative departments of the 
 city government, and is called the Department of Public 
 Charities. It has charge of all the charitable institutions 
 of the city and dispenses all its benevolences. At its head 
 is a commissioner, who is appointed by the mayor at a 
 salary of seven thousand five hundred dollars per year. 
 The main office is at the foot of East Twenty-sixth Street 
 in Manhattan, with a branch office in Brooklyn under a 
 deputy commissioner, and another on Staten Island in 
 charge of the superintendent of the Bureau of Dependent 
 Adults. The commissioner of charities acts as a general 
 overseer of the poor of the city. He makes the regulations 
 for the department and is responsible for the management 
 of the institutions under it. He sees that proper records 
 are kept of all the inmates of these institutions ; appoints, 
 
250 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 with power of removal, two deputies ; and, subject to civil 
 service regulations, fills all subordinate positions connected 
 with the department. 
 
 Philanthropy of the Department of Public Charities. The 
 philanthropy of the Department of Public Charities reaches 
 every class of the needy in the city. While the Bureau. of 
 
 FIG. 173. Public School No. 126, Brooklyn 
 
 Dependent Adults (formerly Outdoor Poor) is primarily for 
 the reception of adults, it receives, at the headquarters at 
 the foot of Twenty-sixth Street, all the needy who apply 
 for admittance to the various institutions under the depart- 
 ment. The applications of children are received at the 
 Bureau of Dependent Children. It is one of the city regula- 
 tions that whenever a child under sixteen years of age is 
 arrested, the magistrate of the juvenile court must notify 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 251 
 
 the commissioner of charities and the president of the 
 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The 
 commissioner sees that such children, and all others whose 
 condition demands it, are cared for. When it is found that 
 parents are too poor to take care of their children, or that 
 the children are orphans, the department takes them in 
 charge. They are sometimes placed in private families and 
 
 FIG. 174. East Wing, Main Building, Metropolitan Hospital 
 
 boarded at the city's expense, or they are put in one of the 
 institutions under the Department of Public Charities, or 
 in some religious or philanthropic institution, where they 
 are boarded also at the expense of the city. Besides this 
 the department maintains a large municipal lodging house, 
 giving temporary shelter to thousands of homeless persons 
 every year, who otherwise would suffer want and hunger. 
 It has charge of the two city morgues, where the bodies 
 of the unknown dead are kept until they are claimed by 
 their friends. If not identified, the bodies are given a 
 
252 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 decent burial either in the potter's field on Hart's Island or 
 in one of the four other public burying grounds of the city. 
 
 The Institutions under the Department. Blackwell's 
 Island was purchased by New York City in 1821 as a 
 headquarters for its charity and corrective institutions. 
 Among the buildings which are now located there are the 
 City and the Metropolitan hospitals, together with the 
 training school for nurses connected with each ; the Home 
 for the Aged and Infirm ; the buildings for the treatment 
 of tuberculosis, maternity, and erysipelas patients ; the peni- 
 tentiary and the workhouse. With these there are work- 
 shops, stores, and kindred buildings. The training schools 
 provide nurses for the City, Metropolitan, Gouverneur, 
 Harlem, and Fordham hospitals. While the last-named 
 three are allied hospitals of Bellevue, and as such are 
 no longer under the department, they all receive charity 
 patients. Bellevue is one of the largest hospitals in the 
 state ; it has several hundred beds for the indigent sick, 
 and its maintenance costs the city six hundred thousand 
 dollars annually. 
 
 The City Hospital. When the Revolution broke out a 
 hospital building was just being finished on Thomas Street 
 and Broadway. It was intended for charity patients, but 
 the war checked its philanthropic mission ; for instead of 
 being finished for the sick, the soldiers took possession of 
 it and used it for a barracks. Some years after hostilities 
 ceased it was finished on the original plan and was opened 
 for the reception of patients who were too poor to pay 
 hospital charges. A few years after the purchase of Black- 
 well's Island a building was erected there and the hospital 
 on Thomas Street was transferred to it. When that building 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 253 
 
 subsequently burned the present structure was built and 
 given the name of City Hospital. Its doors have been open 
 ever since for all who wish to enter. 
 
 Besides these there are a number of other public charity 
 institutions throughout the five boroughs. Thousands of 
 poor people who are sick and suffering, and who other- 
 wise would have no place to go, are received and cared 
 for by these institutions. All patients who enter them are 
 
 FIG. 175. City Hospital 
 
 supplied with new or freshly laundered clothes, put into 
 comfortable beds, and attended by competent doctors and 
 nurses. The City Hospital has a spacious solarium, which 
 was built by a generous woman of New York City in 
 memory of her daughter. Its sunny windows and wide 
 porches are an unfailing source of pleasure and are filled 
 all day long with women who are recovering from severe 
 illness. By reading rooms and game rooms provision is 
 made for the comfort of the men who are in the hospitals. 
 
254 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 There are also public pavilions which shelter from the sun 
 and rain, and yet afford the blessing of the invigorating 
 air of the island. 
 
 The Tuberculosis Infirmary and the Homes for the Aged 
 and Infirm. Not long ago the Metropolitan Hospital, a 
 homeopathic institution on Blackwell's Island, opened an 
 infirmary for patients with tuberculosis. Two buildings near 
 the hospital became empty and they were reconstructed 
 upon the latest approved plan for the scientific treatment 
 
 FIG. 176. A Tuberculosis Pavilion 
 
 of this dread disease. Other buildings have been erected, 
 and many patients have since been treated there with very 
 gratifying results. Besides the buildings used by these 
 patients, there are those which are set apart for mothers 
 and their young babies, and others which are devoted to 
 patients who are afflicted with epilepsy and erysipelas. 
 
 The Homes for the Aged and Infirm, both on the island 
 and under the department in Brooklyn, were formerly 
 called " almsbouses," but the present term is much more 
 fitting and humane. The able-bodied have been excluded 
 from them, leaving only inmates who are old and infirm, 
 or patients who have been dismissed from the hospitals, but 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 255 
 
 who are not strong enough to return to their homes. Among 
 the most humane features of these homes are the separate 
 apartments provided for aged husbands and wives, who 
 from the adversities of life find it necessary to spend their 
 last days under a roof of charity. Some of the inmates are 
 blind, and teachers have been provided who instruct them 
 in the self-supporting trades, such as basket weaving, chair 
 caning, brush making, and kindred occupations, which they 
 
 FIG. 177. Hay Stacks erected on Randall's Island by 
 Feeble-Minded Boys 
 
 can carry on notwithstanding their affliction. The depart- 
 ment spends over fifty thousand dollars annually caring for 
 the dependent blind of the city. The majority of these, 
 however, do not stay in institutions. They are cared for 
 in the private families of their friends, or at their homes. 
 They are paid about fifty dollars per year each, toward 
 their support, to keep them out of charity institutions. 
 
 Randall's Island Institutions. Randall's Island is de- 
 voted entirely to the care of children and those who have 
 weak minds. There is an infants' hospital which takes all 
 babies under two years of age ; a children's hospital for 
 
256 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 children of sound mind who are older ; an industrial school 
 and farm ; a school for the feeble-minded ; and an asylum 
 for the idiotic. The school for the feeble-minded conducts 
 classes in sewing, tailoring, shoemaking, basket, mat, and 
 rug making, cane seating, pyrography, sloyd, chip carving, 
 and Venetian iron work. There is also a gymnasium in- 
 structor for both boys and girls, and a bandmaster who has 
 made wonderful progress in teaching music to the feeble- 
 minded boys. Even in the asylum where the mentality is 
 lower much has been done to teach the inmates how to be 
 cleanly and to feed and dress themselves. In addition to 
 these the schools maintain flourishing kindergartens. 
 
 The Brooklyn and Other Borough Institutions. Kings 
 County Hospital in Brooklyn was 'established in 1845. It 
 has a capacity for several hundred beds and, in addition 
 to the usual wards, a large reception pavilion for cases of 
 insanity. The other hospitals of Kings County are the Cum- 
 berland and the Bradford Street, and the Reception Hos- 
 pital at Coney Island, a temporary establishment which is 
 kept open only during the summer months. There is also 
 an admirable Home for the Aged and Infirm at Flatbush. 
 
 The Cottage Colony. In Richmond borough, near New 
 Dorp, Staten Island, the department has a farm of one 
 hundred and twenty acres, with nine buildings upon it. It 
 was formerly called the Richmond County Almshouse, but 
 it is now known as the New York City Farm Colony. It is 
 one of the best farms on Staten Island, and although it has 
 more than two hundred inmates, the produce of the farm 
 makes it almost self-supporting. A new feature which has 
 been added to the farm colony is one of the happiest of 
 the many charities of the city. It is the establishment 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC CHARITIES 257 
 
 of a settlement of cottages for aged couples who in the 
 declining years of life are without homes. The settlement 
 is called the Cottage Colony, and forty acres adjoining the 
 farm have been acquired for it. The buildings upon this land 
 include a number of cottages, a chapel, and an administra- 
 tion building. Each one of the cottages is built to accommo- 
 date about thirty-five inmates. They are three stories high, 
 surrounded by wide porches, and each one is provided with 
 a good-sized garden patch, which is cared for by the inmates. 
 
 FIG. 178. A Cottage of the Farm Colony on Staten Island 
 
 To supply the needs of these various charitable insti- 
 tutions, the department maintains on Blackwell's Island a 
 large bakery establishment, a store for supplies, a black- 
 smith shop, a shoe factory, butcher shops, and gas works. 
 Within the last few years a wonderful impetus has been 
 given to all philanthropic work. Besides the charity insti- 
 tutions which are maintained by the municipality there are 
 now hundreds of private organizations which look after the 
 poor of the city. 
 
 *< 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
258 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. In colonial days there were comparatively few poor 
 persons among the colonists. At first they were cared for by the 
 churches, but in 1691 the city took them in charge, and each alderman 
 made a list of the poor in his ward. Bellevue was the first distinctive 
 hospital established for the purpose of caring for the sick poor. 
 Many people in New York City now are poor and need to be helped. 
 For the purpose of helping such, the Department of Public Charities 
 was organized. At its head is a commissioner, who has charge of all 
 the charitable institutions under the control of the city, except Belle- 
 vue and allied hospitals. He is responsible for the management of 
 the department and acts as general overseer of the poor. Some of 
 the institutions under the department are the City, Metropolitan, and 
 Kings County hospitals ; the Homes for the Aged and Infirm ; the 
 institutions on Randall's Island and Hart's Island ; the New York 
 City Farm Colony ; and the Cottage Colony. Besides these the 
 department maintains numerous stores and shops for carrying on the 
 work in connection with these institutions. In addition to the mu- 
 nicipal charity institutions there are hundreds which are maintained 
 by philanthropic private individuals and organizations. 
 
FIG. 179. Blackwell's Island 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 \ 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION 
 
 Why a Department of Correction is Necessary in the City 
 Government. In a book called Looking Backward which 
 was written some years ago, an ideal city of the year 2000 
 was described. It pictured the city as the writer believed 
 it might be at that date. It had many wonderful improve- 
 ments, but one of the most notable of these was that it 
 contained no jails, no prisons, nor penitentiaries. It would 
 be an ideal city if the need for all such institutions could be 
 done away with, if the city could exist without crime or 
 evil. But because men and women will commit crime and 
 do evil, cities and states must maintain places in which to 
 put them to prevent them from doing more evil deeds, as 
 well as to punish them for crimes already committed. 
 
 Departments of Correction. It used to be that prisons 
 and other penal institutions were horrible places. In those 
 days people seemed to forget the brotherhood of man and 
 appeared to abhor the criminal quite as much as they did 
 the crime. They thought the more inhumanly and cruelly 
 they treated those who committed crime, the sooner crimes 
 
 259 
 
260 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 would cease. The world is learning better now. It is begin- 
 ning to realize that men often commit crime through force 
 of poverty, or of other sad circumstances. It is learning, too, 
 that reformatory and preventive measures are worth a thou- 
 sand times more than punishment. It has been the realiza- 
 tion of this truth which has brought about, in so many city 
 governments, the departments of correction. These depart- 
 ments are for the purpose of looking after the criminal class 
 of the people and the places where they are confined. 
 
 New York City's Department of Correction. The cen- 
 tral office of the Department of Correction in New York 
 City is at No. 148 East Twentieth Street. The commis- 
 sioner of correction is the head of the department. He is 
 appointed by the mayor and receives a salary of seven 
 thousand five hundred dollars annually. He appoints a 
 deputy commissioner and, subject to civil service regula- 
 tions, all other officials of the office. In addition to the 
 general business of the department he has the supervision 
 of all the penal institutions of the city. These are the city 
 prison, which is in the first district and is popularly called 
 The Tombs ; the six other city prisons, located in various 
 parts of Manhattan and The Bronx ; the penitentiary and 
 the workhouse on Blackwell's Island ; the branch workhouse 
 and the reformatory on Hart's Island ; the branch work- 
 house on Riker's Island ; and the Kings County peniten- 
 tiary in Brooklyn. 
 
 The Powers and Duties of the Commissioner of Correction. 
 All prisoners who are sent to any of these institutions are 
 under the jurisdiction of the commissioner of correction. 
 He appoints the superintendents and wardens and is 
 responsible for the manner in which the institutions are 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION 
 
 26l 
 
 conducted. Each superintendent must keep an exact record 
 of all prisoners who come under his charge. These records 
 are sent to the commissioner, who keeps them on file in the 
 central office. This is done in order that when any one is 
 arrested for drunkenness, vagrancy, or disorderly conduct, 
 a reference to these records will show at once whether 
 the prisoner has ever been arrested before, and if so, upon 
 what charge. This 
 is one of the ways 
 in which prisoners 
 are treated more 
 mercifully now 
 than they were 
 formerly; for if 
 these records show 
 that this is the 
 prisoner's first 
 offense, the magis- 
 trate sometimes 
 suspends sentence 
 and releases him on 
 
 An Old School Building in Manhattan 
 facing the Elevated Railway 
 
 probation of good FlG - 
 behavior. If the 
 prisoner is young, he is not sentenced and placed with hard- 
 ened criminals, where he could not but learn more crime, 
 but he is sent to the reform school on Hart's Island. If 
 the prisoner commits an offense which is not of a serious 
 nature, he is put in one of the district prisons on a sentence 
 of a few days' duration. 
 
 The severity of the sentence depends upon the serious- 
 ness of the offense. If the prisoner has been repeatedly 
 
262 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 drunken and disorderly, he may be sent to one of the work- 
 houses on a sentence of six months. Or if he has committed 
 robbery or a similar crime, he is sent to the penitentiary on 
 Blackwell's Island, with a sentence which may extend from 
 thirty days to eleven months, and may also include a fine. 
 When a prisoner is sent to the penitentiary he must enter 
 a prisoner's cell and serve a prisoner's sentence. But even 
 then it is the duty of the commissioner to see that the super- 
 intendent and wardens treat him humanely. 
 
 One of the most merciful of the prison reforms is that 
 which secured the passage of the law providing that pris- 
 oners be employed during their term of sentence. This is 
 far more merciful than we are apt to realize when we first 
 think of it. There is no more cruel form of punishment 
 than to consign a man to a prison cell and enforce him day 
 after day, week after week, and sometimes even year after 
 year, to sit in a dark, damp cell, in absolute silence and 
 idleness. Such was the condition in all prisons until within 
 comparatively few years, and many a poor inmate was 
 driven by it to madness or suicide. 
 
 The Penitentiary on Blackwell's Island. The prisoners 
 sent to Blackwell's Island work every day of the week 
 except Sunday, and while doing so may shorten their 
 sentences by good conduct. They must be treated kindly, 
 but if they will not work, are insubordinate, or try to 
 escape, the keepers put them in solitary confinement, where 
 they are fed on bread and water. If a prisoner will not 
 obey the keeper or becomes viciously ugly, and if, in self- 
 defense, the keeper strikes him, the keeper must report so 
 doing to the commissioner of correction, and also to the 
 prison surgeon. The prisoner is put in solitary confinement, 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION 
 
 263 
 
 but the prison surgeon visits him every day while he is 
 there, to see that his health is not injured by it. While 
 prison life must be made hard, yet the prisoners are given 
 sufficient food and are kept warm during the cold weather. 
 
 FIG. 181. The City Prison, Manhattan 
 It stands on part of the site of Collect Pond 
 
 More than that, reading rooms and baths are provided for 
 them, and each Sunday religious services are held in the 
 chapels of the prisons and workhouses. When a prisoner 
 who has served a sentence of eleven months leaves the 
 
264 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 institution, he is given a new suit of clothing and an over- 
 coat of the value of eighteen dollars. A woman prisoner is 
 given a dress and coat of the same value. In addition, 
 they are each given five dollars. The state provides this 
 money for them in order that they may have something 
 
 to live upon until they can 
 find an honest means of 
 support. 
 
 Prison Regulations. At 
 Blackwell's Island peni- 
 tentiary and at Kings 
 County penitentiary, 
 where city prisoners are 
 also sent, both men and 
 women criminals are re- 
 ceived. The women have 
 separate prisons and are 
 in charge of prison 
 matrons. Like the men 
 prisoners, they are em- 
 ployed. There is a large 
 sewing room, and those 
 who can sew are engaged 
 there. Some work in the 
 
 FIG. 182. Another of the Old School 
 Buildings, showing Much Less Light 
 and Ventilation than the New Ones 
 
 laundries, others scrub 
 floors or help in the kitchens, and some are sent to work 
 in other penal institutions. They also make the clothing 
 used by all the prisoners and inmates of the workhouses. 
 They make the shrouds, sometimes as many as two thou- 
 sand a year, in which are buried the unknown dead of the 
 morgues. The men prisoners work as masons, plasterers, 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION 265 
 
 and carpenters on the buildings which the Department of 
 Correction and the Department of Public Charities erect or 
 repair. They build sea walls on the islands, work in the 
 shoe, carpenter, and tailor shops which are conducted in 
 connection with the places of confinement, and labor on 
 the penal farms. Although thousands are sentenced every 
 year, yet they are all kept busy. 
 
 The Reform Schools. But it is the treatment of child 
 prisoners which shows the greatest advance along humane 
 lines. Children are not criminals, although they may be 
 offenders against the law. The recognition of this truth 
 has brought about the establishment of the children's courts 
 and reform schools. The laws of New York State provide 
 that boys arrested between the ages of sixteen and twenty- 
 one years are to be sent to reform schools rather than to 
 prisons. New York City has a most excellent school of this 
 kind on Hart's Island. The building contains a large dor- 
 mitory, a schoolroom, and several bath rooms. As far as 
 possible a homelike atmosphere is given to the place, and 
 every effort is made to awaken a sense of honor among 
 the boys who are sent there. The Board of Education has 
 furnished the schoolroom with schoolroom furniture, books, 
 maps, and pictures of an educational character. Regular 
 class sessions are held, and when not in the schoolroom 
 the boys are employed in gardening and other occupations. 
 Every influence of the school is used in the endeavor to 
 awaken a sense of honor and to teach those who come there 
 to become good citizens. Erring girls who are arrested are 
 not assigned to institutions. Upon their arrest they are 
 taken in charge by the matrons of the city prisons, and 
 placed in private homes or in religious institutions. 
 
266 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. Places of confinement are necessary in order that crime 
 may be punished or lessened, and that criminals may be prevented from 
 doing further harm to the community. The Department of Correction 
 is one of the fifteen executive departments of the municipal govern- 
 ment. It is in charge of a commissioner of correction, who has a 
 general supervision of all work of the department. He appoints a 
 deputy commissioner and, subject to civil service regulations, all 
 other appointees of the office, which include the superintendents of 
 the penal institutions of the city and the wardens of the prisons. It 
 is his duty to see that all prisoners are treated humanely and that 
 children who are placed in the reform schools are given every oppor- 
 tunity to become good citizens. The commissioner has the super- 
 vision of the city prison and six other prisons in The Bronx and 
 Manhattan ; the penitentiary and workhouse on Blackwell's Island, 
 the branch workhouse on Riker's Island, and several other similar 
 institutions. The prisoners in these institutions are provided with the 
 necessities of life, attended by prison surgeons when ill, and must be 
 employed a certain length of time each day. Children are sent to reform 
 schools rather than to prisons, where they attend regular school classes 
 and are taught to become good citizens. 
 
FIG. 183. View of Fifth Avenue 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 THE LAW DEPARTMENT 
 
 Why the City of New York has a Law Department. To 
 
 understand why it is necessary for the City of New York 
 to have a Law Department in its municipal government, it 
 must be borne in mind that the city itself is a great corpora- 
 tion. It must also be remembered that just as an individual 
 may own property, so the city owns it. Large tracts of land 
 in the five boroughs belong to the corporation of the city. 
 The public parks, the docks and bridges, the public build- 
 ings belong to it, as do the public highways, streets, and 
 
 267 
 
268 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 many other things. The ownership of all this property has 
 made it necessary for the city to have some branch of the 
 city government wherein is vested the power to protect the 
 rights of this property. It is necessary to have some one 
 look after the city's interests and the laws which affect them. 
 In order also that the city, as a corporation, may keep within 
 the laws of the state and nation, and that its own laws and 
 regulations may not be infringed upon, the Law Depart- 
 ment was included in the municipal government of New 
 York City. 
 
 What constitutes the Law Department. The Law Depart- 
 ment of the old City of New York, that is, of the city as it 
 existed previous to the consolidation of the five boroughs, 
 was established more than fifty years ago. By that time 
 the city had acquired so much property, and with its 
 increased population had become involved in so many 
 legal transactions, that it was found necessary to appoint a 
 corporation counsel, that is, a lawyer whose duty it was to 
 have charge of those things. The office was a small one at 
 first, but its importance increased with the development of 
 the city. When on January i, 1898, the city of Brooklyn 
 and Long Island City, with large areas adjacent thereto, 
 and all of Staten Island were annexed to the old City of 
 New York, the powers and duties of the Law Department 
 were at once enlarged so as to cover the annexed territory. 
 The department then became one of the largest, if not the 
 largest, law office in the world, in the extent, variety, and 
 complexity of its legal business, as well as in the number 
 of people comprising the office force. 
 
 The Corporation Counsel. The charter details with much 
 care the functions of the Law Department. It establishes 
 
THE LAW DEPARTMENT 
 
 269 
 
 the main office of the department in the borough of Man- 
 hattan, with a branch office in each of the other boroughs. 
 It designates the chief lawyer, or the head of the depart- 
 ment, as the corporation counsel. He is appointed by the 
 mayor and is one of the three officers of the city who receives 
 an annual salary of fif- 
 teen thousand dollars. 
 
 It would require too 
 much space to describe 
 all of the powers and 
 duties of the corpora- 
 tion counsel, but briefly 
 outlined they include 
 the following. He can 
 appoint, and at pleas- 
 ure remove, as many 
 assistant counsels as 
 are necessary to dis- 
 charge the legal duties 
 of the department, as 
 well as all clerks and 
 other subordinates. He 
 is not only held respon- FlG " l84 ' The Brookl y n Terminal 
 
 sible for his own work and that of his assistants but for all 
 the transactions of the department. 
 
 By virtue of his commission the corporation counsel 
 becomes the attorney and counsel for the city, for the mayor, 
 for the Board of Aldermen, and for each and every officer, 
 board, and department of the municipality. They call upon 
 him when they need legal advice concerning the business of 
 their offices. If the mayor or any other of the city officials 
 
270 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 becomes involved in lawsuits in connection with their public 
 duties, he or one of his assistant counsels represents them 
 in court. Except in a few special cases no officer, board, or 
 department of the city can have any other attorney or coun- 
 sel in public matters. The corporation counsel has charge 
 of and conducts the legal proceedings necessary to open 
 and widen streets, and has power to acquire land for the 
 city by condemnation proceedings. He prepares all legal 
 papers, such as leases, deeds, contracts, and bonds, and 
 approves the forms of all such papers. He can bring 
 suits in any court to maintain or protect the city's rights, 
 interests, and revenues. 
 
 Bureau of Street Openings. The work of the Law Depart- 
 ment is divided among four bureaus. The first of these is 
 the Bureau of Street Openings. When it is recalled that the 
 public streets of New York City cover more than two thou- 
 sand miles, and that each year new streets are being opened 
 and laid out, as well as parks and reservations, it can easily 
 be understood why a Bureau of Street Openings is a neces- 
 sary division of the Law Department. It is such an impor- 
 tant division, in fact, that it is in charge of an assistant 
 corporation counsel, under whom is a large force of lawyers. 
 It has a principal office in the building occupied by the Law 
 Department in Manhattan, and there is also a branch bureau, 
 with a smaller office force, in the borough of Brooklyn. 
 
 The principal duty of this bureau is to acquire title to 
 the lands which the city needs for streets, public places, 
 and parks. All land is, of course, owned by some one, and 
 if it becomes necessary to use some of it for a street or 
 for a park, it can only be taken away from the owner 
 after paying him its value. It often involves an extensive 
 

 
 FIG. 185. One of the Business Centers of Lower Manhattan 
 271 
 
272 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 litigation to determine what the value of the land is, who 
 owns it, and to adjust the numerous legal complications 
 arising in such a situation. The process of acquiring the 
 land in this way is called the exercise of the right of emi- 
 nent domain ; that is, the right of the public to take away 
 from a private person his property, providing it pays him 
 the value. This value is ordinarily passed upon by three 
 commissioners appointed by the Supreme Court. The com- 
 missioners investigate the matter and report to the Supreme 
 Court what they think is the value of the land ; the court 
 passes upon their report, and if it confirms it, the city pays 
 the property holder the value fixed by the commissioners. 
 In the year 1903 the city acquired lands for streets which, 
 if laid out in a straight line, would extend over thirty-five 
 miles, and which cost almost nine million dollars. It is easy 
 to see how all this would require much litigation. 
 
 Bureau for Recovery of Penalties. Another bureau of 
 the Law Department is called the Bureau for Recovery 
 of Penalties. An assistant corporation counsel has charge of 
 it, with a large number of clerks and employees under his 
 supervision. Through this bureau the city protects the lives 
 and looks after the comfort of its citizens. The city has made 
 certain laws prohibiting the erection of buildings which are 
 in any way unsafe or unsanitary, and it has also many ordi- 
 nances, forbidding one citizen from infringing on the rights 
 of another. The direct object of the Bureau for Recovery 
 of Penalties is to collect penalties for the violation of any of 
 these laws or municipal ordinances. It brings action for such 
 recoveries in the name of the City of New York. These 
 actions are brought for numerous reasons, sometimes be- 
 cause theaters, hotels, lodging houses, and other buildings 
 
THE LAW DEPARTMENT 273 
 
 are unsafe, or because they are not provided with proper 
 protection against fire. Suits are often brought against indi- 
 viduals who obstruct the streets with displays of merchan- 
 dise, or who put illegal projections upon their houses, such 
 as building their porches too far over the sidewalk, or running 
 the eaves of their houses on to their neighbor's property, or 
 who offend in any way against municipal regulations. 
 
 Bureau for Collection of Arrears of Personal Taxes. 
 The valuation of the taxable real estate of the City of New 
 York is more than five billion dollars. This great amount 
 of property makes plenty of work for the Bureau for Collec- 
 tion of Arrears of Personal Taxes of the Law Department. 
 The duty of this bureau is to collect the neglected taxes 
 upon personal property. To understand this it must be 
 remembered that taxes are levied against two distinct kinds 
 of property, real property and personal property. In col- 
 lecting taxes against real property, or land, the city gen- 
 erally looks to the land itself for the collection of the tax, 
 and can sell the land if the tax is not paid. But in order 
 to collect taxes against personal property, it looks to the 
 individual owning the property. Such persons frequently 
 fail to pay their taxes, sometimes Because they are unable 
 to do so, sometimes because they simply desire to avoid 
 paying the money which is due, and sometimes because 
 they do not know that they have been taxed. The bureau 
 is in charge of an assistant corporation counsel who looks 
 after all cases of delinquent taxpayers. The assistant corpo- 
 ration counsel must give a large bond as a surety that he 
 turns over to the city treasury all the taxes which are col- 
 lected through him. In a recent year notices were sent to 
 twenty-six thousand persons who failed to pay their taxes. 
 
2/4 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Tenement House and Building Bureau Branch Office. Be- 
 sides the three bureaus just mentioned there are a number 
 of branch offices connected with the Law Department which 
 are in effect bureaus, although not legally so nor called by 
 that name. For instance, there is a branch office which deals 
 with many questions growing out of the laws relating to 
 tenement houses. These laws are enacted to protect people 
 who live in the tenements from unsanitary and unsafe con- 
 ditions. It has happened that as many as eight hundred 
 houses in one year have been condemned as unfit for human 
 habitation, and over two thousand violations of the law in 
 regard to such houses have been detected in the same length 
 of time. There are also many laws relating to buildings, 
 their manner of construction, and the duties of their owners. 
 This bureau has a superintendent of buildings, whose duty 
 it is to see that these laws are obeyed. Numerous disputes 
 arise as to what the meaning of the laws is, and as to 
 whether they have been violated. These disputes come to 
 the corporation counsel for settlement. 
 
 Questions which come before the Department because the 
 City is a Property Owner. While the corporation counsel 
 may be called upon to <deal with almost any kind of legal 
 complication, a large proportion of these complications 
 arise in dealing with certain well-defined subjects. For 
 instance, numerous disputes come to him on the subject 
 of taxation aside from that of the delinquent taxpayers. 
 The amount of property in New York City is enormous, 
 and a very large sum of money must be raised each year 
 by taxation upon it to meet the public expenses. Many 
 suits are brought into the courts by people who claim to 
 have been unjustly taxed. Again, the contracts into which 
 
THE LAW DEPARTMENT 275 
 
 the city enters are a fruitful source of litigation and of 
 requests for legal advice. The city enters into numerous 
 contracts with private individuals for constructing public 
 buildings, such as schoolhouses, fire-engine houses, court- 
 houses, police stations, and armories for the militia, for 
 building streets and sewers, for paving, and for the build- 
 ing of bridges and docks. If the private individuals who 
 
 FIG. 1 86. Public School No. 134, Brooklyn 
 
 take these contracts become dissatisfied with them, it often 
 follows that they enter into suits with the corporation. 
 These suits are tried by the Law Department. Moreover 
 the city is frequently sued for damages claimed to have 
 been received by people who have suffered injuries by fall- 
 ing, or in some other way, because it is claimed that the 
 city failed to keep the streets in a safe and proper condi- 
 tion for travel. Hundreds of claims of this character are 
 made in the course of a year ; many of them are tried in 
 court, and sometimes large sums of money are recovered 
 
2/6 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 from the city. Numerous questions of law, also, involving 
 the meaning and application of the constitution of the 
 state, and other laws, continually come before the Law 
 Department. 
 
 Suits involving the Civil Service. In recent years a large 
 amount of litigation arising from the civil service laws 
 
 FIG. 187. Capitol Building at Albany 
 
 has come before the Law Department. Many people bring 
 actions against the city because, as they claim, they have 
 been illegally removed from office in violation of the civil 
 service laws. They also claim that they should be rein- 
 stated and should receive salaries for the period during 
 which they were illegally kept out of their positions. Cases 
 of this sort occur frequently among the subordinate officers 
 
THE LAW DEPARTMENT 277 
 
 of the city, the clerks, and the school teachers. It quite 
 often happens that patrolmen are dismissed from the force 
 on the ground of improper conduct, and they bring claims 
 that they were unjustly dismissed and should be reinstated. 
 Similar cases occur among the firemen and even among 
 the great body of ordinary laborers whose appointment 
 and dismissal are regulated by special laws. It is the duty 
 of the corporation counsel to have these cases investigated. 
 
 Many other cases come before the Law Department, aris- 
 ing from the fact that the corporation is a property owner. 
 It owns steamboats, tugs, scows, and other water craft, 
 which make it a litigant in the admiralty courts. The ad- 
 miralty courts deal with all lawsuits relating to matters 
 occurring on the water. Moreover the city is involved in 
 expensive litigation relating to patents. In its many build- 
 ings and other structures it uses numerous patented articles, 
 and thus may be brought into lawsuits upon this subject. 
 
 It is also a very important part of the corporation 
 counsel's duties to watch proposed legislation at Albany 
 affecting the city's interests. While the legislature is in 
 session at least one assistant corporation counsel remains 
 at the capital, and his entire time is occupied in looking 
 after and advocating the measures introduced into the 
 legislature which are in the interest of the city, or in 
 opposing those which are against it. 
 
 Although this chapter by no means tells all that is done 
 by this great law office, the Law Department of the 
 municipal government, yet it will enable the pupil to 
 understand why the municipal government needs a Law 
 Department and why it is such an important part of the 
 administration of the city. 
 
278 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Summary. To understand the chapter we have just studied, we 
 must remember that the municipality is a great business corporation, 
 with the power to own or dispose of property, and that large tracts of 
 land and many other things in the city belong to the corporation. 
 For the purpose of protecting the legal interests of the municipality 
 the Law Department maintains one of the largest law offices in the 
 world. The corporation counsel is at its head and has full power 
 to appoint and dismiss all assistants. The department furnishes all 
 requisite legal advice to the municipal officers; prepares all legal doc- 
 uments ; brings suits in the name of the city, as well as defends those 
 brought against it ; and protects the welfare of the municipality not 
 only by enforcing its rights in the city and on its adjacent waters 
 but also by encouraging such state legislation as is favorable to the 
 city's interests, and by preventing the passage of laws tending to a 
 contrary result. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 
 
 Public Finances during Colonial Period. Within fifty years 
 after the Dutch landed on Manhattan Island the little colony 
 had become a hamlet of such commercial aspirations that it 
 appointed a chamberlain to take charge of its financial affairs. 
 He received all public moneys, and as the hamlet grew the 
 importance of his office increased. As treasurer of the com- 
 munity he had charge not only of the public moneys but 
 gradually of all business connected witSThe "finances. 
 
 Appointment of a Comptroller. Until the beginning of 
 the nineteenth century the chamberlain continued in con- 
 trol of public finances ; but about that time the man who 
 filled the office had difficulties with the Board of Alder- 
 men. No one knows how the trouble began, but the board 
 claimed that the chamberlain assumed too much authority 
 and responsibility, and that he did not account for the 
 moneys as fully as he should. To curtail his powers they 
 appointed a comptroller. This first comptroller was not 
 invested with much authority ; the Board of Aldermen 
 appointed him as a kind of financial agent for themselves, 
 but his principal duty was to see that the money collected 
 by the chamberlain was duly accounted for and paid over. 
 It is soberly recorded that he was instructed to u keep a set 
 of books by way of double entry " and directed to " have an 
 office and keep it open five hours each day except Sunday." 
 
 279 
 
FIG. 188. Wall Street: Trinity Church at its Head 
 280 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 281 
 
 When we think of the duties of the present comptroller of 
 the city, these instructions seem amusing by comparison. 
 
 Development of the City's Financial System. It was 
 almost the middle of the century before the Department 
 of Finance was established by statute. Up to that time 
 the chamberlain remained chief officer of the finances, but 
 in 1849 the state legislature created the Department of 
 Finance, at the head of which was placed the comptroller. 
 The department was then given a general oversight of the 
 finances of all the other administrative offices of the city. 
 It contained three bureaus, one of which was for the col- 
 lection of taxes. In 1857 another enactment provided that 
 the comptroller, as well as the mayor- and corporation 
 counsel, should be elected, and that the length of their 
 terms of office should be for four, two, and three years 
 respectively. At the same time the number of bureaus in 
 the Department of Finance was increased to five. 
 
 From 1869 to 1871 there was an infamously dishonest 
 administration of the city government, and it was then 
 determined to use a method by which the recurrence of 
 such dishonesty would be impossible. To accomplish this 
 the comptroller was made executive officer of all depart- 
 ments, and to him the expense accounts of each were 
 referred for inspection before payment. This greatly 
 broadened the work of his office, and it effectually accom- 
 plished the object for which it was inaugurated. 
 
 Other changes followed as the city grew. In 1873, when 
 the Reform Charter went into effect, the number of 
 bureaus in the Department of Finance was increased to 
 eight, and the office of comptroller again became appoint- 
 ive. This charter made the comptroller the financial as well 
 
282 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 as the executive officer of the city. By it the expense 
 accounts of each department are sent to him for inspection ; 
 he pays the bills and has supervision of contracts for 
 supplies. At one time the expenses of the Police Depart- 
 ment and of the Board of Education were not under his 
 control, but they came under it eventually. By the charter 
 of 1 898 the office was once more made elective, the number 
 of bureaus in the department was reduced to five, and the 
 fine system which is now in operation was introduced. 
 
 Why the Department of Finance is Important. There are 
 two reasons why the Department of Finance is such an 
 important part of the municipal corporation : first, because 
 of the importance of the city itself as the leading financial 
 center of the country; and second, because the department 
 supervises the accounts and pays the bills of all the other 
 administrative departments. 
 
 The Financial Importance of the City. The geographical 
 position of New York City makes it the natural gateway 
 for the commerce of the western world. It is only one 
 of the hundreds of cities scattered throughout the United 
 States, yet into its harbor alone come over half of all our 
 imports. Not only is it the receiving station for imports, 
 but it is also the distributing point for exports. In 1904 
 six hundred and fifty million dollars' worth of exports were 
 sent out from New York harbor. The business interests of 
 the city are almost numberless. Its factories make every 
 kind of commodity, and conduct a business of one billion 
 five hundred million dollars annually. They employ over 
 four hundred and seventy-five thousand workmen, whose 
 wages aggregate more than two hundred and fifty million dol- 
 lars every year. The mammoth mercantile establishments 
 
FIG. 189. Sky Scrapers on Park Row 
 
 The city post office is at the left of the picture 
 
 283 
 
284 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 supply the requirements of more than half the merchants 
 from Maine to California. In the commercial sky scrapers 
 of lower Manhattan a majority of the largest moneyed men 
 of the world have their business headquarters. In one of 
 them, on Park Row, there are more than six hundred offices, 
 the occupants of which represent a capital of over two 
 billion dollars. 
 
 Institutions which make the City Great. There are sev- 
 eral business organizations in the city whose operations 
 are world-wide in their influence, and as they are local in- 
 stitutions they are included in this chapter. The most 
 important is the Stock Exchange. 
 
 The Stock Exchange. It was organized one day in 1792, 
 when twenty-five brokers of the town met under the shade 
 of a large tree which stood on the site of the present 
 No. 60 Wall Street, and drew up an agreement regulating 
 the charge of commission and pledging themselves to give 
 preference to each other in their negotiations. Since then 
 it has been a growing power, until now it is the business 
 center of the commerce of the nation. It is a market for 
 the purchase and sale of public stock, bonds, and similar 
 securities. The general list of stocks and bonds dealt in 
 is called regularly, but there is also a free list of stocks 
 and other securities, called at the request of the members. 
 The scene on the floor is often one of intense excitement. 
 The most prominent of the stocks, bonds, or other securi- 
 ties, which have been listed by the Exchange, are repre- 
 sented by name upon iron standards numbered and placed 
 at equal distances apart about the floor. The various mem- 
 bers gather around the standards bearing the names of the 
 securities in which they are interested. They buy and sell 
 
FIG. 190. Broad Street, showing the Stock Exchange 
 285 
 
286 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 through brokers, who stand near the standards bearing the 
 names of the corporations they represent, and who call 
 out the bids, sale, or purchase. The back of the room is 
 filled with telephone booths for the use of members; and 
 on both sides there are numerous telegraph instruments at 
 which operators are sending and receiving reports to and 
 from all sections of the country. One of the greatest feats 
 of electricity is a little instrument which is used in connec- 
 tion with this and other exchanges. By a most ingenious 
 arrangement it registers, on what is called the " tape," the 
 stock prices as they are made on the floor of the exchanges, 
 and from all the markets of the world. All the great busi- 
 ness houses have these " tickers," as they are called. 
 
 A seat on the Stock Exchange is eagerly sought by 
 wealthy brokers, although the price is sometimes eighty 
 thousand dollars or more. If a member becomes insolvent, 
 his seat is sold for the benefit of his creditors. In case of 
 his death it is sold for his heirs, and in addition to that, 
 a gratuity fund is maintained by the Exchange, which pays 
 the heirs ten thousand dollars. There are usually about 
 fifteen hundred members. The building of the Exchange 
 is a magnificent ten-story structure of marble on Broad 
 Street ; its facade of Corinthian columns is among the 
 finest pieces of architecture in the city. 
 
 The Consolidated Exchange began operations as an off- 
 shoot of the Stock Exchange in 1875. It is a consolidation 
 of various boards dealing in oil, mining, and general securi- 
 ties, and does a large business. 
 
 The Chamber of Commerce is even older than the Stock 
 Exchange. As early as 1768, during the English adminis- 
 tration, a few merchants gathered in Fraunce's Tavern and 
 
288 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 formed an association which afterwards grew into the 
 Chamber of Commerce. Its objects are to promote and 
 encourage commerce, to support industry, and to procure 
 such laws and regulations as may be found necessary for 
 the benefit of trade. It also takes an active interest in 
 matters concerning the city. One of its features is a Court 
 .of Arbitration, by which differences between business men 
 are adjusted. Its meetings are held the first Tuesday of 
 each month in its princely building on Liberty Street. 
 Portraits of many of the old merchants and valuable com- 
 mercial statistics are kept here. 
 
 The Produce Exchange is also an organization of mer- 
 chants more than a century old. Its membership is limited 
 to three thousand. It is a place for the wholesale buying 
 and selling of agricultural products. The room in which the 
 members meet is so large it could easily accommodate all of 
 the membership. Through the center of it are long tables 
 containing samples of the produce dealt in. In the north- 
 east corner of the room is the oval " wheat pit/' where grain 
 is bought and sold. Long movable blackboards are hang- 
 ing on the wall near it. While the Exchange is open a man 
 stands before these boards and writes upon them the prices 
 of the produce as they are made on the floor, or as they 
 are received by telegraph from other centers. The business 
 transacted by the Exchange exceeds a billion dollars a year. 
 The building at the foot of Broadway, near Bowling Green, 
 is one of New York's most notable business structures. 
 
 The Maritime Exchange is an association of business 
 men which, according to its constitution, is to " acquire, 
 preserve, ' and disseminate valuable business information 
 and do such other proper and needful acts as will tend to 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 289 
 
 promote the maritime interest of the port of New York." 
 Its membership is limited to twelve hundred, and it occu- 
 pies a handsome six-story building. Reliable information 
 of the maritime trade is kept bulletined, as well as a record 
 of the movements of vessels, copies of manifests and clear- 
 ances, and other matters of interest to the members. It 
 makes the rules and regulations of the maritime trade of 
 New York harbor. It has an interesting museum, and also 
 a reading room where domestic and foreign newspapers, 
 other periodicals, and books of reference relating to mari- 
 time affairs are on file. 
 
 The New York Clearing House is an association of over 
 sixty New York banks, together with the Subtreasury 
 of the United States, and is the medium through which 
 these banks exchange the amount of checks and bills that 
 each holds against all the others. This exchange repre- 
 sents millions of dollars, yet the system is simple. Instead 
 of each bank sending individuals to collect its various 
 accounts with all the other banks in the Clearing House 
 Association, it sends a representative each morning at 
 ten o'clock to the Clearing House, where the representa- 
 tives of all the banks make their exchanges in the manner 
 described in the following paragraph. 
 
 The chamber in the Clearing House where the exchanges 
 are made is a large, handsome room on the top floor of the 
 building, and in it each bank in the association has a desk. 
 The clerks from the various banks having a membership 
 come into the chamber on the stroke of ten every week-day 
 morning, carrying valises which contain tabulated pack- 
 ages of all the checks and bills on the banks they repre- 
 sent, drawn during the day before by all the other banks 
 
290 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 FIG. 192. New York Clearing House 
 
 in the city holding a 
 membership in the or- 
 ganization. They take 
 seats at their individual 
 desks and, opening 
 their valises, take out 
 the packages therein 
 and exchange them 
 among the representa- 
 tives of the other 
 banks for those which 
 belong to the banks 
 they represent. Each 
 clerk notes upon a long 
 slip of paper lying on 
 his desk the amount of 
 the drafts and checks 
 he has exchanged. 
 When every clerk has 
 noted the drafts and 
 checks he has ex- 
 changed and the 
 amounts they repre- 
 sent, all these slips are 
 turned over to the man- 
 ager of the Clearing 
 House, who examines 
 them carefully and 
 strikes a balance, ascer- 
 taining the sum each 
 bank must pay in, or 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 291 
 
 which must be paid to it, to clear its account. Between the 
 hours of half past twelve and half past one in the afternoon 
 the debtor banks pay to the manager at the Clearing House 
 the balances against them, either in actual coin, legal-tender 
 notes, or in certificates agreed upon by the members. At 
 half past one the creditor banks send their clerks and 
 
 FIG. 193. The United States Treasury at Washington 
 Where the business connected with the finances of the government is transacted 
 
 receive from the manager the respective balances due to 
 them. Thus millions of dollars often pass through the Clear- 
 ing House in one day. 
 
 The Clearing House has been in existence fifty years, 
 and the business it has transacted runs up into trillions 
 of dollars. The building it occupies is a marble structure 
 in the Italian Renaissance style, with graceful Corinthian 
 pillars adorning the front, and surmounting them is an 
 entablature of the arms of the city. 
 
 Department of Finance. Aside from these wonderful 
 money-making enterprises and corporations of business 
 firms, the municipal government itself spends unparalleled 
 sums. You will recall that the Annual Budget is over one 
 
2Q2 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 hundred million dollars. These are the things which make 
 the Department of Finance such an important part of the 
 municipal government. The charter of 1901 declares that 
 the " Department of Finance shall have control of all 
 the fiscal concerns of the corporation," meaning that the 
 department shall control the money belonging to the city. 
 It also prescribes the form in which the money is to be 
 kept, and authorizes the department to examine and, if 
 necessary, to revise all the accounts of the other depart- 
 ments ; it also provides that nearly all the payments which 
 the city makes must be on vouchers filed in the comp- 
 troller's office by means of warrants drawn on the cham- 
 berlain by the comptroller and countersigned by the mayor. 
 These vouchers are legal papers which show that the 
 accounts are true ; the warrants are other legal papers 
 authorizing the chamberlain to pay the money. This is 
 one of the ways in which the city's money is protected 
 from illegal use. The department collects certain state 
 taxes and receives the money from all city taxes. It pro- 
 vides for the state militia and pays the state officers, such 
 as judges of the state courts, who perform their duties 
 within the city limits. It either pays the salaries of city 
 employees or regulates how they shall be paid. 
 
 The Comptroller. The head of the department, the 
 comptroller, is in many respects the most important official 
 of the city. He is elected by the electors of the entire 
 city at a salary of fifteen thousand dollars annually. He 
 appoints almost all his subordinates except the chamber- 
 lain, collects a large share of the city's funds through the 
 Bureau for the Collection of Assessments and Arrears, and 
 makes all disbursements. He designates the form of all 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 293 
 
 bonds and stocks which are issued under the common seal 
 of the city, and, with the mayor, signs them. He has the 
 power to sell or lease, after public advertisement, certain 
 city property, such as unused schoolhouses and other pub- 
 lic buildings. He settles and adjusts all claims wherein 
 the city is either debtor or creditor. He publishes yearly a 
 detailed statement of the city's financial condition. He is 
 the dispensing agent of the money which the city expends 
 annually on its many charities. He is also a member of all 
 the principal executive boards in the city. 
 
 Sinking Fund. One of the most important duties of 
 the comptroller is in connection with the sinking fund. 
 Dr. James H. Canfield, the able librarian of the Columbia 
 Library, gives the following terse definition of a sinking fund. 
 " Whenever the state (or city) incurs a debt a tax is 
 levied which will pay the interest each year, and also raise 
 each year an amount which, when laid by, will equal the 
 principal when the latter comes due." 
 
 The sinking fund of New York City was started when 
 the city, under the English administration, went into debt 
 to build the city hall in 1700. Since then it has always 
 had a sinking fund with several subdivisions. It is now a 
 vast sum of money which the corporation has in certain 
 stocks, bonds, and coin, and to which it is adding all the 
 time from the interest on other stocks and bonds, and by 
 rents from its many franchises. Moneys received from 
 franchises, from interest on sinking fund investments, 
 Croton water rents, and other miscellaneous revenues are 
 paid into the sinking fund of New York City. From the 
 sinking fund the city redeems, by degrees, the principal 
 of its enormous public debt. At the end of the fiscal year 
 
294 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 in 1904 the gross funded debt of the city was five hun- 
 dred and fifty-eight millions, two hundred and sixty-five 
 thousand, five hundred and seventeen dollars. But as great 
 as this amount is, it simply indicates the improvements 
 which have been made and are being made in the city; 
 and in the interest accruing to it, it holds its ultimate 
 liquidation. The Commissioners of the Sinking Fund, who 
 have charge of it, are the comptroller, the mayor, the 
 chamberlain, the president of the Board of Aldermen, and 
 the chairman of its finance committee. 
 
 Bureaus of the Finance Department. The work of the 
 department is divided among five bureaus. The first, under 
 the Collector of City Revenue and Superintendent of Mar- 
 kets, supervises all matters concerning the collection of the 
 money which comes to the city from rents, from the interest 
 on its bonds and mortgages, and from the sale of property. 
 The second bureau, under the Receiver of Taxes, receives all 
 money collected from taxes. The third bureau, under the 
 Collector of Assessments and Arrears, collects the assess- 
 ments, taxes, and water rents which are in arrears. The Re- 
 ceiver of Assessments and Arrears and the Receiver of Taxes 
 each give a bond of twenty-five thousand dollars, and the 
 deputies whom they appoint are also bonded for faithful per- 
 formance of duty. The fourth bureau, under the Auditors of 
 Accounts, audits the accounts of all the departments. The 
 fifth bureau receives and pays out all moneys for the city. 
 
 The Chamberlain. The chamberlain is the chief officer 
 of the fifth bureau. He ranks next to the comptroller in 
 influence and power. He is appointed by the mayor at a 
 salary of twelve thousand dollars, with four securities. He 
 receives all money paid into the city treasury. He appoints 
 
THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE 
 
 295 
 
 the deputy chamber- 
 lain and all the neces- 
 sary assistants. With 
 the mayor and comp- 
 troller he selects the 
 banks in which the 
 city money is depos- 
 ited. They cannot 
 deposit in any one 
 bank a sum of money 
 greater than half the 
 amount of the capital 
 stock owned by the 
 bank. The chamber- 
 lain makes a report 
 weekly to the mayor 
 and comptroller re- 
 garding the money in 
 the city treasury. On 
 the first Tuesday of 
 each month he pre- 
 sents his bank book 
 to the comptroller for 
 inspection. 
 
 Bureau Divisions. 
 To facilitate the 
 work of the depart- 
 ment the bureaus are 
 separated into many 
 divisions ; each one 
 is an important part 
 
 FIG. 194. Statue of Nathan Hale in 
 City Hall Park 
 
296 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of the whole. The bookkeeping division, to which much of 
 the success of the department is due, keeps its enormous 
 and intricate set of books so accurately that it is possible for 
 the comptroller to know on any day the exact financial con- 
 dition of each bureau. There is a stock and bond division, 
 in which all the business in connection with the city secu- 
 rities is transacted ; a law and adjustment division, in the 
 auditing bureaus ; an investigation division ; and one of 
 engineering. There is a division of municipal accounts 
 and statistics, another for assessment of water rents, the 
 paymaster's division, and others. The Department of Fi- 
 nance is one of the largest business agencies in the world. 
 
 Summary. From the time New Amsterdam received municipal 
 privileges, in 1653, until the beginning of the nineteenth century, the 
 chamberlain controlled the finances of the city. The first comptroller 
 was then appointed. Public finances were in his charge until 1849, 
 when the Department of Finance was established. The comptroller 
 was placed at its head. The department is empowered with a general 
 oversight of the finances of all the other administrative departments 
 of the city. The department is divided into five bureaus and many 
 subdivisions. The chamberlain ranks next the comptroller in power 
 and influence. A brief description is given of certain financial insti- 
 tutions which help make the greatness of the city. 
 
CHAPTER XXV 
 
 THE DEPARTMENT OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS 
 
 What is Taxation ? In large communities there are tracts 
 of land and fine buildings which do not belong to any 
 one individual. Parks, schoolhouses, municipal buildings, 
 libraries, certain franchises, engines which dash through 
 the streets when a building is burning, hospitals which 
 open their doors to the needy, streets which are paved and 
 kept in repair, these do not belong to private individuals ; 
 they are city property. In a city there are many things 
 also which are done for the citizens as a whole. Salaries of 
 school-teachers, public officials, patrolmen, and firemen are 
 not paid by any one individual or society. These people are 
 employees of the municipal government, and money paid to 
 them comes from the public treasury. 
 
 The city is a public corporation and as such has two 
 sides. First, it is a governmental subdivision of the state. 
 In that sense its citizens look to its local administration for 
 -means to protect life and property. Second, it is a business 
 corporation, and as such owns stocks, although all of them 
 are not the kind which are bought and sold on Exchange. 
 Its wide, well-kept streets, its beautiful parks, its handsome 
 public buildings, its docks and ferries, all of these, and 
 many other things, are a part of the stocks which make the 
 city corporation valuable. Every citizen is a shareholder in 
 these stocks, and in other kinds also owned by the city. 
 As a business corporation the city is engaged in many 
 
 297 
 
298 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 enterprises. It constructs bridges and waterworks, paves 
 streets, cleans them, and puts in sewers ; it invests mil- 
 lions of dollars in its public buildings, drives, and parks. 
 These are more of the city's stocks, and the citizen is a 
 shareholder in all these vast enterprises, as well as in the 
 property which the city owns. He is interested in them 
 just as a stockholder is interested in a private company in 
 which he has shares. Its losses are an injury to him, its 
 gains a benefit. As a shareholder he helps to maintain 
 these institutions and to support these enterprises. " Share- 
 holder " in this case is the other word for " taxpayer," as the 
 money which the citizen puts into these things is the city 
 tax. You can thus see that taxes are that part of a man's 
 property which he pays for public purposes. 
 
 Why we are Taxed. If you consider, you will see why 
 every citizen should be a shareholder, or taxpayer, in the 
 corporation. How otherwise could the public expenses be 
 met or city enterprises be carried on ? The strength of 
 every government depends upon its power of taxation. 
 The weakest time in our history as a nation, and that which 
 was fraught with greatest danger to it as a republic, was 
 just after the Revolution, when the Continental Congress 
 had neither the authority nor the power to raise money in 
 this way. It is every citizen's duty to help pay the city 
 expenses and to help carry on the city's undertakings. 
 When a city is well governed, money so paid into its 
 treasury more than returns an equivalent in the safety, 
 comfort, advantages, and happiness accruing to its citizens. 
 Under our admirable form of government the people who 
 pay taxes decide what they are to be, and usually the rate 
 of taxation is fair and equitable. The rich man pays largely, 
 
DEPARTMENT OF TAXES. AND ASSESSMENTS 299 
 
 as he should do, and the man with a small amount of 
 property pays in proportion. When people do not own 
 their own homes, but rent them, they pay taxes in their 
 rent, for the owners of the houses make the rent sufficiently 
 high to cover the tax. 
 
 Taxable Property of the City. When the city was enlarged 
 to include the five boroughs it broadened its area to three 
 hundred and twenty-seven square miles, uniting ninety cities, 
 towns, and hamlets. So much territory was included that, 
 were it possible to transport them, all the European capitals 
 combined might be placed within the present limits of New 
 York City. It has over twelve hundred miles of street rail- 
 ways, while its streets themselves cover over two thousand 
 miles. By the consolidation the cost of the local govern- 
 ment was increased fifteen millions annually. The Expense 
 Budget became larger than that of either Paris or London, 
 and the yearly expenditures since then have been as great 
 as the annual expenses of the six largest states of the Union 
 combined. The city pays a state tax of over seven million 
 dollars yearly. The assessed valuation of its taxable real 
 estate is over five billion dollars, while there is over one 
 billion and thirty-five million dollars' worth of other real 
 estate which is exempt from taxation. 
 
 Corporation Property. In addition to the taxable property 
 the city is unusually fortunate in the amount of corporate 
 property which it owns. Even in Dutch colonial days pro- 
 vision was made for municipal ownership. " The Commons " 
 covered several acres in the neighborhood of the present 
 City Hall Park. From the time of the establishment of the 
 first ferry on the East River the ferries have been a city 
 franchise. The Montgomerie Charter enriched the little 
 
300 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 hamlet and laid the foundation for much of its future 
 wealth. By its provisions the city received its municipal 
 buildings, such as the city hall, courthouses and jails, fire 
 and market houses, magazines and powder houses ; " the 
 great dock with the new crane and wharf, and the common 
 
 sewer leading through the 
 great dock " ; "the ferries 
 on both sides of East 
 River and all other ferries 
 now and hereafter to be 
 erected." With these it 
 received immense tracts 
 of land both near and 
 under water. These har- 
 bor land grants, ferriages, 
 and dock privileges have 
 always been prolific 
 sources of revenue. Since 
 park improvements began 
 about a century ago, the 
 city has laid out more than 
 seven thousand acres of 
 parks, parkways, and 
 drives, which are now 
 valued at three hundred million dollars. 
 
 Much of the princely gift of land which came with the 
 Montgomerie Charter, together with that which the city 
 received in 1828 (the water front on the North River ex- 
 tending to Spuyten Duyvil), was afterwards granted away 
 in franchises and leases. For many years the city has 
 been taking these lands back by condemnation proceedings, 
 
 FIG. 195. Chamber of Commerce 
 
DEPARTMENT OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS 301 
 
 as we learned in a previous chapter ; but to do this it 
 has had to pay, and is still paying, large sums of money. 
 This is unfortunate, and is a striking example of the folly a 
 city commits when it grants franchises without a full return. 
 
 Early Taxation. Questions of how much the taxes shall 
 be and who shall assess them have always been vital ones 
 to the American people. These questions caused constant 
 friction between the Dutch colonists and the direcktors- 
 general of the West India Company; they were the para- 
 mount grievance under the English governors, and were the 
 compelling cause of the Revolution. After the close of the 
 war, when the city had become the leading commercial cen- 
 ter of the young republic, the management of taxation was 
 an important part of the city government. As in colonial 
 days, collectors of taxes were appointed from each ward. 
 They had power to assess property as well as to collect taxes. 
 
 By the revision of the laws in 1813 the collectors were 
 elected, but they made their returns from the collections to 
 the city chamberlain, as they had been doing. This system 
 prevailed until, by the law of 1843, the collectors were dis- 
 continued and an office for the collection of taxes was estab- 
 lished as a branch of the finance department. A Receiver 
 of Taxes was appointed, who had charge of the office, with 
 a deputy and "a suitable number of clerks." Although 
 the law of 1843 refers in the above manner to the Depart- 
 ment of Finance, it was not until six years later that it 
 was established by statute. One section of the law reads : 
 " There shall be a bureau of this department for the collec- 
 tion of revenues accruing from taxes. The chief officer 
 thereof shall be called the ' Receiver of Taxes,' who shall 
 nominate and, with the advice and consent of the Board 
 
302 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of Aldermen, appoint so many clerks as shall be authorized 
 by the Common Council." The Bureau of Taxes, so estab- 
 lished, remained a part of the Department of Finance until the 
 charter of 1898, when it was made an independent bureau 
 under the title Department of Taxes and Assessments. 
 
 The Department of Taxes and Assessments. In the 
 revisions of the charter, made in 1901, this branch of the 
 
 FIG. 196. The New Custom House 
 
 city government was given entire charge of the assessment 
 of all taxable property. At the head of the department is 
 the Board of Taxes and Assessments, consisting of seven 
 commissioners appointed by the mayor. The president of 
 the board receives an annual salary of eight thousand dol- 
 lars ; each other commissioner has a salary of seven thousand 
 dollars. At least one of the commissioners must be learned 
 in law, in order that any legal questions arising at the meet- 
 ings of the board may be referred to him. The main office 
 of the department is in Manhattan. 
 
DEPARTMENT OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS 303 
 
 Duties and Powers. The board supervises the work of 
 the department and appoints the subordinate officials, the 
 most important of whom are the forty-five deputy tax com- 
 missioners. It also names a certified surveyor of the city, 
 with a large number of assistants, to make the necessary 
 surveys and to prepare the department maps, as well as 
 to see that they are kept accurate. These maps divide 
 the city into sections for taxation, as can be seen by the 
 
 FIG. 197. Public School No. 188, Manhattan 
 
 illustration on page 307. Each section comprises a certain 
 number of city blocks, upon which each piece of property 
 is indicated by street and number. With this information, 
 accompanied by the names of the owners, surveyors prepare 
 the annual list. This list is published in the City Record, 
 where any citizen may inspect it. Every year in the bor- 
 ough offices of the department, under the supervision of 
 the tax board, a new set of books is made, in which the 
 annual record of the assessed valuation of real and personal 
 properties is kept. These books include a record of the prop- 
 erty of the trusts, stock companies, corporations, banks, and 
 
304 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 like institutions in the city, besides that of the private tax- 
 payers. These enormous volumes contain records of over 
 five hundred and fifty thousand pieces of property, and 
 when completed are kept in the different offices under the 
 care of the chief deputies of real estate. The work of tab- 
 ulating them is so extensive that it takes a large force of 
 clerks. The tax rolls are made from the records in these 
 books, and the records are made from the reports of the 
 deputy commissioners, who examine all property. 
 
 Work of Deputy Commissioners. The deputy commis- 
 sioners commence the work of assessment on the first 
 Tuesday in September. They are each assigned a district 
 in which they make a personal examination of all property. 
 These districts are a part of the territory described as sec- 
 tions on the department maps. By inquiry and by their 
 own judgment the men decide the price at which the prop- 
 erty would sell under ordinary circumstances. Each deputy 
 must keep a field book in which he enters his information. 
 When he has gone over all his district and has examined 
 and reported the real and personal property, he writes up a 
 record book for the Board of Taxes and Assessments. Each 
 deputy makes a sworn statement that the record in his 
 books is accurate to the best of his knowledge. From these 
 reports are made the records which are kept in the great 
 books just described. 
 
 l*ax Rolls. On the first Monday in April, as it is tech- 
 nically expressed in the charter, the Board of Tax Commis- 
 sioners begin to correct the valuations which have been 
 made from these great books by the deputies of real estate, 
 and from their report are made up the tax rolls of the city. 
 They must finish the rolls, of which there are more than 
 
DEPARTMENT OF TAXES AND ASSESSMENTS 305 
 
 two hundred and fifty, by the first Monday of July, and 
 send them to the Board of Aldermen. Before this date the 
 comptroller prepares, from the books of his office, a state- 
 ment giving the amount of money in the city treasury, the 
 money that will accrue to it from the various bonded invest- 
 ments which are in its Sinking Fund, and the sum that the 
 city must raise by taxation to meet expenses for the year. 
 The Board of Aldermen must take this statement of the 
 comptroller and the tax rolls which the Board of Taxes 
 and Assessments have sent them, and from these fix the 
 rate of taxation. 
 
 Rate of Taxation. Each year the department adopts 
 improvements. For a long time the rate of taxation in the 
 city was very low, and was the subject of criticism. Prop- 
 erty was taxed at about one half its value, which greatly 
 reduced the borrowing capacity of the city, as the laws of 
 the state prohibit any city from borrowing more than ten 
 per cent of the value of its real estate. While the assessed 
 valuation was so low a percentage of real value, the 
 city was greatly hampered by this law. In 1903 a wise 
 change was introduced. At that time the corporation was 
 making many improvements, such as building the Rapid 
 Transit Subway and extending the parks. These things 
 required more money than was available. The best way to 
 get the needed money was to raise the rate of assessment 
 to its proper standard. At the suggestion of the mayor, 
 the tax commissioners did this, thus greatly increasing the 
 borrowing capacity of the city. Within a year after the 
 assessment on real estate was placed at market value 
 the borrowing capacity of the city was increased over one 
 hundred million dollars. 
 
306 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Taxpayers* Privileges. The books in which the tax 
 records are kept are open for inspection in the offices of 
 the department in the various boroughs from the first Mon- 
 day in January to the first day of the following April. If 
 any one thinks his assessment is wrong, he may, while the 
 books are open, go to the tax office in his borough and 
 declare to the commissioner that the tax is too heavy. If 
 it concerns the applicant's personal property, he swears that 
 the tax is too heavy, declaring at the same time the amount 
 it should be. Upon this application the commissioner usually 
 passes upon the justness of the assessment. If it is a corpo- 
 ration which is dissatisfied with the assessment, the Board 
 of Taxes and Assessments holds a formal meeting to hear 
 the complaint and personally examine the witnesses. But 
 after the rolls are published no change can be made. 
 
 Payment of Taxes. On or before September 1 5 the cor- 
 rected tax rolls are sent to the Receiver of Taxes. The 
 city clerk prepares a warrant in which he swears that the 
 rolls are correct. This warrant is signed by the presi- 
 dent of the Board of Aldermen and is also countersigned 
 by the city clerk. It authorizes the Receiver of Taxes to 
 collect the specified sum opposite each name. The tax 
 books for the payment of taxes are opened on the first 
 Monday in October, in the Receiver's office. Every citizen 
 who pays his taxes between that day and November I is 
 allowed a discount at the rate of six per cent. If he does not 
 pay them by December i, one per cent is added. If they are 
 not paid by January i, seven per cent is charged from the 
 first day of October, and the tax bill becomes a lien on his 
 property. Should the tax remain unpaid at the end of three 
 years, the property may be sold to satisfy the lien. Even 
 
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308 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 then the city is very lenient to the delinquent taxpayer. 
 Although his property is sold, the sale holds for only a term 
 of years, during which time the original owner may buy it 
 back if he desires. There is a great deal of property through- 
 out the city which the municipal government exempts from 
 taxation, such as churches, public school buildings, univer- 
 sities, colleges, free hospitals, and the property of certain 
 other charitable institutions. 
 
 Summary. New York City is a business corporation owning 
 much property and engaged in many business enterprises. The citi- 
 zens are shareholders helping to maintain and support it by paying 
 taxes. There is no taxation upon corporate property. Property which 
 once belonged to the city was granted away in franchises, and must 
 now be bought back. The management of taxation is an important 
 part of the city government. During colonial days tax assessment 
 and collection was in charge of collectors. In 1 843 these collectors 
 were discontinued, and an office for the collection of taxes was made a 
 division of the Department of Finance. The charter of 1898 made this 
 division one of the fifteen administrative departments of the city gov- 
 ernment. It is under the control of seven commissioners, who com- 
 prise the Board of Taxes and Assessments, and who have charge of 
 the assessment of property and the collection of taxes. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF 
 NEW YORK 
 
 What is the Civil Service Law? The term " civil service" 
 refers to employment in the federal, state, or city govern- 
 ment. In 1883 the Congress of the United States passed 
 an enactment called the Civil Service Law. This law made 
 all appointments and promotions in the federal service de- 
 pendent upon competitive examination. It authorized the 
 President to appoint three men, called Civil Service Commis- 
 sioners, who should constitute a Civil Service Commission. 
 This commission was given full power to put into execution 
 the provisions of the new law. It established headquarters 
 at Washington, with branch offices in many parts of the 
 country. Since that time all applicants for federal positions 
 have had to appear before this commission, or one of its 
 branches, and take a competitive examination. In almost 
 every case these examinations are of an educational char- 
 acter. Every applicant must pass them creditably before 
 he is eligible to any appointment in the federal government. 
 
 The Necessity for the Civil Service Law. Before the enact- 
 ment of the law public opinion had demanded that there 
 should be some legislation on the subject of civil service. 
 In the early days of our republic the federal positions were 
 filled by presidential appointment. When they were thus 
 made they were held as long as the appointee performed 
 his duty faithfully. This was as it should be. But when 
 
 39 
 
310 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 General Jackson became the chief executive he conceived 
 the idea that his predecessor's administration had been 
 dishonest; and Sumner, in his Life of Jackson, says that 
 
 Jackson during the 
 first year of his presi- 
 dency turned out 
 more than two thou- 
 sand federal officers, 
 to place men of his 
 own party in their 
 stead. For more than 
 fifty years afterwards 
 succeeding Presi- 
 dents followed Jack- 
 son's example. The 
 result was that gov- 
 ernment positions 
 were promised as in- 
 ducements for parti- 
 san service. This 
 custom was un- 
 Anierican and was 
 demoralizing to good 
 service and pure gov- 
 ernment. 
 
 How New York State came to adopt the Civil Service Law, 
 and the Need for it in the City. Just as national politics had 
 become corrupt through the abuse of patronage, so the civil 
 service of cities degenerated into bribery and a scramble 
 for the municipal offices. Some of the men who wanted the 
 higher civic positions would promise all the minor ones to 
 
 FIG. 199. Civil Service Building 
 
THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION 311 
 
 whoever would bring them the most votes. This went on 
 to such an extent that many good citizens became disgusted 
 and would have nothing to do with politics, which was, 
 of course, unwise in the good citizens and most unfortunate 
 for the city. In New York City this was lamentably true. 
 Consequently, when the national government enacted the 
 Civil Service Law the New York state legislature adopted 
 a similar one, thereby becoming one of the first states of 
 
 FIG. 200. New York Public Library, Fifth Avenue and 
 Forty-second Street 
 
 the Union to appoint a permanent civil service commis- 
 sion. This commission had its headquarters at Albany, 
 under three commissioners, and as rapidly as possible es- 
 tablished branch commissions in the cities throughout the 
 state. The duty of the commission is to prepare and con- 
 duct competitive examinations of all applicants for employ- 
 ment in the public service of the state. It also established 
 a similar commission in each city, to conduct competitive 
 examinations of all applicants for municipal offices. This 
 was a great reform and has resulted most beneficially for 
 the public service. By making applicants compete in ex- 
 aminations it fills the public positions on a basis of merit, 
 and, in a measure at least, sees that the persons who gain 
 appointments are fitted to occupy them. 
 
312 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 New York City's Civil Service Commission. By the pro- 
 vision of the state enactment, nearly all civil positions in the 
 cities are under the Civil Service Law. In the City of New 
 York the Civil Service Commission is an important part of 
 the municipal government, for there are thousands of posi- 
 tions which come under this law. The commission is com- 
 posed of six professional or business men who are appointed 
 by the mayor, the majority of whom are of the dominating 
 political party. With the exception of the president of the 
 board, who has charge of the headquarters of the commis- 
 sion at No. 6 1 Elm Street, and who manages its affairs, 
 they serve without salary. Besides the president there 
 is a secretary to the commission, one assistant secretary, 
 and a large number of clerks, as well as a board of exam- 
 iners consisting of a chief examiner and some twenty other 
 examiners. 
 
 The City's Civil Service Law. This law requires : ( i ) that 
 all appointments, promotions, or selections for employment 
 shall be made according to the merit and fitness of the 
 candidate ; (2) that all city employees must be appointed 
 according to civil service rules, and cannot change their 
 official status, except according to the civil service rules; 
 (3) that political influence must not be used to secure ap- 
 pointments ; (4) that no one in office must influence a can- 
 didate politically, and no discrimination must be used against 
 him for his political views; (5) that every employee must 
 perform the duties for which he was appointed. 
 
 This law virtually covers the entire field of city employees. 
 It divides them into four classes: (i) the Exempt Class^ 
 (2) the Competitive Class, (3) the Non-Competitive Class, 
 and (4) the Labor Class. 
 
THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION 
 
 313 
 
 The Exempt 
 Class is made up of 
 those who, at the 
 discretion of the ap- 
 pointing officer, are 
 made to succeed to 
 positions without an 
 examination. This 
 class includes the 
 secretaries of many 
 of the commissions 
 and boards of the 
 various city depart- 
 ments. It includes 
 also the deputy 
 commissioners, su- 
 perintendents, and 
 certain clerks. 
 
 The Competitive 
 Class, those who 
 take the competi- 
 tive examinations, 
 includes the great 
 majority of all who 
 apply for civil posi- 
 tions, clerks, ex- 
 aminers, inspec- 
 tors, engineers, the 
 members of the 
 Police and Fire 
 Departments. 
 
3 14 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 The Non- Competitive Class is composed of those who 
 apply for minor positions in the city institutions, and which 
 it is not practicable to fill from the Competitive Class. In 
 this class are superintendents of the New York Training 
 School for Nurses, hospital helpers, apothecaries, waiters, 
 deck hands and mates, and a few others. 
 
 The Labor Class includes all those not obliged to take 
 an educational competitive examination. They do, how- 
 ever, undergo a physical examination. The physicians of 
 the bureau examine the candidates for these places with 
 particular reference to their strength or powers of endur- 
 ance for the duties they will have to perform. They are 
 examined rigidly as to their habits in the use of stimulants 
 and narcotics, and also as to their skill in the use of the 
 tools of their trade. 
 
 The Examiners. The commission has a large corps of 
 examiners who conduct the civil service examinations. 
 With those who examine applicants in clerical studies 
 there are a number of medical and engineering examiners, 
 an expert architect, and a civil engineer, besides specialists 
 in other trades and professions. An interesting fact about 
 these examiners is that each and every one of them is put 
 through a rigid examination himself before he can assume 
 his duties as an examiner. 
 
 How the Examinations are Conducted. In the first place, 
 a person who wishes a position within the gift of the city 
 must apply to the commission for an application blank of 
 such position. On the blank which is given him he states 
 his name, age, experience, and other matters relating to 
 his general character and fitness for the particular posi- 
 tion which he desires. With this he must furnish a voucher 
 
315 
 
316 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 containing four certificates as to the truthfulness of what 
 he has written. These papers are filed with the commis- 
 sion. When an examination is to be held for the position 
 for which he has made application, it is advertised in the 
 daily papers and he is notified to appear before the exam- 
 iners on a certain date. Examinations for the civil service 
 
 positions are held at 
 stated times, and spe- 
 cial examinations are 
 also called when vacan- 
 cies occur in any of the 
 divisions of the admin- 
 istrative departments of 
 the municipal govern- 
 ment. The greatest 
 care is taken to make 
 these examinations prac- 
 tical. The questions are 
 prepared by a chief ex- 
 aminer, with a large 
 corps of assistants. Be- 
 fore such examinations 
 the list of questions to be used is inspected by the chief 
 examiner with particular reference as to their practicality. 
 These examinations have the rudimentary educational 
 studies as a general basis ; but from a candidate who is 
 applying for a clerkship where it will be necessary for him 
 to make an abstract of letters, or to keep files of documents, 
 or to prepare an abstract of some paper, showing how it is to 
 be folded and filed, this work is required. Or, if it will be 
 necessary, in the position for which he is applying, for the 
 
 FIG. 203. Basket Making as taught in a 
 Summer School 
 
THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION 
 
 317 
 
 applicant to add long columns of figures, he is tested as 
 to his ability in this particular line of work. If he is to be 
 a bookkeeper, he is examined in bookkeeping. This is an 
 illustration of the manner in which the examinations are 
 made practical. 
 
 Special Examinations. Many of the city positions require 
 specialists along certain lines, and the applicants for such 
 
 FIG. 204. Public School No. 124, Brooklyn 
 
 positions are given special examinations. When one of the 
 parks needs a landscape gardener some eminent floricul- 
 turist is asked to come to the civil service headquarters 
 and examine the candidates. He makes his examina- 
 tion along the line of duties which the position involves. 
 Candidates who are masons and plumbers by trade, and 
 who are applying for such positions, are examined at the 
 trades schools under the eye of a competent foreman, who 
 
318 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 requires them to perform some piece of work of their own 
 trade. A policeman or a fireman, who is to be promoted, 
 is asked to explain what he would do in case of great 
 riots or fires. An applicant for the place of inspector of 
 foods, fuels, lamps, or gas, or for similar positions, is thor- 
 oughly tested as to his knowledge of the duties he wishes 
 to assume. 
 
 How 'Appointments are Made. After the applicant has 
 taken the examination all his papers are read carefully by 
 two different examiners and are graded by the average 
 results of the two. The names of those who have passed 
 successfully are placed on what is called the eligible list, 
 ranking according to their examination marks. When a 
 vacancy occurs in any department of the city government 
 the three highest names are selected from the list of those 
 who have passed the examination required for such an 
 appointment, and sent to the appointing officer of the de- 
 partment desiring the clerk. From this list the successful 
 candidate is selected. Even with this careful preliminary 
 work all appointments are made on probation ; that is, if the 
 appointee does not prove himself a satisfactory employee, he 
 may, within the probationary period, be dropped from the 
 rolls. If any employee of the city government is discharged 
 in a manner which he considers unfair, upon his request 
 the Civil Service Commission will investigate his case. All 
 old soldiers are given preference when appointments are 
 made. Civil service is an incentive to all boys and girls 
 to secure as good an education as possible, for the better 
 they are educated the better will be their opportunity 
 to succeed in life. 
 
THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION 319 
 
 Summary. In 1 883 Congress passed the Civil Service, Law, by which 
 federal positions are filled according to merit. The New York state 
 legislature soon followed the example of the United States government, 
 and appointed a permanent state Civil Service Commission, with head- 
 quarters at Albany. By the provisions of the state law, nearly all of 
 the municipal positions were put under civil service regulations. The 
 Civil Service Commission of New York City is composed of six 
 professional and business men appointed by the mayor. With the 
 exception of the president of the commission, who has charge of the 
 headquarters, they serve without salary. Candidates for municipal 
 positions appear before this commission and are examined in common- 
 school branches or undergo physical examinations. For specialists 
 along certain lines special examinations are prepared. After the 
 examination the applicant's papers are read by two different examiners 
 and graded. Those who pass are placed on the eligible list, ranking 
 according to their examination marks. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 THE CITY JUDICIARY 
 
 The Sources of the Law. In olden times when two men 
 disagreed they fought out their dispute, and the stronger 
 took his neighbor's property or life. But as men grew more 
 civilized they learned that neither safety nor justice could 
 be attained by such methods, and so came to rely upon 
 their kings for protection and for enforcement of their 
 rights. The kings in time came to appoint judges to hear 
 accusations against those who had injured their fellow- 
 citizens, and to decide their disputes. These judges listened 
 to both sides of the controversy and decided where the 
 truth lay; and then if it appeared that the person accused 
 had injured his neighbor, they inflicted punishment on the 
 guilty or awarded damages to the injured. At first the cus- 
 toms of the people were the only guide by which the judges 
 could determine whether or not an injury had been com- 
 mitted; later the decrees of kings, and in England the stat- 
 utes enacted by Parliament, were consulted. As a result 
 the common usages of the people became better and better 
 defined, and their ideas of right and wrong clearer, until 
 at the time of the American Revolution there existed in 
 England a large body of rules for the protection of life and 
 property, and for the regulation of affairs between men. 
 These rules, partly in the form of statutes and partly in the 
 form of decisions of judges, constitute what is known as 
 the Common Law, and are the basis of our present system 
 
 320 
 
321 
 
322 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 of jurisprudence, that is of law. Of course, as new condi- 
 tions have arisen new questions have come up between 
 men. The invention of the steam engine and the electric 
 motor, for instance, have produced greater changes in daily 
 life than did all the improvements of the Middle Ages; so 
 that one might suppose we would be beyond the reach of 
 the law which prevailed in 1776. But the principles of the 
 Common Law are deeper than steam and electricity, and 
 the old rules can still be applied to the new facts. When 
 from time to time the legislature finds it necessary to 
 change the Common Law, the new statute must in every 
 case prevail, no matter what has been the rule previously. 
 A surprisingly large number of statutes, however, simply 
 collect and fit together, or, as it is called, "codify," exist- 
 ing law, or else modify it only in some slight detail. At 
 present so much of the law has been codified that we look 
 to the general laws and codes for most of our information; 
 but beneath all of them we recognize the familiar rules of 
 the Common Law, and in their light we make our interpre- 
 tations of the formal codes. 
 
 Kinds of Law : Criminal Law. There are certain kinds 
 of injuries which people have found are best attended to 
 by the government, while others are best left to the party 
 injured. The first class consists of injuries to society, and 
 includes immoral acts like forgery and violent acts like 
 murder. It would quickly upset our whole system of gov- 
 ernment if persons committing such actions were not called 
 to account by the whole community and punished. So the 
 state takes the matter in charge and brings the offender 
 to court, where he is dealt with according to the rules of 
 the criminal law. In so doing the people as a whole look 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 323 
 
 out for their own interests, and by punishing the criminal 
 seek to protect themselves from a repetition of the crime. 
 According to the severity of the punishment the crime is 
 classed as a felony, that is a crime punishable by death or 
 by imprisonment in the state prison ; or as a misdemeanor, 
 that is any crime where the punishment is less severe. 
 The punishment is graded according to the nature of the 
 offense. Murder, for instance, is a felony punishable by 
 death, because nothing can be of greater importance than 
 the security of life, and a man who committed murder must 
 therefore be removed from society. The security of property 
 is less important, and therefore the theft of ten thousand 
 dollars or the burning of a warehouse, while still a felony, 
 is merely punishable by imprisonment instead of by death. 
 Civil Law. If the property concerned is of trifling 
 importance only, the person who injures it will be guilty 
 merely of a misdemeanor, as in the case of a man who 
 shoots a squirrel in the park. According to this difference 
 in degree of crimes the criminal courts are graded so that 
 the higher courts hear cases of felony, while the lower 
 courts are confined to misdemeanors. The second class of 
 injuries above referred to consists of private injuries, that 
 is, acts that may safely be left to the injured party to look 
 after himself, and for which he will be compensated by the 
 courts. This class includes railroad accidents caused by 
 the carelessness of employees, and failure by a debtor to 
 pay what he owes. For such injuries the person in the 
 wrong is made to pay in money for the loss he has caused, 
 according to the rules of the civil law. An act may be 
 both a crime and a civil offense ; as, for instance, if a man 
 buys a suit of clothes with a counterfeit ten-dollar bill, he 
 
324 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 may be punished by the government for passing the counter- 
 feit money, and also sued by the tailor for the value of the 
 clothes obtained by fraud. But the two offenses would be 
 governed by two different rules of law and the cases would 
 be tried in different courts. The old rule of the civil law, 
 that private injuries should be compensated by money to 
 the amount of the damage inflicted, was found, even in very 
 ancient times, to be inadequate to produce justice in all 
 cases. Many citizens had to apply to the king for other 
 relief, and as he gave help from time to time through his 
 chancellor, there grew up rules governing such cases, until 
 finally there was formed a separate division of jurispru- 
 dence known as equity. Injuries calling for equitable relief 
 include some wrong act in the future, such as selling an 
 artificial mineral water under the name " Vichy," in com- 
 petition with the natural water from Vichy springs. Against 
 such unfair methods the court will grant a decree called an 
 injunction. At the present time in New York many of the 
 old distinctions between law and equity have disappeared ; 
 but even now equity is administered by the higher courts 
 only, and none of the courts regulated by the city charter 
 has any equitable jurisdiction. 
 
 Although we hear a great deal more in the newspapers 
 about criminal courts than about civil, the latter are much 
 more important in everyday life, keep many more judges 
 busy, and try a vastly greater number of cases. 
 
 Judicial Procedure. Courts are presided over by judges, 
 who in most cases are elected by the people. The judges 
 have to decide all questions of law which come before them, 
 and in criminal cases to pass sentence. The records of the 
 court are kept by the clerk. The judgment rendered in 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 325 
 
 any case is enforced by the sheriff or marshal, who is the 
 executive officer of the court. Attorneys are also officers 
 of the court ; they have to pass an examination and get 
 some one to certify to their good moral character before 
 they are permitted to appear in court and try cases. After 
 being admitted to the bar lawyers are still under the 
 supervision of the court, and are liable to be excluded 
 from practice, or disbarred, as it is called, if they misbehave 
 flagrantly. In criminal cases a lawyer must defend the 
 prisoner if directed to by the court, so that no man,. how- 
 ever poor and friendless, is left without protection when 
 charged with a crime. For such services the prisoner is 
 not obliged to pay any fee. 
 
 The District Attorney. Another officer of the court in 
 criminal cases is the district attorney, who represents the 
 people in the prosecution of crimes, and has the important 
 duty of investigating charges against offenders, and, if he 
 is satisfied that the charges are well founded, of presenting 
 the evidence to the grand jury and the Court of General 
 Sessions or the County Court. The district attorney is also 
 required to attend the Court of Special Sessions, and has 
 charge of those few criminal cases which are tried in the 
 Supreme Court. His office in New York County is hardly 
 second in importance to that of the mayor, as a weak or 
 dishonest district attorney will allow many laws to be vio- 
 lated, and will permit vice and crime to go unpunished. 
 There are also certain officers, called probation officers, 
 appointed by the Court of Special Sessions and by the city 
 magistrates. It is their duty to look up the history of persons 
 accused of drunkenness, disorderly conduct, and vagrancy, 
 and to advise the court how the cases should be disposed 
 
326 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 JfllVfe 
 
 of ; and also to keep watch over criminals who, instead of 
 being sent to jail, are released and given a chance to reform. 
 Lawsuits may involve only questions of law, as, in many 
 actions, construing wills and testing cases to determine the 
 validity of statutes ; or only questions of fact, as in many 
 accident cases; but most actions bring up both law and 
 fact to be decided. Questions of law are decided by the 
 
 judge, whether they 
 are the main issue of 
 the case or arise only 
 in the course of prov- 
 ing facts. Questions 
 of fact are sometimes 
 decided by the judge, 
 as in equity cases, 
 but more often by 
 the jury. 
 
 The Jury. The 
 jury is one of the in- 
 stitutions of the Common Law which has been important 
 in safeguarding our liberty, and is still regarded with vener- 
 ation. In the Middle Ages the kings were often arbitrary 
 and tyrannical, and were able to influence the judges whom 
 they appointed ; but so long as the jury intervened to decide 
 questions of fact there was great protection for the oppressed 
 people. Consequently we have clung to the jury and have 
 ever since regarded it as one of the most important parts of 
 our legal system. A unanimous verdict of guilty by twelve 
 jurors is necessary before any criminal can be deprived of 
 his life, and in many civil cases also the jury must decide 
 unanimously which story is correct, the plaintiff's or the 
 
 FIG. 206. Hall of Records, Chambers Street 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 327 
 
 defendant's. The plaintiff is the one who commences a 
 lawsuit, while the defendant is the one who is obliged to 
 make answer in the suit. 
 
 After the trial the defeated party has the right of appeal 
 to a higher court, and often he may .have a second appeal if 
 he is still unsuccessful. There is, however, one exception 
 to this rule, and that is that the state cannot appeal if unsuc- 
 cessful in a criminal case. On the appeal the facts are not 
 proved again, but only the stenographer's record of the testi- 
 mony is presented to the upper court, which is then asked 
 to determine whether the rules of the law were correctly 
 applied to those facts, or perhaps what the real meaning 
 of the testimony is. If a second appeal is taken, the argu- 
 ment must almost always be confined to questions of law. 
 
 System of Courts. In New York City a large number 
 of different courts hold their sessions. The United States 
 Circuit Court of Appeals, Circuit Court, and District 
 Court are courts organized by Congress, and confine them- 
 selves to cases arising under congressional statutes, the 
 most numerous of which are bankruptcy cases, to cases 
 between citizens of different states, and to a few others. 
 The New York courts are not all regulated by the charter 
 merely because they sit within the city. The most impor- 
 tant of these state courts is the Supreme Court, for the 
 Court of Appeals, the highest court in the state, sits at 
 Albany, where it is engaged exclusively in the hearing of 
 appeals. The appellate division of the Supreme Court for 
 the first judicial department is a court for the hearing of 
 appeals from decisions of the Supreme Court in New York 
 County, and from judgments of the Courts of General and 
 Special Sessions. In Kings County the appellate division 
 
328 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 sits for the second department, to which go appeals from 
 all the lower courts except Magistrates' Courts in Kings, 
 Queens, and Richmond counties. The Supreme Court has 
 sessions in each county. It is the oldest court in the state 
 and tries all sorts of cases. The most important lawsuits 
 are brought in this court, which is always overburdened 
 with work, in spite of its many justices. Each county also 
 has a Surrogate Court, which takes charge of the estates 
 of deceased persons. In Kings, Queens, and Richmond 
 counties the County Court is next in importance to the 
 Supreme Court, and hears criminal cases and civil law 
 cases against residents of the counties where the amount 
 in dispute does not exceed two thousand dollars. There is 
 no county court in New York County, where the City 
 Court of the City of New York takes its place for civil 
 cases, and the Court of General Sessions for criminal cases. 
 The latter does not come under the charter, but the City 
 Court is governed by the charter, and we shall consider it 
 more fully hereafter. Next lower in the scale come the 
 Municipal Courts, which try civil law cases where the 
 amount in dispute does not exceed five hundred dollars ; 
 the Court of Special Sessions, with criminal jurisdiction of 
 misdemeanors ; and finally Magistrates' Courts, which have 
 jurisdiction only to commit persons to trial for crime and 
 to try persons charged with vagrancy or disorderly con- 
 duct. The judges in all the courts regulated by the char- 
 ter hold office for ten years. A long term is desirable in 
 order to remove them from political influence and make 
 them independent in their decisions. 
 
 Civil Courts under the Charter. We have seen in the 
 preceding paragraph that only a few of the lowest courts 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 329 
 
 are regulated by the charter. On the civil side these con- 
 sist of the City Court and the Municipal Court. While the 
 City Court was continued in existence by the charter from 
 a court which existed before, its powers are not denned 
 there, but in the Code of Civil Procedure. The Municipal 
 Court is a continuation of the old District Court in Man- 
 hattan and the courts of the justices of the peace in Brook- 
 lyn. Its powers are denned by the charter, but its procedure, 
 formerly regulated by a provision of that statute, is now 
 governed by a law known as the Municipal Court Act. 
 
 City Court. The City Court has grown out of a court 
 originally established for hearing the claims of sailors, and 
 known as the Marine Court. It now has jurisdiction of civil 
 law cases where the amount in dispute does not exceed two 
 thousand dollars. As the court has had to deal only with 
 small cases, it has been overshadowed by the Supreme 
 Court and has not attracted the best talent to the bar either 
 for its judges or for its practitioners. An effort has been 
 made by recent legislation to give greater dignity to this 
 work and oblige it to take a greater share of the many cases 
 which constantly overcrowd the Supreme Court. The City 
 Court consists, of a chief justice and five other justices. 
 Cases are tried before a jury of twelve citizens. Appeals 
 may be taken to a branch of the Supreme Court consisting 
 of three judges and known as the Appellate Term. 
 
 Municipal Court. The Municipal Court is known as the 
 " poor man's court." It consists of twenty-five justices, 
 who hold court in all different parts of the city from 
 New Brighton to Jamaica. The boroughs are divided into 
 districts, from each of which a justice is elected. Manhat- 
 tan has thirteen districts, The Bronx two, Brooklyn five, 
 
330 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Queens three, and Richmond two. Within their own 
 boroughs the justices sit in turn in each different district. 
 The court hears small cases, mostly for wages or for sales 
 made by tradesmen who have not been paid. It encour- 
 ages people to present their claims personally instead of 
 employing lawyers to sue for them, and it makes liberal 
 provision in favor of poor people. An employee may sue 
 for wages without paying court fees, and any person riot 
 worth one hundred dollars may be relieved from paying 
 court fees, without regard to the nature of his claim. 
 Another reason why the Municipal Court is of great 
 importance to the poor man is because it is the only court 
 in which his case can be tried promptly. If he brings suit 
 in the Supreme Court, it may be two years before his case 
 comes to trial, because there are so many cases ahead of 
 him that he has to wait his turn ; and conditions are 
 almost as bad in the City Court and in the Kings County 
 Court. But in the Municipal Court the case can always 
 be tried within a few weeks. To an employee living on 
 the wages he earns from week to week the certainty of 
 being able to collect what is due him within a short time 
 is a matter of great importance, for justice delayed is often 
 justice denied. An attempt has been made by recent laws 
 to relieve the delay in the upper courts by requiring more 
 cases to be brought in the Municipal Court, and for this 
 purpose the limit of the amount in dispute in Municipal 
 Court cases has been raised from two hundred and fifty to 
 five hundred dollars. 
 
 Another important branch of Municipal Court business 
 is the granting of aid to landlords whose tenants refuse to 
 pay their rent. If you own a house and let an apartment 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 331 
 
 to John Smith, and he fails to pay his rent, you can serve 
 notice on him to appear in the Municipal Court in three 
 days and explain why he is in arrears. Unless he pays his 
 rent within three days the judge will order him to move 
 out, and if he has not gone within the time set by the 
 judge, usually about two days, the marshal will come and 
 move his furniture out of the apartment. By this pro- 
 cedure, which is called " summary proceedings to dispos- 
 sess," you can get rid of a shiftless tenant in a week. 
 
 Most of the cases in the Municipal Court are tried by the 
 judge alone, but either party may ask for a jury of six citi- 
 zens. Appeals from judgments of this court in the boroughs 
 of Manhattan and The Bronx are heard by the Appellate 
 Term of the Supreme Court for the second department. 
 
 Criminal Courts under the Charter. As we have seen 
 above, the only criminal courts provided by the charter 
 are the Court of Special Sessions and the Magistrates' 
 Courts. Neither of these courts can try a case of felony, 
 and therefore the most important cases go to the Supreme 
 Court, the County Courts, and the Court of General Ses- 
 sions. The charter merely continues these lower courts 
 from the courts which existed before, and does not contain 
 the law governing what cases they may try or how they shall 
 try them. That law is found in two separate statutes known 
 as the Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure. 
 
 Court of Special Sessions. The Court of Special Sessions 
 is divided into two divisions, the first consisting of six 
 judges, whose jurisdiction extends over the boroughs of 
 Manhattan and The Bronx ; the second of six judges, with 
 jurisdiction over the other three boroughs. Three judges 
 sit together to hear cases, without any jury. The cases 
 
332 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 that come before them consist of small offenses which may 
 be of the most varied description, from spitting in a street 
 car to using the American flag in an advertisement. Vio- 
 lations of the city ordinances are misdemeanors and may 
 be tried in the Court of Special Sessions. 
 
 Children's Court. So few years ago as 1898 there was 
 not a juvenile court in the world. Before that time in the 
 entire United States, with the exception of New York and 
 Massachusetts, where there were a few ineffective laws 
 permitting "child criminals" to be tried apart from adults, 
 children were arrested, indicted, and often convicted and 
 sentenced in exactly the. same manner as hardened crimi- 
 nals, and usually in company with them. This should never 
 have been permitted, as children are not criminals. Through 
 the recognition that they are not criminals and should not 
 be treated as such, twenty-two states of the Union now 
 have some form of legislation for juvenile delinquents, and 
 a large number of cities have Children's Courts in varying 
 degrees of perfection. In New York City a special branch 
 of the Court of Special Sessions in each division is devoted 
 to hearing cases involving children, and is known as the 
 Children's Court. It is presided over usually by one judge, 
 but three judges will sit in any case where the child accused 
 of crime asks for three judges instead of one. The court 
 holds its sessions in a different building from the regular 
 courthouse. It is an unfortunate fact that a great many 
 children are arrested for misdemeanors, so that one judge 
 in each division of the city is kept busy trying the charges 
 brought against them. But in order to give the children 
 a chance to reform, they are kept away from the older 
 persons of vicious habits who fill our criminal courts and 
 
THE CITY JUDICIARY 333 
 
 jails, and for this purpose the Children's Court has been 
 established. If a child is found guilty of a misdemeanor, 
 the court may send him to some charitable institution 
 where his bad habits will be corrected, or may release him 
 under the charge of a probation officer. 
 
 Magistrates' Courts. The lowest court of all is the 
 Magistrates' Court, which is also composed of two divi- 
 sions. It consists of judges who sit in different parts of 
 the city, as in the case of the justices of the Municipal 
 Court. In the first division are fourteen magistrates, who 
 hold court in Manhattan and The Bronx ; in the second 
 are fifteen, of whom ten hold court in Brooklyn, three in 
 Queens, and two in Richmond. All are appointed by the 
 mayor. It is provided by the charter that the magistrates 
 in Brooklyn, Queens, and Richmond shall be elected; but 
 the Court of Appeals has held that provision unconstitu- 
 tional, and therefore the mayor appoints these magistrates 
 as well as those who sit in Manhattan and The Bronx. 
 The principal duty of the magistrate is to hear charges of 
 crime against persons who have been arrested or whom the 
 police think ought to be arrested. If the magistrate believes, 
 after listening to an informal statement of the evidence, 
 that there is reasonable ground to consider the accused 
 guilty of a crime, he holds him for trial, if already arrested, 
 or issues a warrant for his arrest. The accused person is 
 then locked up in prison until he can be tried, unless he 
 gives bail, that is, deposits with the court money or bond, 
 which is forfeited in case he fails to appear in court for 
 trial when his case is called. When the offense charged 
 is a felony the magistrate has to decide not whether the 
 prisoner shall be tried, but whether he shall be required 
 
334 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 to appear before the grand jury. For in such grave cases 
 as felony the grand jury as well as the magistrate must be 
 satisfied of the probable guilt of the prisoner ; and if they 
 are so convinced, they indict him and send him on for trial 
 in one of the higher courts. 
 
 Where the charge is vagrancy or disorderly conduct the 
 magistrate may hear the evidence at once and decide 
 whether or not the prisoner is guilty. If the prisoner is 
 convicted, he may be imprisoned for not more than a year 
 for some offenses, or not more than six months for others, 
 or may be fined for not more than ten dollars. Much of the 
 time of the magistrates is taken up in hearing these cases. 
 
 Summary. Our law is based upon the customs prevailing in Eng- 
 land and the statutes in force there in 1776, with many modifications 
 made by the legislature since that date. It is divided into criminal 
 law enforced by the state and civil law enforced by individuals. The 
 criminal law deals with felonies which are punishable by death or 
 imprisonment in the state prison, and less serious crimes called misde- 
 meanors. The civil law includes law cases, where the offending party 
 is required to pay damages in money, and equity cases, where the court 
 gives special relief. Both kinds of law are administered by the courts, 
 which are presided over by judges. It is the duty of the court to find 
 out .what the facts are in each case, and to apply the Common Law 
 or the statutes to them. The facts are usually determined by a jury 
 of twelve citizens, while the law is construed and applied by the judge. 
 Of the courts which sit in New York City only the lowest come under 
 the charter. These are the City Court and the Municipal Court, which 
 try small civil cases, and the Court of Special Sessions and the Magis- 
 trates' Courts, which try misdemeanors. Neither of the civil courts can 
 try equity cases or cases where the amount in dispute exceeds two 
 thousand dollars, and neither of the criminal courts can try felonies. 
 A branch of the Court of Special Sessions is devoted exclusively to try- 
 ing criminal cases against children, and is called the Children's Court. 
 
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 BRODHEAD, JOHN ROMEYN, Documents Relative to the Colonial 
 
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 COLER, BIRD SIM, Municipal Government as illustrated by the Char- 
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 CONKLING, ALFRED RONALD, City Government in the United States. 
 CURTIS, GEORGE TICKNOR, Constitutional History of the United 
 
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 DAWES, ANNA LAURENS, How We are Governed. 
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 Sixty Years. 
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336 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
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 JANVIER, THOMAS A., In Old New York. 
 
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 KNIGHT, MADAME, Private Journal kept by Madame Knight of a 
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 ROBERTS, ELLIS H., New York: the Planting and Growth of the 
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 SMITH, THOMAS E. V., The City of New York in the Year of Wash- 
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 STONE, WILLIAM L., History of New York City. 
 
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 THOMPSON, BENJAMIN F., History of Long Island. 
 
 TODD, CHARLES BURR, The Story of the City of New York. 
 
 , History of New York City. 
 
 ULMANN, ALBERT, A Landmark History of New York. 
 VALENTINE, DAVID T., Manuals of the Corporation of the City of 
 
 New York. 
 
 , History of the City of New York. 
 
 WATSON, JOHN F., Historic Tales of Olden Times. 
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 Greater New York, The Evening Post Publishing Company, 1898. 
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 C> 
 
INDEX 
 
 Academy, Female Free, 90; Free, 
 89. 
 
 Accountant, public, 68. 
 
 Accounts, commissioners of, 68. 
 
 Administrative departments of the 
 city government, 57-58, 6r, 64, 
 249; fifteen in number, 61. See 
 also Departments. 
 
 Albany, 4, 25, 169, 277, 311. 
 
 Albany and Schenectady Railway 
 chartered, 170. 
 
 Alderman, first appointment of, 15. 
 See also Board of Aldermen. 
 
 Aldermanic districts, 44. 
 
 Almshouse, the first, 247. 
 
 Ambulances, 232. 
 
 American colonies, 51. 
 
 American Museum of Natural His- 
 tory, 89. 
 
 Amsterdam, New : change of name 
 of, 15; charity organizations of, 
 246-247; description of, 81-82; 
 ferries of, 216-217; fi re regula- 
 tions of, 157, 1 58 ; method of light- 
 ing, 134, 135 ; name of, given, 10; 
 police regulations of, 145, 146; 
 proclaimed as a city, n, 22; 
 schools of, 81-83 ; street cleaning 
 of, 109, no; system of finance 
 of, 279; taxation of, 301. 
 
 Amsterdam, old, 5, 7, 10, 29. 
 
 Analysis of foods, 232. 
 
 Annual Budget, definition of, 43, 
 67, 68, 291, 299. 
 
 Aquarium, the, 190. 
 
 Aqueduct Commission, 70, 130. 
 
 Arc lights, number of, 141. 
 
 Area of the city, 61, 62, 299. 
 
 Army of public safety, 144, 145. 
 
 Arson, 166. 
 
 Art Commission, 199, 200, 204. 
 
 Ashes, collection and disposal of, 
 117. 
 
 Assembly, the general, 20, 83 ; du- 
 ties of, 20 ; election of members 
 of, 22 ; under the Dongan Char- 
 ter, 23, 24. 
 
 Associate superintendents of the 
 Board of Education, 102. 
 
 Association for Improving the Con- 
 dition of the Poor, 108; Associa- 
 tion of Women Friends for the 
 Relief of the Poor, 84. 
 
 Astor, John Jacob, 92. 
 
 Astor, William B., 93. 
 
 Astor library, 93. 
 
 Australian system of voting, 30, 31. 
 
 Ballot box, 37. 
 
 Ballot : election by, 37 ; to cast a, 
 
 36. 
 
 Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, 172. 
 Bancker Street, 85. 
 Bank charter, 123. 
 Bank Commission, 70. 
 Bank of Manhattan, 1 24. 
 Bank of New York, 17. 
 Barclay Street, 16. 
 Barnard College, 88. 
 Barren Island, 117. 
 Battery, the, 173, 188, 208, 213. 
 Bellevue Hospital, 56, 88, 154, 247, 
 
 252. 
 Blackwell's Island, 252. 
 
 339 
 
340 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 BlackwelPs Island Bridge, 212. 
 
 BlackwelPs Island institutions, 252, 
 254, 257. 
 
 Blind of the city, 255. 
 
 Bloomingdale road, 74. 
 
 Board of Aldermen, 40, 50, 54, 64, 
 6 5> 6 7> 74> 76, 79' J 7 2 269, 279, 
 305, 306 ; committees in, 43, 44 ; 
 election of members of, 42 ; heads 
 of executive departments are 
 members of, 47 ; meetings of, 48 ; 
 number of members of, 42 ; powers 
 and duties of, 42-51, 192, 305; 
 president of, how elected, 32 ; 
 responsibilities of, 50, 64, 67, 79; 
 who comprise, 42. 
 
 Board of Armory Commissioners, 
 59. 72. 
 
 Board of Assessors, 68, 69. 
 
 Board of Building Examiners, 72. 
 
 Board of City Record, 59, 72. 
 
 Board of Education, 95-108 ; com- 
 mittees of, 96 ; a corporation, 97 ; 
 meetings of, 96 ; members of, 96 ; 
 organization of, 96 ; powers and 
 duties of, 97 ; president of, 96 ; 
 terms of members of, 96 ; trustees 
 for Normal College, 97. 
 
 Board of Elections, 32, 34. 
 
 Board of Estimate and Apportion- 
 ment, 43, 58, 64 ; duties of, 64, 
 65? 67, 79, 97, 204 ; organization 
 of, 65 ; votes of, 65. 
 
 Board of Health. See Department 
 of Health. 
 
 Board of Inspectors of Weights and 
 Measures, 72. 
 
 Board of Metropolitan Police, 147. 
 
 Board of Regents, 87. 
 
 Board of Revision and Assessments, 
 69. 
 
 Board of Sealers of Weights and 
 Measures, 72. 
 
 Board of Superintendents, 101, 102. 
 
 Board of Taxes and Assessments, 
 302, 33- 
 
 Board of Trustees of the College of 
 the City of New York, 89. 
 
 Boards : executive, 61 ; local, of im- 
 provement, 79. 
 
 Bogardus, Everardus, 7. 
 
 Bonds, 43. 
 
 Booth, a voting, 32, 36. 
 
 Borough, formation of, 26, 27, 61, 
 
 73- 
 Borough presidents, 61, 74, 76, 79; 
 
 election of, 74 ; powers and duties 
 of, 72-80; removal of, 74; salary 
 of, 74. 
 
 Boroughs, number of, and how 
 united, 74. 
 
 Boston, 15, 169, 205. 
 
 Botanical Garden, 197. 
 
 Botanical Society, 197. 
 
 Bowery, the, 13, 212. 
 
 Bowling Green, 169, 188, 189, 205. 
 
 Boyd's Corners reservoir, 129. 
 
 Bradford Street Hospital, 256. 
 
 Bradford^ Gazette, 16. 
 
 Bridges : historical, 204-209 ; kinds 
 of, 204 ; needs of, 202, 203 ; sys- 
 tem of, 204. 
 
 British Crown, governors under, 15, 
 51, 169. 
 
 British governors, 15, 51. 
 
 Broadway, 90, 142, 169, 172. 
 
 Bronck, Jonas, 197. 
 
 Bronx, The, 27, 65, 74, 116, 132, 173, 
 192, 197; elevated road in, 173; 
 parks of, 196, 197; powers and 
 duties of the president of, 74, 
 76, 77- 
 
 Bronx River, 208. 
 
 Brooklyn, 27, 62, 143, 202, 203, 249. 
 
 Brooklyn Bridge, 210, 211. 
 
 Brooklyn ferry, 217. 
 
 Brooklyn Institute of Arts and 
 Sciences, 89. 
 
INDEX 
 
 341 
 
 Brooklyn parks, 191, 195. 
 
 Brooklyn Polytechnic, 89. 
 
 Bryant Square, 191. 
 
 Bureau : of Baths and Public Com- 
 fort, 72 ; of Department of Docks 
 and Ferries, 220; of Department 
 of Finance, 294, 295, 296 ; of De- 
 partment of Health, 227-235 ; of 
 Department of Public Charities, 
 249-251; of Fire Department, 161- 
 166; of Highways, 70; of Law 
 Department, 270-274; of libraries 
 of Board of Education, 105, 106; 
 of Licenses, 70 ; of New Buildings, 
 240, 241 ; of Police Department, 
 151-154; of Public Buildings and 
 Offices, 70 ; of Sewers, 70 ; of Tene- 
 ment House Department, 239-243. 
 
 Burgher corps, or guards, 81, 145. 
 
 Burgher government established, 22. 
 
 Burghers, n. 
 
 Burgomasters replaced by aldermen, 
 
 15- 
 
 Burr, Aaron, and his relation to 
 municipal waterworks, 122-124. 
 
 Cable power, 172. 
 
 Cabot, John Sebastian, 13. 
 
 Canal Street, origin of name of, 121, 
 
 212. 
 
 Carnegie, Andrew, libraries, 94. 
 
 Castle Garden, 189, 190. 
 
 Central Bridge, 207. 
 
 Central Park, 193-194. 
 
 Chamber of Commerce, 286-288. 
 
 Chamberlain, first one appointed, 
 68, 279, 294, 295. 
 
 Charity, early organizations of, in 
 New York City, 246-247. 
 
 Charles the Second, 13, 22. 
 
 Charter: city, 21, 25; Dongan, 23- 
 24, 146; Montgomerie, 24, 146, 
 299, 300; Reform, 281 ; of Greater 
 New York, 26, 27, 28, 40. 
 
 Charter of Greater New York, regu- 
 lations of, governing : the Board 
 of Aldermen, 40-42 ; the Board of 
 Education, 96, 97, 102 ; the bor- 
 ough presidents, 74, 76; the City 
 Judiciary, 327, 328, 329, 331 ; the 
 Department of Bridges, 203 ; the 
 Department of Docks and Ferries, 
 218, 219; the Department of 
 Finance, 292 ; the Department of 
 Health, 225; the Department of 
 Parks, 191, 193, 199, 200; the 
 Department of Public Charities, 
 249 ; the Department of Taxes 
 and Assessments, 302 ; the Law 
 Department, 268, 269 ; the mayor, 
 54, 56, 57; the Police Department, 
 148. 
 
 Charters, Dutch, 10, 21,22; English, 
 23, 24. 
 
 Chelsea district of city, 221. 
 
 Cherry Street, 136. 
 
 Chicago Limited, Pennsylvania Rail- 
 road Special, 203. 
 
 Children's Court, 332. 
 
 Chinatown, 62. 
 
 Church, the first building of a, 8. 
 
 Church Street, 16. 
 
 Citizen, how one may become a, 38, 
 39 ; a shareholder in city stocks, 
 297-298. 
 
 Citizenship, 38; privileges and ob- 
 ligations of, 38, 39. 
 
 City, the : a corporation, 68, 267, 
 268, 281, 292, 297, 305; the two 
 sides of, 297 ; franchises of, 59, 67, 
 172, 217, 222, 299, 300; legislation 
 of, 40, 41 ; officials of, installed in 
 office, 37 ; ordinances of, examples 
 of, 41, 43; parks of, 187-198; 
 stocks of, 297, 298 ; value of 
 parks of, 300. 
 
 City clerk, 48, 50, 306. 
 
 City hall, 9, 53, 54, 56, 218. 
 
342 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 City Health Inspectors, 227-229. 
 
 City History Club, 92. 
 
 City Hospital, 252, 253. 
 
 City Improvement Commission, 
 
 201. 
 
 City Judiciary, 320-335. 
 City Record, 48, 50, 67, 72, 303. 
 Civil courts under city charter, 328, 
 
 329- 
 
 Civil Service Commission : appoint- 
 ments made by, 318; duties of, 
 312; how examinations of, are 
 conducted, 314, 316, 317 ; what the 
 term means, 309; who comprise, 
 312; why necessary, 310, 311. 
 
 Civil Service Law: how New York 
 State came to adopt, 310, 311; 
 regulations of, 312, 313, 314; suits 
 involving, 276, 277. 
 
 Civil War, the, 160, 174, 210. 
 
 Clearing House, New York, 289, 
 290, 291. 
 
 Clinton, Colonel De Witt, 84, 125. 
 
 Code of Civil Procedure, 329. 
 
 Collect Pond, 119, 170. 
 
 College of the City of New York, 
 56, 89, 90. 
 
 Colonists, 5, 8, 9, 14, 24, 29. 
 
 Colony of New Netherland, 5-8, 
 10-12, 20, 23, 24, 81, 168. 
 
 Columbia College, 87. 
 
 Columbia University, 16, 87. 
 
 Commissioner: of Bridges, 203; of 
 Correction, 260, 261 ; of Docks 
 and Ferries, 213, 219, 221 ; of 
 Fire, 160; of Gas and Electricity, 
 138; of Health, 225; of Parks, 
 191, 192 ; of Police, 148, 1 52, 225 ; 
 of Public Charities, 249 ; of Public 
 Works, 77 ; of Water Supply, 
 Gas, and Electricity, 138. 
 
 Commissioners : of Accounts, 68 ; of 
 Aqueducts, 56 ; of Board of Elec- 
 tions, 32, 34 ; of Sinking Fund, 
 
 220, 222, 294; of Taxes and 
 Assessments, 302, 303, 304. 
 
 Committee of Appointment, 25, 51, 
 146. 
 
 Common Council, 53, 208, 247. 
 
 Commons, The, 247, 299. 
 
 Comptroller: financial as well as 
 executive officer, 281, 282, 292, 
 293, 305; first, 279; how elected, 
 32 ; member of Board of Estimate 
 and Apportionment, 65, 68 ; mem- 
 ber of Board of Revision of 
 Assessments, 69. 
 
 Coney Island, "mosquito beds" 
 back of, 1 1 6. 
 
 Congress of the United States, 61, 
 
 327- 
 
 Consolidated Exchange, 286. 
 Consolidation of the five boroughs, 
 
 74- 
 Constitution, 24, 25; of the state of 
 
 New York, 24-26, 218, 276; of 
 
 the United States, 27, 30. 
 Contagious diseases, 229. 
 Continental Army, 205. 
 Continental Congress, 298. 
 Cooper Institute, 91. 
 Cooper, Peter, 172. 
 Corporal's guard, 146. 
 Corporation : educational policy of, 
 
 86; municipal, 20, 21, 54, 68, 70, 
 
 267, 268, 275, 291, 292, 297, 298, 
 
 305 ; property of, 299, 300. 
 Corporation counsel, 69, 268, 269, 
 
 270, 274, 277. 
 
 Correction, Department of, 259-266. 
 Cottage Colony, 256, 257. 
 Council: city, 25, 147 ; Common, 53, 
 
 208, 247 ; first, 7, 9; governor's, 24 ; 
 
 of nine men, 22. 
 Court: of Appeals, 327 ; Children's, 
 
 332 ; Circuit, 327 ; City, 328, 329 ; 
 
 Criminal, under charter, 331, 332; 
 
 Distict, 327, 328; of General 
 
INDEX 
 
 343 
 
 Sessions, 325, 327, 331 ; Magis- 
 trates', 3^8, 331, 333; Marine, 329; 
 Municipal, 328, 329, 330, 331, 333 ; 
 Police, 146; of Record, 69; of 
 Special Sessions, 325, 331, 332; 
 Supreme, 325, 327, 328, 330, 331 ; 
 Surrogate, 328 ; United States 
 Circuit, of Appeals, 327. 
 
 Coxhill Fort, 205. 
 
 Croton Aqueduct, 94, 126, 127, 128, 
 131, 209. 
 
 Croton dam: first, 126-128; new, 
 129, 130; reservoirs of, 130. 
 
 Croton River, 125, 126, 129, 130, 
 
 133- 
 
 Croton water system : commence- 
 ment of the, 124-126; construc- 
 tion of first dam and aqueduct, 
 126-128. 
 
 Cumberland Hospital, 256. 
 
 Cunard Steamship Line, 17. 
 
 Cutting, William, 218. 
 
 " Declaration of intention," 38. 
 
 Defendant, 327. 
 
 Delegates at primaries, 34. 
 
 Department: of Bridges, 202-212; 
 of Correction, 259-266; of Docks 
 and Ferries, 213-223; of Educa- 
 tion, 81-108 ; of Finance, 279-296 ; 
 of Fire, 157-167; of Health, 224- 
 237; of Law, 267-278; of Lec- 
 tures, of Board of Education, 106, 
 107 ; of Parks, 187-201 ; of Police, 
 144-1 56 ; of Public Charities, 246- 
 258 ; of Street Cleaning, 109-1 18 ; 
 of Taxes and Assessments, 297- 
 308 ; of Tenement Houses, 237- 
 245 ; of Water Supply, Gas, and 
 Electricity, 119-143. 
 
 Departments, fifteen executive, 64, 
 282. 
 
 Dependent classes of New York 
 City, 246. 
 
 De Peyster, Abraham, 188; mayor, 
 
 247- 
 
 Deputy chief of Fire Department, 
 163. 
 
 Deputy commissioner : of correction, 
 260; of docks, 219; of public 
 charities, 249. 
 
 Deputy commissioners: of Police 
 Department, 148; of taxes, 303, 
 304 ; of Department of Tenement 
 Houses, 239 ; of Water Supply, 1 38. 
 
 Dircksen, Cornells, 216. 
 
 Direcktors-General of New Nether- 
 land, 5-12, 29, 8 1, 1 68, 301. 
 
 Directors under Board of Education, 
 103, 104. 
 
 Disinfection, 234, 235. 
 
 District superintendents of public 
 schools, 102. 
 
 Districts under the municipal gov- 
 ernment, 61. 
 
 Divisions of the Department of 
 Finance, 295-296. 
 
 Docks and Ferries, Department of, 
 213-223. 
 
 Docks, wet and dry, 214. 
 
 Dongan Charter, 23, 24; harbor 
 privileges of, 216. 
 
 Duke of York, 13, 23. 
 
 Duke's Laws, 15, 20. 
 
 Dutch charters, 10, 21, 22. 
 
 Dutch colonial days, 299. 
 
 Dutch colonists, 301. 
 
 Dutch : forefathers of, 202 ; method 
 of house and street lighting of, 
 134, 135 ; settlements of, 4. 
 
 Dutch House of Entertainment, 
 The, 9, 82. 
 
 Dutch possessions in America, 22. 
 
 Dutch Reformed Church, 9. 
 
 Dynamos, number of, in city, 141. 
 
 East River, 73, 116, 249; bridges 
 over, 210-212. 
 
344 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Education, Department of, 81-108. 
 
 Educational advantages of city, 
 86-108. 
 
 Elections : Board of, 32-37 ; how 
 conducted, 32, 34 ; officers of, 34, 
 35' S^ ! primary, 34 ; voting at, 
 
 36, 37- 
 Electors' rights in colonial days, 
 
 29, 30. 
 
 Electric plants, 140. 
 Electric railways, 173. 
 Electric wires, 139. 
 Electrical Bureau, 141-143. 
 Electricity, introduction of, 135, 172. 
 Elevated railway, 172, 173. 
 Elizabethtown, 216. 
 
 Eminent domain, 68, 272. 
 
 Employment certificates of child- 
 labor law, 230. 
 
 England, 13, 14. 
 
 English charters, 22, 23, 24. 
 
 English : city taken by the, 24 ; city 
 under the dominion of the, 15, 16, 
 
 30, 286. 
 
 English crown, 216. 
 English governors, 15, 301. 
 English invasion, 13, 22. 
 
 English made the official language, 
 
 15- 
 
 Episcopal Church, 20, 83. 
 
 Equity, 324. 
 
 Erie Basin, 216. 
 
 Erie Canal, 17. 
 
 Estimate and Apportionment. See 
 Board of Estimate and Appor- 
 tionment. 
 
 Europe, 41, 170, 223. 
 
 Evening schools of Board of Edu- 
 cation, 105. 
 
 Executive boards of municipal gov- 
 ernment, 64-70. 
 
 Executive branch, 28, 61. 
 
 Executive chief, 61. 
 
 Executive districts, 61. 
 
 Farmers' Bridge, 206. 
 
 Federal capital, 136. 
 
 Federal government, 146. 
 
 Federal service, 309. 
 
 Ferry on East River, first, 73, 
 
 299. 
 
 Fifth Avenue, 94. 
 Fifty-ninth Street power house, 
 
 141. 
 
 Filtering plants, Brooklyn, 133. 
 Finance : Department of, 279-296 ; 
 
 development of city's system of, 
 
 281, 282; during colonial period, 
 
 279. 
 Fire Alarm and Telegraph Bureau, 
 
 162. 
 
 Fire apparatus, 161. 
 Fire boats, 161. 
 Fire marshals, 166. 
 Firemen, 160, 277 ; qualifications of, 
 
 163; training of, 163, 164. 
 Fitch, John, 170. 
 Fordham Heights Bridge, 210. 
 Formation of boroughs, 26, 73. 
 Fort Amsterdam, 4, 81, 82, 145. 
 Fort Orange, 4, 205. 
 Franchises, 59, 64, 68, 172, 217, 218, 
 
 293- 
 
 Franklin, Benjamin, colonial post- 
 master general, 169. 
 
 Fulton, Robert, 170, 218. 
 
 Fur trade, 4. 
 
 Garbage, 117. 
 
 Gas, introduction of, 135, 136. 
 
 Gas factories of city, 140. 
 
 Gas pipes, 139. 
 
 Ghetto, The, 62. 
 
 Government: the three branches of, 
 
 28; executive, 28; judicial, 28; 
 
 legislative, 28 ; municipal, 39, 267, 
 
 268, 292, 308 ; property of, 299, 
 
 300. 
 Governors Island, 8. 
 
INDEX 
 
 345 
 
 Greater New York, 27, 51, 61 ; 
 
 schools of, 96, 99, 100. 
 Greenwich Village, 169. 
 Greta Dock, the, 15. 
 
 Hale, Nathan, statue of, 295. 
 
 Half Moon, The, 3, 4. 
 
 Hamilton, Alexander, 122. 
 
 Hamilton Square, 91. 
 
 Harlem, 18, 142, 169, 173, 204. 
 
 Harlem River bridges, 204, 207, 209, 
 210. 
 
 Hart's Island, institutions on, 260, 
 261. 
 
 Health : of city, how maintained, 
 224; Department of, 224-237. 
 
 Health Officer of the Port, 225. 
 
 Health Squad, 227. 
 
 Heights : Morningside, 87 ; St. Nich- 
 olas, 90; University, 88. 
 
 Henry Street, 85. 
 
 Hessians, 205. 
 
 Hester Street school building, 100. 
 
 Hewitt, Abram S., 175. 
 
 High Bridge, 127, 209. 
 
 Holland, 3, 9, 10, 22, 29, 81, 119. 
 
 Homes for the Aged and Infirm, 
 
 254. 
 
 Horse-car lines, 172. 
 
 Hospitals, 231, 232. 
 
 Houston Street, 142. 
 
 Hudson, Henry, discoverer of Man- 
 hattan Island, 3, 4, 21. 
 
 Hudson River, 5, 168. 
 
 Incinerator, 115. 
 
 Indians, trade with, 4. 
 
 Indian war during the Kieft admin- 
 istration, 9. 
 
 Inspectors : of Board of Health, 
 227, 228, 229; of Bureau of Elec- 
 tricity, 142, 143; of Police Depart- 
 ment, 149; of tenement houses, 
 241-244 ; of the water supply, 133. 
 
 Interborough Rapid Transit Com- 
 pany, 1 80. 
 
 Interurban Railway Company, 172. 
 Irving, Washington, 206. 
 
 Jackson, President, 310. 
 
 James, Duke of York, 13 ; fort 
 named for, 15. 
 
 Jerome Park reservoir, 130. 
 
 Judicial branch of city government, 
 28. 
 
 Judicial districts, 330. 
 
 Judicial procedure, 324, 325. 
 
 Jury, 326. 
 
 Justices of the peace, first appoint- 
 ment of, 146. 
 
 Juvenile Citizens' League, 92. 
 
 Kerosene lamps, first use of, 136. 
 Kieft, William, direcktor, 8-9. 
 Kindergarten Association, the New 
 
 York, 92. 
 
 Kindergarten schools, 103, 256. 
 Kingsbridge, 204, 205, 206. 
 King's Bridge, 205. 
 King's College, 16, 87. 
 Kings County, 62, 327. 
 Kings County Hospital, 256. 
 Kings County penitentiary, 260. 
 Kip Bay Farm, 249. 
 Knickerbocker, Diedrich, 8. 
 Knickerbocker housewives, 1 10, 134. 
 Knickerbocker Tales, 206. 
 
 Laboratories of Department of 
 Health, 232, 233. 
 
 Lafayette, 189. 
 
 Law: Common, 320, 322,326; Crimi- 
 nal, 322-323; Department of, 267- 
 278; the source of, 320. 
 
 League for Political Education, the, 
 91. 
 
 Lenox, James, 93. 
 
 Lexington Avenue, 89. 
 
346 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Library, first public, 16, 92. 
 Library : system, 92-94 ; the new 
 
 public, 128. 
 Lighting, the present system of, 
 
 139-140. 
 
 Lind, Jenny, 189. 
 Little Germany, 62. 
 Little Hungary, 62. 
 Little Italy, 62. 
 Long Island City, 268. 
 
 Macomb's Dam Bridge, 207. 
 
 Madison Avenue Bridge, 209, 210. 
 
 Madison Square, 190, 191. 
 
 Maiden Lane named, 12. 
 
 Mail route established between New 
 York and Boston, 15, 169. 
 
 Manhattan, borough of, 62, 74, 143, 
 148, 160, 179, 180, 192, 197, 260, 
 284. 
 
 Manhattan Bank, 124. 
 
 Manhattan Bridge, 211, 212. 
 
 Manhattan Island, 4, 6, 119, 176, 
 189, 279; derivation of name of, 
 6 ; purchase of, 6. 
 
 Manumission Society, 83. 
 
 Maritime Exchange, 288. 
 
 Marlbo rough road, the old, 169. 
 
 Massachusetts, 30. 
 
 Mayor, 51-59 ; duties and powers of, 
 56-59, 68, 70, 76, 79, 269, 292, 294, 
 305 ; first, 15, 25 ; how elected at 
 present time, 32 ; importance of 
 office of, 51 ; installed in office, 37 ; 
 judges appointed by, 333; mem- 
 ber of important boards, 58, 59; 
 removable by governor of state, 
 59; salary of, 54; term of, 54; 
 veto power of, 57. 
 
 Meters, electrical and gas, 138. 
 
 Metropolitan Hospital, 252, 254. 
 
 Metropolitan Museum of Art, 194. 
 
 Metropolitan Railway, 141. 
 
 Milestones, 169. 
 
 Military duty obligatory according 
 
 to law of New York State, 23. 
 Minuit, Peter, 5-7 ; and first direck- 
 
 tors-general, 5-9. 
 Monacknong, Indian name for 
 
 Staten Island, 202. 
 Mongolian, restrictions against, 38. 
 Montgomerie Charter, 24, 146, 299, 
 
 300. 
 
 Morgues, city, 251. 
 Morris, Gouverneur, 17. 
 Mulberry Street, 152. 
 Municipal Explosive Commission, 
 
 72. 
 
 Municipal lodging house, 251. 
 Murray Street, 16. 
 
 Naphtha lamps, 140. 
 Naturalization of the foreign born, 
 
 38-39- 
 
 Nautical school, under Board of 
 Education, 105. 
 
 New Amsterdam, description of, 81, 
 119. 
 
 New Dorp, Staten Island, 256. 
 
 New Netherland, name of province, 
 22. 
 
 New Netherland Company, 4 ; char- 
 ters of, 21, 22, 29; name of, 22; 
 province of, 13, 14, 15, 20, 29, 
 81. 
 
 New York City : Clearing House of, 
 289-291 ; consolidation of, 26, 27 ; 
 dependent classes in, 246; early 
 charters of, 21-25; educational 
 advantages of, 86-108; growth 
 of, 15, 16, 17, 18, 61, 62, 268, 282, 
 283, 299, 300; named, 15; present 
 charter of, 27-28; recaptured by 
 Dutch, 15; the old city, 65, 224, 
 268; under British rule, 17. 
 
 New York Edison Company, elec- 
 trical power of, 141. 
 
 New York harbor, 215, 216. 
 
INDEX 
 
 347 
 
 New York Kindergarten Associa- 
 tion, 92. 
 
 New York School of Art, 89. 
 
 New York School of Design, 89. 
 
 New York State, 23, 43 ; constitu- 
 tion of, 24, 25, 32; population of, 
 62. 
 
 New York Times building, 185. 
 
 New York University, 88. 
 
 New York Zoological Society, 197. 
 
 Nicolls, Richard, 14, 15. 
 
 Nicolls Charter, Governor, 23. 
 
 Normal College, 90, 91. 
 
 North River, 300. 
 
 Oil, introduction of, 135, 136. 
 Old post road, the, 205. 
 Olmsted, Frederick Law, 193. 
 Omnibus first used, 170. 
 Ordinance: city, 41, 42, 46, 48, 58; 
 early, 109, no. 
 
 Park Board, 191-192. 
 
 Park, commissioners of, 191. 
 
 Park Row, 284. 
 
 Park Row building, 138. 
 
 Park: Central, 127, 193-194; Pros- 
 pect, 132, 194-195; The Bronx, 
 196-197. 
 
 Parks : of The Bronx, 196-197 ; 
 older, of the five boroughs, 189- 
 191 ; statuary of the, 198-199. 
 
 Partisan service, 310. 
 
 Patrolmen, 145, 149, 152, 155. 
 
 Patroons, 7, 9, 169. 
 
 Paulus Hook, 202, 216, 218. 
 
 Pearl Street, 8, 12. 
 
 Peck's Slip, 216. 
 
 Pelham Bay Park, 196. 
 
 Penitentiary, 260, 262. 
 
 Pensions : of Fire Department, 166- 
 167 ; of Police Department, 147, 
 148. 
 
 People's Institute, 91. 
 
 Petroleum, discovery of, 135. 
 
 Philadelphia, 169, 203. 
 
 Phillipse, 205. 
 
 Plaintiff, 327. 
 
 Playgrounds, 48, 107, 1 08. 
 
 Piers, 214, 215, 220, 221. 
 
 Police boats, 154. 
 
 Police captains, 1 50. 
 
 Police commissioners, 148-149.' 
 
 Police court, 146. 
 
 Police Department, 144-156. 
 
 Police force, 147, 277. 
 
 Police inspectors, 149-150. 
 
 Police matrons, 155. 
 
 Police officers, 149. 
 
 Police precincts, 149. 
 
 Police sergeants, 150-151. 
 
 Police system, 146. 
 
 Political Education, League for, 91. 
 
 Political parties, 34. 
 
 Polling place, 32, 34. 
 
 Post office, the first, 17. 
 
 Potter's field on Hart's Island, 251. 
 
 Poverty Hollow, 62. 
 
 Pratt Institute, 89. 
 
 President of the Board of Alder- 
 men, 32, 46, 47. 
 
 President of the United States, 32, 
 61. 
 
 Presidents of the boroughs, 65, 74, 
 
 75. 76, 77. 79- 
 Primaries, 34. 
 
 Prison regulations, 264-265. 
 Prisoners, treatment of, 261-264. 
 Privileges and Exemption Charter, 
 
 6. 
 
 Probation officers, 325. 
 Produce Exchange, 288. 
 Property, taxable, 299. 
 Prospect Park, 194-195. 
 Public Educational Association, 91. 
 Public lamps, 140. 
 Public library, the new, 128. 
 Public thoroughfares, 140. 
 
348 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Quarantine, 231. 
 
 Queens: borough of, 27,132; 
 county of, 62, 328; fire regula- 
 tions of bo rough of, 159-1 60; pres- 
 ident of borough of, 65, 74, in, 
 192. 
 
 Quick aid to the injured, 107. 
 
 Randall's Island institutions, 255- 
 256. 
 
 Rapid Transit Commission : organ- 
 ization of, 173-175; powers and 
 duties of, 175. 
 
 Rapid Transit Railway, 176-186. 
 
 Rattle Watch, The, 146. 
 
 Reade Street, 124. 
 
 Reception Hospital at Coney Island, 
 256. 
 
 Reform schools, 265. 
 
 Registration books, 36. 
 
 Relief fund and pensions. See Pen- 
 sions. 
 
 Reservoirs, 94, 130, 131. 
 
 Revolution, era of, 16, 17, 24, 30, 51, 
 83, 122, 146, 205, 218, 298, 301, 
 320. 
 
 Richmond: borough of, 27, 62, 132, 
 159, 160, 192; president of bor- 
 ough of, 65, 74, in, 192. 
 
 Richmond County, 62, 328; alms- 
 house in, 256. 
 
 Riker's Island, 116, 260. 
 
 Riparian owners, 217. 
 
 River of the Mountains, 4. 
 
 "Road to the Ferry," 81. 
 
 Roadstead, The, 216. 
 
 Roebling, John A., 210. 
 
 Roelantsen, Adam, 7, 81. 
 
 Roundsmen, 151. 
 
 Rutgers, Colonel, 85. 
 
 Sailors' Snug Harbor, 59. 
 
 St. Mark's Chapel, 13. 
 
 St. Marys, school-ship, 105. 
 
 Sanitary Bureau of Health Depart- 
 ment, 227. 
 
 Sanitary Code, 226. 
 
 Savannah, the first steamship, 17. 
 
 Schepens, 11. 
 
 School buildings, 98, 99. 
 
 School gymnasiums, 100, 104. 
 
 School libraries, 105, 106. 
 
 School playgrounds, 107. 
 
 School population, 99. 
 
 School roof gardens, 100. 
 
 Schoolrooms, 100. 
 
 School system, when established, 
 83-86. 
 
 School-teachers, number of, 102. 
 
 Schools : New York, 81-108 ; during 
 English occupancy, 82, 83 ; early 
 history of, 81, 82 ; first free public, 
 83 ; parochial, 89. 
 
 Schout-fiscal, 7, 15, 22. 
 
 Secretary of War, 220, 221. 
 
 Sinking fund, 59, 70; definition of, 
 293 ; of New York City, 293, 294, 
 
 35- 
 Society for the Prevention of Cruelty 
 
 to Children, 251. 
 
 Solarium of the City Hospital, 253. 
 Soldiers and sailors' memorial arch, 
 
 '95- 
 
 " Split ticket," 32. 
 
 Spuyten Duyvil, 204, 206, 300. 
 
 Stadt Huys, 9. 
 
 State: constitution of, 218; funds 
 of, 95; governor of, 70, 126, 218; 
 legislature of, in its relation to 
 city government, 20, 21, 25, 27, 
 28, 59, 89, 95-96, 148, 218, 239. 
 
 Staten Island, 74, 201, 216. 
 
 States-general of Holland, 4, 7, 9, 
 10, 22, 29. 
 
 Statuary in city parks, 198, 199. 
 
 Stephenson, George, 170. 
 
 Stock Exchange, 284, 285. 
 
 Stone Street named, 12, no. 
 
INDEX 
 
 349 
 
 " Straight ticket," 31. 
 
 Street cars, first, 171. 
 
 Street Cleaning Department : care 
 of ashes and sweepings, 115, 1 16 ; 
 commissioner of, u-i ; disposal of 
 street waste, no, in, 113, 114; 
 organization of, no, in; origin 
 of, 109, 1 10 ; use of the incinerator 
 by, 115; use made of city's waste 
 by, 116, 117. 
 
 Street railway, beginning of, 170. 
 
 Stuyvesant, Peter, 9, 10, 12,14, 22,30. 
 
 Subtreasury of theUnited States, 289. 
 
 Subway, 177; Brooklyn division of, 
 179 ; features of, 181-186; man- 
 ner of construction of, 176, 177; 
 roadbed, trains, and stations of, 
 178, 179; terms of contract for, 
 1 80, 181 ; waterproofing process 
 in, 177, 178. 
 
 Suffrage, 29. 
 
 Suffrage privileges in colonial days, 
 29. 
 
 Sumner's Life of Jackson, 310. 
 
 Superintendent of city schools, 96, 
 98, 101, 102, 103. 
 
 Tax books, 303, 304, 305. 
 
 Tax records, 304. 
 
 Tax rolls, 303-304. 
 
 Taxation, 274, 297-298; early, 301, 
 
 302 ; rate of, 305. 
 Taxes and Assessments : Board of, 
 
 302, 303 ; collectors of taxes, 301 ; 
 
 payment of, 306, 308 ; Receiver 
 
 of, 301, 306. 
 
 Taxpayer, 298, 306, 308. 
 Teachers College, 87. 
 Telegraph, first, 18. 
 Telephone and Telegraph Bureau 
 
 of Police Department, 151, 152. 
 Tenement House commissioner, 239. 
 Tenement House Department, 237- 
 
 245- 
 
 Tenement House Law, 238, 240, 274. 
 
 Terms of judges, 328. 
 
 Third rail, 143. 
 
 Tombs, the prison, 260. 
 
 Tombs School, 91. 
 
 Towns : development of, 20 ; early 
 
 New York, 19; government of 
 
 colonial, 20. 
 Transportation, early methods of, 
 
 1 68. 
 
 Tuberculosis infirmary, 254. 
 Twenty-ninth Street, 173. 
 Twenty-third Street, 89. 
 
 Underground road, 176. 
 
 United New Netherland Company, 
 
 4- 
 
 United States, 38, 39, 44, 51, 61, 220. 
 
 University of New York, 88, 91. 
 
 University of the State of New- 
 York, 86; Regents of, 91. 
 
 Untaxed property, 299, 300. 
 
 Vacation schools, 107. 
 
 Vaccination, 231. 
 
 Van Cortlandt Park, 196. 
 
 Van Rensselaer, the patroon, 7: 
 
 Van Twiller, Wouter, 7, 8, Si. 
 
 Vaux, Calvert, 193. 
 
 Veto : borough president's, 76 ; 
 
 mayor's, 48, 57. 
 Viaduct of Rapid Transit Railway, 
 
 1 86. 
 
 Vote, right to, 36. 
 Vote, right to challenge, 36. 
 Voting, 36. 
 Voucher, 292. 
 
 Wall Street, 13, 82, 119, 124. 
 Ward, an election, 24. 
 Warrants, 292, 306. 
 Washington Arch, 198. 
 Washington Bridge, 209. 
 Washington, city of, 220, 309. 
 
350 GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY OF NEW YORK 
 
 Washington, George, 136. 
 Washington Heights tunnel, 183. 
 Washington Park, 191. 
 Washington Square, 191. 
 Waterfront, 213; size of, 214. 
 Water mains, 132, 140. 
 Water supply, 43, 125, 132. 
 Watersheds of the Croton River, 
 
 126. 
 
 Webster, Noah, 16. 
 Wells, public, 119. 
 West India Company, 6, 7, 9, 10, 
 
 14, 20; charter of, 22. 
 Westchester County, 125, 130, 205, 
 
 206. 
 Whitehall Street, 12, 213. 
 
 Willett, Thomas, 15. 
 William and Mary, 24. 
 Williams, John, 208. 
 Williamsbridge, 208. 
 Williamsburg Bridge, 211. 
 Wilson's Memorial History of New 
 
 York, 6. 
 Workhouse, 260. 
 
 Yiddish, 107. 
 Yonkers, 205. 
 
 Zoological Garden of The Bronx 
 
 Park, 197. 
 Zoological Society, 197. 
 
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 REC'P LD 
 
 OCT 3*-*9a 
 
 
 6Dec'58DF 
 
 UEC^t 
 
 HEC^ 
 
 LD 21-100w-8,'34 
 

 YB 0884