Bleeding the Tax-payers

New York, 1895

The Rascally Work Which the Standard is Defending.

Certain constables and deputy sheriffs in the town of Jamaica are doing a big business in tramps, sending from six to twelve a day to the county jail. The expense of arresting, committing and conveying the tramps to jail falls upon the town. The constable or deputy supplies the tramps with tobacco and some whisky. The cost of committing a tramp is from $8 to $12, according to the distance traveled. A pretty bill is therefore being run up against the town. It is nothing short of a conspiracy to bleed the tax-payers, and the Standard is helping it along. The town board should not audit the bills of deputy sheriffs for this work. They have no authority to make the arrests. Some time ago, when these deputies were in a similar conspiracy to draw blood money from the town, the town board, to put an end to it, passed a resolution that no bill of a deputy sheriff would be audited except for services rendered at the request of a justice of the peace. That resolution has never been rescinded. Its strict enforcement is demanded at this time.


Shelton Avenue Lines Mixed

The commissioners appointed to award damages for the land to be taken for the extension (west) of Shelton avenue, Jamaica, held a meeting at the Surrogate's office on Tuesday and finished the taking of testimony. Engineer Conklin testified that he had made a survey of the proposed extension and found that the stakes as laid out by the former surveyor were set six inches to the north of the true line. The avenue as sought to be extended by this application is not a continuation of the avenue laid out on the village map. Emma Sterling, Emily A. Brown, and Maria Sauer testified as to the value of their lots on the Fleet property. Counselor Gillen summed up on the part of the village, Counselor Monfort for property owners, and Counselor Cromwell for Aaron A. Degrauw.


Cases Before Justice Gaynor

Justice Gaynor presided at a special term of the supreme court at the Court House, in Long Island City, on Monday. The calendar contained twenty cases, including four against Long Island City, which, with several others, went off for the term. The action of ex-Gov. Flower against M. F. Claven and the improvement commissioners of Long Island City to prevent the commissioners from going on with the improvement of Borden avenue was set down for argument in Brooklyn. J. Rufus Terry has a similar action pending.

Justice Gaynor dismissed the suit of ex-Mayor Gleason against Mayor Sanford to recover rent for the old Grand avenue school-house. The plaintiff did not appear.

—The Long Island Farmer, Jamaica, NY, March 1, 1895, p. 1.