Lights and Shadows of New York Life

J >> James D. McCabe >> Lights and Shadows of New York Life

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From sunset until long after midnight on Saturday, the police are busy
with ridding the streets of drunken and disorderly persons. As soon as a
person is arrested, he is taken to the Tombs or to one of the
station-houses. It is the duty of the officer in charge of the precinct
to lock up every one against whom a definite charge is brought. Even
though satisfied that the person is wrongfully accused, or is simply
unfortunate, he has no discretion. He must hold for trial all charged
with offences, and at the Tombs the officer is obliged to throw persons
who command his sympathy into the company of the most abandoned wretches
for an entire night. Drunkenness, disorderly conduct, and fighting, are
the principal charges brought against the occupants of the Bummers' Cell.
The noise, profanity, and obscenity are fearful. All classes and ages
are represented there.

During the year 1870, 49,423 persons were confined for various periods of
time in the Tombs.

The Tombs Police Court offers some interesting and instructive
spectacles. It is opened at six o'clock on Sunday morning. It is
presided over by Justice Joseph Dowling, a short, thickset man, with a
handsome face, and a full, well-shaped head, indicating both ability and
determination. Judge Dowling is still a young man, and is one of the
most efficient magistrates in the city. His decisions are quickly
rendered, and are usually just. His long experience with criminals has
given him an intimate knowledge of the men with whom he has to deal, and
their ways. This often helps him to a conclusion which is really true,
although the evidence in the case does not confirm it, and he frequently
startles criminals by boldly declaring that they did thus and so at such
a time. The criminal overwhelmed with astonishment and confusion
generally admits the charge, and is sentenced accordingly. A stranger is
at once struck with the quick and penetrating power of Judge Dowling's
glance. He seems to look right through a criminal, and persons brought
before him generally find it impossible to deceive him. This has made
him the terror of criminals, who have come to regard an arraignment
before him as equivalent to a conviction, which is generally the case.
At the same time he is kind and considerate to those who are simply
unfortunate. As a man, he is kind-hearted, and inclined to lean toward
the side of mercy.

As soon as the court is opened, the prisoners are called up in the order
of their arrival during the previous night. Drunkenness and disorder,
and first offences of a minor character, are punished with a reprimand,
and the prisoner is dismissed. These cases constitute a majority of the
charges, and the judge disposes of them with a rapidity which astonishes
a stranger. The more serious cases are held for further examination, or
are sent on for trial before the Court of Special Sessions.

All classes of people come to the Justice with complaints of every
description. Women come to complain of their husbands, and men of their
wives. Judge Dowling listens to them all, and if a remedy is needed,
applies the proper one without delay. In most instances he dismisses the
parties with good advice, as their cases are not provided for by the law.

The Court of Special Sessions sits in a large hall on the right of the
main entrance to the prison. It is strictly a criminal court, and is for
the trial of charges which are too serious to be disposed of in the
Police Court. Two judges are supposed to sit during the sessions of this
court, but Judge Dowling frequently conducts its business alone. The
prisoner is allowed to employ counsel and introduce witnesses in his own
behalf.

The following is an example of the way in which Judge Dowling transacts
business in this court:

"The first case of importance was that of the People vs. James Day,
_alias_ 'Big-mouthed Scotty,' and William Jones, _alias_ 'Billy Clews,'
on the complaint of Captain Ira S. Garland, of the Twelfth precinct.
Probably there are not two other men in this city who could fairly be
compared with these. They are both of the most dissolute, desperate
habits, and have been what they now are, thieves, since the date of their
entry into this city. The first, who is truthfully styled
'big-mouthed'--that hole in his face being almost large enough to run in
one of the cars on the elevated railroad in Greenwich street--was born in
the Hielands o' Bonnie Scotland; but, be it said, he appears not to have
become inoculated with the same spirit of honesty and perseverance that
characterizes the greater portion of his countrymen. He arrived here
nearly twenty years ago, and since that time he has been a lazy,
contemptible thief, a shocking contrast with Caledonians in general.

[Picture: COURT OF SPECIAL SESSIONS.]

"His companion, 'Billy Clews,' has been known in different circles of the
same profession, and could usually be found in the neighborhood of Five
Points. On Thursday there was what is usually termed a 'large' funeral,
from a church at the corner of One-hundred-and-twenty-sixth street and
Fourth avenue. Outside was a long line of coaches, and inside the church
was full of mourners and the friends of the departed, whose remains were
about to be consigned to that 'bourn whence no traveller returns.' The
crowd inside was so great that the police were called in to put the
people in the seats, as far as could be done, and remained there during
the service to keep order. While Captain Garland was standing at the top
of the centre aisle he saw 'Big-Mouth' elbowing his way from the altar
towards the door, and making various efforts to pick pockets as he came
along. Presently he came close up behind a lady who was standing with
her face to the altar, and, reaching his hands in the folds of her dress,
quietly withdrew her pocket-book from its hiding place. The pocket-book
vanished very quickly, however, so that the captain could not see which
way it went or what, for the time, had become of it. At first the
thieves did not observe the captain, but the instant Day caught a glance
of him he turned quietly to his accomplice and said 'Look out, Billy;
there's a big cop.' Billy took the 'cue,' began to move off, and
attempted to get out of the church. But as they were both in the
doorway, and seeing the captain making for them, they made a rush out
from the sacred edifice, passed the carriages and ran down the avenue as
fast as 'shank's pony' could carry them. The captain gave chase, and,
with the aid of an officer on duty at the church, succeeded in arresting
the individuals who were thus trading on the mourners over a dead body.
On returning to the church Garland was informed of the loss of the lady's
pocketbook, but he failed to discover her among the crowd, and
consequently could not produce her in evidence against the prisoners at
the bar. He had seen them previously walking towards the church, and
knowing Day to be a general thief, he gave orders to look out for them,
but somehow for a long time the thieves escaped the vigilance of the
officers. They allowed it was 'all wrong' to be in the church at the
time, but they told the captain he ought to allow them to go, for he knew
'how it was' with them.

"'What have you to say, Scotty?' asked the Judge.

"'Oh, well,' replied Big-Mouth, 'I don't thenk a've got much to say, only
to ask your Honor to deal mercifully with us. The captain at the police
station didn't say he was to breng this prosecution agen us noo; he only
told us he wud tak us out o' harum's way, and didn't make no charge.'

"Judge Dowling.--'It is no use my saying anything to you, Day; in fact,
all that could be said is that you have never been anything else than
what you are now, a thief, and that, too, of a most contemptible type.
You go about to the various graveyards and rob the poor persons who are
too absorbed in interring the dead and in grieving for their lost friends
to notice that you are there for the purpose of plunder; you also visit
the churches wherever there is a crowd of this sort paying their last
respects to the remains of a friend, and never leave without robbing some
poor persons of their money or jewelry. Scotchy, you have done that
business for the past eighteen years to my own knowledge. I do not know
so much about your accomplice, or how long he has been travelling with
you. I will, however, rid the people of your presence, and do my best to
stay your heartless proceedings for some time to come. One year each in
the Penitentiary and a fine of $200 each, and both to stand committed
until the amounts be paid.'

"'I told you how it 'oud be, Scotty,' yelled his partner, and with a
deplorable attitude the pair were marched over the 'Bridge of Sighs.'"

The Tombs is merely a prison of detention, and as soon as prisoners are
sentenced to the institutions on Blackwell's Island, or the State Prison,
they are conveyed to those establishments with as little delay as
possible. The vehicle used for transporting them through the city is a
close wagon, with wooden blinds for light and ventilation, around the
upper part of the sides. This is known as "Black Maria," and may be
daily seen rumbling through the city on its way from the Police Courts to
the ferry to Blackwell's Island.

Closely connected with the penal system of the city is the "Prison
Association of New York." This society was organized in 1844. Its
constitution declares that its objects are: "I. A humane attention to
persons arrested and held for examination or trial, including inquiry
into the circumstances of their arrest, and the crimes charged against
them; securing to the friendless an impartial trial, and protection from
the depredations of unprincipled persons, whether professional sharpers
or fellow-prisoners. II. Encouragement and aid to discharged convicts
in their efforts to reform and earn an honest living. This is done by
assisting them to situations, providing them with tools, and otherwise
counselling them and helping them to business. III. To study the
question of prison discipline generally, the government of the State,
County, and City prisons, to obtain statistics of crime, to disseminate
information on this subject, to evolve the true principles of science,
and impress a more reformatory character on our penitentiary system."

[Picture: "BLACK MARIA."]

Between 1844 and 1869, the members and agents of the Association visited
in the prisons of New York and Brooklyn 93,560 persons confined there.
These were poor and friendless prisoners, and they received from the
Association such advice and aid as their cases demanded. During the same
period, 25,290 additional cases were examined by the officers of the
Society. They succeeded in obtaining the withdrawal of 6148 complaints,
as being trivial, or based upon prejudice or passion. Upon their
recommendation, the courts discharged 7922 persons guilty of first
offences, and who were penitent, or who had committed the offence under
mitigating circumstances. They also provided 4130 discharged convicts
with permanent situations, and furnished 18,307 other discharged convicts
with board, money, railroad tickets, or clothing, to help them to better
their condition. In the twenty-five years embraced in the above period,
they thus extended their good offices to 156,368 persons. A noble
record, truly.

XIV. THE PRESS.

I. THE DAILY JOURNALS.

The Metropolitan Press is the model after which the journals of the
entire country are shaped, and, taken as a whole, it is the best
institution of its kind in existence. The leading New York journals have
but one superior in the whole world--the London _Times_--and they
frequently equal, though they do not surpass the "Thunderer" itself in
the extent and importance of their news, and the ability and value of
their editorials. They are the best managed, employ the greatest talent,
and are the most influential upon the country at large of any American
newspapers.

The leading journals are the morning papers. Five of these, the
_Herald_, _Tribune_, _Times_, _World_, and _Staats Zeitung_, are huge
eight-page sheets, and frequently issue supplements of from four to eight
pages additional. The others consist of four large, old-fashioned pages.

The expense and labor of issuing a first-class morning journal are very
great. The cost of publication ranges from $800,000 to $1,000,000 per
annum; and the force employed, including editors, reporters,
proof-readers, newsmen, pressmen, feeders, clerks and compositors, is
over four hundred persons. The profits vary according to the paper and
the times.

The _Herald_ is private property, as are some of the others. The
_Tribune_, _Times_, and _Sun_, are owned by stock companies. Under Mr.
Raymond the _Times_ was subject to his sole direction, but the _Tribune_
has always suffered from the interference of the stockholders.

Each newspaper has its editor in chief, who controls the general tone and
policy of the paper. He decides all matters relating to its editorial
conduct, and is known to the public as the responsible editor. His
principal assistant is the managing editor. In the absence of the chief
editor he is the controlling power of the journal. His legitimate duties
are to oversee the details of the paper, to see that its publication is
not delayed, to engage and dismiss sub-editors and correspondents, to
prescribe the character of the service required of these gentlemen, and
to regulate the salaries paid to them. All the writers on the paper are
directly responsible to him, and he, in his turn, to the chief editor.
There is also a night editor, whose duties are heavy and responsible. He
is charged with the duty of "making up" the paper, and decides what shall
and what shall not go in--a delicate duty sometimes. He is at his post
at 7 o'clock in the evening, and remains there until the paper goes to
press in the morning, which is generally between 2 and 3 o'clock, though
sometimes it is held back by important news until daylight. The foreign
editor is usually a foreigner, and one well acquainted with the leading
languages of Europe. He controls the foreign correspondence, and writes
editorials upon European topics. The financial editor writes the money
article, and is quite an important personage. He is obliged to be well
informed concerning all the financial transactions of the day; he is
courted by bankers and capitalists, as he to a certain extent controls
public opinion in money matters, and he has ample facilities for making
money outside of his position. The post is considered one of the most
lucrative on the paper, and the salary is regarded as a minor
consideration. The city editor has charge of the city news, and is the
chief of the reporters. The leading dailies have from twelve to thirty
reporters. These are assigned to duty each day by the city editor, who
enters his directions to them in a large book. They are sometimes
required to go to certain places to obtain news, and are expected to
furnish so much matter concerning it. Some of the reporters have special
lines of duty, and report nothing but law cases, police matters, etc.,
and some limit their operations to Brooklyn, Jersey City, and the other
suburban towns. Some of the reporters are stenographers also. At times
there will be scarcely any work to be done, and again the powers of the
whole staff of reporters will be severely taxed. There are also a
literary editor, whose duties are to review and notice books and other
publications; and art, dramatic and musical critics. Some of these are,
as they should be, gentlemen of the highest culture, and impartial in
their opinions. Others are quite the reverse. The best of them,
however, are but men, though they too often assume to be something
superior, and their judgments are not infallible. The leading journals
also employ translators, who put into English such extracts as it may be
necessary to use from the foreign papers.

[Picture: PRINTING HOUSE SQUARE.]

The amount of labor thus expended upon a morning newspaper is immense.
It is followed by an almost equal outlay of mechanical work in putting
the paper in type and printing it. The principal papers are stereotyped,
and are printed from plates. Formerly the Eight and Ten Cylinder Hoe
Presses were used, but of late years the Bullock Press has become very
popular. It works quite as rapidly as the Hoe press, prints on both
sides at once, and is said to spoil fewer sheets. The paper is put in in
a large roll, and is cut by the machine into the proper sizes and
printed. Only one feeder is necessary.

Nearly all the city newspapers are located in or around Printing House
Square, immediately opposite and east of the City Hall. One of the
greatest curiosities of this square is a huge engine, which runs a large
number of presses. It is situated in Spruce street, between William and
Nassau streets, and occupies the basement of the building in which it is
located. There are two engines here--one of 150 horse power, which is
used during the day, and a smaller one of 75 horse power, which relieves
it at night. Shafting and belting carry the power in every direction
from the engine. One hundred and twenty-five presses are worked by these
engines--each being estimated at so much horse power, and charged
accordingly. They turn three-quarters of a mile of main shafting,
besides a mile or more of connecting shafts, and as much belting. One of
these belts, an India rubber one, 120 feet long, connects a fifth story
press on Nassau street with the main shafting on Spruce street, across
the intervening yards, and another of leather, on Beekman street, 140
feet, perfectly perpendicular, connects the sub-cellar and the attic.
Some of the shafting passes under and across the streets. Over fifty
newspapers and literary papers, besides magazines and books innumerable,
are printed by this monster engine.

The salaries paid by the newspapers are not large. Those who receive
what is seemingly high pay do an amount of work out of proportion to
their compensation. Mr. Greeley receives $10,000 per annum. Mr. Reid,
the managing editor of the _Tribune_, receives $5000. Mr. Sinclair, the
publisher, receives $10,000. These are considered good salaries. Any
one familiar with the cost of living in New York will not think them very
much in excess of the wants of their recipients, who are men with
families.

As a newspaper, the _New York Herald_ stands at the head of the city
dailies. It aims to be a vehicle for imparting the latest news of the
day, and as such it is a great success. Nobody cares for its opinions
editorially expressed, for it is the general belief that the _Herald_ has
no fixed opinions. It is valued here simply as a newspaper. It is
beyond a doubt the most energetic, and the best managed _newspaper_ in
the city. Mr. James Gordon Bennett, the elder, has no rival in the art
of conducting a popular journal, but his son, Mr. J. G. Bennett, jr.,
does not seem to inherit his father's ability. Young Mr. Bennett is now
the managing editor, and since his accession to that post there has been
a marked decline in the ability of the paper, which, under the rule of
Mr. Hudson, was unquestioned. Nobody expects consistency in the
_Herald_, and its course to-day is no guarantee that it will hold the
same tone to-morrow. Mr. Bennett aims to float with the popular current,
to be always on the winning side, and he succeeds. The advertising
patronage of the paper is immense.

The _Herald_ office is one of the most conspicuous buildings in the city.
It is located at the corner of Broadway and Ann street, and is built of
white marble, in the modern French style. Below the sidewalk are two
immense cellars or vaults, one below the other, in which are two steam
engines of thirty-five horse power each. Three immense Hoe presses are
kept running constantly from midnight until seven in the morning,
printing the daily edition. The rooms and machinery are kept in the most
perfect order. Nothing is allowed to be out of place, and the slightest
speck of dirt visible in any part, calls forth a sharp rebuke from Mr.
Bennett, who makes frequent visits to every department of the paper. On
the street floor, the main room is the public office of the journal. Its
entrances are on Broadway and Ann street. It is paved with marble tiles,
and the desks, counters, racks, etc., are of solid black walnut,
ornamented with plate glass. Every thing is scrupulously clean, and the
room presents the appearance of some wealthy banking office.

[Picture: THE HERALD OFFICE.]

On the third floor are the editorial rooms. The principal apartment is
the "Council Room," which overlooks Broadway. Every other branch of the
editorial department has its separate room, and all are furnished with
every convenience necessary for doing their work with the utmost
precision and dispatch. Each day, at noon, the editors of the _Herald_,
twelve in number, assemble in the "Council Room." Mr. Bennett, if he is
in the city, takes his seat at the head of the table, and the others
assume the places assigned. If Mr. Bennett is not present, his son,
James Gordon Bennett, jr., presides at the council, and in the absence of
both father and son, the managing editor takes the head of the table.
The council is opened by Mr. Bennett, or his representative, who presents
a list of subjects. These are taken up, _seriatim_, and discussed by all
present. The topics to be presented in the editorial columns of the
_Herald_ the next day are determined upon, and each editor is assigned
the subject he is to "write up." All this is determined in a short
while. Then Mr. Bennett asks the gentlemen present for suggestions. He
listens attentively to each one, and decides quickly whether they shall
be presented in the _Herald_, and at what time; and if he desires any
subject to be written upon, he states his wish, and "sketches," in his
peculiar and decisive manner, the various headings and the style of
treatment. There are twelve editors and thirty-five reporters employed
on the _Herald_. They are liberally paid for their services. Any one
bringing in news is well rewarded for his trouble. The composing rooms
are located on the top floor, and are spacious, airy, and excellently
lighted. A "dumb waiter," or vertical railway, communicates with the
press room; and speaking tubes, and a smaller "railway," afford the means
of conversation and transmitting small parcels between this room and the
various parts of the building. Five hundred men are employed in the
various departments of the paper.

The circulation of the daily edition of the _Herald_ is estimated by
competent judges at from 65,000 to 70,000 copies. In times of great
public excitement, all the dailies overrun their usual number by many
thousands.

The _Tribune_ has a daily circulation of about 43,000 copies. It is, in
point of ability, the best of the city dailies. It long ago surmounted
its early difficulties, and has been for many years one of the most
profitable enterprises in the city. It is owned by a joint stock
company. It was begun by Mr. Greeley on $1000 of borrowed money. At the
formation of the company the stock was divided into 100 shares at $1000
each. The number is still the same, but the shares could not now be
bought for many times their original value. In 1870 the dividend
declared amounted to $163,000; or, $1630 on each share. At present the
shares are owned as follows:

Shares.
Samuel Sinclair, publisher 21
Horace Greeley, chief editor 12
Estate of Stephen Clark, 14
(formerly money editor)
Dr. J. C. Ayer (of Lowell) 16
Estate of A. D. Richardson 5
Bayard Taylor 5
T. N. Rooker, foreman in 5
composing room
Mr. Runkle (husband of Mrs. L. G. 2
Calhoun)
Oliver Johnson (of the 1
Independent)
Mr. Cleveland (brother-in-law of 1
Horace Greeley)
G. W. Smalley (London 2
correspondent)
Solon Robinson (agricultural 2
editor)
Two printers in the office 2
Solomon A. Cheeney 3
John Hooper 2
B. F. Camp 2

The _Tribune_ property is valued at over $1,000,000, which includes
nearly $300,000 in real estate. The stockholders, it is said,
contemplate, at no distant day, erecting a large and handsome printing
office on the site of the present unpretending building now occupied.
The profits of the paper do not depend upon the daily edition. The
semi-weekly circulates about 35,000 or 40,000 copies, and the weekly
about 130,000 copies. The last is sent all over the United States, and
has beyond a doubt the largest number of readers of any paper in the
world.

The _Tribune_ is the leading organ of the Republican party in the United
States, and its influence is tremendous. It is a well written, well
conducted paper, and is every year becoming more independent of party
control. The chief editor is Horace Greeley, who imparts his strong
personality to the whole journal. Many of the country people believe
that the Philosopher writes every line on the editorial page. The
managing editor is Whitelaw Reid, and the publisher Samuel Sinclair. Mr.
Reid succeeded Mr. John Russell Young, and the paper has profited by the
change. Mr. Sinclair is one of the most efficient publishers in the
land, and the _Tribune_ owes not a little of its success to his
genius--for that is the only name to give it. The editorial staff
comprises more ability than that of any other city journal, though some
of the others make a better use of the talent at their disposal. Its
correspondence, both domestic and foreign, is the best of all the city
papers--perhaps the best in the Union--and the list of its correspondents
contains some of the brightest names in literature.