230 The New York Police Force 



property. Relatively to the population, fewer crimes 

 of violence occurred during our administration of 

 the Board than in any previous two years of the 

 city's history in recent times ; and the total number 

 of arrests of criminals increased, while the number 

 of cases in which no arrest followed the commission 

 of crime decreased. The detective bureau nearly 

 doubled the number of arrests made compared with 

 the year before we took office ; obtaining, moreover, 

 365 convictions of felons and 215 convictions for 

 misdemeanors, as against 269 and 105 respectively 

 for the previous year. At the same time every at- 

 tempt at riot or disorder was summarily checked, 

 and all gangs of violent criminals brought into im- 

 mediate subjection; while on the other hand the 

 immense mass meetings and political parades were 

 handled with such care that not a single case of 

 clubbing of any innocent citizen was reported. 



The result of our labors was of value to the city, 

 for we gave the citizens better protection than they 

 had ever before received, and at the same time cut 

 out the corruption which was eating away civic 

 morality. We showed conclusively that it was pos- 

 sible to combine both honesty and efficiency in hand- 

 ling the police. We were attacked with the most 

 bitter animosity by every sensational newspaper 

 and every politician of the baser sort, not because 

 of our shortcomings, but because of what we did 

 that was good. We enforced the laws as they were 

 on the statute books, we broke up blackmail, we kept 

 down the spirit of disorder, and repressed rascality, 



