onfiscations, but
it constantly came into possession of more because of non-payment of
taxes.

The excuses by which the city officials covered their short-sighted or
fraudulent grants of the water rights and the city land were various.
One was that the gifts were for the purpose of assisting religious
institutions. This, however, was but an occasional excuse. The principal
excuse which was persisted in for forty years was that the city needed
revenue. This was a fact. The succeeding city administrations so
corruptly and extravagantly squandered the city's money that the city
was constantly in debt. Perhaps this debt was created for the very
purpose of having a plausible ground for disposing of city land. So it
was freely charged at that time.

THE CITY CREATES LANDLORDS.

Let us see how the religious motive worked. On June 10, 1794, the city
gave to Trinity Church a water grant covering all that land from
Washington street to the North River between Chambers and Reade streets.
The annual rent was one shilling per running foot after the expiration
of forty-two years from June 10, 1794. Thus, for forty-two years, no
rent was charged. Shortly after the passage of this grant, Trinity
Church conveyed it to William Rhinelander, and also all that ground
between Jay and Harrison streets, from Greenwich street to the North
River. By a subsequent arrangement with Trinity Church and the city, all
of this land as well as certain other Trinity land became William
Rhinelander's property; and then, by agreement of the Common Council on
May 29, 1797, and confirmation of Nov. 16, 1807, he was given all rights
to the land water between high and low water mark, bounding his
property, for an absurdly low rental.[107] These water grants were
subsequently filled in and became of enormous value.

Astor was as energetic as Rhinelander in getting grants from the city
officials. In 1806 he obtained two of large extent on the East Side--on
Mangin street between Stanton and Houston streets, and on South street
between Peck Slip and Dover street. On May 30, 1808, upon a favorable
report handed in by the Finance Committee, of which the notorious John
Bingham was a member, Astor received an extensive grant along the Hudson
bounding the old Burr estate which had come into his possession.[108] In
1810 he received three more water grants in the vicinity of Hubert,
Laight, Charlton, Hammersly and Clarkson streets, and on April 28, 1828,
three at T