Middletown transcript., 1875-02-27
Correspondence.
Letter from Newark.

quiet and peaceably inclined, have gone
wild on the subject of petitions. No
sooner do they get one laid on the shelf
than the cry is heard on all sides,
"Have you signed, or will you sign SIS
petition ?" If you answer no to both
Of these queries, then you must sign
G's; and the luckless individual is
forthwith led up to the desk to write
his name, which being done. he re-
ceives polite, "thank you," and the
agent Of the petition is off after new
signers. | hear you ask, "What is
the matter, now, that your people are
in such state Of anxiety?' Ianswer,
.san influential citizen of our ancient
town recently without malice prepense
or aforethought, went to the r r.
depot, on certain business affairs of his
own, and while there saw three or four
railroad officials walking around ap-
parently inspecting the companys prop
erty. The logical conclusion in his
mind was that this meant change in
the site Of the depot Out of this
sprang petition No. l. The aforesaid
citizen having property nearer to the
city of Wilmington by 400 yards than
the present depot, and Cd the same side
Of the railroad as the town, felt certain
that if the r. r. station could be fixed
near to his property, the benefit to the
town Cor his property would be in
calculable. Hence the distraction to
that portion of the community; for to
set forth the advantages to be derived
by the proposed change so as to get
the company to believe in them, re-
quires vast amount of self-assurance
Petition No 2,is in favor Of the change,
but opposed to the location. 1t claims
your endorsement on the ground that
we will derive more benefit if the depot
is placed at the intersection Of P. W.
& B and P. D., r. Rs, which is one
mile nearer Wilmington than the place
where No. wants it.
This movement on the part of No. 2,
causes fearful eontensions. If it sue
ceeds down goes the value of real
estate at the east end of the town, and
the ruination, in value, of the property
at the old depot, which is owned BY
one or two men, and removal to that
far off point cannot be entertained for
moment What matter if at the
present place you have an accident now
and then: kill three or four folks
They be no account along side of the
value Of the property that joins the
present site The freight cars stand
across the public road every morning,
to the detriment Of the country people,
for the want Of room. What of that? ?
These property holders must be protect
ed at the expense Of the public-the few
against the many-So wags the world.
The great trouble about these petit
tions is, they are to 60 before those
august bodies, the Directors and officers
Of the P W. & B.. R. R. who do all
things we'll, even in asking the Legis-
lature to reduce their State tax to $40
000 The consideration for this small
favor is, they will reduce the freight on
peaches 7.50 per car to Jersey City,
peach growers relinquishing their right
to drawback Of $4,000, of an over
charge due them from the R. R. CT
The people north o. the canal would
like to know what reduction is to be
made on grain, lime, coal and other mer-
chandise by the ear. They have no
peaches, but are interested in that
500, 900; they want some Of the ad-
vantages that are to accrue to shippers
for the reduction Of the tax on one kind
Of property means raising it on another
kind The treasury will be depleted
just that amount, and it will have to be
made up-of course off the land
| see great deal in the different
papers about increased representation,
and various methods are proposed !:
division Of the county, district system
and the ID knows what else. If the
people were called on for their views,
could they not decide this perplexing
question knowing that. divide or dis
trict the county the majority rules?
The Legislature appears to be non COM
pos mentis in the matter. IF they will
refer it to the citizens Of this good old
place, we will fix it in short metre If
we can do it no other way, with our big
Senator at our head, we will petition
Congress to come the Virginia yer
them.
While we are on petitions-There is
some talk Of petitioning Grant to de-
clare all dogs "banditti," and send
Piegan Sheridan here to put them in
the lookup, close to the Senator's re-
sidence. so as to induce him to 60 for
the next dog bill that is presented to the
honorable body that he belongs to at
Dover n NJ.