The Sunday tatler and Jersey City express. (Jersey City, N.J.) 1883-1886, 1885-04-26
THE NEW LOCAL BOARDS.
THE CANDIDATES FOR THE PLACES
WITHIN IHEIP GIFT
The Struggle for the CIerl<ship of the
Freeholders--VEiII Collector Farrier

Freeholders--Wiu Collector Farrier
| be Retained : The City Boards.
An unusually large share of public in
terest centres in the organization of the
Board of Chosen Freeholders. No serious
attempt will be made by the Democrats,
who are in control of the Boar, to elect a
new presiding officer, but sy cannot
close their eyes to the fact that Director
Govern is In an anomalous position. The
passage of the act abolishing the Office
seems to destroy his title, and until the act
has been set aside as unconstitutional, as
it probably will be, by the Courts, it is
question how the recognition the Board is
DESTROYS of giving him can be extended to
him. It is probable, however, that some
way out of the dilemma will be found, and
that he will be enabled to exercise the
functions of an Office from which the Joint
Caucus sought to GUST him in violation of
law and decency. It is intimated that
Director may be selected from among the
members in order to lay the foundation of
a contest; that Mr.. Govern will claim his
Office, and institute friendly proceedings to
enforce his claim, and that pending the
litigation he will be recognized as the law
full presiding officer. So far, the only
Freebooter who is anxious to be Director
is Freebooter Lawson, of the Fourth Dis
trict. For the clerkship OF the Board there
is the iveliest kind of a scramble. The
Freeholders go into caucus with candidate
irons almost every district in the county.
Hoboken has two or three aspirants in
the field. Ex-Register j. B. Cleveland
might have captured il if he had gone
in for it. Tommy" Noonan had strong
pull for it at the start, but his unfortunate
action at the Board of Canvassers last
Wednesday has driven his support from
him. In spite of all his explanations, it is
the general conviction among the poll
ticians that there was collusive arrange
ment between him and Mr.. Fillipetti
by which, if he counted Filhpetti
into a seat in the Board, he was
to have Filllpettis vote for the clerk.
ship. Honest Democratic sentiment re-
bells against that kind of business,
and Tommy has lost strength as
well as caste by the supposed attempt.
The main competitors for the position at
this writing seem to be George T. Bouton,
the clerk of the Board of Works, and Jo-
seph M. Noonan, ex-Editor of the Argus.
It is difficult to say which Of them has the
lead in the race. Noonan is meeting wit b
opposition because of the attitude of the
Argns in the McGill- Collins campaign. But
anybody who knows anything about news
paper work knows that the editorials of a
newspaper, on all matters of special mo-
ment, are written at the dictation of the
proprietor, and Mr.. Noonan doubtless
wrote under orders during ali of that cam
paign. If it can be shown that he voted
for Mayor Collins, or gave active cncour-
agement to the movement that elected
him. the straightness of his Democracy
might be assailed; but the mere fact that
he was Editor of the Argus at time when
the Argus, which has never pretended to
be Democratic paper, detected, counts
for nothing. No objection of the kind
hangs against Mr.. Bouton, and, though he
entered the field late, he has made sharp
canvass for the position. To remove him
from the contest, a strong attempt will be
made to choose him Clerk of the Board of
Works at the organization of that Board to-
morrow. Even that may not satisfy
him. The clerkship of the Board
of Works is a laborious place, with
very modest compensation. The
Clerkship of the Freeholders is a
comparative sinecure commanding salary
of So, 500 per year, and worth more in per-
quisites. Rumor says that John Boyd is
also in the race, but the old dame can't be
in earnest When she gave currency to so |
whimsical an impossibility she must have |
been in state of reckless hilarity. Just
after it became known that the Board had |
an overwhelming Democratic majority it |
was announced that ex-Assemblyman |
Joseph T. Kelly desired to be made County |
Collector, but he has since withdrawn. |
Then the name of Cashier Schroeder, of |
the Germania Bank, was mentioned in |
connection with the place. Now it is un-
derstood that he, too, is out. Hugh |
Dugan has meanwhile been working his |
points shrewdly for the position, and he |
will probably be the nominee of the Demo- |
cratic caucus. Till the recent appoint |
ments he was City Assessors. He is in |
terested in a grocery business on Grove |
street, and enjoys the reputation of being |
square as die, and level headed as they |
make them. The friends of County Collec-
tor Farrier hoped at first to induce the Board |
to retain him. He has made an excellent |
collector-the best the county has ever
had, good many people say-and nothing |
but the inexerable demands of party makes |
it necessary for him to go. The argu- |
ment in his behalf, outside of his ackpowl- |
lodged adaptability to the work, is that the |
position is not political one. Cashier |
Kingsland was County Collector for years
WdtQQMg uAJ ACHaAO w LILO ROub1G6 VI b40 |
Board; and the Republicans who are urging
Mr.. Farrier remind the Democrats
that even when Republican officials
ton. Alderman Reardon is mentioned,
but the most conspicuous candidate
place Democrats, the Democrats were
retained-as, for instance, County Physi-
clan Converse and Clerk Fielder Then it
is said that in view o. the large obligations
the county will soon have to meet, change
would be unwise-that O new man could
not manage this particular branch of the
business as well as Mr.. Farrier. These ar
gapents have induced some of the Demo
cratic members of the Board to favor his
retention, but there gre not enough of
them to make any impression on the eau
Gus. and the probability is that the
county will have new Collector.
The city politicians are not much inter-
ested in the approaching organizations of
the Boards. It is settled that Commits
sioner Brennan will be President of the
Fire Board. The Republican caucus has
already selected him. So there will be no
Leather, Head to that Board this year.
When it became known that ex-Assem-
blyman Gator had been elected to seat
IN the Aldermanic chamber, it was as
sumed that his ambition would lead him to
aspire to the Presidency of the Board.
But it is understood now that he has no
ambition in that direction, and that
he stands ready to vote for a
Simon pure Democrat for the posi-
ton. The only candidate in the field
SO far is Alderman Jordan, and he will un-
donbtedly be the caucus nominee. City
Marshal uFamer viii be fred, in all prob
ability. He Is said to be SO sure of it him-
self that he is looking for an appointment
of some kind at the hands Of the Board of
Finance. Ex-Marshal Tim" Long, who