The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-10-18
ALAS, POOR GRIGGS.
Allan McDermott Over
Whelms the Republican
Maligner With His
Own FalsehoOdS.
TRENTON, Oct. II, 1889.
To THE Hon. JOHN w. GRIGGs, LATE STATE
SENATOR From PAssAIC COUNTY

your record IOr 1883 on Lne question OL
railroad taxation, and showed, believe,
the falsity of your assertion that the
Senate of that year was in favor of justice
to the individual taxpayers of New Jer-
sey. You defeated equal taxation in 1888,
and if Leon Albeit had not been Cover
nor you whould have accomplished the
same result in 1884. A comparison of the
results of these years. legislation neeessi-
tates the consideration of the personnel
of the Senates of 1888 and 1884. You stated
in your speech at the Opera House, in
this city, that an effort was made
to equalize taxation in 1888, and ad-
mitted that it failed; that similar
effort was made in 1884 and that it was
successful. And you further assured
your hearers that Governor Albeit had
nothing to do with the difference in the
results OF the two years. AS you were
or, rather, pretended to be-unable to
even obtain q vote on your bill in 1883,
and as the Senate, after an obstinate
struggle, did afford some relief in 1884,
1883 was composed of twenty-one gentle
men very different from those who formed
the Senate in 1884 In 1883 the body was
composed of the following Senator's
Gardner. Wortendyke, Smith, Merritt, Miller,
Nichols stansby Ferr Paxton
Havens, Griggs, Hines, Cochran, Doughty, Vail
and Beatty.
In this Senate you pretend that you
could not obtain even the consideration
of bill for honest taxation. will, for
the sake of comparison (but for that sake
only, agree that you honestly tried to
get eleven of these Senators to favor such
bill. The best that you could do, though
you say they had agreed to fair and
even taxation before Albeit wrote his
inaugural" was to have your bill igno-
miniously "put to sleep" by the adverse
rar nf a U1Tl1iffQp In whose hands
you allowed it to remain until the cor
porations were satisfied that the danger
for 1888 was passed. The Senate of 1884
was composed as follows
Messrs; Gardner, Miller CD, Smith, Merritt,
Brinkerhoff, Carpenter, Vanderbilt, Schenck,
Applegate, Youngblood. Cranmer, Griggs,
Hines, Daughty, Cochran, Vail and Beatty.
1t will be seen that sixteen members
who were in the Senate in 1888 were
members of that of 1884. The political
complexion was the same, the Senate in
each year being composed of twelve Re-
publicans and nine Democrats. Ten
Republicans who were in the Senate of
1888 were also members of the Senate of
1884, while at least eight of the nine
Democrats in the Senate of 1888 stood
ready to vote for equal taxation. Why,
then, did you not secure the passage of
the bill you introducedP Why were
YOU unable to secure for it even ordi-
nary consideration? Why did you
let it die without a vote on its merits?
Either you were acting in the in
terest of the railroads and introduced a
measure not intended to pass the Senate;
OF else you were unablet to obtain even the
consideration of a bill for the taxation of
railroad property. Think your course in
1884 justities the adoption of the first
proposition. You played with the Ques
tion in 1883. You were vicious in 1884. In
h
tory of the bill which is now upon the
statute book. There is hardly q correct
statement in your remarks, and you can
run contrary to the official record at
nearly every step. You told your hearers
that special Committee on Railroad
Taxation was at work before Governor
Albeit read his inaugural address. That
address was read on the 10Th Of January,
1884 while you and the other Sena-
torial members of the committee were not
appointed until the 18th of January, 1884.
The committee held the question from
the 18th of January until the 10Th of Feb
ruary. You were chairman of that COM
mittee, and l entertain no doubt that if
you had been allowed your own way, the
committee would have renewed the trick.
of 1888 and there would not have been
any report. You say this committee
took testimony and ''sat every night"
Ten minutes before you had told the
audience that the matter had been ex-
amined. discussed what was proper to do
in the premises decided upon year be-
fore Governor Albeit was inaugurated.
Why take testimony, and wear your
young life away by sitting up every
night?" You say your bill of 1888 contain
ed call the essential features of the law
of 1884" Why waste so much time on
non-essentials? If you were discussing
the question of how much tax John Jones
.L,1 unY ntt1d nf
take testimony and sit ''every night" for
a whole month, would your You would
say, "Let him pay the same rate as other
folk" Well, after you had played the
game of 1858 for nearly month, Gov
ernor Albeit prepared bill for equal
taxation and it was introduced in the
House of Assembly. This hurried you a
little. The combined wisdom of the rail
road lobby agreed that you had better
stop taking testimony" and report a
bill The committee then gave birth to
Assembly No. 313.
House Bill No. 313," as it was reported
by your committee and passed the House,
and as it passed the Senate, are widely
different measures. AS it reported to the
House, 1t contained a provision for equal
taxation. It enacted that railroad COM
panies should pay "a tax at the local rate
as assessed and fixed upon other property
in each taxing district" This would be
equal taxation. This was the report of
the committee, signed by both Republi-
Trenton fellow-citizens:--" The Senate
took the bill prepared by the nom
partisan committee, with the honest
decision and desire to do the right
thing to the people of New Jersey.
They passed the bill and it went to
the House They refused to concur.
They met the committee appointed by the
Senate, and at last agreed, under protest,
to concur in the Senate amendments.
That protest was written by Albeit and
passed at his dictation.n
Half wrong and half right, Senator.
The Senate did not pass the bill reported
by the JointIC tICommittee. The House did.
The Assembly passed the Joint Com
mittee's bill and it went to the Senate
and was referred to the Special Committee
on Taxation of Corporations. You were
chairman of that committee. AS chair
man of the Joint Committee you had re-
ported proper bill AS chairman of the
Senate Committee you reported subsui-
tute for that bill. On the nth of Feb
ruary, 1884, you signed report fayoring
equal taxation. On the 25th of March
you reported in favor of
|. EXempting absolutely the depot
buildings, the road-bed, waterways, rails,
and all personal property of railroad and
canal companies from any form OF city or
county taxation.
II. Limiting the rate Of local taxation
on the other real estate owned by railroad
and canal corporations TO one per cent,
no matter what tax was imposed on the
property of individuals.
Senator Brinkerhoff, as a member OF
the Committee, protested against your
amendments, but the gentlemen who
aided vot, in Defeating all relief in 1883