The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-04-22
WAS IT SNAKHD In?
When Was the Tax Com
mission Feature of the
Charter Amended !?
FUNNY BUSINESS SUSPECTED.
What a Hasty Investigation Of the
Matter Reveals.

There has been good deal of talk
around the town the last day or two as to
the manner in which the variance be-
tween the city charter as signed by the
Governor and the city charter as published
in the election day proclamation occurred.
The variance concerns the composition
of the Board of Tax Assessors. Under the
bill as printed there are to be two gentle
men of one political party and one of the
other. Under the bill as signed by the
Governor the Mayor may fill all t.e places
on the Commission with democrats.
City Clerk Scott, who prepared Alder
| man O'Neill's proclamation calling for the
special vote on the acceptance of the
charter, received the copy of the charter
which he embodied in the proclamation
| from Sheriff Davis. The Sheriff says that
he received it from Senator William D.
Edwards
"Mr. Edwards took reprint copy of
the bill, the Sheriff said to me this morn
ing, "and then got the amendments
| tackled to the original bill, and from them
| prepared the copy which brought to this
city for publication. He made the re-
reprint he used accord with the bill as
passed by interlining the amendments
made to the bill in the House,
| Senator Edwards could not be seen this
morning, but it is dducible from this re-
cital that the amendment that throws the
republican out of the Board of Tax Com
missioners was not in the bill as finally
| passed.
| If that be so then the amendment never
could have been passed by the Legisla-
| ture, and it must have been snaked into
/ OflQ q w h0T IN 4 n
| crooked" legislative work and by some
| one who had an interest in that particular
| clause of it.
| Mr. Feeney says that he made the
amendment to the bill in committee.
| Speaker Hudspeth says he has no recol-
lection whether that amendment was
voted on in the House or not; but two
| Democratic Assemblymen from Hudson
County say point blank that no such
amendment was ever offered to the bill,
and that it was never heard of till the dis
| crepancy between the printed and the
| signed bill was discovered.
4 They remember that the bill was
| amended so as to protect the two Republic
| can Police justices, and so as to provide
| for it's submission on two days notice TO
| the people.
But they are positive that no other
amendment was even offered to the BILL
Speaker Hudspeth described to me the
| hands into which the bill passes while
| undergoing amendment. 1t was much in
the possession of James C. Clarke, his
private Secretary. The rest of the time it
was in the hands of the House officers.
| 1t will be remembered that at time
4 when the passage of charter seemed to
be a hopeless thing, a bill lay in the As
sembly investing the Mayor with the
power to appoint Assessors for this city.
| That bill put a republican on the Board.
Mr.. Clark frequently expressed the opin-
ion that that bill should be so amended as
| to let only democrats into the Board.
1t has been common rumor for some
time past that Michael J. O'Donnell and
ex-Alderman Prigge were to be members
of the Mayors Tax Board.
1t is said that Mr.. Clark hoped to be the
third member.
If the third member had to be repubh-
can, as the bill was supposed to provide,
Mr.. Clark could not get there.
No Appointments Today.
Mayor Cleveland said today that he
will make no appointments today He
may make some tomorrow. Alder
man O'Neill has secured bondsmen
in the event of his selection for the City
| T,ol1aofarcIir, no r,ayv pn1ioo Poopd IL ID