The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-04-03
PUSHING THE CHARTER.
[ConttnLed trom trst poge.I

1 "
day. The citizens did not show any VIC
lent desire to talk. One explanation was
that they had talked themselves out try
ing to get relief from former Legislatures.
Another was that most of them went
home when they d discovered thatthe meet
ing of the Committee on Municipal Cor
p~orations set for noon could not be held
on account of the press OF business in the
House. !,
Chairman Feeney's dinner was so good
chat the citizens who did want to talk
were growing impatient in the Assembly
Chamber when his well filed overcoatw was
perceived coming down the aisle. he sat
down in the Speakers chair, toyed with
the gavel and announced that the commit
tee would first hear those opposed to the
bill.
AN OPPONENT R 20 NEWARK.
Allan L. Bassett, president of the
Newark Board of Trade, took the first tilt
at the bill. He has long, iron-gray hair, a
thick beard of the same tint and impress
sive eve glasses. He thought the
proposed form of government too autro-
cratic and despotic, in view of the powers
conferred on the Mayor. The people, and
not the Mayor, should have the power.
Mr.. Feeney observed that the Demo
cratic members from Essex seemed to
think it extremely improbable that the
charter would ever be submitted to a vote
of the people of Newark.
Mr.. Bassett resumed that the Board of
Trade would Withdraw its objections If
provision were made for having the ques-
ton decided at a special election or for
special ballots to be cast. He thought
that when such a question was
on the general ballot people voted
on it without thinking. Thus at the
election on the library question, only 800
xvr+f.c oocf q roincf if ont of q total of
1000. He further considered it advisable
to make some limitation, say eighteen
months, of the time in which the question
might be submitted to the people. II these
suggestions were attended to, Mr.. Bassett
concluded, the Board of Trade would not
oppose the bill, because its members knew
that Jersey City wanted it or something
like it.
A further call by MI. Feeney for volun-
teers brought down the aisle a tall figure
with a red beard and red hair pointed sky
ward. The volunteer informed Mr.. Feeney
that he was John Ell. Hopken, of Jersey
City. Nh. Feeney welcomed Mr.. Hopken
warmly as being one of the few residents
of Jersey City whose acquaintance he had
not already made.
In a low, sweet voice, Mr.. Hopken
uttered the opinion that when a city was
mine who should be the Mayor and who
would rule through him. Was there a
ring in Jersey City? Mr.. FeeneY inquired,
with an appearance of surprise. Oh, yes,
Mr.. Hopken replied, there was q ring in
the Board of Works, one in the Fire Com
mission and one in the Police Commission;
Il wasn't aware of any ring" remarked
Mr.. Feeney, after he had pinned down Mr..
Hopken to a declaration of the existence
of rings.
"You must rave been away from Jersey
City for a long time" retorted Mr.. Hop
ken. He said he had come to Trenton in
opposition to ring rule, and rather than
accept the proposed charter, he would
favor electing boards or establish
ing them in some other manner. Then
he and Mr.. Feeney enjoyed q debate re-
garding the effect on the Board of Educa-
ton of giving absolute power of appoint
ment to the Mayor. Mr.. Hopken thought
the tendency was not to elevate, and de-
clared that 1t gave too much power to the
Mayor.
Mr.. Feeney replied that the Mayors Of
New York and Brooklyn had the same
powers as were sought to be given to the
Mayor of Jersey City and the citizens of
both towns were perfectly satisfied.
ADVOCATES OF THE MEASURE
The supply of persons opposed to the
billhaving given out, M. Feeney called
stepped forward. He said that he
did not represent any one except
himself, but he felt it his duty to come to
Trenton to advocate the passage of the
bill. Jersey City was governed different
from any other municipality in the
country. One of the greatest evils was
that there was no head of the city govern
ment, no one on whom the re-
s~ponsibility for dishonest or negligent
acts could be placed. Since 1871 the citi-
zens had tried year after year to get relief,
but the evil had continued to the detri-
ment OF the city's interests. The streets
everything except politics was neglected.
The proposed charter, he believed,
was not the very best that could
be offered; but it was an inn
provement. Some citizens objected to the
power under the charter being placed in
the hands of the present Mayor; but Mr..
Ringel said he was willing to trust him.
In reply to questions by Mr.. VOORHEES,,
Ringel said he would have preferred that
the first Mayor to exercise the absolute
power of appointment should be one
elected with that understanding; but he
was willing to trust the present Mayor.
THE NIGHT HEARING.
Not many citizens of either Jersey City
or Newark presented themselves at the
hearing in the evening. Pagan and
Wiedenmayer were both absent. The
hearing was principally for the benefit of
Mr.. Voorhees,, to whom MeSSrS. Feeney
and Edwards explained the beauties of
the measure and its freedom from partisan
ship.
James M. Miller, a Newark manufact-
urer of jewelry, asked that the bill be
amended so as to provide for o separate
ballot and for submission to the people
within eighteen months, if at all. The
feeling in Newark wa decidedly opposed
to the bill unless such provisions were
contained in it.
Thomas Deer, of the Jersey City Jour
nal, said he had felt very strongly for a
number of years that the government of
Jersey City needed reorganizing. At
present it was absolutely impossible to
place responsibility for anything. For
some time it had been impossible to do
anything in any Board without a com
bine.n
eYou mean there is q ring in every
board,'' said Mr.. Feeney.
Yes he replied, and he continued that
both parties were represented in the rings.
The Mayors of Jersey City had been good
men and could be trusted to make suita-
BILE appointments If they knew they would
have to bear fun responsibility. He was
in favor of single headed commissions.
Senator Edwards interrupted him to say
that he had looked up the Citizens
charter with a view to introducing it, but
had found it so imperfect and crude that
nothing could be lone with it. He had
consulted Ex-Governor Albeit about it
and found that it would have been neces-
sary to re-enact every section of the charter
of Jersey City, with the si~ngle-headed
commissions in view.
TENURE OF OFFICE.
Mr.. Deer asked if the members of the