The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-05-01
STATE WATER BOARD
Ex-senator John w. GTiggs
Bitterly Opposes Brad
1ey's Bill.
WHOM HE REPRESENTED.
Surprised to Learn Anyone Could
Believe the Water Belonged
to the State.
specta, to the Jersey cstp Ne,rs.

Special to the Jersey City Netrs.
TRENTON, May /, 1s94-John J. Griggs,
ex-State Senator of New Jersey. special
counsel to several grasping grinding mono
poles, came down here last night and IN
sisted upon having a hearing on Senator
Bradley's bill creating a State Water Board
The bill had already been reported and was
on the calendar, but Mr.. Griggs succeeded
in bulldozing the Senate into recommitting
the bill to the Committee on Municipal Cor
porations. When the Senate adjourned the
committee gave Mr.. Griggs the hearing be
demanded.
He said that he appeared before the COM
mittee in behalf of banks and trust COM
panies which held bonds of water companies.
These companies had been lawfully organ
lied under the laws of New Jersey and their
bonds had been bought for one hundred
cents on a dollar. If Mr.. Bradley's bill be-
came q law it would repeal those franchises
n make those bonds worthless.
$50 that Is the Law the people ask you 20
passg' Mr.. Griggs exclaimed.
lit is outrageous and ubiquitous. There IS
not a corporation or water company in the
State which will have a right to supply its
CuSlOll6l5 WILL DlLGCA IL kAA4r 0XA -
law He then asked il any Senator pro-
posed to vote for such a moastrous PROPOSE
ton. He read the first and second section
of the bill. and claimed that the latter re
voked and cancelled all rights acquired
under any grant, charter or rlghs hereso-
charter of every water company granted IN
this State since 1913.
He said the theory hi there is no prop
erty in water was the most ridiculous ever
brought forth. There was not a deed, ex-
cept for a lot in the cemetery, which did not
cipality in the State which had a water sup
ply which had not paid large sums for the
water right. The Legislature had passed
laws giving municipalities the right to con-
denim water rights.
He quoted from decisions of the courts to
show that there was property In water. He
hen went ON to say that the bill provided
for a Water Board to have more powers
than any other similar board in any other
State in the Union. The members OF the
board had the authority to buy any body OF
water in the State without anybody saying
anything about price or necessity. lie de-
clared that there were chances enough for jobs
In such a scheme to make ten millionaires n
wear. The bill gave the board authority to
purchase any water works Of any munich
paiity. He asked how the board was going
to pay for all this. Newark paid S6,00O,00O
lOI 4tI SuODlJs dHtA AOn LlaGA W. - $500
toscost to supply the other citiess lmagin-
alton, he said, was almost inadequate to con-
ceive of the large amount such a scheme
would require. He read the section of the
bill which provided for the issue of bonds,
and claimed that the making them payable
at the stats 4reasurer's Office and having
them signed By the State Comptroller gave
them a coioring which would lead innocent
purchasers to think they were genuine.
GRIGGS
It was a wildcat, ill-conceived scheme.
for it bound no one for the payment of the
interest on the bonds. Mr.. Griggs said he
was surprised that a man of such financial
ability as Senator Bradley should lend his
aid to such a dishonest scheme. Ii the bill
became a law and Jersey City should build
works under it, the speaker declared that it
would repudiate and make worthless all the
water bonds issued by the city for the water
works at Beileyille.
He ridiculed the section providing for a
sinking fund, and said there never was a
sinking fund yet which did not sink itself.
It would be noticed that the bill was drawn
more carefully to pay something than any
thing else; The last section, he claimed, !ap-
propriated at once S250,000, to be paid Inn
mediately at the order of the board. twas,
Mr.. Griggs claimed, lending the credit of
the State to a municipality.
The proposition Of the bill was to take
from every locality needing a water supply
the right to get that supply for itself, and
violated the principle of home rule for which
both parties have been fighting in the Legis-
lature for several years. Instead OF being @
bill in the interest of the people, it was for a
few gentlemen who did not understand the
question, and was demended by a few gentle
men of the Board Of Trade of Jersey City:
With all due respect to the gentlemen of
Jersey City, who composed this Board of
Trade, he must say that if it was anything
like the Board of Trade of his city, their
chief function was to stir up mischief. Then
Mr.. Griges rescrted to the very poor argu-
ment of abuse and most foully slandered
Mr.. Lebeus Ward who is here urging the
passage Of the bill. When he had vented
his corporate spleen upon Mr.. Ward, he
asked if there was any Senator who believed
that there was not property1n water.
"Yes, DE- said Senator Bradley. II
think the water belongs to the State"
Mr.. Griggs looked astonishsd. 1t seemed
incredible 70 HIM that any one could hold
That theory after listening to his profound
disquisition upon the subject, and was about
to reply when Judge Mclirath said that he
could not find a decision in any Of the courts
Of the United States which held that there
was any property in running water.
GRIGGS MADE TIRED
Mr.. Griggs had a. running dispute in
which the Judge was getting the best of 1t,
when Mr.. Griggs said he had not time to go
On that line, and proceeded to say that there
was not a municipality that asked for this
bill or the State Board. Jersey City did
not want it. notwithstanding the Board Of
Trade Not a single one Of her municipal
departments had asked for it. He asked the
Senator why they hurried, and why they
did not wait until some one asked for the
hill.
Joseph Colt, the foxy lawyer of Newark,
who, though nominally a republican, work
ed his points so well that he retained the
nfice Of City Counsel for years under a
Democratic regime, spoke against the bill.
He made every one smile by d%enouncing the
measure as a measure for lawyers, as it
would be a subject of litigation until the
zeal of condemnation was placed upon it
By the courts.
Erie TRACK ELEVATION