The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-01-06
LAFAYETTE ANGRY
Citizens Hold an Indignation
Meeting Against the
Lehigh Valley.
mo GRADE CROSSINGS THE CRY
Resolutions Passed Urging the
City officers to Resist ANY
Encroachment.

Ahe LeillBn valley Raflroad must
not cross Communipaw avenue at
grade said Lafayette taxpayers at a
mass meeting in the Wigwam on Satur-
day evening.
About seventy-ive persons were pres
ent and listened a~ttentively. one indi-
vidual wanted to know why the Boyn-
ton Works Company was allowed to
close Bramhail avenue. But there was
no response.
DR.. Mortimer Lampson presided over
the meeting. and Mr.. Frank %.
Cole was the first speaker of
the evening. He condemned al,
grade crossings. 1T is a gross anach-
ronism." aid he. ito compel other
roads to raise or depress grade cross
ings already in operation and allow this
railroad to establish a new one here in
Lafayette" He spoke of the age Of
the avenue it was proposed to destroy
by this crossing. 1t was the first street
in all New Jersey, he said. From the
foot Of 1T ran the first ferry that piled
between Jersey City and New York.
He alluded to the plan as an attempt
to establish a death trap. He consider
ed that any thinking citizen would be
against all grade crossings as dangerous
to life and limb. In Massachusetts, they
have passed an act abolishing all grade
crossings after fifteen years. 81 would
we had such a one in New jersey Mr..
Cole concluded.
MI. William d. Edwards advised con-
certed and aggressive action on tine
part of the protesting property owners.
Don't wait until 1t is too late" said
he. There is no time like the present.
IL the Street and Water Board passes
this ordinance and the Mayor signs it
you nave no redress. These people will
leave no stone unturned to gain their
point. If you do not watch and antici-
pate their every move you are undone.
Eternal vigilance is the price of Ii
berty."
''The Lehigh Railroad Company say
they cannot reach their tract of land
lying to the west of Communipaw avenue
unless they obtain this crossing. You
and / and every observant citizen know
they can. They have in the past run
N their + FREIGHT ga over the tracks Of HI
the future l have no doubt they can
trail 0 by which they will be permitted
large enough to run all their freight
over then and they will accommodate all
their freight now. We are not engineers,
WI VIC Soh z v II dCE0 SaI NC OdiIl
along the west side from the Lehigh
tracks Of this railroad. There they
might have grade crossings, for there
they would surely do no HARM"
Ex-Assemblyman James Stevens said
the avenue was the only t~horoughfare
front. 1t is in daily use during the
summer months by women and children
seeking the sea air at the shore. This
not dare to risk the dreadful crossing.
He estimated the number who passed
down this street to the shore every day
1 peo Spmfne Almost M sf0m ali 'w o3 e fhi fnrs num aGoasah he
said, were women and children.
Mr.. John w. Heck pointed out the fact
we're the two main t~horoughfares in Lay
fayette. One led to it from Jersey City
by trolley, the other led to the Central
Railroad station at its foot.
.'The Lehigh people are taking Com
They will take Pacific avenue next and
then we shall be left without any I'M
but that around by the Junction. The
railroad company claims this avenue is
Of no 81 use u.s. n to Us, ha Taa th Is mot cpos sfne; I II Is
absolutely necessary to enable them to
reach their ground to the west of the
gysnpei RR Selp wh fbe snoo oat e # t i5fiIen atff e.
guilty? They were surely very foolish to
build from Buffalo to Jersey City, but to
meet meet a. an inn Im "a sal e.a enrrIer- me Nov la Us 5 ree
quires that they cross above or below
grade all streets. They can cross at
ggs grade i Ant i G Is i to aone ad NitR Consent Of te IF
the Common Council"
eve had a startling example of that
point in the case of the Junction Railroad
Commented Mr.. Edwards.
Mr.. Heck, continuing. said that he was
approachsd by Mr. Reon Barnes, agent fna
present case. Mr.. Barnes had, shown him
complish our designs, Lafayette will
se M. john M II. Il Hopkins ialr also spoke and he
was followed by DR.. Mortimer Lampson,
who said that the .Lehigh Valley Com
of the people of Lafayette. in placing on
that sections principal ~thoroughfare a
menace to all who dared to cross it.
their trains along Railroad avenue at
grade the accidents upon its and the
Erie's tracks kept the city's surgeons
the Erie DAD for that. practice. No
doubt the proposed grade crossing on
Communicate avenue will add its quota
of accidents to the list and the surgeons
will materially prosper.
but although am q doctor I most
vigorously oppose this scheme to destroy
dren to offer up as sacrifices to this COM
pany's slaughter, VIII you who have
consent TO allow this railroad TO uhreafen
Lawyer Angel characterized this step
of the. Lehigb Valley Company as only
ask for Pacific avenue and then what
not? He declared that the railroads
had ruined Jersey City and retarded its
IN 1880 1t was the seventeenth largest
city in point Of population in the United
States. Now it is the nineteenth. Where
shall we be fifteen years hence If we do
mol CALL a. matt
Captain Barker spoke of the danger
So, ~loeom TSH snarl runFn IGM, ~ SO So close 10 s,,t to
may burn down our houses, he said.
Yes" said Mr. Edwards, land you
can sue and be hanged to you If the
railroad company can prove the loco
Commissioner John Kaiser declared
that he was with the people in this as
in every matter which may come before
him: He Is, he said. already on record
against grade crossings. and he will
1T has not, replied Mr.. Kaiser. II
have 1T in my possession. 1t must be
introduced q week before 1t can be vot-
fayette that there viii b no steal in
be dome. They will be notified with
plerty cf time in which to take action
in the matter"
Il have seen that ordinance said Mr..
Edwards. 1T reads that the company pe
allowed to cross ~Communipaw avenue at
grade. with a track or tracks. as many as
may be necessary to transport the freight
to the depot, or words to that effect. AS