The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-02-21
SORRY FOR HUDSON
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tZ
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8Of eourse. said Mr.. Booraem, railroad
property was not valued 50 nigh In Hin.
DIS, for instance, as 1t was in New Jer-
sey. Anyone who mad ridden a few miles
out Of Chicago and seen how short d
time II took them to reach the single
track over the prairie waste could read
lily see that Is WAS not. as valuable as the
four truck railroads in New Jersey. Prop
erity had Increased in New Jersey for
railroad purposes, but it had decreased in
value for other purposes. He cited Har-
sinus Cove in Jersey City, where some
front, and the owner mad his sail boat
on the water, and his fish net and his
oyster bed all In the. cove. But since
then the railroads had come along and
built their valuable freight yard there,
ard the property which was formerly on
the water front was nav two or three
blocks away The property which was
fasn valuable for residential purposes
& little value now, while the building
had increased the value to the railroad,
ta Rev y de eoad IS sad e 4 PA Boora .sf DID not
York did @ New York city. When the
new York Legislature saw that the
water. front was to become valuable they
gave it to the city, and now the city de-
rived a great benefit from it. Then he
spoke OF the value that the railroads
Were to Jersey City. He said that the
trains bring In people to Jersey City,
but they all go over to New York. and
c cHs s e Sew e 9orP H. h fbs s. ppig pay th of
landlng them there. On the other HAND
they paid Jersey city nothing for the
privilege Ct landing the people that they
trains for other places. He said it was
right when the railroads We're infant in
dustfles 70 encourage them and help
them along, but now these infants had
grown 50 strong thai they should cease
wanting public pap.
He next spoke of the Greenwood Lake
Road which Mr.. Allen said was making
no profit. He wanted to know who buiif
the Greenwood Lake road, and said the
towns along it did; and Montclair was
suffering today from the burden it took
upoa Itself to help to construct that road.
Now the railroads wanted to deprive it
OF the tax on the property within its
borders. He claimed that Mr.. Aliens
statement that Hudson suffered from the
present system Of taxation was merely
for the purpose Of arraying all the other
counties against Hudson in this fight.
IL IS Hudson Day today he cried
dramatically, shut the day of the other
counties as coming, and, as you make
to lie upon it, nAs
Applause. from all over the Chamber
greeted this statement.
me value Of the Hudson River front,
ne said, was beyond computation. Go to
any railroad and ask them to sell you a
q foot. Its value was that it could not
pc matched. 1t was priceless. 1t was a
remarkable thing said Mr.. Booraem, that
stitution, citizens should be compelled
70 argue that all property should be
equally taxed.
argument that it was unfair for the
State Board of Assessors to treble the
value Of RAILROAD property over adjoining
said. because the railroad property has
contiguity n continuation. He claimed
that the valuations Of railroad property
ten years. In 1886 the city received $780,
900. The next year the railroads paid
$685., 900, part of which was due from the
mnent Of $S1e5.ooo was Collected, and Since
that there has been an average of some
thing over 100000. Ratables increased in
00o,o00 last year, yet the railroads had
increased in valuation only s. 1000, 900,
while they had made extensive improve
ments and spent at least $40, 900, 900. The
tax amounts had increased so far below
the increased ratables of the city, that
it shows the railroad valuations We're not
proportionately advanced.
DIR. Quimby. of Jersey City, said: stWe
did not come here asking some one ia
pay our tax. It is a SANDER to say
debt. The State never got a cent which
was not its due. and where it received
one cent from the railroads, it should
have received three"
4If there had never been a railroad in
better. city than It is today, Why is
Gus city? Because of its railroads? No;
but because they have no railroads.
D.. QuimbJ stirred up a hornets nest
q ny lp psbIberirlng s e dne B says o. maj Mho pr once
said to him:-You might as well go
home. Doctor; your talking won't do any
good. We're got the Legislature right
The Doctor made haste to explain that
that was many years ago, n he did
If op1 the le' epeae aH fesssei aRen any member
At the conclusion Of DR.. Quimby's ar
guaent. Chairman Lower said that be
5ia Iesslxsa 81 3 'sJl sTasg c 1fSm f samss ::
| ing the Pennsylvania Railroad, and
Thomas n. McCarter Of Newark. repre-
heard on this BIZ. He said that as the
| committee had many other important bills
before it, it would be unable to sit on
this measure again for several days, and
until next Thursday at two o'clock.
This announcement brought Mr.. Queen
to his feet Ike a flash. He said most en-
phatically:-
Counsel for the railroads have had
every opportunity to be here. They have
had sufficient notice. and they have stay
they make this application for the pur-
pose of delaying action upon this
measure, I claim it is unfair to us. Il
have shown good faith, Mr.. McCarter
and Mr.. Vredenburgh open up a new
case and continues this hearing indef-
"These gentlemen will nave an oppor-
tunity of being heard before the Senate
Committee. | have not a bit of faith in
the good faith of the counsel for the rail
roads, whoever they may be, in asking
for a delay. The matter Is one of great
Importance and should be laid before
the House at once
Mr.. Condict thought that the Railroad
companies ought to be fairly represented
and raHher favored the adjournment,
The committee held another consulta-
ton, and finally adjourned until mex
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