The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-02-27


under his control. would the other own
resultant injustice? Nobody would dare
70 susgest any such scheme. ard any
stitutionsl. But this is he railroad pan.
Is the injustice any less gross. less
shameful, because a corporation Is hene-
hted instead of an iniividuaf2 The pro-
test of Jersey City is loudest because
the injury there is greatest, but the in
Jury also affects Newark and deprives
the city of its just dues.
But. if the "Call' thinks all this. why
wassit guilty last fall of the crime of
helping defeat the Democratic party?
The ssState Gazettes.s' Equal Taxa
ton Screams.
The State Gazette kept up it's howl
against equal taxation yesterday, and it
has another TRADE today. Having found
out what the railroad bosses of the G.
o. p. demand of it, it goes into the fight
with all the reckless abandon tina a total
lack Of scruple fosters.
But, however vicious it may be. it can
not escape being funny at times. Here
is a GEM
The salaries paid by Jersey City under
ring rule amounted TO almost half as
much as it costs to run the entire State
government.
Now how much less are salaries. today.
under G. Q. P. rule?
Then again.
It is very certain that if the railroad
property in Jersey City were taxed as
other property Is taxed. it would cease
to pay the State taxes hi now flow
into the State Treasury.
Evidently the Edstor of the state
Gazette has not read the Queen bill,
or any of the arguments made on the
subject. This was wise. Facts are so
embarrassing when one has a case to
fabricate.
Their (the railroads') Hudson County
end simply constitutes a link in that
chain. Suppose all the rest of the chain,
cause, should be destroyed or cut off,
what would the link in Jersey City be
worth?
1t would be worth what city lots and
water front are worth in Brooklyn.
where there are no railroads-about five
times what it is worth today.
The railroad property in Jersey City
is valuable for purposes of State taxa
ton, because of the value put into it by
the State in breathing into its nostrils
the breath Of corporate life, that enables
1t to exercise its giant limbs and func-
tons from the Hudson to the Delaware.
Simply ridiculous! The State gives no
value to the real estate owned by the rail-
roads. This has its value from it's location
in tha rnn;o;na1;+., Whan railro.d
Buys lots here is has to pay the market
price for them, and tina is a pretty stiff
figure. Surprising a road buys a tract at
$500 a lot-quite a common price. This is
Immediately taken out of the local tax
levy. Why? What has the State or its
franchise or the railway to do with that
value. and why should it be exempt?
Why. should the farmers of New Jer-
land. of Burlington, Monmouth and
Ocean. of Monmouth, Hunterdon and
Somerset. of Middlesex, Sussex and War
that nestle, thrive and prosper, through
out the State, be taxed to relieve Jer-
sey City.
The railroad lobby's editorial annex
very well knows that every one of these
communities would gain very large an
nual revenue from the change.
Would it be. fair to place these great
creatures and wards of the State at the
mercy of a municipality that has dis
played SO little prudence and moderation
in the past? The effect of such a policy
would be to drive these giant corpora
tons to New York city or elsewhere fer
their termini.
Here, the humorist excels himself. 1t
is not really obvious to the plain ordin-
AIRY man how these great creatures
would transfer to New York. There are
geographical difficulties. And. we would
like to know where elsewhere" is. Coney
Island, for instance? The blackhorse
cavalry editor waxeth childish in his zeal.
We may have to point out some more
of his jokes later on.