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salary and dignity. He would have an
equity, a law and an appellant DEPART
Several other lawyers spoke and then
the hearing adjourned.
The main assembly room was occupied
by the Committee or Revision of Laws,
who gave q hearing on Fighters general
repeater of the township school law
enacted In 1894, which law wiped out the
old district school system, and provided
for the management OF schools BY q
general township board of nine, elected
by the people. The opposition to this
cause oad na n o the s growlpg s Est ys Sections ps-
1t is claimed that it operates against
the small schools to the advantage Of
asse SohHo,s IN tRe sb VILLAGES e and Mor hamlsts,
came down to the Legislature partially
pledged to secure the repeal of this law.
y mere ere Were , ABOUT put seyentggafiye present
of those who came did any talking.
Assemblyman RICHTER acted as master
of ceremonies and after briefly explain
ing the bill introduced q number Of
speakers.
The first speaker was John G. Muir
head, former warden of Mercer county
jail, and interested in the schools OF
Hopewell township, where the new town
ship law was contested for a consider
able time. He stated that he, had been
teen under the old system and three
under the new township law, and as
the result of his experience he would
Soy Tia Tx lOWll c1lP q i6d IN ~
vantage whatever. 1t was not wanted
by the rural communities because 1t
destroyed home rule and caused many
school house. He said there were in the
township fourteen schools. -Four Of
these schools were represented by trus-
received the most consideration from the
township school committee. There was
no general interest taken by the school
officers. except by making an %official
visitation Qnnn a VaZT whom all W0fl0
be required would be to make a speech
based upon Christ's sermon on the
Mounta Uni o or 2 pr IN II Iass political fba t = !
mutual admiration society; and that If
it had been known that the hearing was
to have taken place today, he would
well township to protest, to have filed
the Assembly Chamber.
Assemblyman Francis of Monmouth in
~terrogated Major Muirhead to get him to
be more specific about the disadvantage
of the present law, n he reiterated
the statements made. excepting to- add
to be neglected and increased the tax
rate.
wanted to know. what the benefits would
al ali.
Theodore Brown of Gloucester was
very brief, but expressive, and he stated
such a school law and that It was prac-
tically legislation for the interest of one
or two schools in the township against
has increased the school tax, which was
formerly but eleven to fifteen cents on
the hundred. to now considerable. over
thirty cents on the hundred, and the
they are paying just double for the same
old thing that they got years ago.
SAID that it has effected the grades q
the small country school, and a child
now to get a fair public school educa-
ton must tramp from one to ten mics
to the high grade school of the town
ship. He. presented q petition signed by
two hundred and seventy voters of Ian
dis Township In favor, Of the repeater.
Assemblyman Scovel of Camden. in
talking for the repeater. said that he
came in the interest of the taxpayers Of
Haddon, Centre and Delaware Town
being taxed to DEATH. principally on ac-
count of this new school law. He pre-.
sented the school az bills Of severa'
properties: One in 1894 paid $500, anc
ACKNOWLEDGMENT GIedhill of Passaic want
ed to know what was the reason for
thought it was probably the purchasing
of free text books.
Assemblyman Reed of Somerset said:-
You say that the school tax has in
cent. Where did this money go tor"
The Lord only knows" answered
Scovel. you will have to ask the coz
Assembiyman Mullin of Hudson made
a statement that he knew OF an in
stance in Bergen county where the
freed itself of its school debt and put
the school In first class condition.; but
when this law was enacted it was con-
Solidated into the township and now the
people of his same district are heavily
taxed to pay the debts of other schools
in the township.
tition signed by IT'S citizens OF Pember-
ton township, favorable to the repeater.
and he said that the citizens in the rural
districts could not afford to come to
selves by petition, and no doubt many
would avail themselves to petition the
Legislature before the bill is finally dis
Assemblyman Olcott came very valiant
ly to the rescue of the law because he
was the introducer of it in the Legisla-
thing but hearsay evidence as to the
virtues Of the existing law. but he
claimed that he has a number Of letters
from all over the State pressing it, which
he could produce on notice. He cited q
number of cases where the law had
worked advantageously, but 1t was demon
Senator Parry and Assemblyman wildes
that he. lived in a district which is work
ing under q special act passed prior to
his general township aw.
James b. Belts, assistant to Superin-
tendent Poland, was given the floor and
he quoted testimonials from Pennsyl-
vania, Maine. New York Rhode Island,
Vermont and other States where the ex-
pertinent of the new law had been made
and where the school authorities were
fulsome in their praise of its merits. He
then called the attention of the commit
tee to the fact that New Jersey was not
the first State to abolish the district Sys-
tenn, but that there are now altogether
twenty States working under laws SINH
lar TO that of New JarSAV+ Hn informed