The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-12-23
An nRnINANcE

lawful Tor any person or persons, COM
pany or corporation, to engage in the
business of vending or selling at retail
from railroad ears, railroad yards, docks,
wharves or boats, any meats. fish, .vege-
tables, fruit, bundlewood or general pro-
duce, without having first obtained a
license for that purpose.
Sec 2. That such license shall be issued
on proper petition therefor, signed by the
applicant and at least six reputable free
holders, who shall certify to the nature
of the business which the applicant pur-
poses to conduct, and the place where it
is proposed to conduct the same, which
petition shall be accompanied by a license
fee of $500. the license when granted
shall authorize the holder thereof to
conduct his business at the place or places
therein stated, for the period of one year
from the date of issue of such license.
Sec. s. That any person offending
against the. provisions Of this ordinance
shall be subject to a fine Of twenty-five
dollars for each day that such person
shall continue TO do business without a
this ordinance shall not apply to grocery
stores or to licensed lenders selling from
wagons or trucks upon the public streets.
SEC. 4. That all ordinances or parts
of ordinances inconsistent herewith, be
and the same are hereby repealed.
Frlor 10 the enactment and adoption Of
the 1889 Charter you Honorable Board
was the legislative body Of our city gov
eminent. The Charter of 1889 and sub
sequent legislation have been directed in
such & manner as 10 gradually deprive
- "a I0cA VI AAlC0C iO6lS1dllHC luIiCliVIlH
70 such an extent that at the present
time your powers are confined to the
supervision of the necessary expenses in
cident TO elections and TO the regulating
ard granting of trade, musician, Iiuuor IL
censes, etc. The ordinance which / here
with return without approval mas for its
OBJECT the imposition of an annual license
OF s200 upon any person or persons. COM
pany or corporations engaged in the busi-
ness of vending or selling at retail from
railroad cars railroad yards. docks,
Wharyes or boats, any meats, fish. yege-
tables, fruit, bundlewood or general
produce; it also stipulates a penalty of
S25 per day for every violation Of
its provisions and excerpts from its
licensed vendors who sell from wagons
or trucks upon the public streets.
The latter provision might make 1t APP
pear that by the enactment of this or
dinance your Board was attempting to
protect the two classes of business men
mentioned: the grocery store keeper and
licensed yendeF. II that were SO, the or
olnance itself defeats the purpose. 1t
fails to define the distinction between the
sale at retail of produce, fish. meats
etc, and "at Wholesale" I cannot be-
iieve that this ordinance received at
your hands the mature consideration it
merited. Our city is so located geo.
graphically that we are the terminus of
nearly all the largest railroads of the
country. The advantage of that location
is that we are in a position to obtain
the commodities shipped 10 the markets
OF the East at lower prices than other
cities. The effect of this ordinance to
my MIND would be to restrict the en-
joyment and benefits of hat advantage
to our citizens. If the tax provided for
In this ordinance be enforced. IL is the
consumer who has to make it up to the
vender in the increased cost of the sta
pies for the privilege of selling which
the latter is taxed. Governing bodies of
municipalities should consider wcll the
effect and be slow to enact legislation
which directly or indirectly affects the
sale or purchase of commodities. To
my mind unnecessary interference on the
part of political bodies with trades or
business problems should be avoided. My
consideration of it compels me TO the be-
lief that municipal legislation of the
character Of that contemplated by this
ordinance cannot do otherwise than es-
tablish a precedent absolutely detrimental
to every enterprise OF a competitive ma
ture in the staple necessities in our city.
If it was the intention of your Board or
drive trade away from our local
merchants, who deal IL the articles
referred to therein and to compel our
citizens to deal with the merchants of
New York and of other adjacent cities
not only for these articles but for Others,
no more cunning method of producing
thai result could have been devised.
Since its passage by your Board not a
grocery -storekeeper nor licensed yender,
either by letter or in person, has re-
quested me to approve this ordinance.
~ L&N Ill IL 4<~0&PS III
Gus protests against it and have been
waited upon by many delegations of our
citizens VIC are opposed to it. 1t has
been the general complaint for years in
this city that our proximity ITO the great
metropolis has had a deterrent effect upon
the ability of our merchants and shop
keepers TO control and retain the trade
of our people. Those who have appeared
before me have commended that whether
IT was clear to your Board or not the
effect of the enactment of this ordinance
would bE m nTparPZ q cdrf r -. CO.
monopoly in the different branches of
the trades affected by it, to the detri-
ment of the local dealer Of small capt.
tai, Of the consumer and even Of the
grocery ~storekeeper and licensed yender.
The opponents OF tn S ordinance contend
further that the great department stores
scope you must be aware. work meal
culable injury to -storekeepers who deal
only IN certain lines of goods. produce or
merchandise. The press Of This CITY univ
a few weeks ago recorded the intensa
opposition with which a project, I'M
derstand 1t was oniy a suggestion. In
favor Of the establishment Of such a store
IN TINS city, was met IN q meeting of our
local merchants. In line with that con-
tent10n, consider what effect yolr ordi-
nance would have in the event that If
became operative upon those who can
now procure that merchandise or
those products at low prices IN this citv.
when the cost would be increased there
by Tie consumer who now has the aG-
vantage Of purchasing meat. fish. vege-
tables, fruit, Dundlewood or general pro
duce from railroad cars, railroad yards.
DOCKS, WharveS Or boats, at the low prices
which suit his purse, would then be COM
PEELED TO go to these large department
stores in New York, where even now
these commodities are offered for sale
and delivered at the residence of the Dur-
chaser at as low prices as they can be
btained at the cars or in the yards or
on the docks in this city. But it is urged
tnat the consumer will not stop at that,
that he viii go into other departments of
those stores n make purchases of goods
and staples which, if the present order of
affairs were in existence, he would not
take the time or have the occasion to
leave this city to procure. I think that
II should be clear to you Board that you
have not only enacted a measure not cal
culated TO work for the public good, but
have, / will not say intentionally, aimed
a blow at the various trade interests of
this city. / think that you and those in
terests which you may nave imagined you
were attempting To protect viii agree
with me that the operation of your or
dinance viii be detrimental even to them
action. If persisted in, you have opened
the door to a sort of class legislation not
only harmful TO the interests you would
apparently protect, but which IS so far
reaching in its possibilities OF danger to
the and to the local merchant
that It would appear to have been done
in behalf of a few and to The loss of
those who q Ill afford it, | will not
sanction the enactment of any municipal
legislation that improperly interferes with
the sale of commodities. i believe it to
be dangerous and injurious to the inter-
estS of the Individual and of the city.
i am opposed to legislation that directly