The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-02-29
halfway Exempuon Fall.c,es.

Halfway Exemption Fallacies.
Some of the fallacies that are adj
vanced by the Railroad advocates as ar
guments against equal taxation are really
astonishing. Mr.. James B. vredenburgh
got on one in his speech at Trenton on
Thursday. He said the Pennsylvania Rail-
road owned 1s9 acres of land in Jersey
City. or about one-fortieth of the entire
territory, yet she paid ssO.OoO or one
fifteenth of the local taxes. Now we have
no desire to grind particularly at the
Pennsylvania Railroad. No doubt 1t is
as liberal as any other road in dealing
with the city, or perhaps more liberal.
for ii is really a great institution run in
a broad-minded way. But any child can
see the utter -unmeaningness of Mr.. vre-
~denburgh's argument, which is based on
the assumption that territorial extent is
the primary element in taxing value.
while every simpleton knows that there
gomery street, Newark or Railroad ave-
nue. which are about as valuable as a
square mile of mud land out on the
Hackensack Meadows.
The Sugar House, down here, near the
gap. owns only about four acres, that is
to say one-twenty-seven hundreth or
thereabouts of the territory of Jersey
City, and yet it pays an annual tax of
$4,000. or about o~ne-eightieth of the to-
tai tax levy.
The Pennsylvania property, or much
of it. is of the most valuable character.
1t is in the very heart of the leading
business section of the city, and is in
eager demand for business purposes. Then
there is its water front, which is simply
priceless and which extends for hundreds
and hundreds of feet along the Hudson.
OF course, Mr. y~redenburgh's argument
IL a reductio ad absurdum all in itself.
For II his client were being oyertaxed
under the prevailing system in the ratio
which he asserts. it would be clamoring
for relief and he woul be moving heaven
and earth to put 1t under the milder rule
of the local assessors.
But. enough of Mr.. Vredenburgh. We
have no quarrel with him. He is trying
to do his duty by his client. 1t is a pity
to be at least ~specious; but he cannot
help the facts.
The only mar who is prepared to do
that and to make a complete donkey of
\ himself with cheerful enthusiasm is our
4ttle ffisndaEom Red Dog and else-
tere. the se<S&ditor of the State Ga
ase.7 Here is one of his funnicisms@
Silroad property in Jersey City is not,
Afsle same sense as other property a
nevtn upon the local government. 1t is
~-Adea at al. 1t practically asks moth
ing Of the municipal government.
The joke in this is that the r. D. E.
proposes that it shall be taken seriously.
But his explanations are even funnier:-
The railroad companies guard their own
property. not only in Jersey City, but all
the way across the StatL. They have
their own police force.
They have an officer or two; but the Jer-
sey City police guard their property almost
entirely, arrest all sorts of offenders for
them. and lock UP the same maintaining
for that purpose. in part, an extensive
system of station houses. Jersey City
maintains police courts with justices and
clerks and other officials and p~arapher-
MALTA to dispose of such Offenders. Finally.
Jersey City contributes two-thirds of the
expenses of maintaining a Sheriff, a Pro-
secutor and assistants. coufts with judges
and other ~oficials. a jail and a p~eniten-
tiary for the purpose of punishing Offend
ers against the railroads, and a very large
humber OF the criminal cases which keep
these institutions busy are railr6ad eases,
not to speak Of the civil litigatioa which
they create and which is to a largs extent
conducted at the direct expense ofASersey
city.
But the Editor of the railway oSSan
goes on:-
They provide their own light not saas on X
road within the municipal limits.
This is very kind of them. But all tax
payers have to light their own homes at
their own expense, In Jersey City. Is it
different in Trentons
They even help very materially to illu-
inmate the public streets. They erect
ar maintain electric Or other lights AZ
every railroad crossing where the pubic
safety seems to require them.
This is pure, unadulterated fiction.
They supply and pay for their own wa