The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-06-11
Mr.. Abarbanell,s Taxation Gold
Brick.

Mr.. Abarbanell,s Taxation Gold
Brick.
Mr.. Abarbanell favors us today with
lots, in which he tries to bear out his
contention that an increase in the share
of the public burden imposed upon them
would be generally beneficial. He &C
vances. as before. and as always with
those who believe as he does, arguments
which appear specious until they are ex-
amined as to their effects.
When one comes to look at such pro-
posals as that of Mr.. Abarbaneil practi-
eally, the first thing that always strikes
one is the insigniicance of the results to
be attained. Mr.. Abarbanell is at pres
ent dazzled by the prospect of a reduction
of the tax rate from $27.40 on the thou
ton of SLIGO or the thousand dollars. To
Mr.. Abarbanell, himself, who says he
Dwns a house assessed at $4,000, it is an
annual saving of $40, merely a result
hardly worth while, If the cost is to be
an economic revolution. But Mr.. Abar-
banell speaks of the poor working man,
see. If Mr.. Abarbanelrs argument
means anything. it means that a reduc-
lion of taxes as proposed would better en-
able the w~orkingman to provide himself
with a home. The workingman, as an
average thing, occupies about one-eighth
Of a tenement house which it costs about
5000 to build, and which stands on a lot
worth $1,000. Let us say the house is
worth 81 1000, and is assessed at $1,000. Then
the ~workingman pays the tax on about
$1,000, and his annual relief by means of
Mr.. A~barbaneI's panacea would be just
precisely s1.60, no more and no less.
But Mr.. Abarbanell says that if you
tax the vacant lots and force the owners
to build, the workingman will move into
a house of his own. We ask in reply
what is to happen to the tenement house
owner. How is he to pay any taxes at
all? And if he cannot pay taxes, how is
the municipal treasury to be benefited?
And how is the tax on those who do pay
to be lessened
But Mr.. Abarbanell ends up with a
roseate picture of the prosperity which
the building BOOM would bring to the
city.
TT is to laugh"
Of course if all the vacant lot owners
in the city started in to build at once, we
could employ all the bricklayers and car
penters in the United States for a year.
But when the last lot had a building on it
what would happen? Where would the
boom be? And who would occupy all the
new houses after the b~ricklayers, ct al,
went to other cities, not yet Henry
Georged, in order to find jobs?
You see. Mr.. Abarbanell, there are a
good many things to think of in planning
a Millennium.
John w. Grtg.s, Dual omce Holder
and Incompetent.
Az L otCicOt 4Odio vi AlQGTmGn on
Tuesday evening adopted a resolution re-
questing Judge Dixon to remove John w.
Griggs. who, incidentally, is Governor of
New Jersey, from the post of Adjustment
COMMISSIONS under the Martin Act for
the city of Paterson. 1t will be an inter-
esting revelation to the citizens in general
f1o< TIT Er~4aIIo-1xv t. L. -n--
holder. We have some recollection of
severe remarks made by Candidate Griggs
regarding plural salary drawing, and we
fail to recall the case of any Democratic
Governor who supplemented the salary
paid him by the State by the petty pick
ings of a local job.
It will not surprise those who have
watched His Excellency's public career
that the ground on which the removal of
COMMISSIONS Griggs is asked is that of
tnefficiency. Over geo names of delin-
quents lave been presented to him and
his colleagues, but none of the cases have
been acted on. The Commissioners. we
! tt1op AotS ACSC4Ftd pEu,uUV lEOH the
city treasury, and, SO far, no return has
been seen for the outlay.
Why. His Excellency the Governor. has.
so far. drawn the best part of 5000 900 from
the State treasury. and the return for the
money is not visible to the naked eye.
1t is hardly going too far to say that a
stuffed kangaroo would rave been about
as productive of results as the Governor
Commissioner has turned out. In his
eighteen months of service at Trenton,
We can think of only one occasion on
which he has shown activity and
efficiency. and this was in vetoing about
half OF all h measures that were passed
by the Republican Legislature of this
year.
Horrors of Dog Catching.
The Society for the Prevention of