Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1898-03-10

Z
side.
A hearing was held yesterday on the
bill designed to prevent the offering of
trading stamps in connection with store
purchases. G.. D. W. Vroom of Trenton
in opposition to the measure
and made an argument to show that it
is unconstitutional. Linton Satter-
thwaite, also of Trenton, urged an
combining the bill to trading
stamps pure and simple and not to all
manner of gifts offered by storekeepers
themselves. Senator Francis of Mon
mouth is pressing the bill in the interest
of storekeepers who have tired of trad
ing stamps.
County officials Pay.
The bill to place surrogates, county
clerks and registers of deeds on a sal
airy instead of paying them by fees, as
now, is one of the really important
of the session, but like most
of the other important bills it is said
to be slated for defeat. Strange to say,
the opposition comes more largely from
the rural counties, which have always
taken the lead in urging retrenchment
in the expenditure of public moneys.
1t is claimed that these counties con-
slider that their surrogates and county
clerks are at the present time receiving
only fair compensation for their work.
The chances, however, are that this
representation comes rather from the
officials and their friends than from the
masses of the people. On the other
hand there is no doubt that the greatest
saving would be effected under the bill
in the more thickly populated sections,
where the fees paid to the county clerk
and surrogate run all the way from
$4,000 to $40, 900 a year. That these
are excessive may be inferred
when one remembers that the gov
errors salary of $4,000 year is con-
sidered by many to be twice what it
should be and that the supreme court
justices receive in no case more than
$4,000, although for that amount the
state gets from them labors far ex-
eeeding in value what any county Off
eial can render. Following are the sal
aries that would be paid to the county
clerks and surrogates respectively if
the pending bill became a law:
Atlantic county, 81, 200; Bergen, $4,000;
$4,000; Camden, $4,000; Cape
May, $1,5O0; Cumberland, $3,0O0 Essex
81, 800; Gloucester, 81, 200; Hudson, ST.
500; Hunterdon, $4,000; Mercer, $4,000;
Middlesex, 81, 700; Monmouth, $4,000;
Morris. $4,000; Ocean, $1,500; Passaic,
Sc, 500; Salem, 81, 500; Somerset, 81, 200;
Sussex, s1,SOO; Union. $4,000; Warren,
81, 200.
Justices of the Peace Saved.
Tho i,,c+;oac IF tho ooooa Of tt,a .+a+
are a popular target for each succeed
ing legislature. No doubt the inferior
class of men elected as squires in va
rious sections has tended to bring dis
credit upon the office generally even
though such disrepute is not deserved in
many cases. The new criminal code,
designed to supersede the existing stat
1tes on the subject of crimes and Grim
NAL proceedings, aimed fresh blow at
these functionaries by leaving them
without jurisdiction in municipalities
having a police judge or recorder
Chandler W. Riker, counsel for the
justices, appeared before the senate jul
dietary committee the other day and
made an argument to show that the Of
fee of justice of the peace could not be
abolished or deprived of its functions in
this way. He quoted the supreme
courts decision in the case of Ehlers
versus Schroeder, delivered as far back
as 1864, which sustained his position,
holding that the justice of the peace is 4
q constitutional officer. Senator w. M.
Johnson admitted the force of this con-
tention and further said that ernbar-
rassment might arise in boroughs hav-
ing recorders who are lawyers and are
often away from home practicing in the
courts if there were no one within reach
to entertain a complaint.
The section aiming at wiping out the
squires was stricken from the bill.
This crimes act, together with the
several other sets of bills reported by
commissions which were appointed to
codify and revise different classes of
legislation, remains still Enacted upon
and will demand the serious considera-
ton of the two houses during the next
couple of weeks.
Publication of the Laws.
There is said to be some chance that
Senator Days bill providing for the
of the laws in the newspa-
pers may be passed. 1t is believed that
with some amendments the present bill
would be acceptable to the senate, and
this is usually the less tractable body.
Following is the draft of the bill as it
stands at present:
SENATE. NO. 2O5.
introduced March 1, 1898, by Mr.. Daily
and referred to committee on revision
Of the laws.
An act to provide for the publication
IF the laws of this state.
Be it enacted by the senate and gem
sral assembly of the state of New Jer-
sey:
I. Hereafter the general public laws
IF this state passed at each session of
he legislature shall be published in the
newspapers of the state which have
been printed and issued in their named
oeation at least once in each week for
/ continuous period of not less than two
years next preceding the first day of
such session of the legislature
z. Laws which apply only to specified
counties or cities or to those of speci-
led classes are not general public laws
or the purposes of this act, and that
avs applying to specified cities or
classes of cities shall be published only
n the newspapers of such cities, and
avs applying to specified counties shall
'e published only in the newspapers Of
such counties. printed and issued con-
inuously therein in each case for a Pc
'iod of two years next preceding the
irst day Of the session as aforesaid.
9. II shall be the duty Of the secretary
1f state to at once obtain from the |
county clerk of each county a list of the
newspapers of such county which have
oeen continuously printed and issued in
he same city or village for two years
7 least once in each week and to for
ward 70 each such newspaper as early |