The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-03-14
Big LEGAL BATTLE.
Delaware, LackaWanna and
Western Attacks the
City.
"A SUNDAY INJUNCTION
Title TO the Foot Of Streets
the Question at
Issue.

straining the Mayor and Board of Alder
men, the Street and Water Board and the
Jersey City Electric Light Company from
Essex and the Delaware, Lackawanna
and Western Railroad Companies in the
vicinity of the foot of Thirteenth street,
and erecting poles for the stringing OF
electric light wires thereon, and to take
down the poles already UP. The writ is
returnable March p.
'sThe News related Saturday the fact
that workmen in the employ of the Jersey
City Electric Light Company, acting with
permission from the city authorities, had
been notified that they were trespasslng
on the Delaware, Lackawanna and West
ern Railroad Company's property when
they attempted to erect some poles along
Thirteenth street, east of Provost. They
were warned to desiSt. Street and water
Commissioner Heintze, Chairman of the
Street Committee ordered Lamp Inspec-
tor John Boyd to take charge of the men
and see that the poles were erected. He
was ordered to secure police protection.
Captain Kelly sent a patrol wagon Win
five policemen, under command OF Ser
geant Harrington, to the scene Boyd m
formed Detective Kenna of the railroad
company that he intended to erect a GER
tain number of poles and put lamps ana
wires thereon, if it took the entire ponce
force of Jersey City to back him up IN IT,
Altogether ten poles have been erected
east of Provost street. Six of these west
of the railroad crossing have been strung
with wires and two lamps hung. -Four
more poles have been erected east OF the
crossing. Several more poles lie between
this point and the river. They have not
yet been raised.
Tt is this section of Thirteenth street
that has been brought recently to consld-
erable public notice through the caving-in
of the old sewer through the construction
of the Ravine Road sewer, Immediately
adjacent. ;,
I'm it's petition for the order the rail-
road company claims ownership OF the
land in question through lease and SUP
sequent grant by the State through lls
Riparian Commission to the Jersey Shore
Improvemen Company, its successors ana
assigns forever in fee simple. The com
pany set forth that they purchased lhls
giant from the Jersey shore eoo lmpfove- M gs
ment Company at a cost OF 81, ,S0o, 0gO. Inc
lease and grant included all lands east
of the original line of high water in fud-
son River lying north of the centre llne
of North Fourth street new IWelftn
street, and south of the centre line OF
North Seventh (now Fifteenth street),
and the exterior line for solid 1lilng IN
the Hudson River, with the right to MI
in and otherwise improve the same ana
appropriate the same to its exclusive use,
and also the land between said line for
solid filling and the exterior line for piers,
with the right to buildings on said last
mentioned lines The petition further
set forth that the high water line passes
over what would be an extension of Fif-
teenth, Fourteenth and Thirteenth streets,
if extended, but which are not extended
by any proceedings under authority OF
Jersey City.
'.This being the condition of the lands
on the twelfth day of March, a gang of
men in the employ nominally of the Jer-
sey City Electric Light Company, under
the direction of John r. Macarthur, a
superintendent of the Electric Light Com
pany, came upon the property OF your
between your orators piers twelve and
thirteen, and between the tracks of your
orators and easterly of some of them,
and began to dig holes for and to erect
thereon electric light and wires for the
supplying of electricity thereto, and be-
fore your orators discovered 1t, had dug
holes for four poles therein and had
your orators interfered with the
erection of said poles, and insisted
upon it that the said Macarthur should
cease to erect said poles and depart from
the lands of your orators: that thereupon
the said Macarthur claimed that he was
erecting said poles and electric light lines
under the authority of the Board OF Street
and Water Commissioners of the city of
Jersey City, and a foreman of the gang,
whose name your orators do not know,
produced paper, of which your orators
have no copy, but the substance of which
was that the Jersey City Electric Light
Company was instructed by the Jersey
City Street and Water Board to erect two
electric lights on Thirteenth street, be-
tween Barnum street. and the Hudson
River Your orators, however, insisted
that the said Macarthur and the gang of
poles and upon the strength thereof the
said Macarthur and the gang of men with
drew to consult with some persons un-
known to your orators but threatens to
return and complete the erection of said
poles and electric light line.
your orators further show that there
is upon the land in question no such street
as Barnum street, laid out or in anywse
distinguished, nor are your orators able
to know where said street is'' but they
further say that the poles which the gang
were erecting were between what would
be the lines of Thirteenth street, if ex-
tended easterly, and were last of the or
iginal line. of high water mark of the
as aforesaid by the State of New Jer-
sey to the Jersey Shore improvement
Company. and by them to your orators
reclaimed as aforesaid.
s'Your orators further show that in the
morning of the day of the twelfth of
March, aforesaid. one John Boyd, who is
superintendent or official of some kind in
the employ of the Board of Street and
Water Commissioners of Jersey City, was
on the ground where the men aforesaid.
were at work, pointing out to them where
to place the poles in question, and, as the
case now stands, your orators show that
holes have actually been dug and said
poles erected therein and the ground filed
around them, but no wires have yet been
strung or lamps hung thereon
your orators charge that the digging
of said holes and the erecting of said
poles was movement on the part of the
Board of Street and Water Commission
ers of said city Electric Light Compan, to
take possession of said lands under some
attempted assertion of rights claimed by
Jersey City in the lands aforesaid as a.
part of Thirteenth street and to inter-
fere with your orators ownership and use
thereof under some pretenSe of right but
such pretense and claim your orators
deny, and say that the same is without
foundation.
Your orators are informed and believe
that the said Jersey City make some
claim by virtue of some maps or map of
original owners of land to the west of the
property purchased of the Jersey Shore
Improvement Company aforesaid; that
said Thirteenth street. by virtue of some
dedications or dedication, can be EXTEND
ed from the reclaimed land as aforesaid,
using the same for the purpose Of their
railroad and constructing tracks thereon
without the permission of the authorities
of Jersey City. This claim your orators
dispute and deny, and charge that thf'
authorities Of Jersey City have no rif