The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-01-21

with Us. mas jotted down q few words
about the city which, from the size Of
his ToI asl ! im a,as;1s w 70 dis ians m 81. aa a6an I
7Iaaghter.5 The ~counfy-weli, / donst
want TO lef any investigating committee
find out from me what a great and glori-
Gus county Hudson Is. They pay counsel
for that. and can't afford to interfere
with the lawyers work. tRehcwed laugh-
terD
sWe number amongst our distinguished
guests here tonight one gentleman whose
iame is q household word throughout
the State. and even beyond its borders.
He has filled the most important
position in the law department Of
to the pride and satisfaction Of the en-,
tire community. One word more ana
l am through. On next Tuesday there
will assemble at Indianapolis a large
come from every quarter of this great
country, for the purpose of recommend
ing and Suggesting e the CONGRESS msr 81 tb as
country, regardless of party afnilatlons,
desire and need In the matter OF cur
rency reform. 50 that the question @ may
ness circles, and so that II can pc elm
mated from future Presidential cam
paigns- The necessity that exists dor ,nls
man. The wisdom and patriotism that
inspires the calling OF the lndlanapolis
Convention is disputed by none; 70 .hose
strong appeai made to us in the mastery
address by Congressman Charles n row
Ter, 70 take action on this 81 matter att OF cur cur
/ would ask you tonight to send a mes
sage to Indianapolis that VIII defne our
position in no uncertain tones. Gehtle-
men, l can see that you are waiting inn
patiently to hear from the ~stingulsh
gentlemen who are to follow me. l VIII,
therefore, close by asking you 70 pom
Trade of Jersey City. Cloud n con-
tinued applause.)
The toast of tsOur City" was responded
to by Mayor Hoos, whose reception was OF
a most enthusiastic, If not noisy nature.
His speech was as follows
ITO me this evening is assigned the
| pleasant duty of responding to the toast,
Our City" and as Chief Magistrate of
| the same / feel highly honored with the
opportunity of paying tribute to this much
abused municipality of ours.
eat the outset j would like to state
that / shall not inflict upon you a lot
of statistics in an endeayor to prove that
certain things are so and other things
are not so, for unless the speaker has
the time and the audience. the patience
necessary for a minute and detailed ex-
PLANTATION of the why's and 'wherefores,
they are valueless. a,.ias
at is said that when Henry Hudson
| some 2S8 years ago first cast his eyes
| as his opinion that it was AS pleasant a
land as one need tread upon. Be this as
it may, the great railroads of America
considered it most excellent to rail- upon.
Unfortunately for us today our predeces-
sors did not foresee the great possibilities
of the city and the great value 1t pos
sessed as a starting point and a goal
for the great carriers of the products OF
this Union and the entire commercial
world. II they had seen what we now
know to be a fact there would be no cry
of Equal taxation,' for these gigantic
caravans of the modern world would now
be. contributing a fair tribute for the priv
ileges and protection they now enjoy. at
the hands of a generous municipality.
(Cheers.)
ITO further illustrate the truth of our
friend Hudson's saying, j quote the fol-
lowing modern summing up of Jersey
City, for quoting renders me both 1mper-
vious to the charge of plagiarism and at
the same time acquits~me of n charge
of partiality.-
Jersey lit has a continuous 'front.'
age on navigable salt water on both
sides. 1t has an average width APP
proximating three miles. and the CEN
trail area OF nearly a mile consists OF
a ridge with an average elevation OF
ninety feet.
saThe residence section is mainly ON
the elevated plateau and manufacture
ing mainly on the lowlands, which
were originally mainly composed OF
marsh lands
1.-THE drainage is good, the water
supply is good. and there are many
miles of paved streets, all with good
pavements.
1.-THE city has grown from about
5000 population, in 1886, to about 200,9eV,
and in many ways it is progressing
rapidly.
III is within sight and easy reach of
the metropolis of America, and has the
finest ferry service in the world.
There are many things that could
be done to improve Jersey City, but
taken as it stands, it is by long odds
the best place in the State for bust
ness or residence.
"Now, having clearly located the sub
iect of my toast and presented some
OF the many natural advantages of the
same, / will take the liberty of briefly
touching upon some topics which are of
vital interest to Our City Not only
during the brief period that / have occu-
pied my present high position, but also
during many years of private life l have
noticed the fact that in the eyes OF many
of our citizens Jersey City is not duly
appreciated. Even the press, very often,
through an over-zealous disposition to
~criticise the action of officials, and | rear
in many instances through partisan mo-
tives, casts reflections upon the city Whlcn
must act as a deterrent to prospective
residents. | would not be misunderstood
in this assertion. j do not mean that 1
am opposed to publicity-ne opposed 10
the light of fair criticism, for 1 believe
this to be e~ssentia to the healthy growth
of any municipality. What IWould have
is more dignified and less overdrawn
statements. I venture the assertion that
there Is not, considering us size, q tioie
keenly alive and politically educated COM
munity, and at the same time a more or
derby and morally healthy community, in
this country than Jersey City is today.
4.In spite of bouquets that are thrown
at her almost daily, j can honestly say
that my mail contains queries regardlng
the management of our city from dill
parts of the country. If the knowing
ones outside our gates recognize us, why
should we not respect ourselves a little
more highly and,foster a public spirit that
is not only alive, but fair? We are De
veloping and all that is necessary is to
Law aside selfish motives of individuals
and to act concertedly in matters per
aiming to the general good. At the pres
ent time our education facilities are be-
ing increased in the shape of six new
schools. and in the extension of Several
old ones. Our Free Public Library shows
a. steady increase in circulation.
(Gheers.) The future aug1rs wei
for a fine new library building AND
a model High School. Gentlemen, fol
such a purpose 1 am not opposed to issu-
ing bonds. 1t is different when it comes
to paying for ancient gas bills, etc. When
it comes to solving the so-called water
problem / am also happy to say that ]
am indulging the hope that 1t will sooT
be ~relegated to the rank of the Has
Beens.' The South Cove problem was also
nearing a happy solution when, to the
universal regret of the city, the Chief En-
gineer was called away by the Highest
Magistrate. However, I believe that be-
for another dinner of the Board of Trade
takes place the city will receive some
tangible benefits from the possession sc
dearly reclaimed.
There is also another subject to which
| expect to devote considerable time and