The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-01-25

them The prosperity, the peace, the
honor of our State are dear to them az; az;
They want strict economy, prudent ana
guarded legislation, absolutely honest,
fearless and answering adherence 10
those things that make for Righteousness
and exalt a people.
am already pledged; but here in TINS
presence, with all the earnestness and
solemnity that BELTS this occasion, l re-
new the pledge. To the service of the
people all the people of our loved and hon
ored State, | devote whatever of WISDOM
whatever of patience, whatever OF apllty
it has pleased God TO endoW me with; .ooa
sAnd to my assistance invoke the goou
WILL the patience, the loyalty and the pa
triotism of my fellow citizens and the
favor of Almighty Cod
These are the words of the man who III
his last message to the Legislature IN
jected the rankest kind of partisanshlp
/ known in the history of the State. Ihese
are the words of the man who devoted
the greater part of the supposedly last
message which he would address to Ihe
representatives of the people to throwing
mud at Hudson county merely because
that county is Democratic, and did not
think Griggs worthy of support
Hardly had he got himself comfortably
seated in the executive chair when he
saw in the distance the United States
Senatorial seat being occupied by James
Smith, Jr., of Essex county, Democrat
AT once the thought came to him why
should not the Great Griggs wear the
toga now adorning Smith? To attain his
selfish end he knew of course it was nee
essary to- get into the good graces =, OF
William j. Sewell, the Republican dlc-
tator of the State. Sewell was not any
too friendly to Griggs, despite the fact
that the latter had been good servant
of the corporations.
To be sure, Garret A. Hobart had sue
ceeded in making Griggs Governor; but
Garret A. Hobart was beginning to loom
up in national politics, and the reform
Governor was fearful that GriggS might
get lost in the shuttle if Hobart was de-
pended upon. Then, too, he was aware
that he could not do the East Jersey
Water Company much good in the United
States Senate; so he had no particular
claim on his friend Hobart: Griggs, there
fore, began to seek the kindly consider
ations of the railroad boss at Camden.
Prior to the advent of Griggs as Cover
nor of New Jersey there was in the city
of Camden the law firm of Grey. & Grey.
This firm was general counsel to the
+ Pennsylvania Railroad in New Jersey,
and was, therefore. close to Sewel. Here
term of John P. Stockton, the Democratic
Attorney General. was about to expire,
and Griggs. who had promised SO much
to the people, lifted Samuel H Grey,
railroad law office in Camden to the At
torney Generalship Now the Attor-
ney General of the State may frequent-
y be seen in the higher courts of the
State arguing railroad and other cases
that are neither being prosecuted nor de-
Tended by the State.
sey, who had fallen into the shoes of the
notorious Culver Barcalow, and kept the
legislators in line for the Pennsylvania
Railroad. This lobbyist was SewelPs S
closest friend. Here Griggs beheld an
other opportunity to solidify his cause
with the Camden boss. There was
and insurance and the. lobbyist. William
Bettle by name, was placed in charge of
that important department of state. Now
the lobbyist is right on hand at the capitol
to look after SewelPS affairs and for this
service he draws a princely salary from
the State. He rarely comes to the State
House excepting Tuesdays, when he can
be found circulating. through the corri-
dors looking after the interests of the
Camden boss.
Another appointment of which Griggs
ought to be proud is that of E. Amber
Armstrong to the county judgeshlp OF
Camden. When the Camden .gangsters
decided that Armstrong was their fayorite
for the judgeship the citizens of Camden
became very much aroused. Business
men by the hundred came up from Gam
from naming Armstrong Armstrong
from his childhood had trained With the
nefarious ring that has ruined Camden;
He was a member of the infamous Board
of Public Works, and while such official
was brought up on a round turn by no
less parsonage than Supreme Court
Justice Reed in a decision which would
have brought the blush of shame to al
most any lawyer. His next appearance
before the public was as the president
Lighting and Heating Company, cor
poration which is known to every man,
woman and child in Camden. His debut
in this line came in the shape of lobbying
the City Council into line; and the evil
dence which was adduced in the recent
conclusively what kind of a man the
bosses selected for Judge. When the
citizens of Camden were endeavoring to
find out what their servants had been
doing for the past few years with public
moneys and franchises the Judge appeared
as counsel for the said servants and adj
vised them not to answer certain ques-
tions which would have shed light on
suspicious transactions In every way he
could he appeared to be trying to block
the efforts of the investigators to expose
the rotten condition existing in Camden.
But Griggs, the reformer, appointed him
to the judgeship
Criggs' record also shows the following
item :-.sApproval of Macarthur act, bet
ter known Jersey City term extender."
A more iniquitous measure probably never
was presented to any legislative body
than the bill providing for the extension
of Mayor Wanser's term of office in Jer-
sey City. Yet it was passed at both
Houses of the Republican Legislature last
Governor he appended his signature to it.
AS a lawyer he must have known that
this infamous bill was unconstitutional;
vet he gave to it his approval. probably
hoping that it might lessen the chances
of attack in the courts. Both the Su-
preme Court and the Court of Errors, al
though Republican in their makeup, de-
cided that the partisan law was uncon-
stitutional.
These are only samples of how Griggs
bowed to the yoke of Sewellism for the
sake of his own personal advancement.
And in spite of all these submissions,
Sewell informed Griggs last summer that
he could not be United States Senator.
The place. the boss said, had already
been parcelled out to John Kean of
Union Griggs at first thought he would
be able to win out against Sewell, but
finally he withdrew from the fight with a
sore heart. Garret A. Hobart took pity
on him. Griggs had been good friend
to Hobart and Hobart's corporations; so
| the Vice President of the United States
Griggs to the Attorney Generalship He
which he had made such claims and for
which he had stated such pretentions, to
accent a position in the Federal Cabinet
| In his new position he will be called upon
| TO advise the Executive as to the law
upon important governmental questions
| and our relations with foreign govern
ments
| Just before giving up the Office of Gov
| ernor of New Jersey he advises himself as
| such Governor into a political blunder
which is monumental in the history of
| the State AS Governor of New Jersey it
was his duty to summon and preside at
| the meeting of the State Board of Can
| yassers to estimate the vote on an
| amendment to the Constitution and to de-
| clare the result thereof. As such presid-
| ing officer and as a lawyer, he Joined
| In d decision and declared a result en-