Pleasantville weekly press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1890-1911, 1898-02-16
A BIT OF LOCAL HISTORY.

l
antyille that they should know the trutl
and the facts concerning the movement
in favor of making Pleasantville city
Last year, just before the adjournment
of the Legislature. ex-Mayor Joseph G
Farr suggested to the Editor of Tn,
Press that city form of government
would have many advantages over that
Of Borough, and also suggested that 9
| move be made in that direction. As il
accorded with the views of The Press
we have from time to time advocated it
a few weeks ago, Mr.. Farr, Mr.. L. III
Barrett, and others went before the
Borough Council and gave their reasons
why the change should be made.
resolution to that effect was introduced
and passed the Council unanimously
The same evening the Mayor was
authorized, without dissenting vote,
to appoint committee, consisting ol
three members of the Council and three
citizens, to prepare a bill and take the
necessary steps to have it introduced
and passed in the Legislature. The
Mayor appointed as the said Committee,
Councilmen Elphra S. Sooy, Samuel
Price and Robert Zane, and Citizens l..
Il. Barrett, j. @. Farr and G. FL. Jenness,
Editor of this paper. A few evenings
later all the members of the Committee
met at the house of Mr.. Barrett and
organized by making G. H. Jenness,
Chairman and Robert Zane, Secretary.
Two bills were presented for the con-
sideration of the Committee, to be intro
duced in the Legislature, one drawn by
Mr.. Jenness and one by Mr.. Farr. Both
were so nearly alike that either was
acceptable to the full Committee, and it
was finally left to the Chairman to decide
which one should be used. After the
assembling of the Legislature the Chair
m IN and Mr.. Farr went to Trenton and
the bill which Mr.. Farr had drawn was
given to Assemblyman Ashley, by Mr..
Jenness, to introduce. Mr.. Ashley intro
duced it the same evening and the
Speaker referred it to the Committee on
Municipal Corporations from which it
was reported favorably to the Assembly
few days later on. Up to that time
there had not been a word spoken by
any member of the local Committee
except in favor OF the BILL. On the con-
trary every one had urged its passage.
Up to week ago last Monday, February
Z, the Chairman of the Committee was
not aware of any change of opinion in
the minds Of any member of the Com
mittee. Not one of them had said q
word indicating any change of action on
their part, or expressed any desire to
that effect. That evening the Chairman
went to Trenton again, expecting the
bill would be called up and passed in the
Assembly without opposition. When he
went into the Assembly Chamber and
called upon Mr.. Ashley in reference to the
matter, the latter gentleman exhibited a
letter signed by Messrs. Farr, Barrett,
Sooy, Price and Zane, asking him to
withdraw the bill, that they Ibid not
understand the law" &C., and that they
were opposed to q city form of govern
ment for Pleasantville. Without con-
sulting any Others of the five hundred
voters of Pleasantville Mr.. Ashley
withdrew the bill and there the matter
rests. So far as The Press is personally
concerned we do not care two cents
whether Pleasantville is a city or q
borough. We thought, and still think,
that the advantages are largely in favor
of a city. Believing this we said so, and
felt certain that we were advocating
what the people desired when the entire
Council, and every member Of the Com
mittee, put themselves publicly on record
in favor of the same thing. Expecting
the courtesies that prevail among gentle
men the Craftsmanship Of the Committee
was accepted, and whatever influence
we had was exerted in an honorable
way and in good faith. These are the
facts, which, for the present, we submit
without comment