The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1902-07-09

teen were automobiles, IOO were car
riages, i. G. vehicles carrying passengers.
124 were bicycles, while 1,G12 We're
trucks for carrying freight. During the
same period there were sos foot pas
sengers. 1t would seem that the main
problem reduces itself to the analysis of
the commerce in which these trucks are
employed. The question is how much OF
it is commerce between Newark and New
York, and how much between Newark
and Jersey City. The proofs on this sub
ject are unsatisfactory. We have only
the results OF a single partial investi-
gatien made for bl'icf period. This. evil
dence, however, was accepted by both
sides of the controversy as complete.
Mr.. Jackson, superintendent of
the Plankroad Company, gave
as the result of his in
vestigations that per cent. of the
trucks belong to Jersey City, ~ per cent.
to New York City, and 80 per cent. to
Newark This intelligent witness, how
ever, stated first that he had no means
of knowing how much Of the traffic in
dicated by the 80 per cent. of Newark
vehicles was between Newark and Jer.
sey City, and how much of it was be-
tween Newark and New York. He in
dicated, however. an opinion founded in
part upon observation, that substan-
tial portion of this traffic was between
Newark and New York only slightly and
transiently affecting Jersey City. The
witness showed that considerable ex
press business was carried OH in wagons
over this Plank road between Newark
and New York. There are also a large
number of factories in Newark which
convey their products by trucks over
this highway to their places of distribu.
ton in the city of New York.
TRUChS GO MOSTLY TO NEW
YORK.
In regard to the II per cent of the
trucks which belong in New York, it is
safe to suppose that very few if any OF
these vehicles are employed in any COM
merce between Newark and Jersey City.
When we undertake to calculate what
portion of the 80 per cent. of Newark
trucks are employed in commerce be-
tween Newark and New York we are
without any exact measure or guide.
That a very considerable proportion of
the freight hauled from Newark factor
les in Newark trucks is transported inn
mediately to New York seems to be
fair inference from the testimony and
from plain facts of which this court can
take judicial cognizance. ! think. how
ever, that with the evidence on this sub
ject incomplete. although some additional
evidence at least seems to have been
available. great caution should be OBJ
served in adopting any uncertain conclu-
sion III favor of the County of Hudson.
Commerce between two large cities like
Newark and Jersey City may well be
presumed to be equally beneficial to
those cities except so far as the contrary
is proved.
PROPORTION OF BURDEN.
If we take out II per cent. of this
traffic by trucks, 80 per cent. remains to
be assigned to commerce between New
ark and Jersey and commerce between
Newark and New York The proper
tions of the burden to be divided. so far
as they are ascertained by this single de-
finite factor, would be "A per cent. to
Hudson County and 56 per cent. to Es-
sex County. But this calculation is
manifestly incomplete. 1t would seem
that the corrections are to be applied by
a process of mind which to some extent
partakes of the nature Of guessing. To
deal with these indeterminate factors
separately is not in my opinion the best
method Probably not two minds
would give any of them exactly the same
effect in figures; perhaps no two minds
would independently reach precisely the
same result in figures in regard to the
whole problem to be solved.
EXPENSE DIVIDAD.
Allowing the local use Of til road its
full force as tending to make the burden
of Hudson County greater than that to
be borne by Essex County, allowing,
also, that the use Of the highway by
foot t-passengers and by the electric cars,
bicycles, automobiles and other vehicles
Transporting passengers is equally bene-
fetal to the two Counties. and that
therefore the traffic by means Of trucks
is not to be considered the only useful
thing which is to be paid for with these
considerations and the presumption in
favor of equality in view, have reach
ed the conclusion that this entire high
way may be regarded az practically a
bridge between Newark ard New York
City to the extent of something between
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