Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-04-23
Commission Is
To Inquire As
To Owners.
STATE WATER.
Last Legislature Passed An Act
Regarding the Water Of New
Jersey Investigation Begins.

TRENTON, Apr. 23:-The ripar-
ian commissioners and the state
geologists. who constitute the COM
mission to Investigate the practca-
biity and probable cost of the ac-
quisiton by the state of the title to
the notable waters OF the state, under
authority of senate joint resolution
No. 3. are moving rapidly along the
line of inquiry laid down in the reso-
luton which is to investigate the
character and extent OF the potable
water and water supplies of the
state, their ownership and value, and
the probable cost of their acquisition
and ownership by the state, as well
as the methods that could be adopt
ed by the state TO secure the title
thereto. or 10 such parts thereof as
the commission shall deem judiciouS
/ for the state to own.
/ The commissioners are anxiously
/ looking for the opinion of the court
of errors and appeals in the case TO
uphold the constitutionality of the
Bachelor act 10 prevent the diver
sion of the potable waters of New
Jersey to other states.
The work of the commission will
be much simplifed by the affirmative
action of the states highest court.
A. The commission has ascertained
vat there are los fresh water lakes
in New Jersey. covering IA, 600 acres.
Queer Jersey Proprietors.
The commission has written to
Adrian Lyon Perth Amboy, and
Henry Haines, Burlington. heads re-
spectively of the Board of Proprie-
tors of East and West Jersey, asking
wha rights the Board of Proprietors
have lett fff@ tR fresh water lakes OF
New Jersey, the rtcUfu u cssssfp1aI
ances and any other information
which might help the commission in
its search for light on the potable
water question.
The interests which the Boards of
/ Proprietors of East and West Jersey
may have in the lands covered by
potable waters takes one to the be-
ginnings of the English colonization
of New Jersey
These boards have a history of
continuous existence embracing
period of over two centuries. Orig
inally they represented an aggrega-
tion of landed proprietors, who, after
Carteret and Berkeley, tenants in COM
mon under crown grant divided IN
1876 practically what is now the &
State of New Jersey, purchased the
interests of the two noblemen. Car
teret and Berkeley drew an imag1nar
line from point near Tuckerton
a point near the Delaware Water
Gap and attempted the division or
New Jersey into equal halves. The
location of the line led to several
surveys and great deal of conten-
tion,
How State Was Divided.
Carteret took all that portion east
of the line, his allotment being call
ed The Province of East New Jersey
Soon after the division his share was
purchased by land syndicate In
which William Penn and other MEM
hers of the Society of Friends, to-
gether with English and Scotch Cal
vinists. were interested. The Prov
ince of West New Jersey, all west OF
the line was purchased by Penn and
his associates. mainly Quakers, who
also were interested as syndicate
owners.
The proprietors Of the two prov
inces, except for a few grants made
bv Carteret and Berkeley, became
owners of the soil and had the right
right of selecting governors and
members of council The rights OF
government were surrendered to
Queen Anne in 1702 but title to the
soil was retained Whatever title re-
mains is traceable to these early
days
1t is not believed that either the
East or West Jersey proprietors have
any extensive rights to lands under
water. although some rights may ex-
ISL in East Jersey. The records or
the East Jersey PrOprietors are kept
in Perth Amboy and Of the West Jer-
sey Proprietors at Burlington, re-
spcctively the provincial seats or
government These records will be
carefully examined and surveys made
10 determine eXacuy what proprie-
tary rights remain
II is stated that these two bodles
are the Oldest of their class in the
world