Perth Amboy evening news., 1906-12-21
SOUTH aMB0Y.
BOROUGH G~OVERNNIENT.

20 L. O&(AA atAb -
our form OF government, and making
Of our borough a city with the rights
and privileges incident thereto and
the duties incumbent thereon. Wheth-
err such a change would be advisable
or not is a mooted question. | am
one of that class that feels a change
of government would react to the
benefit of cur people. Certain 1t !
Thar the borough law as at present
constituted is untitled for the govern
meut of a municipality like ours.
In its original contemplation a bor-
ough was not a separate municipal
ity. but was a compact portion of a
township. with ambitions for public
improvement that the township was
unable or unwilling TO satisfy.
The borough still remained a part
and parcel of the township from
which it had been created, and so re-
NAMED until Just prior to the adop-
ton by South Amboy OF its present
form of government. 1t was at tnat
time that the curative act enabling
boroughs TO entirely divorce tnen-
selves from the township OF when
they were parts, was passed, anu IL
remember rightly, Hon. ID. &. chase,
then senator from MiddleseX, was
the author of and sponsor for the Dill
At the presnt time the munlclpall.
ties governed by the provisions OF
the borough act of 1897 vary IN pop
ulation from our W borough, the
largest in the state, to such places as
Midtown, Helmetta and Sea Isle CITY,
the last named having only 25O pop
ulation.
1t will readily be seen that a law
fitted and proper for the government
of a municipality of 200 people can
not be effective for the proper admin
istration of 1000 souls. Our present
form of government has surely many
disadvantages, and a change to a city
government would retain for us all
the advantages we now possess ana
rive us an inestimable number of
benefits we now lack, and beyond all
would add no greater burden to our
taxpayers.
Under city government our mum
icipality, unlike its present condition,
would be divided into wards; each
ward would have its own representa-
live in the common council, and on
that representative would depend the
welfare of his particular district.
Under our present system our Dor
ough council is elected without re-
gard to locality, and as a result there
of we find the present body to be
composed of three representatives
from the second polling district, one
from the first polling district, n
from the third polling district, and
the sixth member, strang to relate,
halls from an adjoining township.
Here then is one particular thing in
which, to my mind, the city govern
ment is far superior to our present
form. Again the powers of IL bor-
ough council, owing to the fact that
the law is designed and intended to
govern small places, is necessarily
curtailed and limited.
No improvement, however needful,
If 1t be OF any extent, can be under
taken so long as the majority of the
people of the borough do not actively
interest themselves in its procure
ment.
do not mean to say that a num-
Der of our citizens, less than a major
ity, should be able to put in opera
ton any scheme or movement OPP
posed by the majority, but | do mean
that it should not be necessary to Sc
cure the active, open support of a
majority so long as a considerable
portion desire the movement and the
majority does not combat it.
Under a city government the off,
GERS of our municipality would not
increase in members, the salaries of
the officers would not increase in
amount, the cost of government
would not be greater than at present,
and withal the powers of the mum
icipality, at no increased cost, would
be far more extensive than at pres
ent.
A quotation from the preface to
the borough act as prepared by form
er Judge Skinner, of Essex county,
might be of interest here. 1t was
Judge Skinner who, while a member
of the legislature from Essex county,
drafted our present borough act. He
had been engaged by the legislature
for that purpose and had the advant-
age of the committee hearings which
the legislative had held, and at which
were secured the views and opinions
of the representatives from many
boroughs. Judge SINNERS opinion
should therefore have no little
weight. He says: "a comparison of
this act with the original borough
act of 1878 will show how far the
borough has departed from it's orig
inal design. AS some borough has
grown in population some real or
tancied desire has sent il to that
haven of all municipal meddlers, the
legislature, which, without any suffi-
eient inquiry, has given additional
power or otherwise changed the law
10 suit the representatives of that
particular borough. Perhaps the
borough has really outgrown the law
under which it is operating, and
should step up into a higher grade of
municipality. Instead of stepping
into the next higher grade of NUM-
cipality, it has changed the law to
ut its changed condition"
Here then we find the evil from
which South Amboy suffers. Instead
OF becoming a city long ago, we, like
many other b%oroughs. have scurried
Cnfl-at 49,