The Penn's Grove record., 1909-03-26


and Senate-Woman Lobbies In Vain
For Trolley Revivor-County Tax
Board Repeater Killed In the As
sembly.
Especial Correspondence
Trenton, March 25.-None of the crit
icisms which have been hurled at Gov
ernor Fort for his proposition to have
repealed the law of 1905 which gives
to the public school the greater parl
of the money derived from the taxa
ton of railroad property has shaken
| his conviction that that is the best
way in which to avert the deficiency
in the state treasury which is now
imminent. At his instigation Assem-
blyman Colgate of Essex introduced
in the house Monday night a bill to
100000 out of the moneys in the
state treasury received from the state
railroad tax Of 1908, the same to be
apportioned, paid and disbursed as
now provided by law, except that the
state comptroller shall draw his war
| rant on the state treasurer in favor of
the county collector of each county for
the proportion Of the said money to
which said county shall be entitled on
the 18th day of June of the year fol
lowing the apportionment.
The second section of the act pro-
vides that the appropriation made by
the bill is in lieu of the appropriation
made under the 1906 act, and the third
section repeats all acts Inconsistent
with the provisions of the act. This is
considered a repeal of the much dis
cussed act of 1906 as far as the rail-
road taxes of 1908 are concerned.
At about the same time there was
made public a letter which the gov
rho wrote to Julian 1. Gregory of
Montclair explaining more fully his
views on the all absorbing question
and at the same time taking a rap or
two at those who have criticised his
attitude toward the act of 1906. In
the course of the letter the governor
says:
The misunderstanding which seems to
have got into the public mind as to my
position on this subject has arisen from
an absolutely false and, / fear, intention
ally false Interpretation of my position.
Duty to Support Schools.
The first thing to be done is to sup
port the state in all of its institutions,
and to support the schools is only one
0f fho dr1fioC aoct rno, %h1 1oo,.Io
ture. The governor then goes on to
explain his suggestion that 100000
be appropriated to the school fund in
this way:
This year the amoun which will be sent
down to the public schools under the act
Of 1906 is 81, 226, 900. The recommendation
Of the legislative committee is to take
from the railroad revenues $242, 900 before
the distribution of these revenues, which
would reduce the amount from 50. 22e, 900
to N,9S4,OO0. If my suggestion be adopted
there will be more money sent down to
the schools than there would be if the
$4,000 was first deducted. This $242, 900 is
made up of the following items:
State Normal school at Trenton. $50, 900
State Normal school at Montclair.. 5000
State students at Rutgers........... 5000
Scnool FOL 5000
Colored school at Bordentown..... 12.OOO
School For Foreign Born........ 10000
State superintendent public in
slruclion 5000
county superintendent ............. 1900
$242, 900
AS I understand it, the Junior Order of
American Mechanics has consented to
the reduction of this s242,0 OO, which is a
concession on its part that is greater
than the amount which would be taken
from the railway revenues under the
plan which l propose, to appropriate ST.
100000 fla to the schools for the next
fiscal year.
After reiterating his suggestion that
there be a revaluation of railroad
property the governor goes on to say:
1t is hard for a public man to have his
motives misconstrued, to have an attempt
made by his political enemies or by those
VINO are trying to make political capital
to misrepresent him, and rest quiet under
such false accusations, but it is one of
the penalties of holding office to be thus
falsely criticised Notwithstanding Won
know that you are trying to do right.
Knowing, as I do as I see every
DAY, that the maximum tax rate act. the
county boards of taxation act and the
average tax rate act were all enacted
solely and entirely for the purpose of
pChOiliAS IN IdllrOduS IN the matter of
taxation and that the men who are be-
hind this attack upon me on the school,
question are responsible for helping the
railroads in this way and did it for that
purpose. and that purpose alone, it Is diff
fcult to rest quietly under these imputa-
tons.
When some of the people who are now
criticising me become as good friends of
the public schools as I think I am they
Will be able for the first time in their
lives to take a horizontal view of their
political honesty.
Armory Bill Vetoed.
The governor sent to the senate his
%disapproval of Senator Wakelee's bin |
which provided that no armory shall |
be erected or authorized to be erected
or appropriation made for the con |
struction of the same during the con |
of an armory previousl,
authorized and under process of con
struction. 1t is said that the bill wa
introduced at the instance of the STATE
military board in order to allay th,
jealousy entertained by those organ
which failed to secure an an