Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-10-28

TIT RDLY had the inspired campaign announcement about a
I'LL ~$1,760,000 balance in the State treasury been sent out from
Trenton than all the spellbinders on the stump for the
Republican State Committee broke out in an ecstatic chorus of
praise of the delectabe State government and legislation that had
produced such a result. Even Mr.. Lewis himself Joined the chorls-
tiers. There were similar, but more subdued, paeans sung in 1907
over an alleged State treasury surplus of about the same dlmen'
sions, but it was afterward learned from Governor Fort that this
surplus, which did good campaign duty until the November cleo
ton, was a delusion, a mirage, a surplus as unsubstantlal as the
baseless fabric of a dream. 1t didn't exist at all except in the
campaign-heated fancy of the State comptroller. Governor Fort
showed that instead of owning a big financial balance the State
was alarmingly confronted by a deficit and bankruptcy That was
how the Legislature came to rob the school funds of the counties
to the tune of several hundreds of thousands of dollars annually
to replenish the treasury and permit of the extraordinary extraya-
gance of the subsequent Legislative appropriations. In the case of
the comptrollers statement this year, however, it is credible that
i IT, is substantially correct. The comptroller, or, rather, the Repub.
lcan State Committee, was in a great hurry to get the statement
out. Never before wal any announcement made until the books of
the fiscal year were closed after business hours on October 81. This
statement comes out five days ahead. Evidently it was felt that the
statement was most urgently needed. But where does this balance
come from? Did the Legislature last winter, or in 1909, pass any
law to increase the public income? Not a single bill of that
character was enacted. Did the Legislature in 1909 or 1910 enact
any legislation to effect economies of administration, and were the
annual appropriations reduced? Not a single penny. On the con-
trary, useless commissions were created at large salaries and the
legislative appropriations of the two years were the greatest in
the history of State legislation. Now, what the Legislature did do
was to enact bills stripping the public schools in the municipalities
of a large part of their regular revenues and saddling upon the
school districts the large expense of State institutions that had been
paid out of the general fund of the State. 1t was from this source
the State administration received the additional income that en-
abed the Legislature this year to plunge into greater extravaganza.
IT was from this source the present State balance was derived.
That money in the treasury is, to all intents and purposes, the
proceeds of a State tax on the people. 1t was indirectly wrung
from the people. But for extravagant appropriations it would be
above two millions. 1t is public school money which the municipal
taxpayers have had to replace in their school funds by extra local
taxation. And this treasury balance, tainted by public wrong, a
balance from unbridled extravaganza that is intended for future
extrayagances, is paraded on the stump as evidence of good State
government! Surely the day of retribution is near.