Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1910-02-07
REVISION Of LAWS
GOING FORWARD
DESPITE DELAYS
Governors Nominations to Com.
mission Revives Work In
~. augurated Years Ago.

has spent $117.254.71 for revising it
laws. Thus far it has very little t,
show for its expenditure.
The general subject of revising ant
codifying the statutes has been brough
forward prominently again through thc
nomination by Governor Fort of Georg,
L.. Record, of Jersey City. and Franl
Bergen. of Elizabeth, as members O
the commission to revise the statutes
Mr.. Bergen has declined to serve. ant
Mr.. Records appointment has beer
held UP pending confirmation in thu
judiciary committee of the Senate
There has already been expended IL
the present attempt at ~codi1cation $40,
311.f4. and IL is reliably stated tina
the work is yet far from being halt
completed. Unless the reorganization
of the commission by Governor Fort
sshall work q complete change in the
methods of dealing with the subject,
sthe State may expect. ii is declared, al
expenditure of from s4o,0 900 to $50, 00O
more before any tangible results are
procured.
An examination of the records here
gshows that from 1892 TO 1894, inclusive,
1.-THE State paid $50, 432, 50 for revising the
flaws conceI ming villages. towns and
townships. The commissioners who did
this work were George e.. Pace, Jacob
G. Hendrickson and Abraham ID. Camp
bell. according to some members of
the bar this revision was never OF any
value. and apparently no copy of the
report of the commission is on file. The
law authorizing the revision was
pnssed IN 1921, and it was the expecta-
ton that the report of the commits
sion would be submitted to the Legisla-
ture OF 1892 in order that the revision
might be r~eenacted.
lewiston Ordered.
ME Legislature of 1895 enacted a law
authorizing the State to subscribe to a
r. revision of the public statutes to be
compiled by William M. tanning, now
Judge of the United states Circuit
Court, and c.. D.. W. Vroom, now a
judge of the Court of Errors and APP
peals. and in the following years a.
Thousand sets of the work were pur-
chased by the State at a cost of SIS. 900.
This revision is In three volumes, being
KNOWN as the General Statutes of New
Jersey. 1t was, In fact, a supplement to
the codification of 1887, also compiled by
Judge Lanning and Judge Vroom.
The next movement for a revision of
the laws was made In 1902 and 1903, I'M
der an act providing for a commission
10 revise n codify the laws not there
tofore revised codined by the spe-
rial commission above referred to. The
later commission was composed of John
Franklin Fort, the present Governor:
the late Supreme Court Jusstice jena
than Dixon and Charles l.. aCorbin. The
secretary was Wilbur A. Mott, now
prosecutor OF Essex county. For this
work the commissioners each received
$1,000 and Secretary Mott SO, 450, the re-
mainder OF the money expended being
for printing and stenographer's fees.
Thu present revision was started un-
der an act of 1904, authorizing the APP
pointment OF "a commission of three
persons to compile and edit the public
acts of the state, including h previ-
Gus revision. There were to be three
volumes of the work and the State was
to purchase 600 copies. The contract
ing printer was to be allowed to retain
all the plates and type, printing there
from additional copies, from which he
was to receive the profits. The COM
missioners appointed were yice-Chan-
eellor James Il. Howell. Judge Vroom
n Charles D.. Thompson, of Jersey
City, The secretary was Francis B.
Lee. of this city.
The commission spent sos in 1904,
this being made up of six months sal
airy OF the secretary and $10S for office
rent. In 1905 the commission spent
S2.S01. For five months of that year
Mr.. Lees salary was 800 a month and
then 1t was raised to $3.50 a month,
which has since been his allowance. In
1906 the expenses OF the commission
we're So. 4s8 NJ in 1907 they were IS, SOC,
the salary of Mr.. Lee being the princi-
pal item in each wear.
=, Fort Suggested II.
During the FIRST year of his admins
tration Governor Fort recommended the
repeal OF the law creating the com
mission. This was done. and the Legis-
lature made provision for reimbursing
the printer up to that time. A new
commission was created, the salaries OF
the members being fixed at $500 a
month. instead ot the compensation be-
ing determined by the Governor, treas
urer and State comptroller, With q
view to Fastening the work the act of
1908 directed that a printed copy of
the new revision should be submitted
to the next Legislature and that the
work should be printed in parts and
distributed as rapidly as it was com
piled.
Governor Fort appointed as the COM
missioners the late George r. Werts.
of Jersey City; Joseph l.. Mum. Of
East Orange. and Alan II. Strong. of
New Brunswick. Mr.. Strong and Mr.
Werts both resigned from the commis-
sion and 1t was to fill these vacancies
that Governor Fort appointed Mr..
Record n Mr.. Bergen.
The State has expended $40. 1854 In set
Ting up the affairs of the commission
appointed in 1904. No appropriation was
made in 1908, but the commission was
allowed s2.274 from the emergency fund
OF the Governor. Last year the COM
mission cost So. $500. The mound paid
for settling with the printers was
S.450. Commissioners Howell. vroom
and Thompson, of the old board. we're
paid $4,000 each. Mr.. Lee received ST.
$50 for five mouths salary and 81. 700
was given 10 the late Woodbury. ID.
Holt. John S. Van Dyke and William
Blackman. of this city, for services in
r~nnaetinn prtfh tha ,..t.tnu MI