The sun., 1910-05-23
Acceptance Of tho Great GIFT
Nov Rests with tha
State Senate.
WILL IT RECONSIDER VO1El
Scope and Extent Of Project
Not Understood Thoroughly
When BIn Failed.

GIFTS of 81. .OOO. 600 and Great Land
Tract From Mrs. Hartman. Of sl.'
100000 From Othevs. oI ssOO.OOo
Prem the state OG New Jersey CoH-
thEsnt Upon the Issue Of s7.sOO.O0o
m Bonds by the state OS New YoFiE.
Provided the People ApprOve-As.
sembly Passed the Measure Unani-
mOusly. but Il Failed to Get Required
"a Votes IN the senate-FlOpe That
senate Wtn Now VOte FavoFably On ne
Measare-WhAt the GIFT Means-Fiana
Sf Palisades CsmnissiOns-G George
". Perkins Explains the sltuAtion.
George W. Perkins. president Of the
New York Palisades Park Commission.
who was largely instrumental in saving
the Palisades from the trap rock vandala
and their political hackers. sAid Yesterday
afternoon that he believes tho State
senate will reconsider its action on the
| bill TO permit the New York and New
Jersey commissions 20 accept s2.S0O,Oo0
in private subscriptions. $4,000 from thu
State Of New Jersey, and TO issue g. .SOO,OoO
in bonds for the extension Of the great
park and the preservation Of a vast terri
tory.
AZ his home. Glyndor. in Riverdals.
Mr. Perkins talked Of what has basn
accomplished in ten years Of hard work
by an interstate commission. which was
unlike other commissions In that IL never
cost the people of the two States q cent.
and Of what will be done II thu Legislature
permits the joint commission TO uss the
money that J. P. Morgan. John d. Rocks-
Teller. Judge Gary. William X. Vanderbilt.
William Rockefeller. Mrs Hartman and
others have offered.
With tS.SOO.OOO the whole amount which
will be at the disposal Of the interstate
commission IL the Hartman Palisades
Park bill finally passed the Senate. the
people Of New York city and Of ths Jersey
cities will have a wonderfully .beautiful
pleasure ground twO-thirds the. sizs Of
Manhattan Island. a section Of the country
that il to-day a primitive wilderness.
IT is likely said Mr.. Perkins. that
some legislators a. well a. a great many
oth"r people do not understand what tho
bin calls for. Il doesn't take a cent out
of the State Treasury. II adds no burden
20 the taxpayers. Il merely authorizes
the issuance of g.. 50O.OOO worth Of bonds.
without such authorization the interstate
commission would 10 unable % Accept
the magnificent private gifts and the
appropriation of $4,000 made by New
Jersey. The senate would IN depriving
the people of this tima and Of generations
to CONS of what would be tho grandest
public park in the world Il il failed TO pass
that him.
Il am enthusiastic about this project
because | know what It will mean.
only wish that the senators could have
found timo to visit the freo mountain
wilderness which We want % add IN
Palisades Park They would have been
as eager, I think. as ! am % clear all
obstacles from the commissions way
BE0rNNIN1 % THE woHE.
The effort 20 save the Palisades began.
as Mr.. Perkins recalled. in 1900 actually.
when Gov. Roosevelt appointed a COM
mission 10 serve without pay and with
power 10 acquire and hold whatever
territory was necessary along the Pali-
sades for an interstate park. thereby
preserving the scenery of the Hudson'a
escarpment. Gov. Voorhees, Of New
Jersey appointed a similar commission.
Mr. Perkins was made president of tho
New York commission. which consisted
of himself. j. Du Pratt White. Ralph
Trautmann. D. McNeely Stauifer and
Nathan p. Barrett. Gov. voorhees, named
Abram :. Hewitt, Edwin A. Stevens.
Franklin W. Hopkins. William A. Linn
and Abnm De Ronde. with Mr. Hewitt
as president. With the exception of tho
vacancies caused by the deaths % Mr..
heWiA ana Af. lfAutinanns ana NE ap~
pointment OF William B. Dana and William
II. Porter. the personnel Of the COM
missions has remained unchanged.
When they took up the work, with ths
idea originally of saving only the Pali-
sades from destruction by rock blastsrs.
they had on hand an appropriation of
s5 900 from New Jersey and $1,000 from
New York They found that legally
organized companies we're blasting cliffs
on land that tho companies had bought
and had a right under the hW 10 quarTy.
Two years previously tho famous Indian
Head OF the Palisades above Fort Lee
had been destroyed by blast which was
second only IN extent 10 that which de-
stroyed the rocks In Hell Gate. Ths
quarrying companies worU working Ike
beavers up and down the river. lt -
only a question of a short time when
they would ruin the scenery from Fort
Lee 10 Nyack.
The commissions decided that n they
could stop tha blasting and acquire tho
s.arna~tnn Il -rtana - rsaarffiH~ a Hrrr5 fhn