The Penn's Grove record., 1911-03-17
Schoolmaster Instructs Legislators.
Reform Measures Expected To Pass
Next Week

Governor is keeping the legislators in
line for his proposed reform bills. On
Monday night a long conference was
held by the Governor and Legislators
on the new election bill which will
greatly change the manner of tickets,
reauire a civil service examination for
| election of officers and valious other
changes. The Governor called atten-
tion of The Assemblymen to the fact
that it was prerogative to senda special
message to the House on the measure
ana SO put The members on recoad, but
preferred to confer with them. lie
| asserted that the enactment OF the bill
was absolutely necessary if the Dem
| ocratic party was to keep faith with the
people.
The Governor said that rather than
| exercise this prerogative he had pre-
| ferred to cooperate with his colleages
in the Legislature, and in conference
after conference he had invited those
memters Of the Assembly who we've
officially or otherwise interested, and
had taken advantage of the kindness OF
individual members to Introduce this
and other bills which he felt it his duty
to urge. so that they might go out III
the regular order of Legislative proceed
IRE. He had done this so that he might
not even seem to force upon the Legis-
lature the choice whether they would
follow his lead OF not. He maintained
that it was absolutely necessary, in
order to keep faith with the voters of
the State and with public opinion, that
the Geran bill should substitute for the
existing method of selecting election
officers. a method which would be a
very much nearer approach to what
was impartial and open and without
faint of machine management, and that
the other essential feature was that the
ballots should be of such form that the
voters would hvae an opportunity to
select individuals rather than tickets,
and so be in a position TO demand and
expect of every political organization
that they should put mp candidates
whose names would bear individual
scrutiny.
s.You can Urn aside from the meas
ure if you choose, the Governor said:
ssyou can decline to follow me, you can
deprive me of my Office and turn away
from me; but you cannot deprive me of
power so long as 1 sieadfastly stand fol
what | believe 10 be the interests and
legitimate demands of the people them
selves. l beg you to remember. i'll this,
which promises to be ali historic con-
ference in the annals of the party OF the
State, that you are settling the question.
of the power or impotence, the distlnc-
ton or the ignominy of the party to
which the people with a singular gen.
crosby have offered the control of their
affairs"
The conference lasted from 3 to Z
O'Clock and is said to have been full OF
ginger every minute of the four hours.
After a rather warm debate the Sen
ale defeated Assemblyman Taylor's
bill to incorporate the Borough of
Ocean Grove. The final vote was Is
to 2, Senators SilZer and Low, Demo-
Gratis, voting for the bill and Senator
Prince, Republican leader, not voting.
The Senate passed the Leavitt bill,
preventing the admission of children
under IS yeats of age to dance halls.
and under IA years to moving picture
houses or theatres.
On Tuesday the Assembly posed the
corr upt practices bill, which will make
it more stringent to use money at cleo
lions. 1t was designed to place the
elections in the hands of the people
where they properly belong, and elm
mate cooperative interests and the
methods they have pursued in improp-
erly influencing the ballot.
There is a difference between the
Senate and the Assembly over the new
apporlionment CT ASS mblyman. There
can lie only 60, each county shall have
ole even though the population is not
up to an average for the Whole number,
which is AZ, 00O. The difference is wheth-
Ell Atlantic County or Hudson County
will have an additional member. Bur-
lington and Cumberland counties will
loose one.
The Employees Liability bill was de.
bated on Tuesday, and passed the SEN
ate ON Wednesday.
Assemblymen Lafferty, Of Gloucester
county, is making strenuous efforts to
have the Inv repealed which created
the County Boards of Taxation, but the
bill has not been reported from the
committee.
PENNSVILLE