Perth Amboy evening news., 1912-08-28
POWERLESS TO
ACT IN ESSEX
Governor Wilson Wishes fer
Power to Remove Officials
Who Neglect Duty.
HELP SUPPRESS VICE
Answer to Newark Delegation
Who Ask Assistance--Do
What He Can.
HELP SUPPRESS VICE

lTeuCOup aug. 20 ,--allci hCoi
ing the appeal yesterday afternoon
of the representatives Of the New
Jersey Anti-Saloon League and the
New Jersey Law and Order Societies
for his aid in cleaning up Newark
and correcting it's alleged lawless-
ness, Governor Wilson deprecated
the fact that the New Jersey COVER
nor has not the power to remove Of
ficlals who neglect their duty or re-
fuse to perform 1t. DR.. Edwin L..
Stearns, superintendent of the Anti
Saloon League, presented to the gov
ernor the written appeal for his In
tervention in the Newark crusade.
Accompanying DR.. Stearns were A.
w. McDougall OF the State Bureau Of
Charities; Fillmore Condit, of Es-
sex Fells, the we'll known reformer
who represented the Essex County
Intra-C Church Federation; Samuel
Wilson, director of law enforcement
of the Anti-Saloon League; Charles
A. Coburn, State Secretary of the
Y. M. C. A; Charles A. Buckley, Of
the Newark Y. M. G. A; Mrs. Sam
uel Clark, of the Newark Y. w. C.
A.; the Rev. Davis w. Lusk, of the
Newark Ministerial Union, and many
others.
No Politics in Move.
DR.. Stearns declared that there
were no personalities nor politics In
the movement, but that the Newark
and Essex county officials absolutely
refused to perform their sworn duty
in the matter of enforcing the law
and correcting the notorious condi-
~ tS,y - orly q
delegation asked the governor as the
chief magistrate of the state. to en-
force the sovereign law and to use
the power of his Office to compel the
authorities to do their sworn duty.
Answering the appeal, Governor
Wilson said he very much regretted
that he had not the power to remove
officers who refused to enforce the
law; that he could not call on the at
torney general to intervene as the
prosecuting officer and that he had
no legal powers whatever, in this
situation THE only force that l
can exercise" continued the COVER
nor, ''is the force, not of law, but or
public opinion. The only thing | can
do is to bring this matter to the at
tention of the authority and the peo-
pie of Newark in the most effective
way l can" Mr. Wilson suggested to
the governor that under the law of
1901 he had power to serve notice
upon the derelict officials that If they
did not enforce the law within ten
DAYS they would be liable to indict-
ment. The governor looked up the
law in question and read it care
fully.
Call Attention of Authorities.
The reading of the act showed the
situation under the law to be what
the governor called "a vicious cir
cIe." The provision of the law Is
that while the governor, the attor-
ney general, judge of the state
court, or the county prosecutor may
serve notice upon The officials, the
work for the Indictment must be In
itiated by the county authorities and
the Indictment itself found by the
grand Jury summoned by the sherlff.
$50 you see," said the governor, as
he finished reading the act, Il have
no power beyond calling attention
to the appeal which you have made
to me today. The rest must be done
by the county authorities. l regret
that this is so. but the law is plain.
Governor Wilson pointed out the
difference here from those IN At
lantic and Hudson counties Where
special grand juries were drawn by
elisors chosen by Supreme Court
Justice Kalisch. In those cases the
sheriff in each county was dlsquan-
fed on charge of violating the law
and this made possible the appoint
ment of the elisors.
The result of the conference in
the appeal was that the governor re
quested that he be supplied with sew
eral additional copies of the docu-
ments placed in his hands and that
he would see that they were prop
erly served on the Essex county au-
thorities and he would do what he
could to aid in correcting the condi
tions which exist.