Milford chronicle., 1914-03-06
MILFORD SHOULD AWAKE
and GET new INDUSTRIES.

- Seaforu has organized a Board OF Trad
- and that 1t has arranged for an extensiv
:. advertising compaign to boost that pro
gressive town. read that they offer thl
/ inducemeut of low taxes and free factorl
I; sites, and that certain lands have beer
i condemned in order to widen and ex
- tend the streets
!. In reading this news item the contrast
between Seaford and Milford flashed into
: my mind, and it seems to me that our
: citizens may with profit dwell upon our
: official attitude towards public better
: ments.
! In the first place, we have no Board
! of Trade. We don't want any and if
We had one it would mean a useless ex-
peuditure of effort. Il couldn offer free
factory sites, for even marsh lands which
! the tides cover twice daily are held at
, $50 per front foot. Our officials are
opposed TO cOndemniug property, even
I though 1t luts out far beyond the build
ing line. Witness the Barber property
near the depot, where the porch and
corner of the building is in the street.
The Caulk Laboratory, employing
hundred people, has had branch of its
factory running for some months in Phila-
delphla, because it had no room for ex-
pansion here. It was asking for no free
site ; 1t was paying taxes the same as any
other property. On one side of this
plant IS a lot with a stable half in the
marsh, never used, with an office and
store IN front. This property was not I
for sale at any price. An offer was made /
TOR the property several times its value, |
but the offer was refused.
Now do the town, school and county /
assessors tax this property in accordance
with the owners valuation Not so
they are content with getting a small
revenue from it when it might yield a
large revenue.
To the west Of the Caulk Laboratory,
across the stream, is a marsh, filed with
rubbish, such as rotten groceries, tin
cans, dead cats aud garbage The tides
cover this twice a day. The Caulk Com
pany turned their attention in that direc-
ton thinking perhaps that at terrific ex-
peuse they could fill it up and erect new
buildings for more employees. They I
were asked $3.50 per front foot for (
this delectable piece Of property, with /
the result that il will remain as it is-an {
eyesOre, for this and future generations. {
VIII the authorities now tax it according
to the valuation placed upon it, No, they /
viii likely overlook it altogether.
There seems to be a disposition to {
penalize every bit of enterprize. Last v
spring several new residences were be- i
ing built or about to be built out bevond
the depot. The owners were verv prop T
erly notified that they could not empty {
sewage into the lake and could not build a
cesspools on their property. The town t
oincials not only refused to give them a n
sewer, but for a time fought a proposition b
to permit them to build their own sewer. a
Is this encouraging enterprize in our c
midsta .
Another count in the indictment is the O
way we have refused to provide apparatus v
Tor lighting fires in Milford We have a
body Of men who give their time and n
sometimes risk their lives in fighting 90
1res, And all the town allows them is a {,
lew feet of rotten hose to do it with. b.
providence has been good to Milford d,
t IS a wonder that we haven't been e.
wiped of the map before this. The FIRE it
nen with almost no equipment have done a!
wonders in subduiug fires, protecting our II
ZONES and property-but when there is OIL
ak Of giving them equipment, every T..
lght-wad groans aloud and saws now on
7e must keep down taxes" Yet in the NJ
7ng run we are paying in insurance
remiums more than it would cost for +,
for fighting fires.
Did you ever stop to think why prop
rty values iu North Milford have dropped
o low It Is because the property owners re
themselves have systematically worked on
depreciate the values of their own I'M
0ldings inl
They have built shacks in rimtown TO
q extent that completely blocked ex- th
-nsion OF the town In that direction th
o the west was a large farm. not a to
DOT OF which could be bought for build wi
u purposes Consequently. those wish trc
u 90 build homes went to Sussex. and Is
iereiore North Milford is dead, pro- edi
critics are falling to pieces and when OF
tered for sale, find no bidders. The Sd,
.me thing happened TO the shops Of of
orth Milford. The owners collected pee
.eir rents and were content as long as thr
.e buildings would stand up Con the
queutly, business began to go 10 South we
lliord. And much of it VIII remain To
ere, notwithstanding that finally a few 40
.w stores were built in North Milford do
w hen there was a proposition to es- the
dish a free library in Milford the ma
ate to bear a substantial part of the Gro
irden, the people gathered iu q large str'
ass and virtuously swatted it. They pei
ld 10 effect We will not permit YOU {
furnish books 20 coutamiuate our gro
ople. 1t would have cost a few cents Old
head TO have established the library. phC
It many good citizen lost a davis bar
'rk IN order to defeat a free library. all
lich might have raised his tax fifteen lar.
nts. ciu
What is this spirit leading to- The are
wn IS full of pickering and petty dis
llousies we have a collection Of cit tow
rs that sit on goods boxes and "cuss the
cry man who has a bit of enterprize the
ley are unit in knocking ANYTHING dat
lt savors Of progress they are a unit rela
their determination to keep down one
Les- An honest days work on the side
It OF some of them would paw all the and
iiuoual taxes likely to be laid upon Coll
en-. mar
Vow II we want Milford to drop behind tail'
the race, II we want to see George hav
gn. Laurel, Seaford and Harrington T
ge ahead while we slumber on. let us Tow
SO frankly, and look forward to a Ave
ure when we shall pay no taxes. be- Plac
'se we shall have nothing to pay them mai
side
NE of THEM PROGRESSIVE FErI.ERs - muc
all
OLD WEATHER CARE. eHgi ,.Hli
sens
ION t expect too much from your lay pave