Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1917-07-13
Wildwood Crest tt Vote on City Proposition.
Council Unanimously Passes Ordinance

I
Mayor Baker further advised that a
road connecting Wildwood Crest and
Cape May, would prove a benefit TO
both places. "But our having two
be built. The board of freeholders has
already voted for this road and the
state has agreed to pay its share. And
the road cannot be built until the state
commissioners give their consent.
Some say that this is a land scheme.
/ remember that we had the same
trouble thirty years ago over the Holly
Beach turnpike. The honest people
said that this was a land scheme. The
county was then assessed at So, 900, 900.
The turnpike was built and this land
scheme increased the value of this city
so much that today it is assessed for
four times as much as the G. unity itself
was before the land scheme was in
a%ugurated. This road is bound to do
the county good and we must open the
way. 1t has been intimated that our
own freeholders are u%nfriendly toward
this road. This must not be. We
must work iowa: d an end that will do
us all good.n
81 can assure you, Mr.. Mayor" said
Mr.. Rigor, "that our own freeholders
will prove friendly. They wish to de-
feat this clique dominated by Fox, for
it C ntrols all the northern end of the
county and wants to encroach upon
our end. Let US not allow this upper
end to dictate to us. We of the lower
end want representation. If it is not a
breach of confidence, Mr.. Mayor, 1
would say that you know as much as
/ do about the assurance we have re-
ceived that there will be built all first
class houses on Two Mile Beach and
the people interested there want to be
annexed to Wildwood Crest. If we
don't get the required representation
we cannot get the road"
81 don't know as much as you think
[ do" said the mayor laughing.
Mr.. Diamond took the floor in favor
of the present form of government and
said hat one or two freeholders, more
or less, would do no good. He conclu-
ded by saying, 81 have been told by a
Cape May man that until the state is
ready to build the road, we will not get
it. lfthe new form of government is a
benefit to the Crest, / would vote for it.
fit isapolitical move sayvote it down.
[ am perfectly satisfied with thepresent
system. The new system means bigger
assessments and more expenses. AS
far as / am concerned l think 1t best to
lay this ordinance on the table. You
cannot judge the popularity of the new
form OF government by the petitions
that have been sent around advocating
it. l would sign any petition if l
knew That I could help a friend, L
would not consult my personal opin-
ions on the question. This, l think is
the usual experience of everybody"
Mr.. Rigor said that he always knew
the reason for the petition he was sign
Ing and did not sign only to accommo-
date his friends.
Glenn Folsom said that he had signed
a petition for a change in government
because as a taxpayer, very fond of the
Crest, he thought it was for its good.
He also said that Mr.. Diamond had
signed this petition. 81 signed this
petition, !" he said in closing, "because I
thought good men were backing it. /
stake my confidence in council. I
thank Mr.. James for giving US the OPP
portunity to express our views on the
subject and would say that whatever
council decides 1 am willing to ap-
prove"
81 do not remember signing any
such petition said Mr.. Diamond in
answer to Mr.. Folsom. Clerk Nicker-
son looked up the petition and reported
that Mr.. Diamonds name did not ap-
pear among the signers of the petition.
Mr.. Folsom stood corrected.
"If any citizen here can show me
that this change in government is not
good, 1 am willing to vote against it,
exclaimed Mr.. Rigor. nWhy, MI.
Mayor, we would be glad to have you
as one of the fr%eeholders. In fact you
ought to be one"
"You're a bigger enemy than I
thought you were," said Mayor Baker,
smiling. 81 have enough burdens to
carry without becoming a freeholder.n
Following this remark, there was a
lull in the discussion. Suddenly Mr..
Adams Numbered, "Show me two
honest men in the C5St to represent
usn
fFNNT1JII 1111@ 49,. .-:I NJ