Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1919-11-21

miSsioners' meeting last week. his
motion was not seconded by either the
Mayor or Commissioner Ryan and
therefore 1t could not be entertained
or passed. Public affairs of vital inn
portance were thus suffered to drift
aimlessly with the tide. Anticipating
inaction Of this kind, a petition was
presented and read at last weeks
meeting, of which mention was made
in the JOURNAL Of November 18th.
This petition and the names of the
signers follow;
eve, the undersigned, who are
citizens and taxpayers, have beer
informed that Edward S. Culver
has instituted a suit in the Cape
May County Circuit Court against
the city, to compel the removal of
the boardwalk on Atlantic avenue.
We are further informed that it is
not the purpose of the commission
ers to defend said action. This is
to request that you at once direct
your solicitor to defend said
action, failing in which we shall
apply to the Supreme Court for a
mandamus to compel you"
G. H. Baker.
JohnlT. Byrne.
Chas. l.. Heinle.
Sarah H. Byrne.
Edwin G. McGarry.
Reginald L. Byrne.
William H. Bright.
r. H. COney.
Edwin NJ. johnson.
Chas. Albig.
Oliver Bright.
Henry Schwemmer.
A second petition as noted in the
JOURNAL was offered by the same
signers, and was read as follows:
1.-THE undersigned, who are resi-
dents aud taxpayers of Wildwood.
and who will be especially affected
by the building of a new board
walk as proposed in notice of in
tention published, hereby object to
the entire project upon the follow
ing grounds:
81. The notice was not published as
required by law and your reso-
luton.
's2. You are without legal power to
construct a boardwalk upon and
over a public highway.
st3. You are without legal power to
construct a boardwalk upon and
over land covered by the ocean.
"Any attempt to execute the
plan will be challenged by pro-
ceedings in court"
The filing of these two petitions and
the reading of them into the city's
record may prove to be basic steps of
great Importance to the citizens and
taxpayers, whose burdens are already
of sufficient magnitude to make even
the unskillful wary. The city's net
debt. now on file in the clerks office at
CITY hall, is given as $530,l76.58, but
these figures do not represent all of our
debt and may prove misleading to
some members of the body polite.
Our water bonds must not be forgotten
or overlooked. These constitute a very
considerable portion of u financial
Indebtedness, but the law does not re-
ouire that the water bonds be consid-
cred in arriving at the bonding ability
of the city. The total bonded indebt-
edness of the City of Wild wood, inclu-
ding water and school bonds, is almost
a Million and a Quarter Dollars.
1t is enough of bonds and burdens to
last us for some years to NJ Yet In
the face of this enormous debt a couple
of the Commissioners may still think
the taxpayers are "getting off easy"
That's what n of them said last year
when the tax rate was only 1913.
Nothing would seem to Indicate that
he has changed his mind since.
The regular weekly meeting Of the
city commissioners was convened yes
terday afternoon shortly after two
The attendance was fair, but
the interest in city hall doings seemed
to lag somewhat at this session and
adjournment came earlier (3.2S) than
has been the case for a number of
previous. After the reading of
the minutes of November 18th, Com
missioner Hendee objected to their APP
prevail as read, and asked that excep-