Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1921-09-30

construction.
In connection with the truck freight
ers, an injustice to railroads is wildly
illustrated. Railroads must build their
addition to sharing gross receipts with
own lines and keep them up and also
pay real estate and franchise taxes in
the municipalities through which they
pass. They pay immense sums to the
state for school taxes, in fact u
whole school system would be ire
mendously crippled if it were not for
these taxes.
The freight and passenger trucks
have good roads built for them out of
money contributed by individual tax
payers and they are relieved of most
of the other heavy taxes which rail-
roads must pay and can therefore op-
crate cheaply at public expense.
The competition as at present is I'M
fair to the railroads and unfair to the
average taxpayer. One of two things
should be done soon. One is to relieve
the railroads OF any and all burdens
not now imposed on motor trucks and
passenger busses, which would at once
reduce both passenger and freight
rates.
The other course would be to tax
the buses and freighters on a basis
equal to railroad taxes. This would
force higher rates for the motor We
hicle service or put them out of bust
ness. At present they are injuring
the railroads tremendously. If rail
roads must build their own bridges,
why not the motor f~reighters?
If the railroads must pay big taxes,
why not the motor freighters?
The railroads are helping by way of
taxation and gross receipts taxes, to
bear taxation burdens with the people.
The motor freighters are a big burden
on the taxpayers.
We do not believe in any attempt to
impede motor vehicle development or
to put a stop to motor freight and pas
senger service. That is a wrong
course; but if the public is not to be
overwhelmed with higher and higher
road and bridge taxation, the motor
competition with railroads must speed
lily be placed on In even basis. If the
motor vehicles take away the revenues
from the railroads their gross receipt
percentage paid the public purse is
lessened so that we get less and less
money from the railroads and pay out
more and more in taxes to provide
roads and bridges to Withstand the big
truck traffic.
In "Gleanings" by Ruth" of Woods
town, published in the Times last
week, there were pertinent observa-
lions about a situation which has de-
developed increasingly since the war
until it has become an open scandal
in the minds of law-abiding people.
A number of years ago gambling on
horse racing was so openly carried on
in this state in defiance of law and
morals that Gloucester" became a
political issue and the entire common
wealth was so aroused that the party
under the leadership of the race track
gamblers was ousted from power and
the places closed UP.
Before that, lottery ticket selling be-
came SO common that states not only
legislated against it, but the National
Government passed stringent laws
prohibiting the use of the mails in any
and all chance schemes, and provid-
ing that any newspaper advertising
or publishing the result of lotteries
should be denied the use of the mails.
During the past three or four years,
there has been increased defiance of
the laws; church and lodge organiza-
tons, community boosters and others
have been using games of chance.
ticket selling for ~raff1es, and other
gambling devices, and have been edu-
eating the young in a way to foster
the gambling spirit.
There have been feeble attempts to
oppose the schemes, but the public has
appeared to be in favor of defying the
law, under the guise OF raising funds
for a good cause.
Bridgeton recently attempted to
bring the evil before the public in
a farcical way. A merchant at a mark