Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-01-10

! n.andate that the executive shall
|. communicate to the legislature at
Inc opening of each session with re-
..'ect to the condition of the state,
md shall recommend such measures
, ~: may be deemed %expedient, I 10
; Csaw your attention to the following
mytters:
! At the last session of the legisla-
/. tare Chapter 10S, =. l.. 1921, being
t'hn act concerning intoxicating
.lsiuors used or to be used Tor bever-
s..e purposes" was made law. 1t
! is {; military known as the Van Ness
- Cd. Its enactment was over the
,tSecutive veto, which was based up
. af' the fact that in it's denial of the
!. II OF acctsed persons to trial -
AIRY, the statute in question was
Atl iosed to American principles.
G experience which the people If
sthe state have undergone since the
..cl was put into operation has
- enlightened my belief that it is
ss,mply as instrument of oppression.
land l am more strongly convinced
than ever that legislation regulat-
: ir~ and controlling the sumptuary
\ bits and desires of our people ana
deuying the right of trial by jury
IL, persons accused CT violations
1 +; sfeof has no proper place on our
] siatute books. / urge the repeal Of
c Van Ness act and the substitu-
Ion therefor of an enforcement
. atute which will conserve to this
: cple of the state the right to in
q tment and trial by jury for acts
ssiiterdicted by such a law. The be-
III { that the surest protection against
. iicial and other forms of oppres-
1; N and tyranny lies in the right of
stfIal by/jury is SO well settled in the
= nds of Il people that attempts
4 encroach upon or destroy that
b svilege can have but onc effect,
&. mely, to breed suspicion of TINS
Il "tives of legislators and contempt
/ ~ W. 1t is. therefore, in the 20
81 rest of the maintenance of q
81 per respect for all law that 1
change.
! Public Utilities
/. There has recently happened an
stvont which If allowed to become
1 precedent, will, in my judgment.
! cnstroy the well-established pow r of
t.e legislature to fix the rates
:. arged the people of this ctate ny
E,.ublic utilities. The Public Service
~ ..iway Company upon being d.
med certain rates which it demand
i. instead of adopting the proce-
sCsfe in such cases of going to the
asp eme court of the state for relief,
Ayiied to the United States district
4 rrt. The latter, upon an appli-
an based solely upon ~affidav.ts
the company, without notice to
! - interested in the matter, issued
/. i. injunction restraining the board
I'm interfering with the collection
! t e rates which the company
light. 1t is true that within a day
, ser granting the order the judge
20 made it revoked 1t, but to me it
Inns to be intolerable that a situa-
II could exist under which it is
Z, ssible for a utility, dissatisfied with
e unanimous decision of the legis-
Ave agency, to ignore the courts
u this state and apply to a federal
curt which can u to PISS
aaron such questions. complicated
Ind involved as they were, and re-
,riring months of deliberation 10y
I Che. utility board, n in d summary
.asf set aSlue the order u .if-
board.
eAn informed that such a situa-
SIN can be corrected if the national
congress will amend section 266 OF
federal judicial code, prohibiting the
hearing by United States district
judges of cases decided by the utility
board, and requiring that such cases
sGhall only be heard, as indeed has
tbcen the practice until recent times,
ny the United State supreme court
ION appeal from the court of last re-
.aort of the state. The utilities of the
state are purely ~intrastate concerns,
should be regulated solely by
state legislature and its agencies.
he supreme court of the state is
.~unexcelled fol learning fairness.
There is no excuse or justification
whatever for a federal judge pre-
Stunning that the state legislative
and the state courts will not
no Justice. I would ask the legisla-
'ture. therefore, to adopt appropriate
resolutions, directed to the national
congress, as well as to the represent
'~tatives in Congress from this state,
spetitioning thai body to pass correc-
tive legislation for the avoidance of
the recurrence of n such practice.
my judgment, unless corrective
Legislation is passed, it will be only
la question of time when the iXation
.of rates for utilities, instead of being
ii p~rerogative of the state legislature,
will become h prerogative of the
district court, and the age
long struggle which the people of
,1ire state have conducted to control
regulate corporations created
for the service of the public will
have been in vain.
Heretofore the cost of contesting
1.-THE efforts of our utility corporations
Ito increase rates has been largely
by the municipalities of the
the principal ones, such as
Newark and Jersey City, having con-
.tributed most heavily to that cost.
as there is now involved
'tiie fundamental principal OF right
OF the state to regulate it's utilities.
st seems to me that the burden of
demonstrating or establishing the
soundness of the states position
saould be lifted from the municipal
Iilics and borne by the state; hence
Z suggest an adequate appropriation
tbe made to insure a full and COM
piate defense to the pending litiga-
'i.on in which such question is in
ivolved.
1 also direct your attention in con
with u utility corporations,
|fo the fact that in the state of New
York and other states a fee is
Charged upon the issuance of Sc
'curities by such companies. In our
state, general corporations pay
s.ach a fee. 1 am informed that pub
lie utility corporations are not re-
caired by the laws of this state to
icy fees on security issues. Inas-
'r,uch as all issues of securities by
ilsse companies require investiga-
Il n and hearing by the the Public
= ilities Board, it would seem prop
O. thai some reasonable fee should