Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-09-06
HOME RULEFOR
F|REMEN URGED
Prominent Exempts of Wee
haWken Makes Interesting
Statement on the Subject

HOBOKEN, Sept. &C.. A. Held
lenfelder, of Weehawken, of the New
Jersey State Exempt Firemen's AS
sociation, on his return to North
Hudson, after a stay at Port Jeffer-
son, l.. l., had his attention called
to an article in the Hudson Observ-
ler, issue of Wednesday, August Is,
headed, "Firemen's Fund is Not in
Any Danger" and signed by Biz
w. Spencer, president" In relation
to the latter he issued the following
statement:
ut is admitted that there arc
Isome 400 relief associations in New
Jersey with approximately three
million dollars in their collective
treasures, and General Spencer has
made a very good president, and
that the death benefit is only a new
venture, and open for criticisms or
praise, and that the fund has been
growing at the ate of 100000 year.
ly and increase in proportion year.
Ily, and that $500, 900 has been paid
ito beneficiaries during the past ff-
teen months it has been in existence
and to use General Spencer's own
words as per the article issued, that
The principal has not been touch
ed, and will not be. The income
takes care of the relief work and will
continue to do so.' If this is so, then
why should an assessment of z per
cent of the capital of each local re-
lief association be assessed?
This assessment will bring in
about $4,000 in the treasury of
the Death Benefit, when as the Gem
eral says, the principal has not been
touched and will not be, why have
an extra 100000 on hand? What
do they need it for and what are
they going to do with it, when they
don't need it?
Regarding the appointment for
the board of managers for the home,
who is in a better position to know
the qualifications of the man who
should represent his county in the
board than the firemen of his own
county? Surely not the whole con-
vention which is represented by
delegates from twenty-one counties.
Essex or Camden County surely do
mot want to be told by Hudson or
any other county in the State who
should be their representative, and
vice versa. If the firemen should
touched and will not be why have
they should be allowed to do as
they have been doing for the past
twenty-five or thirty years, regard
ing the choice for vice-president in
each Congressional District, and that
is, as has been lone in Hudson
County.
''The outgoing yice-prebident
called a meeting of/all the paid,
volunteer exempts and life members
of all fire departments, to have
them nominate a choice for vice
president, and then instruct such
delegates and life members who
would go to the convention, to elect
their choice.
Even this privilege is to be de-
lnied them at the convention to be
held at Atlantic City on September
21-22, they to be elected in the same
manner as the Board of Managers
are. In other words, IL Hudson
lCounty, or any other counties choice
does not suit some one, you will nave
to take what you get, whether you
want it or not.
Applying this rule is like any
county deciding on a candidate for
office in their own county being told
by other counties, that they do not
want that candidate, and must elect
the candidate they want.
'This is supposed to be what they
term the idea that the 'Firemen
should rule but where does the
home rule come in?'
ST trust that the paid volunteer
and exempt Firemen of Hudson
County will get together again as
usual, and nominate their choice for
representatives, as they have in the
past, and give this matter more than
a passing thought for their W
benefit"