PLAN FOR ESSEX COUNTY PARKS 19 
expressed to me the view that in law it was “inconsistent to 
provide by legislation for a permanent board to perform a 
temporary act.” As the duty of the commission first ap- 
pointed would be to map out and report on a plan for the 
park system, he contended that the term of authority and 
life of the commission should therefore be for a limited 
term only, and be provided for in the act itself. To this 
view I acceded, although some members of the committee 
felt that, owing to the uncertainties of future legislation, 
the provision for a permanent commission was preferable. 
On April 20, 1894, W. A. Ure expressed this view in a 
letter which I then received from him: 
“Replying to yours of yesterday, I would say that the 
Park Commission plan you outline seems to meet all the 
requirements. 
“As to making the commission permanent, I think that 
would be necessary in order to accomplish permanent bene- 
fit. At the outset, however, the joint committee, which is 
composed of gentlemen competent to consider the subject, 
might formulate a general plan to be submitted to the peo- 
ple of the county, the details of which, if ratified, to be 
afterward supervised and controlled by the commission.” 
In all other respects than the one limiting the time for 
which the commission was to be appointed, the bill was in 
strict accord with the plan as above outlined, and was 
favorably reported at the meeting of the joint committee, 
held at the Board of Trade rooms, Newark, the afternoon 
of April 25, 1894. The proposed bill was there, as drawn 
and without amendment, unanimously approved, and the 
same afternoon a copy of the bill was transmitted to Sen- 
ator Ketcham at Trenton for introduction into the Legis- 
lature. The bill was accompanied by the following letter: 
“We believe this bill will meet with the unanimous ap- 
proval of substantially the whole county. If in your judg- 
ment the presence of representatives of our organizations 
will in any way tend to expedite the passage of the bill, 
