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The ability of the city to make a good title to this land is sometimes 

 questioned by persons who are not familiar with the history of Park 

 legislation. 



In 1864 when land was first taken for the park, and it became neces- 

 sary to raise one million three hundred thousand dollars to pay the 

 awards, city bonds were issued and put upon the market for sale. The 

 main security for these bonds consisted in a statutory lien upon the 

 park land. Our capitalists however objected to this security, that the 

 city had not the fee but merely an casement in the land, similar to that 

 by which a street is held, and that if the holder of the security should 

 be obliged to realize he could have no permanent possession of the land, 

 since it must necessarily revert to the owner of the fee as soon as it 

 ceased to be used for park purposes, and that, in this respect the secu- 

 rity was inferior to that of our water-bonds, wherein all the works, in- 

 cluding reservoirs, pipes and hydrants, were pledged for payment. In 

 order, therefore, to furnish a new credit for park bonds, which should 

 make them equal to water bonds, an Act of the Legislature was passed 

 in the Spring of 1865 authorizing proceedings to be taken for the pur- 

 pose of transferring the ultimate fee to the city. Such proceedings 

 were accordingly had, the residuary interests of the owners valued by 

 Commissioners appointed by the Supreme Court, and payment made to 

 the parties. The result showed that capitalists fully appreciated the 

 additional security thus established for park bonds, since they immedi- 

 ately rose in the market, and feel to this day the effect of this salutary 

 provision. The fee of the land having been acquired, the Commission- 

 ers feel assured (and they are sustained by the best legal authority), 

 that if the Legislature concurs in a sale there can be no difficulty about 

 the title. 



I have tried to give you a plain statement of the facts which have a 

 material bearing on the point at issue. The questions involved are of 

 vital interest to the tax-payers of this city. Holding the responsible 

 position we do, as Commissioners of the Park, and having to carry for- 

 ward this important public work in the face of serious disadvantages, 

 Ave feel it absolutely necessary that we should have in the future, as we 

 have had in the past, the intelligent, willing support of our fellow 

 citizens. 



The scheme, as you will see, has a definite beginning, and middle, and 

 end to it. The first stage has been passed through, and the result 

 shows that our calculations were sound, for no one can deny that the 



