PEELIMIKAEY WORK COMPLETED 45 



rest. Should the Governor be charged with that office? 

 This would mean, or might mean, possible interference in 

 what was strictly a county affair ; it would open up the field 

 of possibilities for the exercise of political or party "influ- 

 ence;'' and it would be open to the still further objection of 

 a board for the county being named by the authority of an 

 official outside the county, chosen by and representing the 

 State at large. 



Would the freeholders be likely to agree upon the right 

 sort of a commission? Here were more serious objections 

 still, with all the possibilities of unrestricted controversy 

 and acute jealousy. Should one judge, or a plurality of 

 judges, make the selection ? The single court appointment 

 was finally agreed upon, following the precedent in creat- 

 ing the first commission. It was this plan which was finally 

 included in the charter and is still operative. Whether the 

 adoption and inauguration of that plan was wise, it may be 

 the rightful province of the public to determine. I shall 

 refer to this subject in a later chapter. Here I will only 

 add in passing that, before the commission of 1905 had been 

 long in existence, circumstances developed which made it 

 manifest that it would have been better had the plan been 

 modified and restricted. 



FINANCING PARK EXPENDITURES. 



The matter as to financing the park project was at once 

 an interesting and troublesome proposition to determine. 

 The precedents and experiences of very many park under- 

 takings, both in this country and in Europe, were carefully 

 looked into. Almost every scheme of providing for the cost 

 of park lands and the improvements was considered. They 

 included direct assessments on contiguous property in full 

 or in part; partial assessment on adjacent lands; and for the 

 entire cost being provided in the general tax levy upon the 

 whole district or municipality. Each appeared to have ad- 

 vantages against other more or less potent disadvantages. 

 Direct assessments were found to have been cum- 

 bersome, costly and unsatisfactory, and in many 



