GREATER NEW YORK. The New York legislature in 1890 created a commission to inquire into the expediency of consolidating the city of New York, Brooklyn and other cities and towns in the state of New York embraced in the suburbs of the city. Two years later the commission presented its report, which was favorable to the proposed consolidation, and a bill was introduced to submit the question of consolidation to the voters of the several interested municipalities. The bill failed to reach a vote. In 1894 the bill again was introduced and became a law. In 1895 the question was voted on; New York, Kings County, Queens county, Richmond county, East Chester and Pelham voted in favor of the consolidation, and Mount Vernon and West Chester voted against the proposition. The territory included in Greater New York, in the language of the bill, "includes all municipal corporations and parts of such corporations, other than counties, within the territory covered by the counties of Kings and Richmond, Long Island City, the towns of Newtown, Flushing and Jamaica, and that part of Hempstead in Queens county west of a line drawn from Flushing between Rockaway Beach and Shelter island to the ocean. The bill that provided for the consolidation was passed by the legislature in 1896. It required that a commission be appointed to report a charter. Gov. Morton signed the bill June 9, 1896, and named the following commissiners: For New York city, Seth Low, Benjamin F. Tracy, John F. Dillon and Ashbel P. Hatch; for Brooklyn, Stewart L. Woodbridge, Silas B. Dutcher and William C. De Witt; for Richmond county, George M. Pinney, Jr.; for Queens county, Garret J. Garretson. The members of the commission appointed by the consolidation act were Andrew H. Green, Campbell W. Adams, Theodore E. Hancock, William L. Strong, Frederick W. Wurster and Patrick J. Gleason. Thomas F. Gilroy afterward was appointed in place of Mr. Fitch and Harrison S. Moore in place of Mr. Garretson. Under the charter Greater New York is divided into five boroughs-Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Richmond, which in turn are each subdivided into ten council districts. The mayor is elected for a term of four years, with a salary of $15,000 a year. The only other elective officer is the comptroller; all other municipal officers are appointed by the mayor. Greater New York has one police force, which is under a bipartisan board of four. The department of public works was abolished, and this department now is under the several bureaus of water supply, sewer, bridge and streets, the heads appointed by the mayor. The municipal legislature consists of two houses-the council of twenty-eight, elected from designated districts, and the assembly of five members from each of the twentyone senatorial districts in Greater New York. Greater New York, with an estimated population of 3,400,000, is the second city in point of population in the world, London being the first. It has an area of 359.75 square miles, as follows: New York city. Brooklyn Richmond county. Flushing Hempstead Jamaica Area Population square school miles. census 1892. Long Island City.. LEGAL HINTS FOR TRAVELERS. A railway company is not an insurer of its passengers, according to the law in England, but is responsible for their injuries, according as it or its servants have or have not been guilty of negligence. But the fact that any part of the car breaks raises the presumption of negligence. And, indeed, if any of the means of transportation, whether connected with the engine or train, or with the roadway, gives way, and you are injured, it is presumptive evidence that the company has been negligent. But the fact that an accident has happened does not always raise a presumption of negligence, for the accident may be imputable to a trespasser, for whose conduct the company is not liable. Out of regard for the value of human life, and in view of the danger that besets a railway traveler, the law makes it the carrier's duty to convey the passengers safely, so far as human care, skill and foresight can do it. It is a first principle that a railway company must employ competent inspectors to make proper examination of its rolling-stock. For instance, it has been laid down that every test known to science and recognized by experts must be applied to boilers of locomotives to ascertain their condition. But if there are defects which such tests would not bring to light, and which experts could not discover, and by reason of such defects an explosion occurs, the company is not liable. The mere fact that an explosion takes place where such tests have not been applied raises a presumption of negligence. If a bridge gives way it is presumed that the company has been negligent in constructing or locating it. But if the bridge gives way and the train plunges into the water because of an unusual and extraordinary flood-something unknown to common experience in that region, and which could not have been reasonably anticipated by skillful engineersthe accident may be attributed to "act of God," for which the company is not liable. And so if the track is undermined and weakened by an extraordinary freshet, but the engineer is in a position to notice such an extraordinary condition of things and take precautions; if the water is so high as to afford suspicion that the track or bridge may be out of condition, he must stop and test it, or he will make the company liable for the consequences of an accident. RAILROADS OF THE WORLD AT THE END OF 1895. The Archiv fur Eisenbahnwesen contains a table of railroad statistics for the world. The statistics are to the end of 1835. The Railroad Gazette has converted the figures of absolute length and of length relative to population and area. The Archiv's figures are, of course, in metric units and the conversion is tedious and errors are liable to have crept in. COUNTRY. It will be noticed that relative to popu- United States of Colomlation the United States has much more bia San Domingo railroad than any other great country-more | Cuba British Guiana.. Total South America. 24,026 .... British India Ceylon Buffalo Creek. Dunkirk. Total PennsylvaniaErie.. 225 97,418.80 3 941 181,428.18 845 268,974.89 76 24.023.70 93 63 17,900.27 77 Ohio Cuyahoga 205 123,888.58 286 Sandusky. Miami.. 297,698.39 44,126.77 26,918.83 Total... Michigan Detroit Huron. Superior... Michigan. Total Tet.fresh water.1,152,310 MERCHANT MARINE OF THE UNITE STATES. Number and tonnage of vessels of the United States by states and territories for 344 165,812.55 456 368,743.99 the fiscal years ended June 30, 1887 and 1897: 285 103,032.26 286 377 102,072.44 441 105 17,091.61 144 300 29,761.36 261 Illinois Chicago.... Wisconsin Milwaukee... Minnesota 356 72,420.05 251 350 76,515.28 350 20 111 734.49 Total N. lakes.. 3,144 783,721.63 3,230 1,410,102.60 Duluth Tot.fresh water. 1,682,212 1,089,424 1,046,178 Grand total.....4.769,020 4,271,228 4.242,599 The great lakes region for the first time in our history has built more tonnage than all the rest of the country-120 vessels of 116,937 tons, compared with 771 vessels of only 115,296 tons. The discovery and utilization of the great mineral wealth of the great lakes region, supplemented by timely appropriations by congress for the improvement of navigation, have brought about a maritime growth in that portion of our country which is without parallel in maritime history. Our lake fleet Virginia.. Total.....23,063 4,105,844.84 *22,633 *4,769,020.10 SUMMARY. At. & G'lf c'ts.17,390 2,638,272.68 16,592 2,647,796.26 Pacific eoast.. 1,236 356,445.05 1,581 439,012.50 N. lakes..... 3.144 783,721.63 3,230 1,410,102.80 West. rivers... 1,293 327,405.48 1,230 272,108.66 Gr'd total. 23,063 4,105,844.84 22,633 4,769,020.16 *Incl. Arizona, Montana and N. Dakota. Connecticut.. 805 113,229.64 815 141,780.39 New York.... 5,167 1,129,191.46 4,857 1,331,742.82 New Jersey... 1.099 89,656.24 1,132 96,212.42 Pennsylvania 1,065 284,559.18 927 289,108.93 Maryland Dist.Columb.. Mississippi. Louisiana. 573 62,832.97 411 11.474.21 287 116 21,918.08 122 50,840.57 20,922.63 16,249.55 84 16,446.61 STREET RAILWAY MILEAGE AND CAPITALIZATION IN AMERICA. ༞པོ༅ ::|༄ 27 28 136 36 21 132 967 1,214 55 55 156 2 156 142 142 175 72 60 36 Totals and av's 291 308 3,884 4,495 10,352 11,273 1,373 1,751 148 133 1,399 1.586 290 325 STREET RAILWAY MILEAGE AND CAPITALIZATION IN AMERICA.-CONTINUED. 1896. 1897 1896. 1897. 1896 1897 1896. 1897. 1896. 1897. 1896. 1897. Washington.. Totals and av's.. United States.. Canada.... 6 6 7 7 17 13 26 23 28 24 213 22 30 30 11 18 136 14 210 456 440 129 243 225 13 54 149 129 11 19 གཟློ 2. 100 100 124 124 232 232 248 270 42 14 316 67 67 121 71 820 812 1,972 343 248 699 137 143 239 218 1.923 522 143 118 216 91 2,317 2.279 4.562 4,458 1,219 947 5,383 5,144 519 467 2,957 2,653 14,470 15,718 48,182 51,532 |