The weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1858-1860, 1858-09-07

yssA0s - flSsAes Csissa.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Wobukea g--racts
ana Figures fer the People.
DEs NOlxxs, Aug. %, 1868.
Nh. EpiTok:-f - thas oersain Dsmoesatic
papers are publishing my letters to the County
Clerks, in which report TO them the action Of
the State Board Of Equalisasion upon the as
sessment Of 1S57-With this have no fault to
dnd except that they publish the few in which
the tax was raised, aud none Of the many in
which the TAX has been reduced. But do pro-
test against their Infamous misrepresentation
and unprovokcd abuse. They seem 70 be very
soicitous about the rights Of the people, and
are iaborng to convince them that they are to
% ruined by taxation, unless they will turn ever
their business to the hoaest-ecoaoay-lovin De-
nocrdcH who have demonstrated 50 closely du-
ring the last year their ability to take care of
the National Treasury, and of the school fund
81 this State. The last General Assembly
4 passed law authorizing County Boards Of
Equalization to equalize the assessment OF real
| property for the year 1857 and report il to the
Auditor - the assessment of 1858. The same
| law requires the State Board to equallze tho a..
sessment Of the several counties. This they
have done, and the following table will show
that the taxes in the aggregate are about IS per
esntum below what they were last year--and in
many cases II will be seen that the tax does not
amount TO one half what it did last year. In |
ew cases, only nine in all, the tax 10 higher than
ie was last year, and this is % it should be. |
take for example Lucas county. Lucas county |
reported 1878 acres IF land, valued in the |
aggregate at $74a,4l6 30-l0O, which is little |
less than t'co dollars and four cents per acre I
again, Aossuth county, a new county, with q
sparse population, and but very little improved.
reports the assessment at an average of sir
aossdrs and forty cents per acre. What in
Jlstice wss the State Board compelled to do p
Certainly increase the one and reduce the other;
ana they did 20, and SO would any honest men.
nossuth was reduced so per cent. The County
Board Of Equalization for Lucas county reduced
TOE assessment SO lis per centum and the State
i'oard added thereto per centum making the
average price Of land $3.50, which it is richly
worth, Lucas being one Of the finest bodies OF
iAnd IN the State. The report from Clark coun.
y, being next west Of Lucas, shows the assess
'tsns 81 thae county to have been made at an
average OF y, 90 per acre. II the assessment
IS made equal in all the counties It matters but
s'ie what the value is SO long as there is given
sum 10 DC raised The Board ought to make
-hem equal. 1t was not necessary to fix a high
'aiuation in order to produce a large revenue. !
y long a. the beard have the power to change !
ne rate OF the levy. The law fixing the rate at !
nree mills on the dollar, of valuation, was i
'assed IN 1881. and the Census Board of Equal. il
EATON are authorized to fix any less rate. For q
ms year the rate was fixed at one and one half
mis- per dollar. The rate last year was two
nils on the dollar. To make the matter littla Q
lear, we will suppose that no equalization had 9
een made in Clark and Lucas counties A man .
wning l60 acres in Lucas would have to paw b
tate tax amounting to 40 cents, and one hay It
" the same number in Clark county would paw u
100, although Clark county is the newer coun. e
!. large number Of counties have not yet Il
ported the assessment of personal property a.
,r 1898 and the report Of last year has been A
iopted in the computation of this table .
men the true figures are obtained the amount G
III be still less, rs some counties that have re- te
orted show falling off from last years re- pr
orts OF over 40 per centum. But we will let y
70 table speak for itself-it 10 taken from the pt
CORDS and any who dare dispute it can exam. W
9 the matter for themselves. The reduction CO
taxes in the whole State is very large, and is 10
AIDE in nearly all the counties of the State. q
Yours respectfully, JOHN PArrrE. D,