Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1859-05-21
WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP.

WASHINGTON NEWS AND GOSSIP.
TBE NEW STYLE OF ASSESSING THE VALUE
or TAXABLE PROPERTY, in Washington city
is, in plain English, that Of the Mayor, VINO Is
known to have urged it on the Assessors anu
is the only person in authority here known !"
approve and justify it, as far as we can iosl"
Under it, property in one case but yesterday'
as il were, valued by assessment at SZZ,VVV, Is
taxed as being worth $4,000; improvements
assessed by their builder under contract at
actually more than he received for building
them fifteen or twenty years ago; property
costing 81 700 FIVE years ago, and yielding its
owner S75 per annum in rent, rated as being
worth $1,000, &C., &c. The charter limits the
rate Of taxation for municipal purposes to 75
cents on the hundred dollars. But under the
old ideas of assessing here, the amount that can
he raised Will not prove sufficient to pay off the
floating debt of the city in the next year, which
the Mayor is ambitious of doing at the sacrifice
OF the repairs Of the streets and other neceS-
sary city improvements, which he proposes to
postpone TO that end; and for the pay of the new
police, &c, dc. We care not how great the
amount may be that can thus be raised, if the
usual safeguards TO secure its faithful disburse-
ment be whistled down the wind, it will fail to
prove sufficient TO cover the nominal wants of
the Corporation in these fast times.
by their action thus against the spirit of the
charter, the Assessors have at a single dash.
raised the taxable value Of the real estate of
the Federal Metropolis from some twenty eight
to forty millions Of dollars, at time when, it
- n{p- - al,
generally bringing less when sold for cash,
than at any previous period in the last five
years. Now, this is whipping the devil around
the stump with n vengeance, to avoid the sew
cnty-live cents limitation of the charter. IT
amounts TO illegal extOrtiOn from every citizen
who finds bis property thus rated for taxation
beyond its tue value. We regard it rs dear
payment. in,leed, on the part of the property
holders Of this city, and those out of whose
pockets they necessarily collect much of the
money, for the "whistles' of the times-the
Mayors alleged constitutional scruples and the
employment Ofpersons under the Corporation rs
rewards for clectioneering services. 1t strikes
us that the Mayor might have obtained more
popular credence of the integrity of his con-
stitutiOnsl scluples about the twelfth section
of the Water Works bill. if it we're not notori-
Gus that he sees no unconstitutfonality what
ever in the new mode of raising more NUM-
cipal revenue by Taxation. than the seventy five
cents on the hundred dollars of actual cash
value fixed as the MAXIMUM by tho plain letter
of the City charter.
NAVAL ORDERs.-Lieut. Richard L. Law has
been detached from the Constellation and or
dcred to the Hartford. Lieut. Trevor Abbott
has been detached from the Portsmouth and
ordered to the Constellation. Lieut. +. r.
Murray has been detached from the ordnance
department Washington Navy Yard and or
dered to the steam sloOp Wyoming Lieut. j.
II. Hamilton has been detached from the Hart
ford and ordered to the Wyoming Lieut.. f.
A. Barnet has been ordered to the John Adams
The WEATEER.-The following report Of the
weather for this morning il made from the Morse
Telegraph line 10 the Smithsonian Institution.
&c Oh -, a.