The Weekly Perrysburg journal. [volume] (Perrysburg, O. [Ohio]) 1861-1???, 1868-04-17

antly ruute all the lies the Democracy can invent
| IN this direction.
! u being apparent that the State hx has ceased
70 bs a matter Of contention, II follows that there
can be no vslid objection why all property ought
not to 20 on the Duplicate at It's fair selling value
That Is a standard Of value all can understand
and II adopted will equaliEo values everywhere.
In the consideration Of this question, II must be
steadily borne in mind Estate taxes out Of the
wayl, that the gross amount OF local taxes (that
Is, all county, township and municipal taxes) must
be raised, whether the valuation on the Duplicate
be high or low. IL the Duplicate is increased by
fair aHd honest valuations, the rate will be reduced
if reversed, the rate must DO increased, and with
Il the temptation to ovade tho law. II is estab
shed result Of taxation, the result Of experience,
the higher the rate the greater the temptation to
hide away property, to shield II from taxation.
Hence, low valuations, which increase the rate
really add 10 the burdens Of the honest tax payer,
or lie whose property can not bo socrotcd. High
valuations aud low rates will have another good
effect. Every member Of society has pride in
being estimated at their true value, provided the
luxury docs not cost too much. IL, therefore, the
to demonstrate can be donc) this feeling Of pride
will bring on the Duplicate n vast amount Of pro-
perty which has hitherto escaped.
Before proceeding further in the discussion of
this important question, we must ask the attention
Of the reader to one important fact That the per-
soual or ehattcl property has for many years pnid
an undue and unjust proportion Of taxes. This
grows out Of the fact that personal or chatel pro-
| perty is revslued every year, and pays the same
rate Of tax on these annual revaluations us real
estate, which is taxed on valuation made ten
years since. The great injustice Of this inequality
will be made entirely plain when VIC state that
while the value Of real estate has remained amost
stationary In amount on the Duplicate for ten
years, personal property has increased In the same
time over two hundred per cent It is not strange,
therefore, that personal property is hidden away
! to very great extent, to escape this unequal
charge. We are now, very fortunately, approach
ing the period when the real estate town property
aud farm lnuds-wil be rcvalued. Then this in-
justice will be removed and, under more Just
aud rigorous system Of reaching every class and
description Of property, the aggregate Of the Grand
Duplicate must be largely increased, aud the rate
| of taxation must be everywhere materially re-
duced. The amount Of the Grand Duplicate, for
the present year, aud the amount on which taxes
are levied and collected is 81 ,l3S, 900 900. The
total amount Of taxes Imposed this sum, for the
year 1897, was $40, ,6l5, or an average of IS
mills on the dollar. or this amount, the tax FOR
State purposes, including school tax, interest aud
sinking fund.- and expenses Of State government,
was "a mills, or SO 0sl ,O0p FOR county township
aud municipal, including such special taxes us
went on the Duplicate, there was collected Sl6,-
272,5l6- making the grand total Of $50 ,2j3,6lj.
We may remark, en- pd'sont, that the State of
Ohio is vast State collecting each year by taxa
ton an amount nearly double the expenses Of the
National Government under the administration of
JoHN QUISCY ADAMS. This vast amount was col
lccted and disbursed under Republican rule with
out loss, and in tho most perfect system of order
aud accountability.
We come now to the consideration Of what will
probably be the result Of the revaluaton, and the
additions to the Duplicate under the proposed
change in the Tax Laws. There is In the State,
in round numbers, twenty-five millions of acres Of
land listed for taxation, at an average value of $50
per acre. This was the value ten years since, and
was then regarded as materially below the real
value of lands. In the circumstances, it Is fair
aud reasonable to estimate these lands at an aver.
age of $40 per acre. There is hardly county in
the State which has not more or less lands that
are worth this amount, while In many counties
they are worth twice that amount. The lands in
this county (Wood) are now listed at a fraction
over six dollars per aero. Sixteen to twenty dol
lars would not be high average to-day. The
town property of the State has grown more largely
than the lands, and II may he assumed that treble
the value as Il now stands would not be unrea son.
able. The value Of real estate in towns at the las
| aprraiscment was notoriously low, The value
now claimed for this class of property, tested by
actual sales, will be found below, and not above
this estimate. Take the city of Cincinnati, fol
example, the realty OF which stands on the Dupl
cate at very nearly forty per cent. (seventy nil
lions of dollars) of all the town properly of til,
State-and revalue It by the daily selling price
aud It would exceed in amount that Of the realt,
in all the towns Of the State as now valued on thu
| Duplicate. We now come TO the last item of tn
three classes Of property known to the Duplicate
This. for the reasons before given, and the search
ing character of the new system Of revNluaton
will come on the new Duplicate at certainly doubl
the present amount. This estimate would retail,
the present relative proportion between the land
and realty In towns, and the personally. As
State grows older aud more wealthy, the iucreas
of wealth ia shown more largely in tho persona
than its landed values. Now, let us see what re
suits these estimates Of value bring us, as a ney
basis Of taxation;
Town property three times its pres
pnt value e.,.,.... '',,'',,...' S5lQ, ,000, ,00i
Lands twice their present value, or
$40 per acre .....,.... ,,.,. 1,002, ,000, ,00
Personal or chattel property twice
its present value e''''' ''''.'''''' $50, 600, 90
Grand total al,..,,.,,.,,-,,.... ,$2,i5l, ,O00, 90
The amount Of the Duplicate for
1867 is.....,.,.,...,,., ,...,,,. 1,l3s,000 90
Increase in twelve years .....,.Sl ,3l3, ,000, 90
We say, increase in twelve years, because
will take at least two years before the propose
change can bo fully consummated, and be place
in working order.
A tax Of eight mills on the above sum will civ
nearly twenty millions Of dollars, the amount 4
taxes now raised for all purposes. 0c this amour
t \ mills will give the Stat, what is required 70
all her purposes leaving 6lS mills for local taxa
tion producing the amount raised this year for 10
cal purposes. That will be bright aud happ
day for Ohio wherein It can be said that In II
county in the State do the taxes all told exceed on
per ceut on the fair value of its property. Let
pursue this subject little farther, by making
directly applicable to Wood Couuty'
Wood County has in it S0l ,O65 acres Of
land, valued at'.,. .s.. '.s..ss.'.ss S2,AS2 ,pA
Town property 's.. 'ss',,'.' ..'.,. 93tSJ
c Chattel or personal al'''''''''''''.''' l,6QO,3l