Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1873-11-05

tho osoccoorb TotuTus, huu VI 30 pay
off the bill:
The 4,522 horses and mules are val
ued at.....,..................... slIs.1co
The 4,949 cows at....,............. p266s
The l72 oxen at.."......~....... 1866
Total raiuation.... 52i,o3s
Subject to mill tsx...........-
sl,s7. %
Tax Of ! per cent from buggies, etc ~ 2s
On gold watches. 81 90
On silver watches -.....-......,,.. 1900
On furnitnrc..",... .....-..".,..... 81 90
Total amount realized. ................. fl,sIo 81
This, IL will be observed, is Just
1924 67 short. Now, what arc the
Commissioners to do in this dilema
The Board cannot turn around and take
that sum out of tho County Treasury
and hand it over to the State, because
this would be using the tax raised
from real estate, and against the act
regulating the question. To raise the
means to satisfy the States demand
the Board was compelled TO raise tho
value of the personal property in
those townships whore the average
value of horses fell below sos and
cows less than $50. To illustrate fur.
'ther: In Beccaria 25 per cent. was
added to horses and cows, from the
fact that the former averaged but ss2
and the latter sl5. In Bell, Guolicb,
Morris, Penn and Pike, about tho
same on horses, while the cows were
about right, except in Guclich. The
lowest average was in Bloom, s72,
and Burnside SIS. These were about
o33 per cent. too low and had to be
raised in order to produce equality.
1t will bo noticed by the table that
the average value of cows in two.
thirds OF the districts ranged about
$40. Where they averaged but SIS,
the Board was compelled to add 80
per cent.
The number Of oxen was so small
that it was deemed unnecessary to
fix n standard, and tho Board accepted
them as returned by the assessors.
Buggics, carriages and watches
depend upon too many contingencies
to arrive at a proper valuo without
seeing tho property.
The aggregate value of professions,
trades and occupations nearly amounts
TO that OF horses, while the discrimina-
ton and inequality is far greater.
To illustrate Tho III taxables in
Jordan township average but $50,
while they average s72 in Boggs and
SIC in Brady. If allowed TO remain
80 by the Board the 13l taxabcs in
the former township would pay but
S2o 81 county tax, while similar
number in Boggs would be compelled
TO pay slOl 62 and in Brady slO7 16 !;
thus compelling the latter to pay near.
Iy four times the tax the former do,
and live just as comfortable. A c,ti.
zen in Knox would only pay 2s cents
cents county tax, while those in Gil.
rard would be obliged to pay 81 cents
nearly double-if the Board had
not equalized the work of tho asses
sore. lncln
We believe it is tho desire OF all,
Commissioners, Assessors and tax
payers, to bring about equality in tax
alton, and we say most emphatically
that this is duty imposed on all, in
law as well as morals, but ii is ono of
the hardest things in tho world to
bring about. If tho assessors would
assess horses and all other property at
its value the equalization would bc n
small matter on the part Of the Com
missioner, but the policy of low val
nation destroys all rules and throws
everything out of gear, and confusion
aud much labor and wrong is tho ro-
suit. To illustrate, take the aggrc.
gate number of horses as shown by
the table, 4,552, and divide them into
tho aggregate value, 1900, and
1t produces an average OF s01. Now,
this would have been the standard for
-ibo Commissioners TO adopt if ii
would haze raised tho required
amount of State tax. The 100 horses
in Huston, which average gill, would
be reduced to SOL, and the 6s horses
Ia Bloom, which average s73, would
be raised TO SOL. This would produce
equality, bat at thrco mills it will moi
raise State tax enough Hence, tho
Board was compelled TO raise all The
J low assessments. .lIrIl. ttta.ftnr
The Act Of Assembly regulating
assessments makes 1t as obligatory OF
tho Commissioners to bring about
equality as it docs assessors TO asscsl
and return tho property. But tho
same law prevents tho Board iron
lowering tho value Of any property
10 bring about equality when Il is no
s'orous to everybody that property il
not assessed at it's real value. aias
This law and rule applies TO lands
horses, cows, oxen, bnggics .cayriagci
anqioefpivA'pagfi % mll a51lsas