Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1873-01-04
BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.

At n special meeting of the Board OF
Supervisors held at Harpers Ferry, by
order of the President, j. II. Haines, j.
]. Kern, a. NJ. Sponcellor, w. II. ka-
BILE, Jacob Fulk and II. c. Ehtler were
present
The Committee appointed at former
meeting of the Board to settle with the
B. & 0. II. r Co., for,back taxes oue
the County submitted the following It,
port: r.,
II TUE Roam OF SUPERVISORS OF JET
FERsoN COUNTY. ..o
Your committee, appointed ny 5 5ne
Resolution o. the Board, OF the Oh I'd,
~ Decemhcr 1872. respectfully report
that accompanied by their counsei
WoSSrs Green ii Lucas, with the clerk
~ tho Roard. they went to Baltimore on
,rnnsdov the 10th day of December, and
-o,urnod on Thursday the 18th instant;
hiring the trip they had an interview
n';tb the Railroad authorities and sub
n,;tte6 10 them the demand OF the Board,
,nr the taxes due our county, and the
Ioyeral townships in the county; they
took fine to consider the subject, and to
,.;s;t Baltimore again on the 2Oth instant,
with the counsel of the Board; to return
IN the 22d instant, having assented to
recover 10000 for the taxes due the
county, up to the present time, with the
interest thereon. That You may under
stand fully the grounds OF the settle
Il 70
TO, we would respectfully present them
TO YOU for your consideration. The
original claim presented by us to the
Company on our first visit to Baltimore,
amounted to about $4,000 and was
calculated on the assessment at this
time, of the property, real and personal,
of the Is. & .. Railroad Company, in
this county, including the Winchester
e Potomac Railroad This assessment
was S5SS, O92; and the $4,000 includ-
inc all taxes county and township to-
gether, with the interest thereon to this
time On our second tip to Baltimore,
we surrendered every claim to township
taxes, being advised by our counsel, thus
all the township taxes laid i'll this coun-
" have been laid in violation OF the
Constitutiom,and could not be collected
These Township taxes amounted to a
bout 5000, and reduced our claim to
about S24,O0g We further absolyed
nearly one fourth of the tax of 1872,
being advised by our counsel, that the
law expressly provides that one Railroad
should not be required to pay tax to
build another, and nearly one fourth of
our taxes this wear being withheld to
aid in building the Shenandoah Valley
Railroad. This reduction amounted to
some 81, 400. reducing our demand to
about So, 600. Again it seemed proper
10 allow as a credit on this amount, the
taxes which would have been levied on
Winchester Il Potomac Railroad, in
1870. That this Company had larger
amount of property destroyed by the
food, in the Shenandoah, OF that year,
than their taxes of this year, this abatc-
ment amounted TO some $4,000, reduc-
mo our claim to some $4,000.
This was again subject to further
small deduction on account of a partial
failure il some wears to assess the per
sonal property of the Railroad. This
coull NOT nov be corrected through the
total failure for number of years to
assess the real estate, would under the
law be now corrected. Again if it
should be held that the Winchester ~
Potomac Railroad is now at this time
liable to taxation, u point not far from
doubt. this would make i further aSate-
ment of S70O}. and reduce our claim to
$4,000, and their liability to even this
or to any tax is denied by tie Railroad
Comoanv. our counsel advised us how
ever that they were decidedly OF opln-
ION that under the most adverse deci-
Siogs of the court that could be antlcl-
,.ated we would recover at least Sl4,
n1O: we therefore demanded $4,000,
bat finding that we could not obtain
more than $1,000, and believing that
the true intent of the courts would be
promoted by an acepthceof the slO,OOO
we finally asSentcd thereto, and submit
our action to YOU, hoping it will meet
Your approval.
Respectfully submitted,
J. II. HAINES,
President of Court.
J. J. KERN,
\. VI. SPONSELLER,
III. G.. ENTLER.
December "a, 1872.
Upon motion of w. II. kable, the re,
port oft Committee was accepted and
unanimously approved.
The foregoing report having been
unanimously approved, it is ordered by
the Supervisors of the County OF Jetter-
son, W. Va, that they settle with the
Baltimore & Ohio Il. Il. Co., and the
Winchester q Potomac X. X. Co, for
back taxes, whether assessed or masses
ed, due or in arrears, to the County of
Jefferson and the Townships of Har-
pcr's Ferry, Bolivar, Chapline, Shepherd,
Averill, Charlestown, Osbourn. Grant,
Potomac and Middleway, in said Coun.
~, of whatever kind or nature previous
Il