, 1874-02-09
TAXATION,
Assessment of Personal
Property.
Differing Results Of Town and
City Assessors.
Instances Of Remarkable In
congruities.
Opinions Of Officials Concerning
the Present System.
How It Results in tho Selcc.
tion Of inexperienced Men.
Views of Private Citizens on
the Subject.
How They Make Up Returns of
Household Property.
Manner Of Dealing with Assessors,
Plan Suggested for a Radical
Change.
Increased Amount Of Revenue Raised,
and the Cost of Collection
Greatly Diminished.
OUR ASSESSMENT SYSTEM,

WV a9963oM1lN4 54Eiuls
Many thousands Of the most ontcrprsing cit.
!zons of Chicago arc, and hayo long boon, IN
state Of war against the existing System Of
making tho assessment on which State aud
county taxos aro loviod, as practiced by tho
Town Assessors Of this city mud tlloir deputies.
Unfortunately, tho law Under which these off
clals net is not very defnito as to tie mannor
in which assessments aro to DO made, and under
that Inv, as it now atands, there cau bo no hoDe
OF Immediate reform,
LACK OF TIME.
It may bo aB weli to inform tho average
reador TINT, while the City Assessor has chu,yo
Of the assessments for municipal purposoa, tho
Town Assessors do that duty for tho State and
county, having to do a complicated work in an
absurdly short space Of timo. THE City Asses
aor is elected to servo for two years, the Town
Assessor for ono. The process of assessing
their districts commences Oh tho 1Bt Of May,
and their returns aro to bo mado by
tho nlddlo Of .Juno in each year. This
gives them just six months in which
to estimate the taxable property, real and per-
sonal, Of a widelyoxtended or dcnao1y- y-crowded
territory. III the mntter Of
ASSESSING REAL ESTATE,
tho difficulty III not 80 embarrassing, because a
mat. OF average intelligence, with tho schedule
Of the rcal-estato markets bofoto him, can mako
a very fair eatin,ato Of tic taxable value Of
grounds and buildings, according to the 'front.'
ago or tho material employed ii tho eonstruc-
ton Of houses. Therefore, this is tho least
troublesome part Of the Assessors duty. On tho
other hand, it is next to impossible tor uny
1nnn. not experienced in tho business, to mako
oven tolerably cloBo estimate nf
PERSONAL on MOVABLE pnopEnrY.
such as rolling-Btock. machinory, hnrflwnro ero-
cerieB, try-goods, io,yelry. and EVERYTHING tIat
comes undor tho hoat]in. of merchnndige. oauin
ago, andhonsehold furniture. Granting d month
to the DeDutv Assopsors for making their rnnl-
estate estimates, would leave tho1n oniy two
weeks in which to make their returns Of tho
amount OF porsoupl property within, tho Ejnits to
wi,;ct inv sra nsa;,tnaa "''AA'A 'Ao 1''D''o W
"n''A' 1"os "4o "snasnTu. T'g'. 1'1.,,,r,r.
IhE nEeu11Es'
MoBs Of these deputies are grcon la',ds-ncn
but for their politics. II thoy have
worked llaytl Mt that disgusting
1ate9 called town Gecti9n" their services aro
Ihoy have iltele Of no ldea Of duty. Tho ma'n
thoy can make out OF tho business III which they
arc engaged. Tic few among thom who may bo
cas,fa carn nm9ng - hoest people 20
themselves must @ r. depended
cannot do it.
FILLING OUT uLA,'xs.
Tho Dlcu of Dronerky nte tnruiH1efl will n
hlonk Ynrr, hv +,a avsauaoru orrI III, iin,,i-
inv orn oi,;rnI ~ III ''t No na.I:..t nta..n
tno1 olo uuAec1 " A!t uut, accofalne
70 thelr oonscloa1lons estimate o. tue value OF
tnolt properly, very frequently the large
Wholesale tirmB make lio returns at all, and thon
the Assoasor IL left to his own discretion. Ho
can estimnto the taxable property nj a citIten nj
twice it's real yeiuo. hit. in such casos tho n,
.,asa,,o"t 49, a,i, N.s, ~ 49, nIsI ottaun, .t, .uo
imeacnuuta ~ ana oliletg Who hoSioct the!f o"n
nnoies's nlo aoto 10 p4nmo tilasa te no"idcrod
Official, WHO vlctlmlzes them according to law.
suoaE.r1oxs.
The following a.u tho u,1.,gobtous aud instruc-
tious given by tie Ausassors to nortons l{ntiuv
neraonai uro,,erry. '' ''''AAo
Po.eo""' Ptopo1'9'
MSou own pessonal Rrores!y Aaee to taxation in
ofe tAan one o"n or school alotrct o1ccpt property
IN % TIE hanas Of agents, mud to 10 listed by th9n}.
lke separate schedules of ach property, according
to location.
A., II ooa haye personal property liable to Ia. within
TUG Limits of hp Incorporated village Or city ssAe in
schedule Tho nae Of such village o. city and il you
hhVc, a!so perHonAblo property labo 10 Lax Lying out
Hluc slcA auits 1uuko separate schedule thereof,
even IL It h. H. n tho sa1lae school district.
lie especially careful to atato correctly tho school
district tn which you aro liable totax.
II you own livestock or other persona! property
connected with farm not 6ttuutel III tho town or