The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-08-28
Z" CoRXsCREW OPINION"


ton for its luminosity. Old Jesse DUBOIS
who has grown impecunious and seedy' has
a twenty-five acre patch OF ground near
Springfield upon which he was very anxious
to make q raise by selling it to the state Tor
double Its worth $4,000, we believe. Now
the law stated in the clearest and most posi-
live terms that no more than SlO,OOo OF 'heI
$4,000 appropriated for tho erection OF a
building for feeble-minded children should
he extended in the selection and purchase OF
site. To buy the twenty-f five acres from ola
Jesse and fifteen more to make up the ~
acres. would have cost at least 100000. 1t
seemed perfect settler on the little specuia-
t,on of Jesse; but he is an old stager at
Sprp gflcld and had no thought OF surrender
ing to a triiing difficulty like that. Couldn't
his friend Edsall bridge ii by an "opinion!
or course he could and to help Uncle Jesse
he actually did have the face to lay before the
commissioners d written opinion that there
was nothing in the law to prevent them from
using $4,000 or even $4,000 Of the appro'
prlatlon in purchasing site! The "opln
ion" however, falling Of is object, never was
published.
We are reminded Of this incident by read,
the comments of the Chicago Irtjuue on
another opinion Of this notable legal lumin-
arv. The Tribune calls it "corkscrew' opin-
ion; probably on account OF i's amazing
quality of being on all sides at the same time,
and winding in and out and back and forth
and up and down and crosswise in way to
put the most complicated Chinese puzzle to
shame The opinion was intended to cxtri-
cate the state board Of equalization from a
tangle of the assessment laws OF this state,
almost as difficult Of unravelment as the at
torncy generals opinion itself The tangle
is like this:
Our sagaclous lawmakers Of that marvel
Gus legislature which met three years ago
passed an assessment law sufficiently volu
minous and complicated in its provisions to
occupy the supreme court and all the law
yers in the state for the next ffly yeals to
fathom It's meaning. One OF the choicest er.
cerpta Of the law is section 3, In reference TO
taxing corporations. In the first place the
section requires that, in assessing corpor.
atoms, firstly, the capital stock shall be as
sessed secondly, the tangible property; and
thirdly, the debts. As this, however, was
taxing the same thing about three times the
law proceeded, in the second place, to provide
that if the capital stock exceeded the
tangible property, then only such excess OF
the capital stock should be assessed. The law,
especially as construed by the next State
Board of Equalization after Its passage,
worked such gross outrage, that the next
legislature undertook to smond it, which they
did IN this way. They added a proviso 10 the
section ",hat ia assessing companies anu as.
soclations organized purely for manuiactur-
ing purposes, or for printing or publishing
newspapers, or for the improving and breed
ing Of stock, the assessment shall be so made
that such companies and associations SO or
ganized shall be only assessed as individuals
under like circumstances would be assessed
and no more; and such companies and asso-
Citations shall be allowed the same deduc-
tons as are allowed to individuals
Now here was richness! BY the first end
of the section the three-fold or triplicaie tax.
alton Of all corporations was commanded,
debts and all, with no deduction except cap
ital stock Offset by tangible property. by
the other end of the section, acertsin class of
was exempted from this tripli-
cate spoliation, but was directed to be asses.
sed like individuals, with no reference to
capital stock, but only tangible property, and
with the same deductions for Indebtedness as
Is allowed in case of individuals.
A dozen Of knotty conundrums bristled up
at once all over this proviso. The constltu
&c. Here is one set of corporations to be as
,essed in one way, and another set IN another
way This violates the constitutional require
ment of uniformity, and either the front end
and void. Which end is it, and
what is the Board of Equalization TO do
about it anyhow? The attorney general is
posed. He thinks the two ends of the sec
ion should be construed together, and made
consistent with each other, and with the rest
If the law, and with the constitution, and the
ghtforward" way in which he does that
reminds the Tribune of "corkscrew,"
which indeed is about as accurately descrlp-
live term as can easily be named in that
connection.
Judge Tree, of the Cook county Circuit
court having resigned, the Chicago news
papers and lawyers are earnestly canvassing