The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1877-11-24

PROPOSED ANNEXATION OF BALTIMORE COUNTY.
The Baltimore Gazette says: "a petition is
being circulated in Baltimore county for signatures,
addressed to the General Assembly of Maryland,
requesting the passage of an act extending the
limits of Baltimore city or annexing the whole
county, provided citizens of the county shall so
decide by ballot. Should a majority of citizens
approve of the whole county being annexed, the
act which accompanies the petition provides that
the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore shall
divide the county into eight Council districts or
wards and to give the number of nhabi-
tants to each, as near as possible. For each such
district or ward there shall be member of the
First Branch and for each two districts wards a
member of the Second Branch of the City Council;
that said districts or wards shall be subject to the
powers, jurisdiction and authority of the Mayor
and City Council of Baltimore provided, hOwev-
en- that all the property, real and personal, having
its situs within radius Of four miles of the pres
ent limits of the city, taking centre the point
where the Baltimore and ork turnpike company s
road enters the city limits, shall be assessed for
the purpose of city taxation MS at present assessed
or to be assessed at onehalf the amount assessed,
which shall be its cash value for the period of ten
years after the passage Of this act, except when
fifteen houses arc actually built upon any square
or block of ground in said territory so annexed,
then the said property and personal property of
the residents shall be subject to taxation in the
same manner as if they were located in the former
city limits. At the expiration of said ten years
the said territory shall be subject to the taxes
levied within the limits of direct taxation. Fur
ther the rest of said territory shall be subject to
a rate of taxation to be denOminated the EARN
tax" which shall not exceed nefourth the rate
levied within the city, the territory to be annexed
not to be chargeable with any tax to pay the
principal or interest Of any debt of the city here
tofore created The bill further provides that the
property of the county shall vest in the city cX-
cept the county almshouse, which shall be sold,
and the proceeds appropriated to pay the county
Indebtedness, for the purchase of all turnpikes
which are to be made free roads, and for the i'm
provement of the county roads That the juris-
diction of the Circuit Court of the county and
other officers shall continue as now, and all con-
tracts with the County Commissioners shall be as
sumed by the Mayor and City Council. All JUS
tees of the peace for the county are to be contn-
ued until the next Legislature, the said county to
remain in the present congressional district, and
the representatives in the General Assembly to
remain as at present"
The same paper of Wednesday, under the
head of "How to Extend the City Limits says
First Branch of the City Council last evening in
reference to the extension of the corporate limits,
state that it will be necessary to apply to the Leg
slature for authority to submit the question to n
vote of the people resident in the district proposed
to be included. They will prepare the necessary
bills but do not think the Council can facilitate
the project in way, except by the appointment of
committee to take it in charge"