The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-02-16
The Narror Gan-e.

4
the open prairie, or at 3 paper town,
so 10 remain for years, for ali we
know, without any connection,
yet the interest en- the boads
must be paid all the same !;
slso,1 to locate their constrnc-
ton and repair shops and their
Offices IN Emporis, without specified
dimension or capacity. Beyond this
they do not propose 10 bind them
selves. In the absence of timber
and iron, how much business do
you suppose will be done here,
beyond the mere repairs necessary
for this immediate locality !?
If they can work so cheaply,
let them guarantee TO the
tax-pay ers that rs per cent. of the
present rates shall be a maximum
tariff, and then it will do TO begin
to talk. But even were we to grant
all claimed for the project, it would
not pay. A few months since the
people, by very large majority,
refused to sell the stock of the A,
L. & S. F. rOkd for 40 per cent.
] ($S0O COO, and 1t is claimed by the ac-
tive advocates of the present propo-
sition that il is worth that sum, or
more, to-day. Also, that we receive
some Sll ,0G0 as taxes annually from
our present roads. Now, suppose
we. assume an additional debt to
construct road that Will work 25
per cent. cheaper than our present
roads are able to do, as is claimed,
will not the natural and inevitable
result be the utter ruin of both our
present roads, and tho consequent
loss to US of all our stock ($4OO O00)
for which we owe every dollar
Who of as can expect to see the day
when it will all be paid? Also, of
the taxes they pay to the county an
nually, for il these roads be un-
able 10 compete, Of course their
stock will become worthless, and the
assessor will be by his oath bound
to value and return them only as
old iron, and therefore we character
lie the scheme as "penny wise and
pound foolish"
And here would fain close my
article, il the time for the discus
sion were not so exceedingly short.
Why was it SO contracted? desire
to notice, very briefly, q few of the
arguments urged by the affirmative
of this question. In a late issue of
The NEWS it was claimed that the
proposed road would tend, first and
chiefly, to the aggrandizement of the
producer-that the farmer, for in
stance, must export his grsin, pork,
&C., and import his machinery, gro
ceries, &C., and that he was obliged |
to pay all the freight on both his
exports and imports. believe there
lie q slight difference of opinion
upon this point. Gov. G. T. |
Anthony, claimed, in a speech
delivered in Emperia, some years
since, that the consumer paid |
all the freight, while some claim that
1t is paid mutually by the consumer
and the producer, which latter opin-
ion is shared, to q certain extent,
by your humble servant. But be
this as it may, for the sake of the
argument suppose we concede that
the producer pays all the freight
both ways, would not the producers
of our machinery, salt, &C., pay all
the freight upon their exports and
oar corn, &C., their imports2 "a
poor rule that will not work both
ways"
OQr friends of the affirmative
have been indulging somewhat in
figures, and claim that they will not
lie. II they do not lie, they are
sometimes so arranged as to mis-
lead and deceive very much. We
are told that q certain tract of land
in this county paid tax, previous
to the existence of our railroad
bonds, of about 500; whereas, in
1876 it paid some So less, not giving
any of the circumstances of the case.
For all know valuable Improve
ments may have pertained to it at
the former period, and may have !
been consumed by fire, or perhaps,
removed, for coupled with this as
sertion is the claim that during the
time included between the above
named periods, real estate In the
county had increased in valuation,
on an average, 70 per cent, and the
levy for the year 1876 was some five
mills higher on the valuation than
at the former periodl Permit me
TO call your attention to the north
half and southwest quarter of Sec
ton four, township four, range
sleven, ia this county, the only
piece 1 have examined. The taxes
for the year 1859 were S24. In 1871,
the first year we paid on all the
OOnoSS tA4OJ ~CAO 2OSsO3s IL 4OSOS | ,
the first year we were taxed upon
the NJ, II. 8 T. bonds, this tract
wasIluot assessed separately, bat I
think the taxes were at about the
same rate as in 1871. The improve
ments had been trifiing, perhaps not
to exceed 500. How is that for
high?.
Also it was claimed by one of the
speakers at Americas, few even
Ings since, that if we built this road,
In less than eight years the assess
ment of our taxable property will
reach SS,000,0O0. Let rs see. The
total amount assessed valuation in
1872 was 100000; 1876, So, 7S5,S79.
How long will it require, at this
rate of increase, to arrive at the
coveted $4,000 900? Before assum-
l., n, f.rtha~ sahsft;a. la -. k.l--