Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1881-07-20
The New Grand LIST.

Returns have been received by the secre-
tary Of state from all the towns and cores
in the state, with o single exception in Ad-
Olson county, and from them it appears that
the valuation Of the state is as follows
Real estate, slO2, l7s, 51i personal property,
s46,sO4O79; total, including polls, $685.
39l, $685. For 1880 the aggregate valuation
was real estate, 81, l14,747 personal prop
erty, S15037,2 1862; total, including polls,
$l00,35O,009; showing gain in the valu-
alton of real estate of 1871, O63, 767; in per-
sonal property, s31, 766,Sl7 and in the total
valuation, of S63,04l,sS The total grand
list for 1880 was $1,003,5 10000; for 1881,
$1,633,91S.93. The grand list for Washing
ton county in 1880 was 76,479.s4; in 1881,
S152, 504.05, an increase of nearly two hun
dred per cent. This county holds the fourth
in rank,-Rutland, Chittenden and Wind
sor preceding it in the order named in the
size of their grand lists.
The act to equalize taxation has been the
means of producing the favorable results
shown by the above figures. This result
has been anticipated by the incomplete re-
turns published from time to time as the
listers of the various towns have completed
their work. The new law had long before
this become an established and popular fact
among the people of the state, and the
friends and advocates of the measure had
many weeks ago enjoyed the full measure of
pardonable satisfaction in seeing the act
triumph over all the obstacles and discour-
agements which self-interest had thrown in
its way. The measure is not perfect one.
1t embodied imperfections which the legis-
lature should have foreseen, but there have
been developed other imperfections which
could appear only from the practical opera
ton of the laval of which the next leg
islature will find it comparatively easy
task to correct. The last legislature voted a
tax of seventeen cents on the grand list of
1881. This tax will raise nearly as much
money as twenty-eight cents on the list Of
1880. A gratifying approach toward an
equalization of taxation has evidently been
made and what has been gained in this d.
rection will, we believe, be held as vantage
ground for nearer and more decisive APP
proaches towards an equalization which
must necessarily be relative in the degree of
perfection attained.
In commenting upon the success of the
new law the Free Press arrogates to itself
superior credit for its early and constant
support of the law. In this course our
modest contemporary will have many peers
Even the st. Adams Messenger now claims
to have been the great expounder of the re-
vised gospel of taxation, and the Rutland
Herald rushes into the arena and clutches
the laurels the Free Press is Haunting. But
we sincerely believe that where the press
free or otherwise-did its duty most faith
fully and intelligently in explaining and
sustaining the law, there the best results
were realized. In confirmation of our be-
lief we cite the fact, as the result of the
faithful ministrations of the WATcHMAN,
that Washington county makes the largest
proportional increase in its valuation-an
increase of two hundred per cent.