Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1883-02-15
TUESDAY, FEE. 6.

| .Serldte-Sen. Cottrill introduced a Joint
resolution relating to the subject of pleu-
ro-pneumonia and other diseases of cattle,
and calling upon representatives liz con-
gress to take such action az will properly
call the matter to the attention of that
body. Adopted under suspension Of the
rules.
Bills were introduced as follows:
Sen. Adams, TO provide a public guard
ian in each county and to FIX his duties.
Sen. Webb, to authorize the Medford
Mill Co. to build and maintain dam on
Little Black river, in Taylor county.
Sen. Kingston, relating to the sale and
disposition of certain swamp and over
| flowed lands; also. TO donate to Sank and
| Columbia counties the proceeds of swamp
and oyerfowed lands therein.
Sen. Mcdonald, to secure manufactur-
ers and owners of railroad equipments,
making conditional sales, and certain con-
tracts for the lease thereof.
Sen. Cottrlll 10 provide for disposal of
unclaimed articles of the Newhall fire !;
| also, relating to assessment of taxes; also,
relating to duplicate specimes in posses
sion of the historical society; also, to
provide for public park in the city Of
| Milwaukee.
Sen. Stanley, relating to police regula-
tions.
Several committees then made routine
reports with various recommendations.
Assembly-The excitement was Fair
child's bill fer taxation of express COM
panies. The bill provides for license
fee of per cent on the gross earnings of
all express companies. The bill came up
on its engro ssment. Fairchild said that
he had not intended TO detain the assemb-
| ly by speaking upon the question, but in
| view of the extraordinary methods adopt
ed by the enemies of this bill upon the
outside, he thought it important that lis
friends on the inside be on the alert. He
found members loaded down with letters
from the hundreds of local express agents,
all written in the same language. These
letters we're all practically written by one
man, the head of the American express
company, and the request of this man
amounted to the same as a political re-
quest from Jay Hubbell to subordinate
office holders. This bill should pass upon
its merits, without regard to the determin-
ed efforts of this gigantic monopoly and
it's creatures to defeat it. The bill calls
for the taxation of express companies,
only per cent on their gross earnings.
|
nothing ALI other carriers pay; every
back peddler who crosses into Wisconsin
must pay a tax license from his hard earn
ings; the poor woman vegetable vender
has to pay taxes upou her poor old horse
and cart. There is taxation upon every
hand fer the maintenance OF the govern
ment. Individuals owning real estate pay
from eighteen to forty per cent. on its in
come. Yet this, the most grasping
and eEtortionste of the corporations that
feed on the public, comes TO us and au-
daciously says that TO tax them, who
have heretofore gone scot-free, is unjust
and impracticable.
They say they already pay transportation
fees 10 the railroads and taxes on their
real estate, and hence should 20 free. We
might as well scy that individuals who pay
transportation to the railroads should 20
free Of tax. The American Express COM
pany is the only one here opposing this
measure. This company has a capital
stock of slS,000,0OO which sells on the mar
ket at s93 per share-ilmost par. Now
where is this property But little of il is
visible. They only claim $25, 900 in Wis
cousin; allow them double what they claim
and then pro rate ans they would have
not to exceed 100000 worth of visible
property in the United States. The rest
is matured stock Yet they declare divi-
bends upon all the SIS coo. 80 that here,
they sre, only pay laE taxes upon $1,000
600 and getting dividends upon SIS, 100000.
Ia this Just Certainly not. The only
remedy is to charge them a license tax
upon their gross receipts which this bill
aims to do.
After Mr.. Fairchild's speech, the vote
was taken resulting in only one vote be-
ing recorded against the measure.
The following bills were introduced
BY Mr.. Albers. to create a board Of
county examiners of teachers OF common
and high schools.
BY Mr.. Stewart, repeating chap. so,
laws of 1881, relative 10 corporation taxes
in villages; also, repeating chap. los, laws
of ISL, relating to collection and disburse-
ment Of highway taxes; also, relating to