The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1886-03-05

OF Nebraska, who has been visiting
friends near Albuquerque for some
time past. Last night he became in
toxlcated and it is supposed wandered
off and went to sleep on the track.
TAXATION.
Mr.. NJ. d. Lewis Makes Reply to Mr..
Leslie's Answer.
EDITOR REPUBLICAN,, Gentlemen
In the DAILY REPUBLICAN of the 25th
inst. Mr.. Leslie of Perry township
makes very serious onslaughter on
my article on taxation that appeared
in the REPUBLICAN, of the Gath inst.
My friend Leslie seems to have accu-
mulated considerable gas or some other
substance; perhaps he feels better by
thus throwing it OF, but let us see if
he has thrown it entirely in the right
direction. Now sir, any county or cor
poration or individual, that intends to
maintain its, solvency will try to
make provision for its current ex-
penses and liquidate its Indebtedness.
Now sir, this is what Dawson county
is trying to do and for this purpose and
this only have our levies been made.
Now let us see if the charge Mr.. Leslie
has made, that we have a surplus of
six thousand dollars more than we
want, is correct or not. For the cur
rent year we had returned by the
assessors last summer little over
fourteen hundred thousand dollars.
We thought we could make our levy,
expecting to collect from the fourteen
hundred thousand even, as there
always are some errors that have to be
corrected and some loss on personal
taxes from removals ETC., consequently,
Judging from the past we cannot ex-
pect to receive taxes on more than
about that amount of property. Well
now let us see how much money that
will bring into the treasury. The COM
missioners levied for county purposes
twelve mills to the dollar, which be-
-lieve amounts to sixteen thousand and
eight hundred dollars. Allowing that
is actually received, (and it is not like
ly to vary much from that amount,)
how does the gentleman expect that
there can be an excess of six thousand
dollars over our actual necessities for
the current year, when our interest is
nearly the six thousand on our bonds
and then our current expenses to run
our county, consisting of court expen-
ses, roads and bridges, county officers,
jail expenses, poor, and all to come out
of the ten or perhaps eleven thousand
dollars; it is perfectly preposterous for
man to make such a sweeping asser-
ton. He has no foundation to base it
upon. So much for that. Now the
two mill county school tax is impera-
tive by law. It is true the higher the
valuation the moro that will be, yet
the townships get their proportion of
that according to their scholars. The
territorial percentage is rated accord
ing to the rate of assessment. If it is
high the rate is low; if low the rate is
high. l see nothing in this worthy of
complaint.
Mr.. Leslie complains that we mem
toned town boards and school boards.
Now, if my memory serves me right,
Mr.. Leslie appeared before the county
board with large delegation from his
town last January, and demanded that
we should restrain the county treasurer
from collecting a large portion Of their
township taxes as being excessive;
taxes that were levied by their own
authorities, amounting to twenty-five
mills to one dollar valuation, five and
four-tenths mills above the county and
territorial levies. Mr.. Leslie says:
"Let the fault rest upon those to who
it belongs" So says any honest think
ing man. OF course, the board could
not remit taxes levied by the township
authorities, consequently they have to
be paid, and this was one case on my
mind together with some Others of a
similar nature that prompted me to
write the article that Mr.. Leslie took
so much exception to. For in most of
the townships the taxes are nearly, and
in some instances I believe over four
per cent. l claim that just assess
ment is the first step to remedy these
difficulties, and then let the different
boards first get the assessment and
then find as near as they can the
amount of money required for their
several wants. Then they can easily
tell what percentage to levy to raise
the required amount, and thus this
whole matter that has caused so much
difficulty in the past will settle itself
and it was for this purpose that l wrote
the article of the Gath ult. In regard
to the invitation 1 gave to the in-com-
ing assessors to meet at the court house
in Mitchell, on the first Monday in
April. it was only advisory, yet Mr.
Leslie seems to be afraid il they should
meet there with the county attorney
and county clerk, they will be bulldozed
/ think he must have an exalted opin.
ion of our county officers, to whom we
pay 81 ,25O per year, and part of their
duties are to give instructions on
points of law and the manner of doing
the public business. Iwould ask the
gentleman how he expects that there