Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-03-07
THE GREAT BUNGLE.
The Delinquent Tax List Ana
lyzed-Double and Treble As
sessments-A Bad Mess.

Iyzed-Double and Treble As
sessments-A BAD Mess.
EDITORS HERALD Il have just fin
ished overhauling what purports to be
the county delinquent tax list, and
find that at least two-thirds of it has
already been paid, but is assessed
again to unknown owners or to some
other party. / also find that in a
number of inst inces there is no such
property as is assessed. l find in 612,
fractional lot Z, block %, Hancock's
survey, assessed to unknown owners,
aud fractional s, block 2S, also assess
ed to unknown owners. Now there
are no fractional lots in block %, Han
cocks survey; but lot Z, block 2S, is
composed of the Marathan tract and
my TX acre tract, and the taxes are
all paid. Lot s, block %, is compos-
ed of the Hubbard tract. and on Mrs..
Hubbard's home place and Mr.. Beau
dry's land. The taxes are also paid.
There may be some scattering lots in
the Marathan tract not paid, but all
would have been paid could the col
lector's clerk have found them assess
ed to any name but unknown owners.
No mortal man can tell head or tail
about this property, unless he goes
over the whole 25 pages of the HER
AIDS tax supplement and then it is
an accident ii he find all the names
under which his property is assessed.
If the property is sold as it appears
in the delinquent list, it will cost the
tax payers more before they get
through with it than the
original assessment in the way
of abstracts and attorneys : fees.
Your tax receipt will do you no good,
five or ten years from now when some
abstract company tells you your land
was sold in 1883 for a mortgage that
never was on the property or to un-
known owners for taxes due on some
body else's property. l had search
made a few days ago and found that
the property had been sold to the
State about ten years ago for mort
gage; the abstract showed that there
never was mortgage in the name
claimed, and l had the receipt for
that same year for the full taxes on
the property without any deduction
for mortgage, and yet some Of your
attorneys would not pass on the title.
The collectors are doing all they
can to staighten out this double and
treble assessment, but, as have be-
fore stated, no mortal man can un-
ravel such Heterogeneous map.
There isn't one Of the collectors that
can find your assessment inside of
two hours, if you have more than one
piece of property, as the new system
seems to divide it up and put
each piece in a separate book or
volume. Lot II, block 3S, H. S., is
assessed to unknown owner. No
wonder at the assessor not finding
the owner, as there is no lot 12, block
3S, Fl. S. The NE. IA of LOT
7, block Al, Hancock's survey, is ass.
essed to unknown owner and described
as 8-acres. One-fourth of 35-acre lot
is IL acres not acres. Five acres of
the N + quarter of lot Z, block Al be-
longs to the city and is designated as
Elysian Park. The balance Of said
quarter has been assessed to myself
and others and the taxes paid.
think the Board of Supervisors
ought to stop the sale Of what is called
delinquent taxes as not being delin-
quent, as at least two-thirds of it has
been paid; and if the Supervisors
have no power, the people interested
ought to serve an Injunction on the
collector to stop the sale, as he is
compelled to sell all that is turned
over to him as delinquent, unless
proven to be double assessment before
he reaches it. j. w. PoTTs.