Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1889-03-08
CLIFTON oULI1Ees

DrED-On the 4th inst. Of malignant
scarlet fever, the iafant daughter Of DR..
and Mrs. J.. Il. Lacey, aged one month
and % days. The. child was only sick
about or less than "a hours. It WAS
buried on the 5th. The loss Of the child
WAS a severe blow to the parents, aud ex-
pressions Of sorrow for them were beard
everywhere.
The spring fights have opened At Mo
renci If it is true as reported thsttwo men
we're shot and a saloon wrecked Sunday
night.
Ben Roberts Of your place paid us a ay-
ing visit this week.
:. The Gold Mouutain gold, silver and re-
ductiOn c~ompany'a outfit arrived here all
right.
A good deal of improvements are being
made in building new buildings and reno
waiting old ones.
DR.. j. II, Lacey is fitting mp Capt. NJ.
A. Kelley's hall with counters, lockers,
drawers and shelving preparatory to stock
ing 1t With a full line Of drugs, etc. J. f.
Jordeh is doing the work and u splendid
piece Of workmanship it is.
There is a species of taxation extant 10
this territory that is unfair, oppressive,
and unjust. 1t is taxing ores on the
dumps Of mines IN general and the dumps
Of claims that are only prospects in p1r-
tcular. Why ores SHOULD be taxed in
this manner is a question that 90 one can
prove to be right. Because if it Is fair
aud right, then it also is fair and right to
levy a tax on the wages Of daily laborers.
Prospeetors, as u rule, are poor meu. If
they make a discovery the pay streak
must run an hundred dollars and he Of
good breadth if he even makes ordinary
miners wages, In yleS of the charges in
cidsnt to shipment and treatment. Yet,
if they have ore on the dump that will AZ
say sag $45 the property will be listed ac-
cordingly. which is u manifest wrong, as
/ viii undertake to show: II u person
has ten tons of ore that rum S45 the ex-
penses Of shipment and treatment at III
Paso will be about S35 a ton. There
would be left for mining and profits $40
por ton. Now in order to determine the
nctual value of the ore on the dump under
such conditions, it would be necessary for
the dump to-be sampled and assayed. No
one could sample 1t for less than SO, and 1t
would cost so for assaying. As the rate
of taxation IN 1888 was 50 80 on the 800,
and rs ten tons OF ore would represent
500 1t follows that IN order to collect 81 90
So would have to be expended. But ores
on dumps are not sampled and are usually
! listed at the average assay rate, with no
deductions whatevers If ores were listed
aa l have illustrated the proposition would
resolve itself to what is known as a bull
ion tax, " a species Of taxation that reduc-
ton companies have a mortal dread Of:
yet the taxing of bullion would be nc
more equitable than tho taxing Of ores on
the dumps. The prospector has n kick
coming when he is 80 taxed, especially il
his ore is too low grade to ship and # he
cannot realize any thing from his effort,
to develop his claim. The delinquent list Of
this county shows that ores on the dumps
have been uasessed s0d it the tax and cosi
IL not paid the %discoverer will, under the
law, lo.e bis rights. Surely this law wa,
uot enacted for the purpose of developing
che mineral RESOURCES Of the territory,
NAuAST.