Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-07-03
AN APPEAL PROBABLE
The City Will Fight Judge Slagle's
Business Tax Decision.
CASE AND MORELAND TO CONSULT.
The Assessor Explains How the Ruling Af-
fects Municipal Affairs.
FORTY OTHER FIRMS ARE INVOLVED

A rumor was current yesterday that City
Attorney Morelard was considering the
matter of making an appeal from the de-
cision of Judge Slagle in the equity test
case of the Hartman Steel Company egainst
the city of Pittsburg, restraining the o.
linquent tax collector from collecting the
tax levied upon the company on certain
classes of sales.
The decision, coming at the time it did,
opens up new phase of the tax collectors
business, and may lead to trouble. The
books and lists in the tax assessors Office
were closed on Saturday. and it is a question
whether the city will secure any money from
the wholesale liquor dealers and bottlers who
will be granted license or not Chief Assessor
Case stated yesterday that all the assessments
had been made for the ensuing year. and as
these people were not granted a license by
Judge White, they were left off the list. 1t is q
question whether a special list can now be made
for them, as the books have been closed up by
the expiration of time. and the law may not
allow the time to be extended.
AN APPEAL PROBABLE.
Mr.. Case will consult with City Attorney
Moreland to-day and ask his opinion on the
matter. If the City Attorney advises him to
make the assessments he will do so, and let the
liquor men pay the taxes or fight the matter In
the courts. City Attorney MoreIand was asked
by reporter what he intended to do about the
matter. He stated that he had not yet re-
ceived the decree from the COURT, and would
not get it until this morning1 Until then he
did not know what he would do.
the city from Judge Slagles decision would be
very slight this year, and next year he thought
it would be about $4,000 He said there were
about 40 other firms similarly situated as the
Hartman Company, and they would, in future,
probably refuse 20 make any returns. The
situation, he claimed. was entirely wrong. and
1t would probably result in the total abolition
of the business tax, which the Assessor has
been trying to have abolished for some time.
Mr.. Case said
This matter of releasing these firms from
this tax is extremely wrong and unjust to other
manufacturers In the city. There are any
number Of mills, factories. ETC., just lying out
side the city and county, who do their busi-
These concerns have their Offices, warehouses,
etc., In this city, and take advantage of the
shipping facilities that the other firms pay for.
We have tried to assess them on all the busi-
ness they transact in the city proper, but they
made the returns themselves and could make
them as low as they wished
THE DRUMMERs, TOO.
According TO Judge Slagle's decision" con-
tinued Mr.. Case, I'VE cannot tax q man unless
he makes an actual delivery of goods in the
city. Take for instance . lumber firm,
who receive an order for i've cars of
stock for town about 25 miles
east Of this city. The firm will order the stuff
from the yards in the west and have it shipped
to their customers. The bill is made out to
them and they make a profit on the sale. As
the stuff was not delivered in this city we
cannot collect any business tax, although it
was strictly Pittsburg transaction.
drummer6 cannot
either. although they should be. The only way
we can get at this class of people is to tax
agents here who are on salary. The drummers
do their business here and compete with Pitts
burg merchants who pay business tax. The
fact that these outside manufacturers are not
taxed will have tendency to drive other large
concerns out of town to the country. / am
glad, though, the matterlis settled definitely
and we will wait until the whole theory Is
abolished. This will probably be done next
year."