The morning call., 1891-08-29
THE TEN-DoLLAR PERMIT.

TIE CALL has received many complaints
from Property-holders who have been re-
quired to pay the Stock Report ten dollars
tur a service that was of no earthly value
either to the city or the property holders or
all Individual We give place to the follow
ing as an example, as 1t comes from q citi-
zen who for forty successive years has paid
taxes in this city: =,
SAN Francisco, aug. 27. 1891.
Edtor call l have been resident and tax
payer In this city SINCE lS49 and have proudly
seen san Francisco (at Grst Nerba Buena) grow
from a Little Lamiet composed of q few people
WHO lived in tents, to magnificent city of large
proportions and modern improvements. But the
older the city gets TO be the worse it seems for
lie taxpayer, not by honest taxation, but by
corrupt cinching. 1 am, or was marked to be,
Tie victim OF one of these "cinchesn and there
fore sp-aS from experience. A short while ago
/ peliloued the Board Of Supervisors for per-
mis- slon 10 make slight necessary repair TO
piece of property owned by me-. In due time the
matter was brought before committee OF the
Loard, Who, after dellberatng longer time
than was necessary, Informed me that if the per-
mission was granted IL would cost me $40, The
charge being Tor adyeftsing the permit in the
Report. As the whole repairs to my property
would not have exceeded So, at The utmost, /
decl.ned to spend sum more than three times
eater than tile cost OF repairs and as the
pairs were OF more value 10 the city than myself
tie improyementhas en- left undone. 1t seems
10 me that the charge OF S1o is an excessive and
unwarIauted tax, and shows the extent OF
"grab'i 10 which property-holdersa are being sub
j cied. There is considerable hue and cry being
made by these same officials and their cohorts at
the dollar limit. but they remain silent when tax
paYers are ground down by jobs OF useless print
Ing privileges. TAXPAYER.
Our correspondent has doubtless discov-
cred that i'm prOvemients are often projected
' III this city TO give the organ a chance to
clnch property-holders. The Stock Report
was declared the official organ of this Board
Of Supervisors by the last, and conflicting
decisions on the partof two departments of
the Superior Court have restrained the pres
ent board from declaring the action of the
last board invalid. 1t will be remembered
that Judge HUNT declared the contract the
last board entered: into with the Stock
report illegal; but lie could find no author
lty 10 prevent the performance of an Illegal
act. When the new board came into power
and voted to ignore the Illegal contract, the
late Judge Hoge found authority to prevent
the new board from refusing to recognize
an Illegal contract. We remind our CORE
spondent of these proceedings to urge for
bearance. 1t is not probable that an Ameri-
can community will tolerate such outrases
for any considerable length of time. A
Grand Jury is not limited in its range of
inquiry TO any particular sphere of action
If courts lend themselves to perpetuate
such evils as our correspondents complain
Of, the Grand Jury will fail in its mission if
1t does not direct its attention to the courts.
In fact. the courts are the sources of Justice
as well as of injustice. We cannot reach
criminals except through the action of
courts