Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1891-08-03
WRIGHTS EXPOSE.
[Contin,ted from First Page

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apnear that ont of $3.50 delinquent
sned the judgments secured were paiC
in but 2s9 cases. reallzihg III
the Commonwealth s2,726.5o; WINE
the costs paid to these Mag
istrates by the Commonwealth iol
these suits amounted to S31, 1920. Ac'
cording to which it appears that tne
State would have been the gamer ol
sos. 467. 20 if no attempt whatever mac
been made to collect these taxes
and il they had never been put into the
hands of the Magistrates at all, where
as II neither these delinquents nor the
exempts had been put on the appraisers
lists at all, another saving of about
sec, 900 to the Commonwealth couiu
have been effected. 1t seems to me-
therefore, that if any measures can DC
taken now which. will prevent this an
nual waste of $4,000, or any part OF j.
in the future, they should be resorted
to. and I desire to give all the official
aid at my command to that effort.
1t further appears from the returns
made to the Auditor General and from
the returns made to the city OF costs
collected by the Magistrates, all OF
which, under the law, must be turned
into the City Treasury, that OF the
above sum of S31, 1920 only $40, 994.5O
was turned into the City Treasury,
from which it follows that there must
have been paid to the Constables serving
the writs and executions in these cases
$40, 1870.
THOUSANDS OF BOGUS NAMES.
For the present year, 1891, the total
number of names on the mercantile
appraiSement lists was 29.740; OF this
number the Appraisers who returned
the names themselves exempted Sis;
reduced the appraisement for 1,070;
struck off $50 OF the remainder,
9,322 have thus far paid the mercantile
tax, leaving the number Of deliquents at
present about 10,9 79. From these delin-
quents / have been making an effort
since June % to collect the taxes APP
praised against them, and have been
DESTROYS that the number against whom
suits should be brought under the law,
and your instructions Oh August Is,
should be reduced as much as possible.
In this effort and in the course Of
Investigations made in furtherance
of 1t, l have come into the possess
sion of information which leads me
to believe that large numbers of per-
sons are annually included on this
list who it is the duty of the
Appraisers, and especially OF persons
who have made the appraisement
and exemptions IN former years.
to know, should be exempt from the
mercantile appraisement, their sales
never reaching the amount which rem
ders them liable to the mercantile tax.
BY the way of illustration, the collec-
tors whom l assigned TO this work
found 20 per cent. Of the names of de-
linquents in single ward were those
of persons dead, removed or no longer
doing business therein, or duplicates or
fictitious names; over SO per cent. were
of persons doing business so inconsider-
able in amount as to not be subject to
mercantile tax.
By way of further illustration may
mention that in single market over
240 names are appraised, although I'M
der the decisions Of the courts / am in
formed that none Of these dealers are
liable; and this must have been known
to the Appraisers, for the records Of
1890, made by these same Mercantile
from these sources, a udnlla5slr' Gn"tne
names on last years list, exempt and
delinquent, are repeated on this years
list. The State, however, was mulcted
in all these cases OF the cost OF appraise-
ment, advertising and suits before the
Magistrates.
NAMES FRADULENTLY ENTERED.
In the course of my Investigations it
has been established to my satisfaction
that firms and individuals engaged in
business have been exempted, although
the volume OF business transacted by
them clearly justified and required the
assessment and payment OF the mercan-
tile license tax. This irregularlty be-
comes the more apparent and prominent
because of the fact that in the same
vicinity or locality with them there
were found many persons assessed, ana
who are delinquent, who never should
have been assessed at all because OF the
small amount of business transacted by
them. l am in possession OF much
other information which leads me to be-
lieve that these lists have been swelled
by thousands of names which If not
literally fictitious should not have been
included, and which from the expert
ence of past years the appraisers them
selves ought to have known were not
proper subjects for appraisement.
| am further Informed, from various
sources, upon the reliability Of which l
repose great confidence, that OF the de-
linauents for the year 1891 very large
proportion are persons against whom
there can be no possibly recovery for
the Commonwealth upon any judgments
which may be obtained. Some are dead
some are merely duplicates, the same
persons having already paid one tax;
MANY have removed from the wards In
which they are assessed, II not from the
city, and very large number are per-
sons of small means, doing little bust
ness, with altogether inconsiderable as
sets, and the placing Of these suits in
the hands of Magistrates, without dis
elimination, will only result in the loss,
as heretofore. to the Commonwealth of
from S25, 900 to $50, 900 OF costs need
lessly incurred.
TO SAVE THE STATES MONEY.
desire, therefore, to be informed at
your earliest convenience:
FIRST. Whether the tine at which
suits must be brought to recover from
the delinquents can in any cases be ex-
tended beyond August IS?
SECONDLY. Whether In cases In
which it may appear, as a matter OF
fact, that no moneys can possibly be
recovered upon judgments against de-
linquents, 1 may be relieved from the
necessity of bringing suit to recover
and thus save the costs of such suits?
THIRDLY. Whether / may be