St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-08-27

Iug the railroads was adopted at an
early period of the states history, when
the earnings of the railroads were small
and nearly all of them held enormous
amounts of land given to them for
building their reads either by the gen.
eral government or the state. 70 have
placed all this land on the tax lists
would in those days have been great
burden to the railroads, and one which
few of them could have borne UP under.
There Was No Market
for the land, and long before it could
have been sold it would have been
eaten up by taxes.
This was illustrated at the time the
celebrated measure known as House
File l57 was passed, back in 1887.
Chicago, Hastings & Dakota and kin
bred roads back taxes for long periods
had been assessed. These taxes. in
many cases, amounted to more than the
full value of the lands. and to get
out of their dilemma the railroads co m
menced selling these lands for 81 an
acre. A bright thought struck them,
and they were sold to men who had
Influence" with the legislature of 1887,
and the result was that bill was passed
''for the relief of settlers and others"
from the payment of certain back taxes.
But now, after all the lands and prop
erty of these corporations have escaped
taxation when the burden would have
been heavy, it is neither fair nor just
for the railroads to seek to have the
gross-earnings tax repealed. Minnesota
has many prosperous railroads., and re-
ceiveS tremendous revenue from the
gross earnings tax. Indeed, in few
years the necessary amount Of revenue
demanded by the state government will
be realized from this tax Oh the gross
earnings of the railroads.
Are the People Prepared
to give up this great source of revenue
and trust any future legislature to enact
a new method Of railway taxation?
The people know what they have at
present. The reports of the state treas
urer show that over $1,000, 900 year IS
received from this source alone. And
the beauty of this whole matter is that
this tax providing for tax on the gross
earnings of the railways can not be re-
pealed or changed in any way save by
an amendment to the constitution.
If the people are opposed to taking
chances on this matter they will ''spot"
the proposed amendment to section 8,
article 8, and be careful to vote
mo-" There are already indications
that movement is on foot to
secure its adoption at the election. From
some source many of the local papers
of the state are receiving an article con-
tanning both of the proposed amend
ments. The introduction to this is
under the heading More Patches" and
is as follows:
The constitution of this state is get
ting somewhat threadbare, and at nearly
every session of the legislature one or
two patches (amendmentS) are added.
The last legislature concluded to add
two amendments, Of which the first is an
amendment to section IS, article 4.
The amendment prohibiting special
legislationfollOws the above Introduction
and then the fraudulent and deceptive
amendment is introduced with the
words:
1.-The second is an amendment of sec
ton 8, article 9"
But the object of the publication is
clearly stated in the concluding para
graph, which runs as follows:
The attention OF voters is called to
these amendments in order that they
may carefully investigate for them
selves, and be prepared to mark their
ballots underStandingiy. 1t is quite
generally conceded that both should be
adopted.
The Proposed Amendments,
which, while it seems to authorize the
levying of tax on sleeping, parlor
and drawing room cars, telephone COM
panies, express and foreign insurance
companies, will help the railroads out
OF the burdens placed upon them by the
taxation of their gross earnings, follows:
There shalt be levied and collected
annually tax upon the gross earnings
in this state of all railroads, sleeping,
parlor and drawing room companies, or
owners. whose cars run in or into this
state; all telephone companies, or
owners. whose lines are i'll or extend
into this state: on all express compa-
MES, or owners, doing business in this
state; on all foreign Insurance COM
panies of this state. or Oh either or on
any such companies. Or in lieu of such
tax on the gross earnings of such conf
panieS, or either Or any of them, an an
nuat license fee or tax imposed on
them, or either or any of them; but no
tax upon the gross earnings OF any cor
poration shall he construed to prevent
the taxation, by law, of any real estate
owned by said corporation not used in
the business of the same. And there
may be levied and collected, in lieu of
other taxation on mining property,
specific tax upon the product of all
mines in this state. but no tax shall be
construed to prevent the taxation by
law of any real estate belonging to the
owners of such mine not used in the
business of mining or connection there
with.
The people of Minnesota are inclined
to handle proposed amendments to the
constitution OF the state with great con-
servatism. Hardly state election has
been held in the past ten years without
one or more amendments have been on
the ticket, several of which have been
discovered to cover some scaly piece of
jobbery. Two years ago an amendment
that would virtually have repealed the
gross earnings tax on railroads was de-
feated.
This ought to have settled that ques-
ton, but the same old trick has been
set up again.
1t should again be voted down by an
overwhelming majority.
Col. John c. Wise, the,yeteran editor
of the Mankato Review, tells why in
the last issue of his paper under the
heading, "a Fraudulent Amendment
The article follows:
In the Democratic platform SPECIAL
reference is made to proposed couSti-