Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1893-01-31
DOING GOOD WORK,
The Council Agrees that Express and
Pullman Companies Must Pay
a Reasonable Tax.
Union County's Bill with Ration as the
County Seat--Taxing the Law
yers-Many Measures
Shelved.
COUNCIL.

COUNCIL.
YEsTERDAY's AFTERNOON SESSION.
The council met at 2 p. m. G. B. No.
50, making appropriations for the sweep
ers of council and house chambers, was !
reco1. sidered, corrected and repassed, or |
dered to be properly engrossed and sent
to the house for concurrence.
C,B. No. u, to tax express companies,
was taken up and was read with the re-
port of the judiciary committee recon-
mending that the bill be amended SO as to
include a taxation on proper pro rata
on the gross receipts on all business com
ing into or going out OF the territory
from all points outside of the territory.
The tax IS per cent on the gross receipts.
Mr.. Veeder moved the adoption of the
amendment.
Mr.. Saint moved to lay the bill on the
table indefinitely because it was not
printed and he could not pass on such
bill without careful examination.
Mr.. Veeder said he did not wish to pass
this bill if it seemed odious to any one
by reason of its not having been printed.
This bill simply made it Impossible for
the express companies to turn IN their
contracts with railroad companies SO as
to make out such an expense account as
would show them to have lost about
$4,000. This bill prevented that by
making the tax on gross receipts.
Mr.. Saint replied that he was against
any legislation that seemed at all devri-
mental to corporate investment. What
was necessary for New Mexico was bill
Furnishing assessors for overlooking prop
erty. Let them go out into the country
and assess the property at something
! like it's value. If this was done and car
ried out the taxable property of New
Mexico would jump up to $lOO,0O0,OO0.
Mr.. Veeder said if thegentleman carried
his argument to it's rational conclusion it
would exempt all property invested in
| business from taxation.
| Mr.. Fall said he was opposed to this
tax as general proposition and had
gone on record two years ago to that
effect. He was informed that the house
had repealed the merchants license tax
and he was not in favor of restricting
these companies any further than we dc
the individual.
Mr.. Hubbell said he did not think there
was man here who should vote against
this bill. Here is this proposition made
let us allow these monopolies to go, but
let us go out into the country and tax the
poor people and we will be doing the
right thing. Now according to this re-
port it would seem that the express COM
pany has paid the two railroad companies
$72, 1867 and has only collected $4,000
making loss of $4,000. Now we all
know that this is not SO.
Mr.. Sanchez said his opinion was
against that of Mr. Saint. Mr.. Saint
| considered Julo al avt 10 h"n1Pu,
the express company. 1t is law to tax
them just the same as he is taxed. Tax
alton is simply to allow the government
to run. Why do they not wish to srp
port the government? If they are rob
bed where do they appeal9 To the law
the law they refuse to support. They
have moro property than we have; anc
have more interest in this territory be-
cause of that fact. ....
Mr.. Veeder said Mr.. Sanchez's argu
ment was eminently correct. They hac
more interests to protect, and therefore
more need to pay taxes. Yet Mr.. Saint
advises us to go out into the country anC
tax these poor people and let the express
companies 60 free. This is simply the
bjection of all obstructionists. They
criticise the measure but offer nothing
practical in its place. This statement Of
Wells, Fargo q Co. is the most infamou
ever made. Take the business that passes
through the territory from states on one
side to the states on the other, they make
no return of those accounts; and we al
know that they do not make just returns
of the business in the territory.
Mr. Hubbell then moved the previous
question and Mr.. Fall rose and asked its
withdrawal to permit an amendment, but
the question was insisted on.
In explaining his vote Mr.. Fall SAID
that on the face of the return of 1927 ,OOC
gross earnings all that could be collected
at per cent was $40. He was in favor
i IF amending the bill as follows: every
express company doing business in this
| territory, the ~ross receipts of which prior
to the LIST day of May of each year exceeds
| $4,000, or is less than SOC 900 shall pay
to the territorial treasurer in lieu of 2
per cent as provided by Chapter 80, Laws
of 1891, a license fee of $1,000. Every
express company whose gross receipts
annually are less than $4,000 shall pay
$500; and every express company whose
gross receipts exceed $4,000 annually
shall pay license of $4,000"
Mr. Fall went on to say if the council
desired, by ordering the previous ques-
ton, to cut off debate and let the express
companies off with $500 instead of $1 900
or $4,000 tax, all right, but some of the
members should cease posing as friends
of TIE poor.
The bill passed by vote of to 8.
The following bills were disposed of
very summarily:
Fl. B, No. "a, fixing the maximum fare
on stage coach lines was read third
time, amended SO as not to apply
to lines less than ten miles long, and on
motion of Mr.. Saint was made the special
order for Thursday after the reading of
the journal.
H. B. No. 70, providing for territorial
board of equalization, was laid on the
table indefinitely.
H. B. No. So, providing for imprison-
ment in the town calaboose rather than
in the county JAIL was read the third time
and amended so as to apply to towns over
twenty-five miles from the county seat
instead of fifty miles, and that the towns
should not charge higher rate for feed
ing prisoners than is allowed the sheriff.
The bill then passed.
H. B. No. ~, for the protection of
workingmen, providing that it shall be
felony to agree to pay men for work on
certain day when the money is not avail
able, was laid on the table.
H. B. No. 81, concerning license, and G.
B. No. SO, taxing sleeping car company
2 per cent of the gross receipts, we're next
considered. The former was laid on the
table, and the latter passed.