The Portland daily press., 1893-02-11

The statement of the Argus is q speel-
men OF the Misrepresentation which are
being used to gloss over the short COM
ings of this city administration.
Its management of the finances has
been the reverse of what the Argus por-
trays.
WORKINGS OF THE LISTING SYSTEM.
The gentlemen who think that all that
is necessary to relieve taxation from its
inequalities is to put property owners
under oath, had their innings before the
committee on taxation on Thursday and
urged the old stock arguments in favor
of what is known as the listing system.
1t is the dream of the advocates of this
system that if they can only get it en-
acted into Jaw they can compel the rich
men iwhou. they accuse OF habitually
concealing their property to disgorge.
1t is dream which they will never
realize. In the first place their notions
of the extent of the tax lodging on the
part of that class are greatly exagger-
ated. There are undoubtedly some
rich men who paw less taxes than they
should; there are also some men of
moderate means who do the same. No
system Of taxation has ever been, or ever
will be devised that will do equal and
exact justice in all cases.. This listing
system will not do it, but on the other
hand unless it works differently in Maine
from what it has in other states where it
has been tried, will have directly the
contrary effect that is it will rather in
crease than diminish the existing in
equalities. As Chief Justice Peters sug-
gests in an excellent letter which is pub
lished in another part of this paper, it
is the flies that will be caught by the
cobwebs of this system, while the hor-
nets and wasps will break through and
escape.
Prof. Ely of Johns Hopkins University
when preparing his treatise on taxation
in cities made a thorough inquiry into
the workings of this system, and its re-
suits are clearly set forth in his work en-
titled Taxation in American States and
Cities. He approached the matter with
out prejudice and with inc preconceived
notion either for or against it. His con-
illusions are those of practiced and i'm
partial observer. This is his report from
West Virginia where the listing system
has prevailed for years:
At present all the taxes from invisible prop
erty comes from lew conscientious citizens,
from widows, executors. and from the guardians
of the insane anC infants. in fact, it is a COM
paratively rare thing to find sharp trader who
gives in any considerable amount of notes,
stocks or money.
Georgia has had the most drastic
kind of tax law since 1874. All
the questions that ingenuity can sug-
gest are put to the owner of personal
property to make him disclose, and after
he has answered them he is compelled
to make oath to them. What has been
the result? Have the rich been made to
disgorge? Prof. Ely says:
All the time was in, Georeia saw no one
who claimed that property in any part of the
Stale was assessed at its true value, though [
understand that the assessments in some parts
OF Atlanta were high; yet everyone takes an
oath to return property at its true value.
In Ohio they also have to drastic list
ing system. Yet a lawyer of Columbus
who holds estates in trust for several
parties, told Prof. Ely .'that whenever
he goes to the tax Office, to pay taxes, he
feels capable of committing robbery, ar
son and murder; because he is obliged
to pay taxes on the full value of estates
of two, three and four thousand dollars,
belonging to little orphan children,
whereas helsees wealthy clients paying
only ten or fifteen per cent, of what he
knows they are worth" Here it will be
seen the flies are caught while the hor-
nets and wasps break through and es-
cape. Under this same listing system
the personal property of Ohio returned
for taxation dwindled more than $780,
100000 in three years, though everybody
knew the truth was that such property
had increased by far more than that
amount.
Illinois also has a listing system even
more drastic than that of Ohio. We
have some testimony as to its workings
obtained by a gentleman
in this city. 1t comes from banker
in Chicago, a lawyer in Springfield and a
clergyman in Quincy. The banker says:
In short our law in relation to the taxation of
personal property, although one would expect
by the severity OF its provisions and the exact
returns required of taxpayers that it would
yield satisfactory results, in practice works
substantially like all other laws that know of
in regard to taxation of personal property it is
useless and barren of results.
The minister says
The tax law of Illinois is farce and the sys-
tenn an abomfnation. Une assessor, an honest |
German, says it would be better not to have
any law than the present one, and that the
could do better without any.
The lawyer says:
The tax law does not work very satisfactorily
in many respects vast amount of personal |
property escapes assessment, and no tax what |
ever put upon it.
This law was passed in 1870 In that
year the assessed valuation of the State
by the auditor was
Real estate .$593 ,488, 689 |
Personal property. ........ ...l5l ,26O,83l |