The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-09-01

If it had anything to do with the single
tax. 1t is a mere assumption to assert
that the franchise of a railroad is worth
four times the value OF the road and all
the equipments. All such conclusions are
a pastime OF the Imagination. 4 franchise
has no value unless the road is built; again,
there are miles of road in Indiana that are
not worth $1,000 a mile because they can
not earn the running expenses and pay a
return OF > per cent. on that amount OF
money. To value the franchise on such a
road at $4,000 a mile and add $4,000 10 it
$4,000 as a tax value-is too preposterous
to be entertained by people who deal with
facts and realities. This value OF a rail-
road is the amount of money upon which
the net earnings will pay the current rate
of interest. They could not be sold for a
third of the valuation of Mr.. Springer.
namely. $780, 900. Oc. If all of them should
cease running the value of his franchise
would be nil. and the land occupied by
them would be just what 1t could be sold
for for other purposes.
Equally preposterous is the assertion
that not half the revenues now required
would be needed IL the single tax or land
tax system were in force. Put all the tax
on land and only half as much money
would be needed to support the public
school system, the charitable and penal
institutions, maintain highways. etc. 1t is
of no consequence who makes such a
claim level-headed people will brand it
as vapory nonsense.
There may be those who will believe
that a revenue Of $1, O0o. 900 raised upon
$500. 500.0O0 of property will not bear more
heavily upon its owners than. IL il were
laid on 81, lO0,0Oo 600. but they are the few
people who have become the victims of
the imagination. And who, pray, knows
most about the values of the business
property of Indianapolis. the able and ex-
perienced business men who protested that
the valuation was too high by 10 per cent.
in 1890, and made figures to show ii, or
the theorist who evokes values from his
tropically luXuriant imagination? There
| are quantities of business property which
could not be sold for the assessments;
take off the improvements and value the
lands for what they would be worth to
build upon. and the taxes would be so high
that the owners could not pay them.
Another unsupported assumption is that
the net earnings of the Citizens Street
| railroad Company would pay fair inter-
est upon S14, 900, 600. Has this writer seen
the figures representing the net earnings?
If he had seen them last January he would
have known that several lines were not
paying operating expenses, that but two
lines were profitable. and those only mod
erately so. OF course. it is better now;
but if the Citizens street railroad could
earn, say 5 per cent. interest on S14.C0 .O0O,
does any every-day-sense man believe that
its owners would have sold 1t less than
two years ago for one-fourth of that fig
ure?
The writer makes one sensible point, and
that is that the present system of street
improvements is based upon land values.
1t is; and in it's operation ii is the most
unequal and oppressive system that could
be devised. The assessment is based not
upon what the land and Improvement
would sell for, but upon the number of
feet front of land. Under it the man who
has a house worth $l,J00 is taxed as much
as the one whose large house is worth $l0,-
900. To the former it is an imposition of
Is per cent. upon the selling value of his
property, while to the, other it is a tax
of 3 per cent.
MIR. Springer's letter is commented on
simply to show the absurdities into which
active minds will lead those who make
theories and work their imaginations for
their facts 90 and ignore that intelligence
called common ~sense.-Editor Journal.