The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1894-03-21

~ A W Il
testimony was offered, in some of the
counties parcels of land were assessed
some above and some below their true
value in money, notably in Richland
County. But is this coincidence Of ac-
ton and result on the part Of tax dis
trict and county boards conclusive evil
dence of design to put the burden OF
taxation on railroad companies? Is il
susceptible of other explanation? 1t
would seem that it is the result Of a
vice in the system OF assessment.
The tax district boards make the
first assessment. BY law they
must be freeholders resident in the
tax district. They have direct
personal interest in low assessment,
and their environment induces them
to make it. When men deal with the
interest Of the Government and of the
citizen all doubts are solved in favor of
the citizen. This must be said, how
ever, in explanation and perhaps in
| justification of the action Of these
boards. In an agricultural community,
and in one dependent upon the well
being of the agriculturslist, it is impOs-
sible to fix the value of lands. A suc-
cession of bad crops will make land
unstable. One good crop will create
q demand and a selling price. So what
land may bring if sold depends not on
its intrinsic value 80 much as on the
circumstances under which it is sold.
Taxes must be paid without regard to
seasons or crops. Hence the average
valuation designated to cover period
OF five years. If there be no preponder-
ance of evidence showing design on
the part Of the TAX district and county
assessors to throw the burden on the
railroads, is there any evidence from
which such design can be inferred on
the part Of this board of equalization
for railroads? The Comptroller-Gene
one of this board and from his official
duties and experience the leading MEM
Der of the board, probably deducting
| and controlling its action in his official
report to the Legislature in 1891, calls
| the attention of that body to the low
rate of assessment of much of the pro-
perty in the State and urges legislation
| to correct the evil. And when we con-
slider the independent action Of this
| board under a statute impel atively
to take as a standard the true value Of
the property in money, and also con-
slider the admission of the bill, that the
return was shout IS per cent of the
real value, $4,000 per mile, and that
the increase to SIG 900, making itabout
80 per cent, we cannot hold that this
! increase in assessment is so excessive
and unjust as necessarily to indicate
the design and motive charged.
Another objection to the action of
the board of equalization for railroads
is that Notwithstanding the fact that
large part of the property of railroad
companies is land, they are assessed
every five years, and this practice is
observed with respect to all lands ex-
cept those of railroad companies, and
at all events violates the 14th amend
ment. The Constitution of South Caro-
lima (Article 8, Section y, directs the
General Assembly to "provide by law
for uniform and equal rate of asess-
ment and taxation" It gives the Gen.
eral Assembly full discretion ''to pre-.
scribe such regulations as shall secure
just valuation for taxation of all pro-
perty." The General Assembly obeyed
the direction by requiring all property
to be assessed at ;ts true value 10
money. Exercising its discretion it
prescribed set Of regulations, which,
IN its judgment, secured a just valua-
ton of railroad property for taxation.
A railroad is unit, every part contrib
uting to its purposes as whole. If it
be corporation its corporate purpose
is the maintaining railroad and ali
and every part of this property must
contribute to this purpose. Its right
of eminent domain is limited to this
purpose. This unit is made up ofIands,
personal property, chooses in action, ease
ments, all dependent upon and insep-
arabic from each other, deriving their
value from this inseparability, from the
fact that they contribute to this unit.
They differ from every other species of
property, and the discrimination made
as between them and other corporations
and individuals in the methods and in
strumentality by which the value of
their property is ascertained is not inva-
lid. Kentucky r. r. Tax Cases, lis US,
337; State r. r. Tax Cases, 92 3. s.,
Gil. The mode prescribed by the Legis-
lature Of this State is to get at the value
Of the plant, that is of all these ele-
ments going to make up the railroad,
and to ascertain what their combined
contributions making up this uait are
worth. If they separated the compo-
nent parts and attempted to fix sepa-
rate values upon them they would enter
into an impossible task. The value Of
the lands of railroad depend much on
the character and condition and COM
pleteness ofits rolling stock. The utility
and consequent value of the rolling
stock depend largely upsn the facilities
at stations and at termini, the amount,
location and character of the land used
therefor.
After careful consideration there ap-
pears no evidence of such design as
will alone give this Court jurisdiction.
Let an order be taken authorizing
and instructiDg the receiver of the
South Carolina Railway Company to
pay from the funds in his hands as
such receiver the remainder of the tax
unpaid and the costs of these proceed
ings. CHARLES II. SIAfoNToN,
Circuit Judge.
March 13, 1894.
The attorneys in these cases were:
For The railroad, Mes>rs. Brawley &
Barnwell aud Mitchell and Smith.
For the State, the Attorney General,
Messrs. Samuel Lord and Ira B. Jones.
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