The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-10-10

and ratification Of chapters
sdOp'nCt, O laws of 1887. which re or
100 sn5 the department of Agriculture
snlShIished the College of Agricul
sd - Mechanic Arts, upon the plans
ture sormers, with scarcely a sugges
Of an amendment. Now the latter
H'n - the best known institutions Of
hOD IN the country, and while the
EARN :, has done is beyond the power
gLan to compute, what it will do
that though started in a mad
sn snssms," yet the good is perpet
o. nd proves the great importance
Hn, unity. fraternity and systematic
"Donsl organization of our whole
Pe population. II less than 5 per
conId accomplish this, what could
Vt 100 per cent. dot
u" VI LEI us consider
,TtIANCE AND THE RAILROAD COM
THH MISSION
Ola, the farmers Alliance first
80 this State, one of the first OBJ
~ vhieh attracted it's attention was
tsct that the railroads of the State
va having a small proportion of the
.-os for the support Of our govern
~oDt. h a they we're enjoying extra
binary privileges; that the poor man
-, az a disadvantage in q law suit to
I",ovsr damages ont OF them, however
.,,t his claim These things being
.a-iously discussed, it was decided to
5.r,and of the legislature the enact
mt NJ a Law establishing a separate
..r,s or commission for the speedy
Ssaring of CO Complaints and the assess
-,ontof railroad property for taxation.
-,ora was a bitter fight in two cam.
ooi0ns on the subject as the chief issue,
n The elections the farmers won in
18th Int the libby Influence and free
r,a If money, and resort TO question.
.bla methods defeated the demand be.
fire the frat, and came near doing the
,,na before the second Legislature
nosisively pledged to the measure. 1t
vss the legislature OF 1891 which en-
scEed the Law.
The first campaign in which this was
thu issue was 1888 That year the total
fszes paid into the State Treasury by
al the railroad companies of the State
and into county treasures for school
nurnoses was as follows:
S88-Ssate Sit, 4l9 80
" School taxes. 1854 90
Total State and school. =. .$22, 274 81
The eyes of tax payers yer opened
BY seeing these official figures. Seeing
that the issue had gone against them
and had only been defeated by q1es
aonable political work in the General
Assembly of 1889, the railroads moved
Up their figures a little and their total
HZ9g Of that year we're:
89-35ate taxes. .$31 492 70
" School taxes. ......... IL. 16S %
Total State and school. -. $43. $50 IS
Tae3e figures we're used by the OPP
position IN the campaign Of 1890 TO
prove that the railroad companies had
rightei the wrong and a commission
was not needed. Bu5 the farmers III
caedsd, aud tie lobby methods miscar-
RED aai the commission Law wasmade
chapter %, Laws of 1881; and in that
year they paid:
1921 State taxes. 81, $50 So
" School Rxes........ % 066 81
Total State and school. 300 746 %
Thus it is seen that although, as a
political subteriugs to defeat the issue,
they practically doubled the taxes in
1889 over the preceding year, yet they
had not reached the mark and the Fl! ST
years work Of the commission proved
The Wisdcm of the voters In ignoring
their campaign claim by assessing for
more than 800, 900 taxes when they had
been paying emily &22, 900. But let US
follow the work on. We fad it in
ceases as the commission gets deeper
INTO the facts, and from the years 1888
70 1883, inclusive the taxes paid by
these corporations has been for ten
Years since Ih9 commission began
work:
State 1908 754 "a
Sshool Observation-Disclosures. S22, 749 %