Omaha daily bee., 1899-10-18
ANlMUS OF 1T is EXPOSED
Why Gilbert VI. Hitchcock Sees Great
Merit I'm PIiant Third Ward
Assessor.

Assessor Thomas Harrington of the Third
ward appears to have won the everlasting
gratitude and approval Of the publisher of
the World Herald by singing out the North
western Mutual Life Insurance company of
Milwaukee and listing it for taxation at
valuation of $215, 900 on the claim that it
holds over $1,000, 900 Of mortgages in Omaha
g. NJ. Hitchcock of the World Herald, was
once accommodated with the loan Of very
large sum of money out of the funds of this
company, the repayment OF which he under
took to secure by a mortgage upon a Farnam
street block known as Bachelors Head
quarters. When the time came to settle,
Hitchcock was not ready, and the only al
Tentative left the company was to foreclose
It's mortgage. This 1t undertook to do. but
by voriaus pretenses and through various
influences Hitchcock has had the appraise-
| ments and sales set aside and has carried
the case into the federal court of appeals
rather than submit to the inficton of
| deficiency judgment. The judgment at the
| time it was rendered, was that Hitchcock
owed the company sS2,939. When the prop
| erty was sold to satisfy it, the company bid
| 1t in for $74,26O, leaving a deficiency of
| $3.50. There no question that Hitch
cock had received the money of the original
loan, and none that the company was en-
| titled to get it back
These are the conditions that have
! prompted Hitchcock's paper to touch the
button on its pulling machine and start it
| in operation in lauding Assessor Thomas Har-
| rington for placing a big assessment upon
! this company, and at the same time indulge
in an incidental "aslde" to the effect that
this company has quit loaning money in
| Nebraska and started its representatives
| denouncing the laws of the state
hn pal &c
the Northwestern Mutual Life When shown
the elongated puff given Assessor Harring-
ton, he declined to discuss the case involv-
ing the mortgage, but gave some new facts:
Yes, have seen the World Herald article
you refer to. 1t is almost too ridiculous
TO- to make an explanation Of. We we'll know
| which | prefer not to speak about
The facts in the case are that one James
Ruan was employed to examine the Doug
las county records and see what amount
OF leans the company held here. He took
this list and went before VIII Wilbur in
II was then given to the assessor, Thomas
Harrington Of the Third ward. who at
tt to did his no9 .s banS
companys representatives here what he
proposed to do, but filled out his blank
company should be assessed $2l5,O0O on its
mortgages held in this county.
If Thomas Harrington knows anything,
he ought to know that he could not tax
individuals or corporations in other states
on personal property, held by said persons
| or corporations in other states. The mort
cages and notes in question not held
in this state, but it will put our company
to the annoyance of having to 60 into
court to get this illegal assessment set
aside.
The animus in the matter can be seen
further from the fact that the Northwest
ern alone has been singled out for assess
ment. If some one would employ Mr..
! Ruan he probably could find a large num-
ber of foreign insurance and loan com
panies holding mortgages on Omaha real
estate, but l presume he was not paid for
that purpose A casual reader of this
article would have thought 1t a political
boost for Thomas Harrington, but he is
simply a tool in the hands of another party
that has caused this assessment to be
made
The Northwestern Mutual pays many
| thousand dollars per annum In taxes In
this county, both on its real estate hold
ings and its insurance premiums, and these
| taxes, both general and special have been
paid promptly without any effort to evade
or litgate the same,