The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-08-12
SURPRISE In STORE.
FOR CERTAIN PROPERTY OWNERS
WHO PAID NO TAXES
LAST YEAR
RESOLUTION BY MR.. POWERS

-|SA4S AAON D Mh. EVW ERS
On Examining the Property List He
Finds That Nearly One-Third of
the Names Are of Persons Who
Were Not Assessed Last Year
victims, in the Main, Those Who
Have Paid Taxes Before.
Inc board Of equalization completed its
work yesterday and will meet for the Ia
Tune at 10 a. m. today to adopt a formal
resolution making the changes decided
| upon AT the meeting Commissioner Pow
ers Will spring surprise by introducing
resolution setting aside the raises made
oy the board and accepting the returns
maze by the parties interested. The com
missioner bases his action on a new Drin-
ciple:
am of the opinion that nearly all the
raises in valuations made by the board
OF equalization are unfair" he said yester-
| day Upon looking over the list l find
that probably one-third Of the names are
of persons who were not assessed Ia Of
Year Now, every increase made by the
BOARD mas been where the victim has paid
taxes last year. For instance, suppose a.
hrm had $1,000 worth Of goods and paid
taxes last year on that amount This
year there may be only SOC, and that
amount is returned to the assessor. Sim
! ply because the valuation last year was
higher the board, without any further in
| VeStlgatiOn, raises to last years figures
AT the same time a man may have re-
| turned $500 this year when he paid nothing
in 1898, and the board accepts his figures
lie Is Just as likely to have 81, 900 this year
as the people that have been raised to the
basis of last year. L regard this plan as
an injustice and intend to put the mayor
| and other members of the board on rec
! ord. l am willing to consent to a raise
| all around to any percentage that will
| bring the amount needed, but 1 regard
| the plan of singing out firms and individ-
ualS that were unfortunate enough to
have been assessed last year as being IN
| fair
A MILLION DOLLARS SHY.
The work of the board has resulted in
a net increase of about 1912, 600 i'll the fig
/ ureS returned by the assessor and makes
| the total valuation $14 395, sol, as against
| $10,557, 401 for last year, or Il shortage Of
! Il, l6l,S 500 that will have to be made Up
| by the state board of equalization The
| state board will have no other recourse
! because, presuming that the valuation of
| the personal property in Ramsey county
would not be less than last year, the fig
ures Of last year were figured in comput-
ing the ~ mill levy for the state revenue
| fund.
AS the figures stand now the personal
| property of Ramsey county has an as
| sesseG valuation of 1885, SOL comprising
| the following items: Horses and mules,
$239,672; cattle, SILL 062; sheep, $3.50; hogs,
! $3.50; wagons and carriages. $3.50, 253; sew
| ing and knitting machines, $74, $50; watch
| es and clocks. $102 105; meIodeons and or
gans, $l4,5S5; pianos, 1926. 457: household
and office furniture, $1,S77, 769; agricultural
| tools and implements, $24 399; gold and
! silver plated ware, $50649; diamonds and
| jewelry, $685. franchises, annuites, roy
| alties, etc, $685. steamboats, and sail
| ing vessels, SO, 7S5; goods and merchandise,
| $33I6,375; materials and manufactured ar
| tiCles, $42S,5S7; manufacturers tools, ma
chinery, etc, $449S10; money OF banks,
| bankers, brokers, etc, $3S292; credits of
banks, bankers, brokers, etc, 81, 422; other
moneys, $223 344; other credits, 81, $50, so;
bonds and stocks, $451 Cos; bank stocks,
$206T,IG0; capital stock, Of companies out
side state, $780, stock and furniture of
saloons and eating houses, including bill
Hard tables, $T,SI5; all other property
p@,o-'-l0So, etCN dCOIS anu Warehouses;, 9lO-
433; improvements on lands held under
homestead laws, Ml,150; dogs, $4,455. The
assessors only found one OK IN the coun-
ty and located 81 dogs, which were as
sessed a S. each, on the principle, appar-
emily, that canine that is not worth So
is worth nothing.
SEVERAL REDUCTIONS
The jobbing houses, department stores
and larger retail firms m0nopolized near
~ the whole time of the beard at yester-
days session. The Hackett Hardware
company was reduced from Sc, 900 to $780,
900; Noyes Bros. & Cutler from $i25, goo to
$110 900, Schwab, Swift & Co.. from $40 800
| to $780, Kellogg, Johnson & Co, from
$4,000 to $1,000; TarboX, Schliek &c Co.,
from $50 900 to $4,000, Merk Bros from
$l0.565 to S5,G25; NJ. L. Finkelstein from
| $4,000 to 1850; Louis CavitZel from $500
to $500; Horrigan Bros. from $500 to
| 81 500 Anna w Clark from $1,000 to s., 500.
The receiver of the Pennsylvania &
| Ohio Coal company wrote from Chicago
protesting against an assessment on
| s., 800, because the company has 10 prop
! erty in st. Paul. The board was of the
| opinion that there was $500 worth here
! on May when the assessment was made
| and the amount was allowed to stand.
| The St. Pal City Railway company had
| returned $416, coo in personal property, and
| the assessor had raised this to $4,000.
| to include the franchise. Commissioner
| Wright suggested a further raise of 70
| per cent and the valuation was finally
| fixed at even $500, 600. Then the st. Paul
| Gas company came in for an overhauling.
| Aid. Reeves, of the special committee,
| presented a statement from the company
| showing that the capitalization is $4,000
| shares OF stock at a par value of $1O0.
/ The market value on May 1 was, however,
! stated to have been $3.50 per share, or
! total Of 1897 800. After deducting for real
! estate Investments the assessed valuation
| laf+ n S5A1 ~ These figures were &C