Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-02-14

The Delinquent Tax Lave
page News.)

Ihht "
All property-holders should De ueeP'y
Interested I'm n law whereby they can DC
deprived OF their property wlthou, 'ne'
consent. and even without their KNOW
edge. There are now on ME III ~
Clerks office of this county about Il nun
dred applications for delinquent lailuS :"
Page county. 1t is likely that "heH 'nc
time allowed for redompuoh-ioui
months-has passed. there will be more
than one poor man surprised 10 Hnu ma
his property is gone. our RileyVile cur
respondent told OF a case at oEeI"i,
| where it took $50 TO buy out OF the hanu5
of tho capitalist sixty-five acres oi 'a"u
which was delinquent for 80 taxes
n,be ncopIe who are applying for de-
linnuent lands are not Isolated speculd-
Tors hut they are organized INTO one OF
,,ore large companies with abundaht
capital at their command, and are opera
,ing all over the State. In snort l"lu
| grabbing is now as much a business III
the State as making and selling OF sihoh-
mo tobacco. The law which makes tne
business of these capitalists so pioh'a-
HE NAV decrease the delinquency OF TAX
! pavers. and thereby benefit the S'a'e' Du'
its main result has been TO lmpoNe'''
and Cypress the poor.
To show how profitable is this new spe-
7 plHE OF lllNl AI'0ANh ~
of Virginia. we give the following: Cap-
! tain Howard Young. Clerk OF AleXahdrlH
county Court. states. that in his county
o1one there were over 800 applications
for delinquent lands. and that ne recent
lv sent his check To a party III the Guy
of Richmond for over a thousand uot-
lars this amount being s. pald by ~
delinouents under this law to the Iahu-
grabber TO redeem their property from
his hands. uo,
The law did not require the capltaiIs'
to expeud a dime 70 acqulre TINS sum
and "all this was without beneht 10 the
state. except so far il has secured 'm'
payment of a few dollars OF taxes uu''
The lions share OF the prohts III 'h.s'
ransactious goes TO the capitalist. the
state usually getting only Il sm"t'
share. Mr.. Young told OF a case,
where an old negro woman, OF
the 'old issue kind bent WIN
are and rheumatism. came INTO MS
office. and bursting into tears, lald upon
his desk her tax bill for 90 cents. that
which she owed the CommofsWealth
and S6.99 which had to go for shylocA
and unnecessary expenses so as 10 en-
BILE her keep her leaky roof above he'
head.
If is argued with truth that our las
DELINQUENT tax law Will cause many peo
ole TO nav their taxes who have hereto
fore been careless and will thereby IN
crease our revenues. At the~same time w
feel convinced that this is a bad law
In the first place. the increase IN re|e
mes will not compensate for the inJustic'
and suffering caused. Instances mat W.
have given of the undesirable WORKING
Of the law are not exceptional. the sam
abuses are occurring all over the stat
and many thousand of applications ar
now on file. there scarcely being a COUNT
In the State where the very best proper
ties have not been applied for by ines
people. Again, the law. while 1t benehl
the State TO some degree. IS, in tact' N
franchise Of a perniciOus monopoly. IN
aim Of the land-grabbers' Is not TO hol'
and improve the property they acqulre
The profitable side of their business Is /
wiring the s. out of those who redeem
their property or TO restore mouse an
home at an exhOrbitant figure AFTER l'
time of redemption has gone by, as wa
i'm the case mentioned by our klley VII
correspondent. We presume. Inc l""H
grabber has no profit II he must Keep III
land he applies for. .,.
The law. il is likely. will be apollsne
or modified by the next Legislature. I've
the majority of those who voted ior IL ut
SURPRISED al the manner II mas nee
abused. In the mean time. the Suprpm
Cont has declared 1t constitutional. an
/, virginia will be at the mercy OF tne lauo
grabbers till the Legislature OF lS59-l9-
roa.Hg