The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-10-13


terday mornings Tribune that Select
Councilman d. w. Vaughan had start
ed an investigation Of this years as
sessment created quite stir in and
around city hall yesterday. 1t was the
general concensus Of opinion that the
whole assessment should be thoroughly
gone over and that If any reductions
have been made that they sohuld be
added back again.
Councilman Vaughan spent over two
hours going over the assessment books
for the Thirteenth and Twenty-first
wards yesterday afternoon and he dis
covered numerous instances where re-
ductions and in some cases. very big
reductions had been made in the as
sessment this year as compared with
last year.
He was assisted in going over the
books by an interested party and the
method adopted was as follows: One
took the assessment book for 1899 and
the other the assessment book for 1900.
The lot and block numbers were then
called off and comparison made be-
tween the assessments made for each
property this year and the same prop
erty in 1899.
THIRTEENTH WARD.
In the Thirteenth ward book he went
through all the names beginning with
A and and found several reductions.
The names beginning with these letters
constitute about one-twentieth Of the
assessed persons in the ward. The fol-
lowing specific reductions were discov-
cred by him in the Thirteenth ward:
DR.. j. B. Amman's property, assessed
for $1,225 in 1899. assessed for $1,175 in
1900. Difference Of $50 on improve
ments.
+. +. Ardnt's property assessed for
S4,650 in 1899: assessed for $4,000 in 1900,
q reduction this year of $3.50.
E. L. Barzler's property assessed for
$1,120 in 1899; assessed for 1920 in 1900,
a reduction this year of $780,
John w. Browns property, assessed
for s1,11O in 1899, assessed for $500 in
19O0 a reduction this year of $3.50.
Mr.. Vaughan had heard that sweep
ing reductions had been made in the
Twenty-first ward and he got last
years book and made very casual
examination. He found that what he
had heard was only too true and dis
covered that reductions had been made
which We're almost startling.
1t was first noted that the Cathedral
cemetery was this year assessed for
$4,000, whereas it was not assessed at
all last year. Cemeteries are exempt
from taxation and the board Of revision
and appeal has already crossed the as
sessment out. This $4,000, however,
figured UP in the grand total at the end
of the book. The following are but a
few OF the many reductions discovered
in this particular ward in an exalnina-
tion of the book that didn't take over
fifteen minutes:
TWENTY-FlRST WARD.
Two and siX-tenths acres of coal land
on North Main avenue belonging to the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western
company assessed in 1899 for $2,0SO;
assessed in 1900 for $685. reduction
this year of $1,727.
Four and 65-100 acres OF surface and
coal on North Main avenue belonging
to the Delaware, Lackawanna and
Western company, assessed in 1899 for
$ls6O; assessed in 1900 for 1927, a reduce
ton for this year Of 81 ,233.
Three lots on Carbon street belonging
to the Delaware, Lackawanna and
western company, assessed in 1899 for
5000 each. assessed in 1900 for $lOO each,
or total reduction Of $500 for this year
The total valuation this year in the
Twenty-first ward is about $40. 900 more
than last year. but taking out the $751;
900 for the cemetery, which was not in
cluded last year, it would leave it about
$4,000 more.
This is robbery and nothing else,"
said Mr.. Vaughan, after looking over
the Twenty-first ward book. There's
been some juggling with these figures
to make the assessment appear more
than last year. 1t ought to be more.
Of course. 1t ought to be over 100000
more on account of all the new houses
put up over there. But you can see
that the assessments on this company
land have been reduced and in not one
instance that I have been able to dis
cover has it been raised.
"They've punched whole lots of prop