Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1900-01-26
TRUTH ABOUT
ANTLERS TAX
Facts Deliberately Misrepre.
sented by the Tran
- ~ 4tn-$~n< -
Statement Regarding Treas
urer Meyer is a Malicious
1.ia

The county commissioners did not
meet Tuesday, therefore did not re-
consider the Antlers tax abatement
and SO left the county treasurer no
option but to turn over the rax re-
ceipt to Mr.. Landau, who is in
charge CT the property.
The action of the commissioners
has aroused 80 much indignation
throughout the county that the
Transcript feels it necessary to come
to their rescue, particularly in aid of
Commissioner Lafond. In long ar.
ticle in Tuesdays issne, it presents a
lot of alleged facts, going to show
that the action of the commission
ers was perfectly proper, and then
consistently >eeks to blaine Treas
urer Meyer for the action.
Taxes have not been paid on the
Antlers since 1892, becanse,. .as the
Transcript says, the property didn't
pay. Is that any reason for abat-
ing taxes. There are business
blocks in Little Falls and Royalton
which haven't paid for a long time.
Shall the taxes on them be abated?
The owners of the Antlers let their
taxes 60 Tor years, until thereseemed
a possibility of using the property,
and naturally then tried to clear the
title as cheaplv as possible. It is
claimed that the property was as
sessed too high. which may have
been true in some years, but which
has nothing to do with the present
case. The owners should have COM
planned when the assessments were
made.
i The total taxes, penalty end in
terest due was about $3.5OO. Mr.
Landau offered 81, 500, which was
accepted. The Transcript utters a
deliberate, willful, malicious lie when
it says that Treasurer Meyer urged
the acceptance of the offer, and sat
next to Commissioner Enke, per.
suading him to the action. Mr..
Meyer was not over minute in the
room, which will be besubstantiated by
the county auditor and Commis-
sioner Gross. He sat down opposite
MIR. Enke. In answer to a question
from Mr.. Lafond, he said that be
bought in some years the property
had been assessed perhaps too high.
This was all. BE had no previous
knowledge of the matter coming up
at all, or th Mr.. Mecusker wished
t o bid. II Mr.. Meyer had urged the
board as the Transcript claims, in
the forenoon, he would not have
used the strong language he did in
criticising the commissioners in. the
afternoon. The treasurer, when he
learned that the county was being
beaten out Of a large SUN of money,
did all in his power to prevent it. He
held back the tax receipt so that le-
gal steps could~be taken, and until
the board could have u chance to re-
wise it's action. When the board
failed to do it's duty, be had no op-
tion r ut to give over the receipt.
The ussal course in these tax
abatements is to let the documents
be sent by the county auditor to the
state auditor at the close of the ses-
sion. But in this case, there was evil
IDENTIFY fea" that the people would
make a roar about the deal before it
was ct,nsummat ted, so Mr.. Rhodes
FASTENED to St. Paul with the docu.
,nents, and went to- the state audi
tors residence to have them signed.
II Mr. Dunn had known the facts, as
ne fated afterwards, his signature
would have been withheld. This ex-
perience has caused the state auditor
to announce that hr will approve no
more tax abatements. The Tran
script tries to show that Mr.. Mecus-
ker only cared to bid after Landau
had made his offer, and knows that
1t utters an untruth when it says it j
Mr.. Mecusker had never thought of
the Antlers tax at all. Several days
before the meeting Of the co1nty
board, Commissioners Lafond ap-
preached Mr., Mecusker on the sub
|iect. He pointed ont the possibili-
ties in the matter as an investments!