The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-07-22
THE ORGANS LATEST TUNE

In it's issue of July Goth, Southern
i Railway employee takes up two col
umns in the Southern Railways or
gan, the Morning Post, denouncing
the News and Observer and praising
| the Southern Railway. AS the praise
of the Southern is paid for by the
Southern officials it is self-laudation
AS its abuse of the News and Observer
is also paid for by Southern officials
| we enter no protest against it. "The
laborer Isl worthy of his hire
The pretense seized upon by the
Southern Railways organ for it's
praise and denunciation. was this
item that appeared in the local col
umns of the News and Observer on
Thursday morning:
"One year ago the three great raiL
way systems of the State paid not one
penny of taxes into the public treas
| ury."
AS soon as we discovered this error
the News and Observer stated that
what it intended to say was this:
Zone year ago the three great rail-
way systems of the State paid not one
penny of taxes into the public treas
urv on the ten million dollars addi-
tional assessment made by the Corpu-
ration Commission
And that is the truth. These rail-
roads in 1899, by the grace of Federal
Judge Simonton, who arrogated to
himself the right to assess railroad
property of North Carolina, did 1ot
pay a cent of taxes into the public
treasury ON the additional tea mil
lion dollars assessed by the State
Corporation Commission, the only
body authorized to assess railroads.
for taxation.
The Post says that the Southern
Railway paid last year $116,215.76 for
State, county, municipal and oth.r
taxes. In presenting these figures,
furnished byFa Southern Railway Off
cial, the Post presents them with a
gusto as if they met the two
charges which taxpayers make
and which they intend to keep on
making until taX-dodging and Federal
usurpation are at an end:
/. That the three great systems of
railways in North Carolina do not
pay one cent of taxes into the treas
| ury on the 100000 increased as
| sessment made by the Corporation
Commission, but pay on an admitted
differentiation made by the Fusion
| Railroad Commissioners.
?. That they are enabled to carry
out this taX-dodging because of the
| usurpation of power by Judge Simon
| ton of the Federal bench, who has
given North Carolina a dose of ''gov-
| eminent by Injunction which in two
years has given the Southern Railway
alone $36,592 per year-about enough
to keep the Morning Post organ grind
ing out its monopoly tunes.
In round figures the railroad prop
erty in North Carolina is assessed at
| forty-two millions. One hundred mil
lion dollars in gold would not buy all
the railroad property in North Caro-
lima. According to the reports made
| by the railroads themselves they
earned, after expenses including the
publication of the Morning Post or
| gan, six per cent net upon $66,000,000,
and yet when the Corporation Com
| mission makes an assessment of only
$42 100000 they rush to- Judge ST.
monitor and get out an injunction and
dodge paying tax on one-fourth Of
| the assessed value of their property.
! And when the News and Observer
prints these facts and figures, and, in
| line with the Democratic State and
national platforms, denounces gov
| eminent by injunction" the Southern
Railway employees use their Morning
| Post organ to say the time "has pass
| ed when such an independent jour
nal as the News and Observer ''can
| be sustained by the honest and in
telligent people in North Carolina"
|
sustain such a corporation and mo-
nopoly organ as the Morning Post, it
| will be a sad day for the State, for
! it will indicate that the people are
ready to wear the collar of political
tax-dodging corporation.
AS the Southern organ gave no fig
ures except from the Southern Rail-
way, we will show the taxpayers how
Simonton has made q present annu-
ally of $4,000 to the Southern Rail-
way. Here are the figures:
The full amount of tax paid by the
Southern Railway in 1899 in North
| Carolina was $116,215.76. The amount
| they would have paid but for Simon
tons injunction was 152.7OS-a dill
| ference of $50, 592. 33-fully enough to
| print the Morning Post to denounce
everybody that opposes tax-dodglng'
Simonton has issued another injunc-
| ton against the 1900 assessment, thus