The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-03-16
.,,a 60 IA v,,ilo the assessment FOR the

,.,,ta real estate Is assessed UP to its
fu,l market value. This is certainly the
casa In Richnaond, and our information is
that 1t is the case in every other other VIZ II:
rinia city. 1t IS fair to presume, there
fore. that sl1s.s49.373 represents the true
saline OF real estate and Improvements
en- tho Virginia cities. Deductins this
s,,m from the whole amount given in
the census report, we have balance
of ss5o. es3. $50, which would seem to repre-
sent the true value OF real estate In
tho country districts Of Virginia, where
as the property owners in the country
tapparenny pay taxes on little more
than one-half that sum. That is very
near the state Of the case. If any man
will take the trouble to go over the.
real estate assessments for the several
counties in Virginia he will be forced
10 the conclusion that real estate IN
the country districts is mot on the
average assessed at moro than oo
cents on the dollar Of its true value.
Now. let us make some comparisons
In the matter of personal property. Ac-s
cording to the census report of 1880
there were in the State of Virginia
7e6 .e91 hogs, but according to the tax
returns ten years later there were only
$4,000 hogs in this old Commonwealth
What terrible ravages the hog cholera
must have been making in Virginia
since the census, of 1880!
The census returns of 1890 show that
there were 495,3l3 sheep. not including
lambs, in the State of Virginia Ac-
cording to the tax returns of last year
there were S23,1S4 sheep of all sorts and
conditions. 1t would appear from this
that the sheep industry In Virginia is on
the wane.
Acco; ding to the Auditors report there
are only 70 clocks in the county of
Goochland and 172 watches. In the
county of King and Queen there are
clocks and 80 watches yet in the lit
tie county of Grayson, away back in the
mountains, there are 425 watches and
1,1sG clocks. According to this same
report there are only 500 watches in the
county of d1enrico, while the county
of Wise reports 1853 watches. Wise has
go clocks, Henrico 7o7. The county Of
Accomac reports Lass watches, the coun-
ty of Albemarle S94. According to this
report there is no gold, silver plate,
plated ware or jewelry in the county Of
Goochland, nor in the county of Rich
mond, nor in the county of Scott, nor
in the county of Warwick.
1t has been charged that the city
folks do not list their stocks and
bonds, but we observe by reference to
the Auditors report that considerably
more than one-th:rd of the value of
..bonds, notes and other evidences of
debt is assessed against the cities,
while less than two-thirds is assessed
against all the counties combined c.
this account the county of York returns
$3.50, the county of Warwick s1.C96.
the county Of Richmond s25,172, the coun-
ty of Lancaster s22,932, the county OF
James City $3.50, the county of Cum
herland 1885, the county Of Pittsylvania.
which, we believe, is the largest coun-
ty in the State, makes a return of $l39,-
1872 while the little county of King Viii
liam returns s20l,79O.
Don't we need a little bit of tax
equalization in the counties as we'll rs
in the cities?
implements and machinery in the State
Of Virginia according to the census of
1890 was SS9,997,9G9. The total value of
all such property in the country dis
tricts, as listed for taxation, is about
s1S5Oo,0Oo.
AS we said in a former article, we
are not after instituting odious compar-
isons between the cities and the coun-
try districts. The people in the country
are just as honest and patriotic as. the
people in town, comparing them mass
with mass, but when it is intimated
that the people in the country are pay
ing all the taxes that they should pay,
while the people in town are dodging
bring cut the figures and let the public
see how the account stands. The
Times has contempt for the tax
dodger wherever he be found, and we
have frequently said that we would be
glad to see some fair system inaugu-
rated in Virginia which would bring
every such diodger to book. But we
are opposed to an inquisitorial law that
is aimed especially at one class of tax
payers, when it is apparent from the
figures which we have cited that other
classes of tax payers are quite as de-
linquent in making their returns. Ii
we are to have commissioners OF valua-
ton let them not be restricted in their
| labors to the owners of stocks and
| bonds.