The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-03-30
HENRY C. ROWE HEARD.
N'' ". ....
HIS CLOSING UMENT MADE
 YESTERDAY
Before the Committee on the Assessment
 HiII.

BiII.
 On Thursday the opponents of the
 Chamber of Commerce bill, to provide
 relief from excessive assessments of
 real estate, were heard before the Ju-
 dietary committee in Hartford. Elk
 Lieutenant Governor Dewell, the chair
 man of the Chamber of Commerce com-
 mittee on legislation, had previously ar
 ranged that Henry c. Rowe should
 have the closing argument in behalf of
 the bill. The committee having been so
 far reduced, it was agreed that MT. { Rowe should have an appointment for
 a special hearing yesterday afternoon.
 The case was presented yesterday to
 nearly a full committee and had their
 close attention for about an hour. The
 latter part of MT. Rowe's address was
 as follows:
 Seven weeks ago you listened kindly
 and attentively to-, statement from me
 concerning this bill. l have thought
 much about it since Therefore I ven-
 ture again to ask you to bear with me
 while I try to present the subject in a
 more clear and effective way than I did
 before.
 Men are fallible The average judg-
 ment of mankind is very prone to er- TOT. Men differ as to religion, politics,
 law, medicine, business--all the affairs of life. In all these differences one side must be wrong. Shall we not, then, avoid trusting to the fallible judgments of men and avail ourselves of the sim pie, effective and sure operation of nat ural laws in all matters to which they can be applied?
 In the matter before you we ask to be permitted to avail ourselves of the great but simple economic law of market value.
 Thousands of property owners in New Haven claim that they are wronged. The assessors and their expert witness es claim that they are right. We ask, in Justice to both parties, that we may ascertain in the one natural and con- elusive way which is right. We wish to ascertain the market value by an ap- peal to the market itself. The appeal to men is unsatisfactory, for men make mistakes and are sometimes prejudced | iiC cPPSoi to IllC NNPCl iOI COdll lo CA- pensive, and it's result dependent in New Haven upon expert testimony, which is also expensive, contradictory and perplexng.
 We wish to know the market value l May we not appeal to the market itself, which is the very authority which is named in the law-an authority which | is reliable and certain, an authority in | the world of values like the law of | gravitation in the world of natural sci ence? True, the latter is mysterious to us, while we understand the causes of market values, but both are alike in certainty and accuracy of operation. Gravity brings the water of a lake to a perfect level when artificial supports are withdrawn, or when the wind sub sides; appeals to the market if you will enable us to make them, will bring market values to level, and calm the troubled waters of uneven and inequita- ble assessments.
 Will the passage of this bill tend in an effective way to regulate assessments in New Haven on a just and level ba- sis? What is the lawful basis or prin- ciple of assessment?
 The statute says: "The present true and just value of any estate shall be deemed by all assessors and boards of relief to be the true market value there ,f, and not its value at forced or auc- ion sale" Our Supreme court has said that the expressions "actual value" market value" market price," mean .he same thing They mean "the price or value of the article, established or shown by sales public or private, in the way of ordinary business" This ex- dudes forced or auction sales, and a sale under this proposed statute would ] lot be such. ' Bouvier's Dictionary says: "A forced l ale is one made without the consent of ( he owner of the property by some off, I ,ial of the law appointed in obedience ' o the mandate of the court" Bouvi- g ITS Dictionary, volume ?, pages 492 and ( 93. It is obvious that sale made under f he voluntary offer of the property un- c Ter the provisions of this law is not 4 breed or auction sale. In the sixty t hird Connecticut, 493d page, we find: o A sale is matter of fact, not of opin- V on, and is direct evidence of the real t. worth of the thing sold, indeed, the f rice for which an article is bought and p old constitutes it's market value" We e ubmit, therefore, that this proposed act u strictly in accordance with the exist 1g statute in the principle of assess t 1ent Ii We ask no change in the principle or b asis of assessment. We ask simply to 1t e provided with an automatic, accur- h te test based on natural principles, fC mich will enable us to determine in very fragrant case of assessment al hat the present market value" of the ir roperty in question is. You, gentle a. len, are familiar with the interpreta- e on of the law, and I should not dare to m resent these authorities to you had leir application to this case not been e pproved by high legal authority. pl But the very simplicity of this rem tl ly prejudices some theorists. Simple ui ,lnmon sense practical business in- inct, decides that the present market n. due" of a property is what it will sell g, IT when offered voluntarily by the nj vner and not under compulsion. Why N wandering about in a fog of theo- Ia es? We are dealing with simple, ac- n, al facts? It A day or two ago 8 gentleman with a in ,od common sense head who in com ii, on with thousands of others has been n, ronged by the present unjust assess a1 ax,+ ,, Anx,, I.aHa,, aoii .hat in