Mexico weekly ledger., 1901-08-29
HoE. s. B. COOK.
Gives State Board Credit for the Ten
Million Dollars Raise With no
Specific Hardships- Knockers
the Big Dodgers.

In response TO an inquiry as to what
he thought Of the attack the Post
Dispatch was making on the State
Board Of Equalization, Secretary of
State S. 3. Cook said;
"Most Of the people In the State
feel that the board did fairly we'll
this year In the assessment Of rail-
road, bridge and telegraph property.
The assessment exceeded by S10,000,-
900 the highest figure ever before
reached In the State, the increase in
some instance being 100 per cent. The
fact, too, that this class Of property is
valued by the Missouri board from 40
to 90 per cent higher than in any of
the adjoining states would indicate
that the railroads were not escaping
their full share OF the burdens OF
taxation.
"The Post Dispatch, however, in its
great solicitation for the welfare Of
the people, and its great adherence
for the soulless corporations, is not at
all pleased with the result and insists
on scolding the State Board for net
making greater increases. The fact is
the Post Dispatch seems to be utterly
unable to discuss the subject Of taxa
tion with any degree Of fairness or
candor. 1t makes palpably untrue
assertions with the recklessness of the
most pestiferous pettifogger.
''For instance, 1t asserts and reas-
serts that real estate and personal
property in st. Louis is assessed at 10
per cent Of its actual value, while the
street railroads are assessed at 33t per
cent. No one knows better than the
Post Dispatch that the statement is
not true.
at has been claimed by the board
of assessors of st. Louis that the real
estate Of that city is assessed at 10 per
cent and there is more or less founda-
tion for this claim. This is done, as
the Eost- Dispatch well knows by the
local authorities for local purposes.
But the personal property isnot only
assessed at 70 per cent, but it is not
valued for taxing purposes at one-half
or one-fourth or in some instances at
one-tenth this figure.
PULITzER PROPERTY FOR INSTANCE.
"Let me cite a case in point: The
Joseph Pulitzer Publishing Company,
better known as the st. Louis Post
Dispatch, is capitalized at $1,000, 900,
fully paid up. Its stock is not on the
market, but its officers swear it is
worth 100 cents on the dollar. AS a
matter Of fact, it can not be bought at
that figure. An assessment of 10 per
cent would, therefore, mean a taxable
valuation for the Post Dispatch of $780,
900.
An assessment OF 33t per cent, which
Is the usual rate throughout the
State, would make 1888, 33S.3Ss. Now
let us see If the Post Dispatch tells the
truth when it asserts that personal
property in st. Louis is assessed at 70
per cent. For the year 1900 the Post
Dispatch was assessed at $24, 900, upon
which it paid local taxes amounting to
$500. 80, and paid the State s6l.6O. The
assessment of the Post Dispatch this
year was increased by the local assess
ors s40O, and that great paper viii pay
taxes for 1900 on an even $4,000. In
stead, therefore, of an assessment of
10 per cent, the Post Dispatch is paying
on an assessment Of q per cent.
'grhe State Board of Equalization
against which the Post Dispatch rails,
assessed the street railways Of st.
Louis at more per mile than the actual
cost Of construction and equipment,
then added franchise value Of s22, 900
per mile, making a total assessment of
Of "a, 900 per mile. In other words,
q little more than half mile OF street
railway pays as much taxes under the
assessment Of the State board as the
million dollar Post Dispatch pays un-
der the valuation fixed by the city as
SCISSORS.
1.-THE considerate treatment accord
ed the Post Dispatch by the city assess
ors is evidently appreciated by that
journal. Under the circumstances it
would have been exceedingly unkind
u the Post Dispatch for it to have stat
ed the fact in discussing this import
ant subject that under the law which
required street railways to be assessed
by the local authorities the street
railways of st. Louis were assessed at
but little above s5,0O0oOO, while the
State board assesses the United Rail-
ways company alone at s16,500, 600, or
more than three times as much.
eI know of no other taxpayer in the
State, farmer, merchant, laborer, me
chanic, corporation or what not his
business may be, who has attained
such colossal success as tax dodger as
Millionaire Pulitzer's st. Louis mill
lion dollar newspaper"