Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-03-15
A HARD Task BEGUN
Executive Council Today Begins
the Work Of Assessing the
Railroads.
Confused Mass Of Figures Sent
In by the Different
Lines.
Some Companies Fail TO Report
Value Of Property in
Iowa.

yssAsSS W = = " kSSsy So
Iowa.
Specia! to Times Republican.
Des Mones, March 15.-The executive
council today entered upon the work Of
making the railroad assessment for
Iowa. Last year the council had al
stormy time while engaged in consider
| ing the matter of assessments. Wheth-
| er or not there will be friction in thu
I5council at this time remains to be seen.
The tabulated figures are all before the
/ members and have been for several
days, so that they will be familiar with
lhem. These reports are similar in form
Ito the reports which have hitherto been
made. II suppose these figures are all
THAT We will have to consider in making
/ the assessment" said one member of
1.-THE council, but / have studied the fig
ures good deal and fail to find the in
formation which 1T seems to me ought
to be before board of assessors in
making an assessment. Here is a great
mass of figures which are confusing TO,
i any one. We find reports of gross earn
lings. earnings per mile, expenditures,
net earnings. value of real estate. and
all these various items, but there is
Esuch discrepancy between the figures
4 given that we know they represent
largely mere differences in methods of
bookkeeping rather than different con-
lditions of the property. Here is a road
4 we know is: making great profits and
.lpaying big dividends on a vast capital-
lization and paying interest in great is
sues of bonds. and yet it reports gross
Earnings per mile az very small in
amount Another company which we
Il know is not so profitable in any way,
sl"reports substantially the sans gross
l3earnings per mile Wescan only con-
Iclnde that figures do not always tell the
truth when presented by persons who
sl'are to face the assessor. This illus
sltrates the confusion sure to follow If the
q SCISSORS consider only the bare statis-
itics presented by the railroad conpa-
nies on Which to have the asse swrlients
q made.
When the hearings We're begun by the
executive council this morning Secre-
Etary of State Martin introduced a reso-
1 Luton reciting that the gross earnings
sIof the railroads have steadily increased
4 for several years and declaring that the
4 essessrnent should pc materially in
4 creased The council invited discus
& sion of this proposition by the railroad
men present and number of them
q spoke. Judge Baldwin. for the o., de-
Eolared tina the railroads would not hava
4 to come here If the matter of assess
ments was not in politics All tbs rail
a road men contended that the railroad
assessments are higher than on other
property and asked for a reduction. The
hearing will take several days.
Some of the railroad companies have
Inot reported TO the executive ceuncil
1.-the value Of their property in Iowa az
provided by law For instance the Mil
waukee company cid no. fill out the
8 columns marked values in the blank
schedules sent out by the executive
Icouncil. When this omission was dis
covered by the secretary o fthe council
II a letter was sent to the general officers
lof the Milwaukee, asking a correction.
The company officers responded that
{ they are unnblc 10 furnish the inforna-
tion desired. either by giving accurate
: figures from the records or by making
y estimates. They cite various rea sons for
!. this. The chief reason, however. is that
s on a great many of the branches of the
Milwaukee the company has no infor-
nation az to the cost of the property:
lthat the branches We're built BY separ-
}, ate companies and subsequently pur-
chased by the N1ilwaukee mana cement.
a that the original books of these now
u defunct companies are not in possession
e Of the Milwaukee company; that in
many cases the Milwaukee company is
!, not in possession of maps showing the
II right of way. etc. For these and other
81 reasons the Milwaukee company pre-
sents no figures on the value Of the
property in Iowa. but the report is con-
fined TO receipts. expenditures and oth-
er facts. The assumption in this case
is that value can be measured largely,
or solely by cost, and that without
knowing the cost of the physical prop
: erty it is impossible for the owners o.
the railroad to know anything abou,
value
There are other puzzling problems Ia
: come before the assessors. Sioux City
presents one of these puzzing prob
: lens. The Illinois Central railroad runs
Sioux City track. which IT leases and
!. the Illinois Central pays the taxes of the
Dubuque & Sioux City. But from LIE
Mars into Sioux City the Chicago. st
Paul. Minneapolis & Omaha road. or
Omaha" as It is called. runs into
Sioux City over the same tracks This
!. Omaha and Central run into differen,
: depots. hence for terminals the Omaha
has fraction of mile of road ir
: Woodbury. county. The board of super
: visors of Woodbury. county have had
the county attorney write the executive
council a letter asking that the Omaha
company be assessed on some other
4 than a mileage basis They claim thai
s inasmuch1 as the Omaha owns valuable
property, round house. shops and ter
e ,ninals. ii should be assessed on all the
: mileage which it uses in the county
j, including that part of the Dubuque &
Sioux City il Woodbury. county. From
4 the standpoint of the Sioux City people
the assessment of the Omaha on only a
fraction of a mile is unjust. But how
is 1t to be avoided? The county attor-
I ney, in writing the letter, was careful
Ito cuofe from the law those parts whfcl