The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1901-10-24
THE AUDIrORs BID TO THE COR.
PORATION.

THE AUDIrORs BID To THE COR |
PORATION.
On the front page Of this issue we
publish Q remarkable letter which
the State Auditor has sent out to
the officers Of the corporations Of the
State. He plainly intends TO en-
courage and advise the officers of
these corporations to violate the law
by not listing their property for tax
alton at It's true value, and, further
more, he assures them that he will
not exercise the duty placed upon
him by law to review appraisements
made by them TO see that they are
In accordance with law.
BY referring to section 6 Of the
Revenue Act IL will be seen that 1t
Is made the positive duty Of the Of
ficers Of every corporation "between
the first and fifteenth days Of July
Of each year to estimate and sppraise
the capital stock Of said company at
It's actual value In cash on the first
day Of June" etc. This does not
mean that corporation shall take
the average cash value Of Its cap
itsl stock for The last ten or one
hundred years as basis upon which
1t should be taxed, for in most
cases such course would make the
company's property for taxation at
the present time less than one-fourth
Of what 1t really Is. Yet this Is
Just what the State Auditor advises
theSe corporations to do In viola.
tion Of law, and then the Auditor
boldly assures them that If they do
violate the law In this respect he
will not only wink at, but will en-
dorse such violation, although, In so
doing, of course, he must also viO-
late the law and his oath of Office,
for the revenue act makes 1t the pos
tive duty Of the Auditor, If he is
not satisfied that the sppraisement
made by any corporation covers the
true and actual cash value of It's
property on the first day Of June, to
make true valuation of the same
based upon the facts he has in his
Office which every corporation is re-
quired to furnish the State Auditor.
Has the State Auditor been thus
considerate or rather solicitous that
the farmers and merchants of the
State should not pay their full share
of taxes, but be let off by paying
any amount they saw At to pay ?
Why not advise each farmer and
each merchant that If the cash value
Of his property today Is $4,000 and
ten years ago 1t was only $1,000,
then, instead of paying taxes on
$4,000, he may be let off by sim.
ply paying taxes on the average
value Of his property for the past
ten years, which would Of course
reduce his taxes at least one-half.
1t was the loud boast of the last
Democratic legislature that they in.
tended to have the property of the
State assessed at Its true value and
by this means raise q large amount
of money for the public schools &c
as to be able to educate all of the
ignorant boys under 81, in order that
they may not be disfranchised, a
they will be should they reach the
age Of 81 years without being able
to read and write. The revenue
law was drawn 30 as to greatly In
crease the taxes to be collected, and
now It seems that the Democratic
administration has suddenly decided
that 1t does not want to raise &c
much money, or, at least, that II
wants everybody to pay his full
share Of taxes except the corpora
lions and the corporations are to pay
whatever they please.
What does all this mean? Ha.
the 5immons-Aycock redshirt ma
chine become frightened at the ten
dency of q large number of business
men to leave their ballot box stuff
ing political machine and join hand
to build up an Independent politlca
movement In the State that will En-
courage industrial progress? Is
possible that this is their motiv'
and IL 1t possible that they thinl
they can thus influence the corpora
tions to stay In the Democrati
party by exempting them from
large part Of their taxes? An,
nave they done this deliberatel!
knowing that by doing so they viii
rob the public school fund of ten
of thousands If not hundreds o
Thousands of dollars? Are they will
ing that the poor ignorant boys Q
the State should reach the age of 2
and be DISTINGUISHED along with tn
negro, If thereby they can kee
these corporations In the Democrs
kic a a, !,