Omaha daily bee., 1902-05-01
OSTROM WANTS INFORMATION
Why Haitian Jacobsen's Name Remains or
the County Pay Roll,
TALK OF RAISE IN COUNTY ASSESSMENTS
Commissioner Hints at Possible Adj
vance of Four Million Dollars in
Total, but Insists on Abso-
lutte Equality.

Not the corporations alone, but all the
heavy property owners OF Douglas county
will have to stand a raise OF Is per cent
Of the valuation Of their holdings when
the county commissioner meet as a board
Of equalization next June, II COMMISSIONS
Ostrom can realize on a plan that he was
forced to disclose at yesterdays meet
ing Of the Board Of County Commissioners.
o'Keene forced the disclosure by demand
ing an explanation Of a bill for SIS filed by
Halfdsn Jacobsen for services rendered
during April" oStrom and Hoteldt. II
was then learned. have had Jacobsen in
the once Of City Tar Commissioner Flem-
Ing for four weeks copying the entries Of
the holdings In the city of the corporations
and also OF all others whose realty prop
erty is worth $4,000 or more.
OstrOm Makes His Talk.
Commissioner ostrom had not intended
to have this known as yet. but the o'Keefe
inquisition required the disclosure, and he
said. In explanation:
Recent events in connection with the
city levy make 1t certain that strong
pressure is to be brought to bear on the
County Board Of Equalization, both for and
against increased valuation, and Mr.. Ho-
feldt and !, remembering how roundly we
were abused last summer for our course,
then concluded that 1t would be we'll to
have the board as fully informed as pos
sible before this fight begins in order that
1t may act the more intelligently. For
that reason we sent Mr.. Jacobsen to the
city tax commissioners books and he has
copied the realty entries. The personal
property entries he is to copy as soon as
he can get hold Of the books, which here
tofore have not been available.
Intends to Make a Raise.
And / may as well state now that the
intention In this Is to make a general
raise OF the valuation Of large property
holders to the 16 per cent basis which the
assessors are using. That Is, we wish to
place the wealthy individual or corporation
on exactly equal footing with the less
wealthy ones. Last year I took the DO
sition that I did because there was an at
tack on practically the larger corporations
alone and nothing done with others who
were not bearing their fair share. This
year I hope to have the campaign include
not only those corporations, but such In
situations as the large dealers In imple-
ments, the department stores, the whole
salers and all such as that. Instead OF
making an increase OF q half million dol
lars we can make 1t an increase Of 50, 900, 900
or possibly $4,000 90.
Need of Information.
when We begin on this we will need all
Information possible and for that reason we
are having this copying done. l have
learned that some OF the banks OF the city
did not make returns at all fair to other
banks and that not one Of the large lumber
yards made q return OF moro than IS, 900.
This is the kind OF thing / wish to avoid
and thu naaI HaNaNo a.akA.z -. 49,
can aid us materially when II comes time
to consider complaints. ] promise now
that my vote will be to raise every large
property owner or proprietor OF an indi-
vidual business who is found to be paying
too low and to place them on the same
basis as the smaller holder"
When ostrom finished there was a sur
prised look on the face Of every member
except Hofeldt, but o'Keefie, while pro-
testing against hiring any man without
fully informing the whole board, said he
was in accord with the plan.
And JacObse Lands Safely.
ostrom then introduced a resolution to
employ Jacobsen lat a salary Of SIS per
month to work on matters pertaining to
assessment and under the instruction OF
the chairman Of the committee on judiciary
(ostrom), said services to be dispensed
with as soon as the judiciary committee
has secured the necessary information"
Every member OF the board voted aye,
ostrom explaining that the books Jacobsen
is preparing would be filed with the board
and that most Of the information desired
was OF men and concerns in the city.
John McGresl AYERS that he was never
notified after the adoption of the retreneh-
ment schedule that he was the one 10 quit
at the county store and put In a bill this
morning for $50 for services during March.
The board rejected It and nled the r~esigna-
ton.
Superintendent Henry oest Of the county
poor farm reported these changes In his
stan: Rosa Carl for Addie higgins, as
waitress; Frances Black for Mary Coyne,
as nurse; Beker Bierbach for P. Connolly,
as night Waterman. and ]. C. Agee for
Charles Black. - druggist. Al the re-
quest OF Connolly the report was referred
to the committee OF the whole.
oest is the o'Keeffe man whom Connolly
has never loved and with whom he. as
chairman Of the charity committee, has
had previous clashes OF authority.
Yesterday the commissioner moved that
osst snd HE wife be replaced by Cap
tain and Ars. VIII stOokhAm. the latter
nov . clerk In the once OF the city Board
Of Public Works. TIE proposition vas