Omaha daily bee., 1902-07-15

sessed cash value Of the capital stock and
franchise of said thirteen omitted compa-
MES Of said Chicago Consolidated Traction
company and Chicago Union Traction COM
pany aggregate the sum Of 500, 900, while
the uncontradicted evidence, establishes be
yond a doubt that the cash value OF the
capital stock OF the Chicago Consolidated
Traction company and Chicago Union
bonded indebtedness to be deducted there
from, the assessed value of their tangible
property alone exceeds that amount by a
that the capital stock and franchises of
said thirteen omitted companies. as a mat
by the State Board of Equalization Of the
said several corporations, nor were the
same included In the assessment OF SAID
wholly omitted from the assessment OF 1900.
We have repeatedly held that an assess
that property has been fraudulently as
sessed at too high a rate; In Hall against
t,oh % % LII sros we sa oyi ot " tSs tne vaIu 10
show that the assessor could not have
been honest in his valuation and must
~cessive, is accepted as evidence of a fraud
upon his part as against the taxpayer and
Company against Cole, rs ILL.,: valuations
must be the result of honest judgment and
not Of mere viii The converse OF the
sessment may be impeached where the
assessment has been fraudulently made at
too low a rate"
l. COME now I MI bdHuWlu 3 DTleI. MI.
Baldwin, in one part of his brief, seems to
be much afraid the Union Pacific railroad
Is not a monopoly, because he says that
under the laws Of this state a franchise
may be granted half a dozen persons to
build q railroad. Well. when the Union
Pacific ceases to be a monopoly 1 do not
believe anyone within the sound OF my
voice will care very much. Mr.. Baldwin
takes up from page Is to page % Of his
brief the argument that section 80 Of the
revenue act does not apply to the State
Board of Equalization. Now, We never
said II did; we do not think It does apply,
but we do say that under the law you have
to assess all railroad property, that the
only way they could value that railroad
was to take into consideration bonds and
stocks, as provided by section 80. That Is
the guide. that is the polar star. 1t may
not be incorporated into those sections pro-
viding for the board, but the words rail-
road property" include and suppose that
when assessing that railroad property they
will take into consideration stocks and
bonds, because nc other way is known to
the law to arrive at a Just valuation Of the
railroad without so doing.
But the argument Of counsel goes too far.
1t is a self-evident fact II they did not take
into consideration the provisions Of section
80 in valuing this railroad property that
they had no data before them from which TO
arrive at a Just valuation thereof. But
Mr.. Baldwin. on page 80, gives us something.
Mind you, he has claimed all the time that
you cannot value the franchise separate
and apart from the balance of the road
1t cannot be done-but II there il a state
In the union under the domination Of the
railroads, I presume that state would be
Montana, and yet how does the board assess
1t there7
GREAT NORTHERN.
ErdnchlseS 1872. 30
1oe1May "'"'":..';''''s.,'''..,... 5000
Roadoed LOO 90
paiiiro ':;I.,I.-''-''.""."'''..'..'. ISOS'oo
HolnnB STOCK 1,4O0.O
Making the total valuation, including
the franchise, which you see is separately
valued there, Of $5,432. Then comes the
Oregon Short Line company, which Is a
part, l presume, OF the lines controlled by
the Union Pacific. There the bare franchise
is valued at $162.5O and he goes on and
shows the valuation of the other elements
and, according to Mr.. Baldwin's brief In
Montana, tho Oregon Short Line is valued
at $500 per mile and the Union Pacific
railroad here in Nebraska is valued at
$e,572 per mile. But another item In Mr..
Baldwin's brief which / think, to say the
least, is worry puzzling to me, or perhaps I
- NAeB OA Pa60
80. headed:
The correct statement is as follows;
Union Pacific Railroad company. oregon
Short Line Railroad company, Oregon Rail-
road and Navigation company.
That all Of the stocks and bonds issued
for those three systems on June 80, 1901,
was: Total bonds issued. 1891, 279, 800; total
stocks issued. 1858. s99. 900; total bonds and
stocks, 1896, 27S, 800. Then comes In the as
, tonishing part. Mr.. Baldwin takes out the
bonded cebt entirely. You eliminate 1t en-
tirely there, wholly, Mr.. Baldwin. And you
knock out about q million dollars worth Of
stock because you say, LESS securities
owned by the three companies, $685., 631,-
259.37." You haven't stopped taking out
then. Why. sir, IL you go on taking out.
you will have your road a "cadaver"--
moonlight on a shovel" You haven't done
yet. Then you take out land assets,
1885, 353. IS; water line properties (esti-
t mated, $4,000, 900. Now comes the mile
age. With the Union Pacific and the Ore
gon Short Line and the Oregon Railway
r and Navigation company all united the rail-
road mileage amounts to 5.579.sS miles and
: the entire bonds and stocks covering them,
! according to Mr.. Baldwin's figures, are
: 1884, 297. 1876. IS; for bonds and stocks, per
n mile, S45, 574.
i Now, where does he get that? He gets It
! out of the Union Pacific reports. He had
|, those before the board. He takes the total
r amount OF the bonds and stocks OF these
: three railroad companies that are outstand-
: ing at 1896 900, 900. Then he takes out
; whats? He takes out all the stocks and
) bonds owned by the railway companies,
: owned by the Union Pacific Railroad com-
. pany and the Oregon Short Line and the
3 oregon Railway and Navigation company
q he takes out the total owned by the three
e companies, amounting to 1882, 631, 259.37
: That is exactly the amount that you have
I in your brief and which you sent before
e the board by this little piece Of testimony
q He forgets all about the fact that these ar'
q mostly assets; he charges them up as liza,
h bilities. He says, I'VE are poor" and h
charges up the stocks and bonds as liabili
ties instead Of as assets. Yet find the!
have 124 locomotives, which cost 81, ga, 900
n or SIS, 900 apiece. Are they assessed at any
= thing near that rate? I don't know wher
it is. So that when We get into Mr.. Bald
" WINS brief and also the annual statemen
Of the road and knowing that they put thi
testimony before the board prior 70 tn
valuation, we see how they misrepresen
the value Of their road, S45. 900 a mile 70
i the Union Pacific Railroad company, bond
and stocks and everything Of that kind
Why, the value as shown by the market re