The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1903-01-07
TAX
LAW
CHANGES
George Rogers Offers Some
Timely Suggestions
Monmouth, oregon, Jan. 2. 1ol

Monmouth, Oregon, Jan. 2, 1908.
Editor Journal Now that the or.
egon legislature is about to convene,
some method should be formulated by
which our Assessment law will be
thoroughly renovated so that the bur.
den of taxation will be more equally
borne by the individual wealth of the
people.
The present undoubtedly, when en-
acted served the people well, for at
that time there was comparatively
but little wealth in the state and It
was sparcely settled But long since
it has failed to be so amended as to
keep pace with the flow of immigra.
tion that has poured within her Dor.
ders and the vast wealth that has been
accumulated by their various indus.
| tries.
The constitution of our national
government declares equal rights to
all her citizens" which declaration,
however, is a failure by the present
unequal assessment. The failure in
part cannot be remedied as long as
one man is required TO assess any one
of the great counties containing tens
of thousands of people and millions of
dollars of property. AS soon as he
gets beyond the limit of his individual
knowledge of the property in his
county, the character and diversity
Of the soil and the value of the i'm.
proyements are so varied in value that
he must largely depend upon the indi.
vidual assessed for information, so
that the assessed is practically the
assessor. The present method of per.
forming the work can be corrected by
electing an assessor in each election
district to serve until the next similar
election occurs.
When the law is so amended that
this act shall become a part of the
statute every assessor before entering
upon his official duty should be pro.
yided by the county clerk with the
assessment roll of his predecessor for
his guide, containing all the names of
persons owning real estate In his dis,
trict. and the various pieces held i'm
said district set opposite of the hold.
er's name; also, the value set opposite
OF Il, and its location noted.
When the assessor finds that any
person has sold or transferred any
piece or fraction thereof since the pre-.
yious assessment, he should erase the
same from the previous owner and
transfer II to the present owner To
facilitate the work 1t should be kept
in alphabetical order II should he
the duty OF each county court in this
state 10 know before the first assess.
ment roll under this act is placed in
the hands OF the assessor that every
tract or block in the various districts
in their respective counties are com.
plete, T. e. that all have their accom-.
pliment of land.
II Is we'll known by many old Ore
gonians that during the long. warm
and dry period OF the season, or about
the time the assessor makes his ap,
pearance that there Is great shrink.
age in many farms, caused "presum'
ably" by "Old Soils" warm rays pen.
etrating TO such a great depth that the
particles Of soil are forced apart TO
such an extent that in many farms
the loss Is estimated by acres. II the
strong arm of the law could be fasten 7.
ed upon it by the above method, or by
a similar one II would be quite sav.
ing TO the landowner as well as to the
county.
The clause OF the national consti.
tuition above referred TO- was SO con.
strued by many wealthy people that
when they were trumping up fictitious
indebtedness. and resorting to many
otherdishonest and pernicious schemes
TO keep their valuation low, thereby
causing their neighbors 10 pay a por
tion OF their just taxes, to the end
that their wealth might be protected
from unlawful marauders. Undoubt-
edly they excused themselves from the .
force Of said act by calling il "shrewd
financial ability"
The present laws, as they are oper'
ated, are a burning shame and a dis.
grace to our people, and a reproach
TO the statute. All that give 10 the
assessor an honest list OF their pro
perty are earnestly and loudly de-
mandlng that the next legislature
shall enact such laws as will secure TO
the people an equal taxation