The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-03-08
By D. w. McIver.

By D. w. MclVer.
 A study of the State tax values in Ala bama develops very peculiar conditions and brings many surprises.
 It must be borne in mind that tax values are not controlled by and have very small and insignificant relation to the real market values. For instance, do you know of a piece of property that can be bought for what it is given in for taxes? ] dare say that you do not.
 Proposing a plan to raise revenue in this State, a well-informed gentleman said the other day that he thought he knew of a way to solve the difficulty and sget all the property on the books. To Appoint Assessors. Let the Tax Assessors be appointed by sand hold office at the pleasure of the Au- ditor," said he, and my word for it, l do not believe it would be very long be- foer the tax values would run away up irto the hundreds of millions and the tax ample and to spare to raise all the reve- ample and to spare to raise al the reve- nues needed for carrying on the State Government Governor Jelks is wise, prudent and economical Governor, and the people fully appreciate his efforts to make the income equal the disbursements at least, for the next four years"
 I was reminded of a statement made by Hon. Alex London of Jefferson, when speaking of the assessments. He said that 1t was most remarkable thing that out of the $500. 900, 900 worth of property found in the State, shown by the Federal Census, that 1t was a most startling and lamentable fact that only about $500 GOO. GOO of it was returned for taxation by the Tax Assessors.
 While it Is true that much of this property is owned by capitalists out of the State, and some of it assessed and paying taxes in other States, 1t is hardly reasonable to suppose that more than half of it is exempt from taxation in this State, hence the only reasonable and com mon sense theory is that 1t escapes taxa tion here.
 Property That Escapes.
 There are many classes of property in the State that have never been assessed at anything like their true value. and there are other classes of property that escapes taxation entirely.
 What proportion of the real value of pistols and drks and bowie knives and other deadly weapons. which are owned and carried about by a large number of people are givo in for taxation?
 But the real purpose of this article is to show how property has been assessed and how 1t is distributed over the State.
 Lands.
 There are 3S 331 .S31 acres of ;Gnd in the State valued at $96 5O2, 40, nearly s2.5o an acre Baldwin County comes first with PIT. .SS3 acres valued at 1,572 2S7; Jefferson second. with $40 639, valued at 1859 9116 from which it is seen that ranis In Jeffer- son County are worth a great deal more than they are in Baldwin. This is due, of course. to the development and the diff fe1ent varieties of things, such as miner als and other deposits to be found in the lands; Walker has 776,557 acres. valued at S2 556 523; Tuscaloosa comes next with 743,044 acres. valued at $2, So2. .395; Washing ton has 7O1 416 acres, valued at $7o3 006; then there are Marion, with 66o174, valued at $e41, ,S27 less than dollar an acre; Ma rengo, 622 620, at a valuation of 2,O56,67S about $3 per acre; Dallas, 62S,6l7 acres.