Waterbury evening Democrat., 1903-06-15
HoUsE TO HOUSE CANVASS.
Assessors win Look Up List of Tax.
 able Articles.

.= v j
 After July the assessors will make
 house to house canvass of Waterbury
 For the purpose of finding out how
 many people neglected to list pianos and other taxable property so that peo-
 Dle who neglect to file their lists be-
 Fore July will settle with the ten per
 cent added. Many think this talk about
 ten per cent additions is nothing more
 han kind of threat to get people to
 Do call upon the assessors. Rate payers
 who take this view of the matter
 should look over their old tax bills and see if the assessors ever neglected
 Eo charge it up to them every time they failed to hand in their lists.
 Much has been said and written from
 lime to time about the assessors calling Sat peoples houses to look up pianos,
 but as 1t never has been done little notice is taken of it and many will be cur1ous to find out what 1t means this
 tinaa There is no reason why man. should not pay taxes on his piano.
 Some may say they do not own their pianos: that they bought them on the lnstallment plan and have but very Little of the cost price paid in. No. doubt this is true, but isn't 1t the same story with folks who buy building lots and pay small sum down? No mat zter hows trifing the equity they have 2 zn them they have to pay taxes and if they fail to keep up their payments the owners take the property away 3 from them and don't return them cent of the money they paid, just the same as the piano dealer does with his customers. If nobody should call
 upon the assessors but people who have clear titles of their houses and building lots the board would have < fat time and if person was not oblig- 5 cd to pay taxes on his home until he had his mortgage wiped out, by far the greater number of people in Waterbury
 would know. nothing about the assess OTIS or the collector. One reason why taxes are so high on real estate is because the assessors have not done their duty in looking up
 other taxable property. 1t is some thing like the dog tax. Before an ef- fort was made to force dog owners to
 settle the revenue from this source was not worth mentioning. Since a constable got after them it kept in- creasing until it has finally reached AV 6SAAGuAAlAI6 AAC R<SVOO V1d1u IS 1dT from what the total would be if all padd. The assessors should be held to a strict accounting for the tax on every piece of property in Waterbury that properly belongs in the grand list and what they overlook, whether real or personal, should be assessed against the board. The present assessors claim that they are going to do their best to list all ratable prpperty this year and if they keep their word the public will greatly appreciate their eff forts sT don't list my piano." said a
 man the other day, "for the same req
 son that I neglect to pay $1.15 for my
 dog. My neighbors have dogs, pianos, horses libraries, jewelry and other
 taxable property, but they never go
 near the assessors and the assessors
 dom1t bother them. Why should pay
 for these things when see those
 about me have them without any such
 expense7, Isn't 1t time this handle
 was taken out of peoples hands and
 all made to pay in proportion to what
 they own7 Why not? The remedy
 as in khe hands of the assessors and
 sE ss hoped they wfl apply it.