The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-09-17
THE COMPLAINT IN FULL
Papers Were Served on Chairman
Green and Mayor Powell Late
Yesterday Evening, and
on Sheriff Last
Night.

The Raleigh township tax assessment
matter is in the courts, where it was
feared it would land at last. The tax
payers. ask for an injunction stopping all
proceedings in the matter of collecting
the taxes by the Wake county officials.
made up is: "F. H. Wilson and Gather
Inc F. Wilson, his wife; w. j. Ellington,
w. ]. Hicks, B. F. Montague, Mrs. Annie
S. Bally and c. B. Edwards VS.. A. H.
Green, E. T. Scarborough, j. w. Pegram
]. d. Allen and w. A. Ellington, tho
Board of Commissioners of Wake Coun
ty; ]. ]. Bernard, Register, and NJ. W.
Page, Sheriff of Wake County, and the
City of Raleigh
The order, made by Judge r. B. PEBBLES,
holding courts of the Sixth Judicial Dis
cause before Garland S. Ferguson, Judge
at Henderson, in Vance county, on the
fifth day of October, 1908, at the court
house in said county, why they and each
of them shall not be enjoined, as prayed
in the complaint"
In the meantime the county officials
and Aldermen of the city are restrained
from collecting any tax in Raleigh town
ship based upon the last assessment.
The papers were completed late yester-
day afternoon and Immediately served
upon Chairman Green, of the Board OF
County Commissioners, and Mayor Powell.
They were put in the hands of the sheriff
ahout pipht o'clock last night
The following is the full text of tue
complaint:
The plaintiffs above named, on behalf
of themselves and of all others who shall
come In and make themselves parties to
this action. complain and allege:
1. That they are citizens and residents
of the township of Raleigh, of the County
and State aforesaid and are owners of real
property located in said township and
tax payers thereon.
g That under the provisions of Sec. II
of Chapter 251 of the Laws of 1908, the
defendants Green, Scarborough, Pegram,
Allen and Ellington, constituting the
Board of Commissioners of said county
were required, at their session held IN
the month of April. 1903, to appoint three
discreet freeholders in said township, "
who shall be known as the board of list
takers and assessors in said township,
whose duty it should be to assess the real
and personal property in said township
for taxation.
g. That the said Board of Commission
ers, at their said meeting in April. 1908,
failed and refused to appoint three dis
Greet freeholders in said township for the
by law to do; but on the contrary, they
appointed c. ID. Arthur, A. E. Glenn and
f. NJ. Martin as such board of list-tall
ers and assessors that only one of them.
viz. the said E. NJ Martin, was a free
holder in said township; that as plaintiffs
are informed and believe. and therefore
aver. neither the said c.. d. Arthur nor
the said A. e. Glenn owned any real prop
erty in said township or elsewhere, either
at the time of their SAID appointment or
on the LIST day of June thereafter and
they have not owned or listed any real
property in said township for taxation
That, as plaintiffs are informed and be-
leve the said Board of Commissioners,
at the time of the appointment of said
lst-takers and assessors, knew or ought
to have known that said Arthur and Glenn
were not freeholders and were therefore,
under the provision of the law, ineligible
10 such appointment; that plaintiffs had
a right to believe and did believe that
said Board of Commissioners had com
piled with the requirements of the law in
the appointment of said list-takers and
assessors and they did not learn that said
Arthur and Glenn were not freeholders,
as required by law, and disqualified to
serve as such list-takers and assessors
until the 5th day of August, 1903, when
said acting board of list-takers and as
SCISSORS returned to the Board of Equal
cation of said county what they were
pleased to call their assessment of proper
ty in said Raleigh township.
4. That the said township is a small
township, about four miles square; and
within its boundaries is situated the city
of Raleigh, having more than five thous-
and $4,000 inhabitants; that said acting
board of list-takers and assessors, under
the provisions of the statute, had from
the first Monday in May to the second
Monday in July to assess the real proper
ty within the boundaries of said town
ship and to make their returns; that
within the SAID period they had ample
time and opportunity to comply with the
provisions of Sec. 13 of said chapter,
which required them to value said real
property either from actual view or from
the best information obtainable by them
that they did not obey the said provls-
ions of the law, but on the contrary, the
said assessments and valuations returned
by them jointly, as contemplated and pro
vided by the statute: but, as plaintiffs are
informed and believe, as to large pro
portion of said assessments, the valua
ton of the real property was fixed by only
one of said acting list-takers and assess
ors. which valuation was merely ac
quiesced in by the other two acting list
takers and assessors; that as to another
large portion of said assessments, the SAID
Martin and Glenn, who were alone ell