Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-08-03
MORE THAN IN FIFTEEN YEARS
Executive Council Makes Raise of
More Than Five Millions Of Dollars
in Railroad Assessments, an Increase
Not Before Made Short Of Fifteen
Year Period-some New Mileage.
Special to Times Republican.

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confidently looked for less of raise
in the assessed or taxable value o.
railroad property in general this year.
The railroad representatives came, as
usual, to the seat of state government
to make showing why they should not
be more taxed, but they We're handi-
capped .by the fact that last year their
sole argument was comparison
with low realty assessments ana TINS
argument had disappeared this year
by the action OF the assessors in bring
ing the real estate assessments up 10
substantially what the law contem-
plates. Last year the railroads got an
increase In assessed values of about
four millions: this year five and a
quarter millions. Two years ago the
taxable value of railroads was fixed
at S47.O71.25S; then it was moved up TO
s51.307 $50; now to S56,53i,29'. AS
compared with the enormous increase
in value of lands as made by the as
SCISSORS this does not seem great, put
compared with previous railroad as
sessments it will be seen that a long
step upward has been taken In two
years the present executive councll
has advanced the taxable value OF
Iowa railroads by s9.466.0S9. In the
previous two years the advance was
only $2.521, 1923: and in the previous ten
years only s2,512,652. In fact to coves
an equal increase in assessed value
one must go back fifteen years. Whiie
the council has increased railroad as
sessments $s,466.039 in the past two
wears the reports of the railroad COM
panies show that gross earnings on
Iowa business increased in the same
a-year period by $4,111,4SS, while in the
last previous biennial period, when the
assessments were moved up only one
fourth as much the gross earnings m
creased by $685. 3S, and in the pre-
yious decade the increase in gross
earnings had been $14665,264. In the
fifteen year period previous to 1901 the
gross earnings increased $l6,S62,394, or
more than four times as. much as in the
last biennial period when assessments
were raised an equal amount.
This year, as last year, the major
norton of the increase in assessments
falls upon the six systems that ira
verse the state completely, and the IN
crease is pretty evenly distributed pc
tween them and on their various d.
visions and branches.
The railroads of the state
NAV be conveniently divided into
three general groups, namely:
The six through lines - Rock
Island. Milwaukee, Northwestern, Bur-
lington, Illinois Central and Great
Western; the five secondary systems
Iowa Central, Wabash, Minneapolis,
Great Western & Omaha: the eighteen
minor roads or short lines in the state,
the most important being the Union Pa
cific. Iowa Falls, the Muscatine. the
Davenport. the Crooked Creek and the
Santa Fe.
The six roads of the first group get
an aggregate of S50,199,756 assessment,
or nearly 80 per cent of the whole.
Their increase In assessment is $4,3I3,-
70S, or about SO per cent OF the whole
increase. They reported SAFEST miles,
which included an increase of ~. 10
miles Of the total increase for the year
of 2S1.29. These six big roads reported
gross earnings this year aggregatins
S51,557,421.94 which is all but less than
five million of the aggregate for all the
lines. The gross earnings of these
roads aggregated an increase over last
year of 1881, 47S.62, which is more than
the aggregate for all the roads of the
state.
The five systems of the second group
have a mileage of 1.015.S2, which is an
increase of only fraction of mile.
They are assessed at s4,7S5.24s. an in
crease over last year of $422,771 This
ment increase of $432,S6S.
Reverting again to the first group
mentioned the following facts are
shown:
Rock Island-Assessment increase
s6O6.S42, of which $2SS,717 is on the
Rock Island proper and $3lS,125 on the
Cedar Rapids route absorbed. The
mileage was unchanged.
Milwaukee - Assessment increase
S1.2S3,S64. with 1923 miles increase.
Observation-Disclosures increase
S1,1OO,6O3; new mileage 10.
Burlington - Assessment increase
$714,749; no change in mileage.
Illinois Central--Assessmen increase
s354,114; ileage decreased fraction of
a mile.
Great Western-Assessmen increase
$415,536; increase of 1871 in mileage.
Turning to the second group OF five
secondary systems the following is
shown by the reports:
Iowa Central-Assessment increase,
s1S6237: mileage increased fraction
of mile.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. increase, $780,
SO; mileage the same.
Minneapolis = Assessment increase
$52414; mileage unchanged.
Great Northern-As sessment Increase
S3S, $50: mileage unchanged.
Omaha-Assessment increase $lo2-
900; mileage unchanged
OF the systems in the last group the
one showing greatest increase in as
sessed valuation is the Iowa rails from
$4,000 to $192,590, new road. The
Union Pacific showed an increase from
s161,3sO to $177,3Sl. The Davenport
Rock Island & Southwestern was in
creased from S135,120 to $2OS,520.
Turning to the table showing the pei
mile assessment by divisions and
branches ii is possible to tell something
of how the increase in general assess
ment was made
The Rock Island main line was rails
ed from $11,25O per mile to $ll,150;