Sistersville daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1902-1905, 1904-11-05
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COMMUNICATIONS. Z
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Doesn't Favor Tax Laws.

the Dawson law, and the ques-
ton that arises is this, Can it be
possible that an intelligent man
can be so completely deceived as
to advocate and to vote for the
binding on us. the farmer and
small holder, the hardships that
will surely follow its enforce
ment? The hardships of the Old
law were great, but note the diff
ference: Under the old law we
were supposed to have our land
assessed at the value we could
obtain at forced sale; so with our
personal property as to the
amount assessed; but we were
not forced to list everything we
owned then as now. Under the
Dawson law we list our farm at
it's actual value, taking into con-
sideration improvements, build
ings, location and also any miner
ais, mineral waters and oils and
gasses that may lie Hereunder.
We list our personal property
all of tat the actual value we
would be willing to receive for
it if we were not forced to sell.
If we have a horse that we have
held at $500 we do not dare to
list it for less; so with our hogs,
COWS or any other property. If
we make out our list less than our
neighbors have heard us value
property at or less than it act
ually is worth, we are but adding
to our burden. We are forced
to solemnly swear before God
that we have listed all of our
property at it's actual value. If
we honestly list we will have a
ruinous tax to pay. If we do
not we are sure of detection, for
the assessors list book will be
open property that any prying
busy-body can have access to
What a good opportunity for an
enemy to cause you trouble it you
have given your property a lower
figure than he can prove it is
worth. The law plainly says it
shall be the duty of every asses
sor to furnish the prosecuting at
torney list of every violation of
the revenue laws, and it shall be
the duty of such prosecuting at
torney to deliver said list to the
foreman of the grand jury. If
you have thus become a default
ing tax payer you will be prose
cuted for defrauding the State,
and will forfeit 20 per cent of
the value of the property not list
ed and $40 to be taxed you for
the prosecuting attorney. After
that you may be brought up and
tried on charge Of perjury, and
you will be sure of conviction for
your being found guilty of
wrongly listing your property is
evidence that you swOre a lie.
There is no doubt that there are
very few who would wilfully
swear falsely, but it will not al
ways be easy to prove lnnO-
cence when the law is so siren
uously close that it is almost i'm
possible for a man not to over
step it's bounds. But the bosses
tell us that the Dawson law will
never infict such hardships on
us: that it is all a Democratic lie:
that the law was not created to
catch us; that the big land bar
ons, corporations, oil owners, in
fact anything that could be call
ed big were to be smitten hip
and thigh and like little fish we
were to slip through the meshes
of the net that held our big
brothers closely bound. But the
law don't read that way. The
meShes of the net are woven so
closely that the very least OF us
cannot crawl through. For in
stance, take note of the capita
ton law. Is it the rich man who
may not be able to pay 81 on the
1st of April or when the assessor
arrives at the door of his mansion,
will it be him who have property
seized and sold to cover the tax
of 81, also cost Of levy and sale Z?
A friend handed me a copy OF the
Wetzel County Republican OF Oc-
tober q. In it is a lengthy ar