The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-09-15
'EQUALIzERS STILL
TILT VALUATIONS
Materially increase Assess.
ments of Autos. Tlmepleces-
and Sewing Machines

| IF the state board of equalization can
bring it about. the Northern Pacific
Railroad company will furnish this
year half of the 50 100000 worth of
taxable property that the board in
tends to add to values reported from
Ramsey county. Yesterday afternoon
the board adopted resolution Sec
onded by H. w. Fagley, the Ramsey
county member.
This resolution asks the state auditor
to request the county auditor to place
again upon the county lists $1.017 900,
the valuation of personal property
owned by the Northern Pacific. When
the matter came, some time ago, be-
fore the county board of equalization,
the desire of the Northern Pacific was
granted, that the value of it's personal
property in the county be considered
as offset by liabilities imposed through
certain land contracts. The $1,017 900
| was then stricken from the county as
| sessment. -
! The state board holds. however, that
! the land contracts. being obligations
of the company in other counties,
/ should not be permitted to offset taxes
due in Ramsey county.
| An assessment of $S50,000 imposed
/ by the county upon the same company
/ last year was not Offset, but the JUS
tlce of the assessment was disputed.
| and the question is yet to be settled
!! by the courts.
1 The remaining s1.oO0,000 Of the def
icit to be made up in Ramsey county
/ by the state board consists of $500, 600
diminution in the assessed value of
the city railway property and about
100000 of lessened values in the
schedule Of household furniture. Mel
Their schedule has been finally consid-
: cred by the state board.
Autos Raised SO Fer Cent
An average increase of 80 per cent
! was made yesterday in the assessment
/ of automobiles. According to the coun-
ty returns. the number of these We
hicles has increased rs per cent in Min
nesota within one year. There were
1893 of them year ago and there are
{ 696 in 1904. Ramsey county is said to
/ have 81 autos and Hennepin county
1 374
Even the county assessors admit
| that, as automobiles have become more
numerous hereabouts, they have indi-
I yldually grown in size and value. For
| 1903 the value of such machines was
reported at $40,497, OF s101.4S apiece.
| For 1904 the total value has risen to
I $257, $40 and the average value to 1910.
But the state board is not satisfied.
It raised the minimum valuation yes
| terday for an automobile to $500, and
! it increased the average valuation
| throughout the state about one third.
In Ramsey county autos were raised
| 30 per cent; in Hennepin county, where
| reported values were higher, the ma
chimes were raised but 33 per cent.
| In Olmsted and Polk counties $50 per
| cent was added; in Lac q,1i Parle. No
| bles, Redwood, Swift Waseca and yell
low Medicine counties, 100 per cent;
in Todd county, 66 per cent; in Dodge,
Douglas and Morrison counties, Sc per
cent?: in Pipestone, go per cent, in
Scott Sibley. Steele. Traverse and Wa
basha. counties. 50s per- cent; and in
| twenty-five other counties -33 per cent.
This action will augment hes,total
| assessment for the schedule by 1000.
Raise Sewing Machines 20 Per Cent
An average increase of 80 per cent,
| or about $175,000 altogether, was di-
| rected in the valuation of sewing ma
| chimes and knitting machines" The
minimum value was fixed at Sc. The
average reported value last year was
| 1912 for 132,069 machines. worth
$S88,597. This year the average value
was reduced to $6.21, so that 140,434
machines were assessed by county, off,
GERS as worth no more than $872, 401.
Serious underEaiuation was discov-
| cred by the board in the schedule of
! watches and clocks So emphatic
| were the resulting increases that they
averaged not less than IS per cent.
and several counties were raised 300
! per cent. The number of watches and
clocks reported last year was 184,824;
| this year the number is 1S6,209. But
this year the total value was but
/ $7S3,808, or 1894 each, as against
$950,000, Or $5.13 each, in 1903.
The addition Of 300 per cent was or
| dered for Jackson, Marshall and Rem
| vile counties, an addition of ITS per
cent for Benton and Pope counties. 1913
per cent for Chippewa county, .125 for
Becker and LIE Sueur, ITO for Fillmore
and Freeborn, and 100 per cent for
Brown, Carver, Cottonwood, Dakota,
Martin, Murray, Mobiles, Red Lake,
Redwood, .Roseau, Rock and Wright
| counties. The minimum value Of a
clock or watch was fixed at IS.
Only slight increase-10 per cent
| was thought necessary upon the 20, 744
Organs and melodeons' reported in
| Minnesota this year. Last year the
number was said to be 2S,402. The
total value then was $453.515; the total
| value now, according to county assess
nents. is $448,315. The average value
last year-$15.96-was decreased by
the local assessors to s15.07. The state
board, in its readjustment, established
minimum value at $15.
MRS RRJnCET HOGAN 80