Troy weekly news. (Troy, Idaho) 1897-1933, 1905-10-06
FACTS ABOUT TAXES.

Several times the News has said
that our present tax laws are unequal
and unjust. Now we are going TO give
our readers some facts and figures and
ask that you study them and then
draw your own conclusions.
Exclusive Of special school levies,
Shoshone county and the state will re-
ceive from the principal mining com
panies in the Occur d. Alenes in taxes
for 1905, $114,304.30. The entire
valuation Of the county is approximate
ly SO, $4,000. The levy for this
year was fixed at SO per 800. This
will bring the total tax of the county
to 1874, 440, over sixty per cent of
which sum is assessed to the various
mining companies.
Besides the Improvements the min
ing companies are assessed upon their
net profits, which were reported as ST.
1,811.60. The Improvements of
the various companies were assessed at
a valuation Of $859,333.
Upon a net profit Of $3.50, 418.89
and an improvement value of $43, AIS,
the Hercules mine will pay to the
county and state $l4,216.81. Larson
& Greenough, owners Of the Morning
mine, rank next highest on the list.
Their tax will amount to S9,633.95,
and net profits Of $17S, 106.86.
In order to determine whether OF
not these mines are justly assessed,
let US take the Hercules and Morning
mines as examples. Less than month
ago the Hercules was sold on a four
million dollar basis and at that time
was said by the owners TO be worth
more than ten millions OF dollars.
By little mathematical calculation it
will be seen that the four hundred and
thirty thousand dollars net profits will
pay ten per cent interest on a mine
worth "a, 304, 418.8o. And when you
consider that this sum represents only
the net earnings and that thousands
and thousands more OF the mines
earnings have been used to develop
the mine, making the property more
valuable, it is plain that the Hercules
people are correct in saying their mine
is worth not less than ten millions.
Then on mine admitted by the
owners TO be worth ten millions, the
county and state collects tax Of $14,-
216.81 or So per hundred. Now COM
pare this with the taxes paid by Lat
ah county farmer. Take a 100 acre
farm worth $40 per acre, and place
the assessment at $50, figure given
us by prominent Little Bear ridge
farmer. The value Of this farm is So
400 and that sum will go into million
156 times. In other words it would
take 156 farms to be worth a million
dollars. Yet l56 farms would be
taxed $6084 and farms worth ten mil
lion dollars would pay taxes amounting
to $60,840 as compared with the S14,-
216.8l paid by ten million dollal
mine.
And this is the famous Jenkins bill
This is the measure placed on oul
statute, books by gentleman elected
by Latah county farmers to represent
their interest in the State legislature
A measure which enables millionaire
mine owners TO steal from the people
Of this state more than 100000 yea
in Shoshone county alone. The sys-
TEN is manifestly unjust and unfair
and nothing short Of crime.
II robs the farmer, the merchant anc
the mechanic who are forced to make
up that which the rich are allowed t
escape. Public sentiment should b.
aroused. The demand for equal anC
just tax laws should be carried int
the state campaign, and the fgh
forced until the time comes when ev
cry man shall have an equal show"