The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1905-06-30


2 q IE M 0ssI
~ III Eiol y II 81
5SSThe cling s@s has been ads4
9isirig its read ers fto Watcl3 their tax
bills this fall AZ shasybe ens promising
a3T reduction. y tihasi changed itssmind..
tits now dytsing the Wheeling tax
payers sto{ 20 into 4 the courts al great
expense andstrouble ito keep d Repub.i
lean council from raising their taxes
over 25 per cent more than they were
last Gyear. 1.TheG first dash out OF the
tax reform box'' and the Wheeling
people Will be raised by the admis.
sion Of the News over % per cent.
That will do for this year. Watch
your tax receipts next year and you
will see general advance OF 80 per
cent. Oh! the new scheme is grand
thing for the fellow who don't care
what happens in the way of tax pay
ing, because 1t can't happen to him.
And we Lave some Of them right in
Falrmont.
Is not that sockdolager, Messrs.
Editors? The above is copied verbal.
i'm, llteratim and punctuatim from the
Corporation Advocate" better known
as the Falrmont Times, and it ought
to be preserved as a specimen OF the
editorial accuracy and logical pom
derosity of a twentieth century news.
paper.
That 20 per cent. increase Is q new
one on rs. Chapter SO Of the Acts Of
the Legislature Of 1906 provides that
no city, town or village shall levy tax
es for the year 1905 SO that the aggre.
gate shall exceed five per centum Of
the amount collected in the year 1904,
and it further provides that after the
|said year of 1905 taxes so laid shall not
Exceed more than one.half the maxi
mum heretofore authorized: that Is,
'|cities and towns that have heretofore
had authority to fix the levy at one
dollar on each one hundred dollars Of
valuation shall be limited to fifty
cents on each one hundred dollars val
nation. but the colossal stupidity Of the
Times has no bounds and the 0)oye
blunder or Misrepresentation is in
keeping with its past utterances on
this question of tax reform.
As explained in Wednesdays issue
of the West Virginian, through the
imperfections and loopholes of the
old tax system the finances of Wheel.
ing have become very disordered and
the council is confronted with huge
debt that retartls Its progress and
holds hack needed improvements, but
TIE wisdom OF the Legislature saw III
to impose proper restraints on the tax
ing powers OF municipalities until the
new system got into good working
order and its benefits became appar
ent to all. n.
BY reason of the more stringent re
quirements OF the new tax laws n vast
amount of Intangible property, hold
ings OF the wealthy and well.todo
that has heretofore escaped taxation
is being put on the tax books and the
consequence is that the assessed vain
Gtions hive shown wonderful in
crease and that means a much lower
rate of taxation or levy will create q
fund equal to the amount OF last years
collections plus the five, per centun
increase allowed by law.
, So 1t does not take an individual
possessed of more than five ounce
of gray brain matter to see at ono,
: that the amount Of taxes that will b.
y paid by the small property holder vii
: be less hanit was for the year 1904, an
with the readiustment OF real estat
value taking effect next year, the r.
= lief will be still more pronounced.
= The Times would better stick I
y THE true and actual value" bugabo,
. because it exceeds Its mental gras
g whenever 1t departs therefrom an
gets into deep water.
/" It is true, we have the recommel
= dations of such men as John A. Hol
=, Henry G. Davis, William P. Hubbar
- and others as authority for the tr,,
: and actual value system, but littl
things like that do not cut any lc
when subjected to the supernatur;
u intellectual insight OF the Times cd
H. tor. '*t