New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1905-11-22
PLEADS FOR JUST TAXATION
Andrew ]. Eckstein's Paper Well
Spoken OF.
Deals With Taxation and Boards
of Equalization.
BrC Wn County Man Makes Hit at
St. Peter Convention.

The meeting OF the delegates which
and Corrections, which met at ST.
Peter last week was one of the best ever
held. The St. Peter Herald in giving
report of the meeting has the follow
ing to say Of Andrew J. Eckstein, who
represented this county at the confer
ence:
One of the most important papers
was that read to the delegates We'd
nesday morning by Andrew j. Eckstein
of New Ulm. It was entitled "Taxa-
ton and County Boards of Equaliza-
tion,'' and treated of the inequality
and injustice of the present system. In
his plea for just taxation Mr.. Eckstein
offered criticisms of the 800 exemption
law, taxation by classification AND not
by actual value, the plan Of electing
assessors by popular vote and the
practice of the county and state boards
of equalization of dealing with totals
at the expense of individual items.
Showing the weaknesses of the class
ihcation system, Mr.. Eckstein said; IT
have collected figures from the assess
ments as returned by the state board
in 1908, giving the averages in two
classes of taxable goods-household
goods and wearing apparel, and farm
tools, implements and machinery. To
show a few variations, | will take
Brown county, with an average on
household goods of $31.17 and of farm
ing machinery at $3.50. In Olmsted
county the former is 1924, and the
latter is $3.50. In Winona county the
former is $72.S1, and the latter is S2l. 40.
In Cottonwood county the former is
1881 and the latter 80. Here we
have subject for study. I have taken
two counties with the same average.
practically, on farm machinery, but
with a difference ia household goods
amounting to more than three hundred
per cent. Unless we have conditions
that would argue in favor of expensive
household goods in the one county, we
cannot answer these figures in any
other way than to state that the system
is defective. Again, in Murray coun-
ty, household goods average S29. 26and
farm machinery Sl8. In Dakota coun-
ty, where the farm machinery averages
hn hnicn{nSl
S41. 35.''
AS remedial measures Mr.. Eckstein
favored the levy of a per capita tax,
the removal from assessors of all sus-
picion Of fraud, caused by the failure
to list property through friendship or
on account Of political obligations, by
having them appointed under civil SER
vice rules, and the appointment or
election Of competent men to boards of
equalization. I'VE are dealing,' said
the speaker, with subject that has
caused society to bleed for five thousand
years of which we have record. Know
ing that, we must wipe away generali-
ties. We must diseutagle the confusion
of classification; we must place the as
SCISSORS beyond the realms of incentive
for fraud; we must aim at fairness and
equality, and we must force men to re-
turn honest schedules to assessing
bodies. And with that task ahead of
us-a multiple task that is Of vast
mOment-let US not forget that the
good of things is not in talking and
theorizing, but in doing. Therefore,
let US follow the sage advice that is
crystailized in those two energy-im-
bued words: "Get busy
Bio fat-FancV bananas. Red FrOnt