The Miller sun. (Miller, Hand County, S.D.) 190?-19??, 1905-08-30
SANMafMa


iWGIt hCuIu anu NOhcAucAcu. AhS Nba
valuation of the state will be higher than
for the past pear, but the increase will
mot be a great one, as the board did not
this year attempt to use its arbitrary
power in the way of increasing valua-
tions on q general level. The increase
will include assessments on new prop
erty and increases in corporate assess
ments, on which class Of property the
board outlined new methods in several
cases. notably express companies and
telephones. The express companies, in
the past assessed evidently on on arbi-
trary basis, have now been placed on
a mileage basis. Telephone and tele-
graph valuations have been increased
radically, on the ground that as this class
of properly pays only a state tax of
rs mills on the dollar of assessed value,
1t should stand a strong assessment to
come anywhere near an equality with
other classes Of property which have to
stand local taxation. The total increase
in corporate assessment, including all
classes of property which come under
that head, Is practically $T67, G92. The
railroads stand S414,617 of this. $4,000
of this coming in the assessment for the
first time of the Cotton" raid in Min
nehaha County. Telephones are called
upon for $273,015 Of this increase; tele-
graphs. 100000; express companies,
SIS, 900. and the Pullman company, So.
900. The telephone returns for the year
have placed 143 telephone companies on
the tax list as against JOG lasa year. The
increase on railroads was made on branch
lines. For the first time this year there
was a listing of mineral lands under the
law Of last winter, which makes a sepa-
rate class of these lands, the COUNTIES
making the returns being Custer. Law
renee and Pennington. Custer returned
4,147 acres at a valuation of S3O,440,
which was raised 10 per cent by the
board. Lawrence returned 1910 acres,
at a valuation Of S 4,570,017, which was
increased % per cent. Pennington re-
turned 1926 acres valued at S190.913,
which was increased Is per cent. While
there has been a general increase in the
net returns on farm lands, this is due to
new property, the general valuation hav-
ing been reduced about 26 cents an acre
by the board. The farm lands aggregate
in assessed valuation 1924, 1892. The
highest valuation in any county is $13.36
an acre, in Clay, and the lowest S2.13
an acre, in Fall River. The total aver
age Ter acre for the state is $6.03 al
acre.
3" .'tr $50
The Black Hills Mining Association is
putting in a protest on account of the
assessment Of mining lands this year at
the rate which was fxed for the class of
lands. They were returned for the first
time this year in a separate class from
farm lands, always having been classed
&orothn, e., tbn ~os+ Tho o-coSsp,nnt oc
returned from Lawrence County was a
little over Sill al acre, and this was
raised % per cent by the state board.
Other Black Hills counties returned low
err valuations, and all were raised by the
board, but not to the assessment rate in
Lawrence County, as that county is said
to nave a better mining section than the
southern Hills Almost ever since the
organization of the state efforts have
been made to secure separate classified
ton Of mining lands for assessment, but
the Hills members have always been able
to stave it off until the last session. when
it went through. With the first listing
under the new schedule there is n COM
plant, which will no doubt be brought
before the state board at it's next meet.
ing.
The wives Of South Dakota farmers
are breathing n sigh Of relief because of
the adoption by John Hammer, a Turner
County thresherman, Of an ingenious
method of feeding his threshing crew.
The wives of the farmers in general are
hoping that the method will be adopted
by every thresherman in the state, for it
would relieve them of the terrors Of the
threshing period, when they are expected
to feed a large number of men in addi-
tion to performing their regular house
hold duties. Hammer intends that the
wives Of farmers for whom he threshes
shall not be worked to death during the
time himself and his crew of men are
at work upon a farm. He has arranged
to board and provide for his men him
self. In accordance with this plan he
has had constructed a car 10 by 30 feet
in size. In this he will have his dining
room and kitchen. Tents will be carried
for sleeping apartments. The car will
be on wheels and can easily be hauled
from place te place as the scene Of
threshing is changed.
A dozen Santee Indians, from the
agency across the river at Springfield,
have been arrested and bound over to the
federal grand jury at Omaha for intro
ducing liquor on an Indian reservation.
The Indians were celebrating Old Chief
Day with a gathering and with dances,
and Indians who hold land IN severalty
and who, therefore, have the right under
the recent decision of the United States
supreme court to purchase frewater,
broke over the law and brought the liquor
upon the reservation. A wild orgie fol-
lowed and the arrests resulted. This is
the first trouble which has resulted at
Santes agency from the recent decision.