The San Francisco call., 1905-08-13
ENORMOUS SUM
IS INVESTED
Census Bureau Estimates the
Value of Railroad Property
in the United States
MORE THAN II BILLIONS
Calculations Made for Pur-
pose of Ascertaining the
Total Wealth of Country

WASHINGTON, Aug. 12-Accordipg to
bulletin Of the Census Bureau the COM
merctal value OF the railroad propertv in
the United States is S11, IA So. .OOO. dis
tributed among the various States as fol-
lows:
Alabama. $3.50. .211. 900; Alaska. 500 600:
Arizona, SOS, a56 900; Arkansas, S124. .62S 600:
California. $3.50. .s94, 600; Colorado. SlsS. PSI.
600; Connecticut, sos, 1863, 0O0; Delaware.
dIZS5.Oco; District of Columbia. s5.57O. 600;
Florida, $50. .467, 900; Georgia Sl56. sos. GOO;
Idaho. Sol 1000; illinois, SSO5.O5 600; IN
dian Territory. SIS. .405. coo; Indiana. $50
541. 900; Iowa, 1914, SAT 900; Kansas $3.50 356.-
600; Kentucky, SIS, 772.OO0; Louisiana, s123,-
4O1.O00; Maine. $50, 146. 600; Maryland, y132,-
$4,000; Massachusetts,, $3.50, ,O52 900; AIichi-
gan SIT, ,6S7, 900; Minnesota, S426, ,7S4, 900;
Mississippi. S107, ,S74. 900; Missouri. $500 76S,-
COO; Montana, s196, ,209. 900; Nebraska, $685.
10000; Nevada. S43, 745 900; New Hamp-
shire. s7s.2s6. 900; New Jersey. sSSS. .56S 900:
New Mexico, SS6, 400, 900; New York, $685.
222. 600; North Carolina, $113, ,146 900; North
Dakota, s12S, ,S90. 900; Ohio. S6S9. .797 COO; Ok
lahoma. 7S.66S,O0; Oregon. SIS. .661. 900;
Pennsylvania, 81. 40, SOS. 900; Rhode Island.
SIS, ,719.00o South Carolina. S75, 500, 600;
South Dakota s49, SAC, 900; Tennessee, s131,-
$4,000; Texas s257. .71S.OOO; Utah. so. .32S 900;
Vermont. SS7 .S11. 900; Virginia, s21 .31sO0O;
Washington. s1s2. .Ss7. 900; West Virginia,
s201. .7ss. 900; Wisconsin, s2s451O.Ooo; Wyo-
ming. 500 sO7. 900.
TAX VALUATION.
The percentage Of tax valuations COM
pared with the commercial value 10 given
for the various States as follows:
Alabama, $50; Alaska. =; Arizona. 81;
Arkansas, N.s; California, 2S3; Colorado,
ESQ; Connecticut. 144; Delaware. - Dis
trict OF Columbia, AS; Florida. I'll;
p al a. 9. In
dian Territory, =; Indiana. 44.2; Iowa
16.7; Kansas, 16.s; Kentucky. 49.s; Louisi-
ana, 28.9; Maine, Maryland and Massa-
chusetts. =; Michigan. 709; Minnesota, -;
Mississippi, Z.7; Missouri, 21.6; Montana.
1877; Nebraska 1s.5; Nevada, SIS; New
Mexico, 90; New York, 25.6; North Caro-
lima, 61.4: North Dakota, $50; Ohio. 1874;
Oklahoma, 15.2; Oregon and Pennsylvania,
| -; Rhode Island 615; South Carolina.
$50; South Dakota, 2S.9; Tennessee. 46.6;
Texas, 400: Utah. 22-9; Vermont. 1873; Vir-
ginia, 37.7; Washington, 143; West Vir-
ginia, 14.2; Wisconsin, 1855; Wyoming, rs.
The valuation given does not include the
value Of Pullman cars or private cars.
The value Of this equipment in CONNER
cial use is estimated as follows:
Pullman cars, S51, 100000; private cars,
$72, 900. 600.
REASON FOR PUBLICATION.
The publication Is intended to show
the estimate placed upon the railroads
for business purposes and IT purports TO
give their market value rather than the
tax valuations. In note ii Is explained
that the value submitted was deter
mined not with a view to discovering
a proper purchase price for the rail-
ways Of the United States nor as ba-
sis for taxing these railway properties,
but as one step in ascertatning for the
Census Bureau the total wealth OF the
United States.
Whether or not" the note continues.
"the value submitted represents the
value upon which the railways OF the
United States might properly be taxed,
depends upon whether the State under
takes to tax the roads at their full
commercial value, including the values
of both tangible and intangible prop
erty, or whether 1t seeks TO confine It's
taxation to the value OF the tangible
property alone. In the former case the
! value submitted is believed 20 be sub
stantially correct. so far as It concerns
the operating properties OF the rail-
ways; IN the latter case II Is too high"