The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-01-20
CLARK AS WITNESS
ASSESSMENT OF UNITED VERDE IN
 ARIZONA.
senator Declares That He Has Not Re- fused sS5y0OO,0 ,0OO For the Mine.
 No Way of Determining It's Value,

Washington, Jan. 19.-Senator W. A. Clark, of Montana, appeared before the House committee on territories today and made a statement concerning the tax assessment on the United Verde Copper Mine at Jerome. Arizona, which has been mentioned frequently in the joint statehood hearings as one of the great mining properties alleged to be escaping just taxation under the pres ent territorial organization.
 Representative Hamilton, chairman of the, committee. said there was no desire on the part of the committee to question a United States senator, but Representative Moon, of Tennessee, in- terjected, "Pd just as soon question United States senator as anybody else if he knows anything I wanted to know"
 Mir. Moon then explained that the charge had been made of unjust and corrupt taxation of the United Verde property and asked Senator Clark to make a statement.
 Senator Clark explained that he was chief owner of the mine in question and said he had always paid the full tax levied except one time when the tax was contested because 1t was thought to be unjust. He said he was not fully prepared to make a detailed statement, but thought his company was paying taxes on about SI,20O ,00O assessed against the improvements and personal property it owned.
 This represented an assessment, he said, larger than similar properties pay in Montana or any other State he pays taxes in.
 Senator Clark refuted newspaper statements that the mine is worth more than S10O,000,0O0. He said these were Nr kn e yet unblocked and absolutely unrclIa- ble.
 T defy any one to accurately osti- mate tho value of a mine." said Sen ator Clark. The eye cannot reach beyond the ground and ore which seems to be in inhaustible quantities may play out at any time" He explained that in no State is any attempt made to assess the orc in tho ground. Assessments arc confined to | Improvements and personal property held by mining companies. hc said. and rightly so as any other plan would be mere guesswork.
 1 Chairman Hamilton read newspaper clipping in which Senator Clark was quoted as saying he mad rejected an offer of $25.000,000 for tho United Verde. Senator Clark denied the auo- | tation and said he had never offered | to sell the pTopttty anu Hdu never mad | any offer for 1t.
 William Fl. Andrews, delegate to Congress from New Mexico, appeared before the House Committee on Terri tories today at It's hearing on joint statehood. He said although there is some opposition in New Mexico to joint statehood. he believed the proposition would carry by good vote if submit ted to the people. New Mexico would prefer single statehood, but would rather have joint statehood than remain out of the Union.
 A. J. Doran of Prescott, Aiz., argued against joint statehood. He has lived in Arizona since 1876 and spoke for the mining interests.
 In an impassioned speech, Eugene O'Neil declared that the committee was acting as judge. jury and prosecuting attorney in advocating the joint state hood bill and characterized as a crime the way the hearing was conducted.
 Democratic members agreed with Mr, O'Nei and encouraged him in speech which threw the committee into an up- roar.