The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1906-09-26
JllgGNR. 4. PHSOlS' Opinion
IN the B. & o. Railroad appeal
Case IN the Circuit Court OF
Jackson, Roane and Mason
Counties at Point Pleasant, from
the Assessment Of the Board of
Public Works.

II the Assessment of the Board OF
j Public Works.
In the Circuit Court of Mason
county, West Virginia.
Appeals of the Baltimore and
lOhio Railroad Company from the
decisions of the Board of Public
Works vaIuing its properties in
the counties of Mason, jackson
and Roane for taxation.
Opinion of VIM. A. Parsons,
Judge of the fifth judicial Circuit
West Virginia.
Shall We. in fixing the value OF
the railroad properties in the three
counties of Mason, jackson and
Roane, consider the value of the
physical properties in these coun:
ties. separately and apart from the
rest of the system to which they
belong, or shall we consider the
system all together ss a single pro.
fit earning unit, its capital stock,
the amount and value thereof. TIE
value of the debts against the road.
funded ind unfunded. to those who
hold and own the evidences of the
debt, its franchise, it's gross and
net earning capacity, together with
it's physical property.
Mr.. Justice Soofeld in Porter ".
R R. Go. 76 Ill. page 564, says
The cost of construction in par
tioular town or county affords no
criterian of the value of that por-
ton of the road, for every mile of
the road is equally indispensable
to it's existence as a whole. and con-
tributes proportionally to it's prin-
cipal earnings," In reople v. State
Board of Equalization 205 Ill
296 the court says: The right of
a railroad can not be out up for
the purposes of assessment, into
parts. 500 by dividing it
into sections by the lines of the
different taxing bodies which it
CROSSES ~ A railroad is q
unit and for the purposes of as.
sessment its right of way must be
treated as a whole"
See Western Union Tel. Co. v.
Taggart. 141 and 293; also many
other cases and text books oited in
brief for state filed in the papers,
all to the came effect.
But suppose we can only consider
in fixing the values of these pro-
perties, the value of the right of
way, road bed, superstruoture, sid
ings. tu1nouts. switohes, station
houses, and grounds. rolling stock
and other personal estate in each
of these three counties, as seem to
be claimed by the attorneys rep
resenting appellant. The large
value of the work upon road and
the material used, simply as work
and material may be such as to
make the road less valuable than if
the work cost less and the material
used were of less value. Suppose
two 70 ds, one passing through
rough and mountainous section of
country, neoessitating many steep
grades, sharp curves, tunnels,
bridges. outs ard fills. making oen-
struotion, maintenance and opera.
tion all expensive; the other pass
ing through a smooth and level
section of country, neoessitating no
steep grades, no sharp curves or
tunels, hut few fills, outs or bridges,
making construction, maintenance
and operation cheap; and suppose
t 1rther that the gross earnings of
these two roads are the same. il is
not hard to see that the net earn
logs of the latter will be very much
larger than those of the former.
and that the latter road and it's
stock will be worth much more
than the former, for the sole reason
that it costs much less money. The
return in writing required by the
statute to be made by the officers
of the road to the board is of such
character as to indicate that the
Legislature intended the roads to
be valued as whole, intended the
aggregate value to be apportioned
among the counties. We have
been told that these roads are not
parts or branches of the B & o r.
system and that the law and reason.
ing above relied on cannot be ap.
piled for that reason There is no
question but what thew are beinp