The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-07-06
TELLS OF NEW LINE.
A. B. AND A. WILL REACH BIRN.
 INGIIAM IN A YEAR.
NIT. Johnson Says Railroad VIII Have 040 Miles of Track-The Raises
 of Assessments fin Jefferson.

Birmingham. July 5.-(SpeciaL )--Ed- win F. Johnson of Atlanta, manager or publicity for the interests repre- sented by H. M. Atkinson. President or the Atlanta. Birmingham and At lantic Railroad, which is building into Birmingham. is in the city and will remain here several days
 MT. Johnson announces that the new railroad will consist of 649.6 miles of railway, linking Birmingham with Att lanta and Brunswick. At Brunswick the same interests have a steamboat line to New York. He says the rail road will be low grade line. and that trains will be operating into Birming ham by next June.
 semer and the coal fields in the lower part of the county by March next.
 Tax Raises Proposed.
 According to figures filed with the Board of Revenue in the Probate Court. nine big corporations in the Birmingham district will bear about half of the total proposed increase in taxation. The biggest raise is one the property of the Tennessee company, which is now paying taxes on property assessed at $5,350,000. The back tax commissioner Is of the opinion, accord ing to the figures on record with the Board of Revenue and in the Probate Court, that S6,O00, 900 is a fair estimate of 60 per cent of the real value of the company's interests in Jefferson County. Many of the other big cor porations on the list have many indus tries in this State. all of which are not in Jefferson County Their plants are worth much more than the figures on the list would indicate.
 The Birmingham Railway, Light and DAN xntn hn lad nY n show cause why 1t should not pay taxes on $3,000.000 worth of property. The Birmingham Waterworks Company and the Birmingham Realty Company are also on the list prepared by the back tax commissioner.
 The Board of Revenue will begin hearing the cases Monday, and a lively time is anticipated. Already the real estate people and others have inti- mated that they would fight the in creases.
 The following is list of the biggest raises:
 Assessed. Raised to Tennessee Coal.
 Iron and Rail-
 road Go. ...... $3, ,35O,OeO $o0UO,VoV Sloss- Sheffield Steel
 and Iron Go. 100000 3'OOo,0oo Woowward Iron
 Co. ofo,oVV 1'SoV'VV" Pratt Consolidated
 Coal Co. .....,/ 100000 aeo.ooo R. R.. L. & P. Go. 1,76s000 3.000.000 WofKs Co. -. 5so,ooo 1000, 900 Republic Iron and
 Steel Co. ...... 95O,0OO l,oOO,OVo Southern Steel Co.,. 294,O00 oOo'Ooo Birmingham Realty
 Company 44S,ooV ooo'VVV
 --@----- Totals .$9.275,000 $17,550, 900 Total increase S.275,O0O
 Members of teh Board of Revenue say they will listen to all statements before affirming the recommendatlons of the back tax commissioner. They say he has studied property values for a long time and that they are sure he has done what he thought to be right. In all counties in Alabama raises are being made pursuant to sug- gestions made by the State Tax com mission. created at the last session or the Legislature for the purpose or equalizing taxes, in the State, 1, Ihe Board will take up the raises Monday and continue the court until nine nun dred or more raises have been consid- cred. S go!