Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1907-09-28
Enormous Holdings by Armour People in
Big Concerns Outside Chicago Attract
Much Attention.
The Small Taxpayers Are Very Much In.
terested in the Developments Of
This Great Wealth,
Yet the Chicago Assessors Gould Only Find
Two and One-half Millions
to Tax

"Chicago Securities for 1907 gives
the following facts about Armour &
Company, on page $50.
Armour & Company, organized un.
der the laws Of Illinois, April IA, 1000.
Capital stock, $2O,OOO,0OO.
Property--The plants controlled by
the corporation IRE the packing houses.
fertilizer works, glue factory. soap fac.
tory and hair factory In Chicago, and
the packing houses In South Omaha,
Sioux City. East St. Louis and Fort
Worth. The Importance Of the pack
ing houses and plants controlled by the
organization Is known all over the
civilized world. The glue factory Is
one Of the largest In the country. The
soap factory Is also operated OH a
large scale.
Although the capital alone Of this
great concern Is 100000 the asses.
sors could only find $2,5OO,OOO Of per.
sonal property belonging to 1t.
The legal tax on s?O,OOO,OOO Is $780,.
600.
Tho tax on $2,5O0.OO0 Is $4,000.
So the people lose In taxes on the
capital Of this concern alone $245y 900
every year.
This makes q total Of back taxes duo
for five years, according to Supreme
Court rulings In other cases, Of $l,225.'
OOO.
This does not include the amount Of
taxes due present and back on the
stock Of Armour & Company Of New
Jersey,
Armour car lines,
Hammond Packing Company,
National Packing Company,
Union Stock Yards Of Omaha,
And number OF other equally val
liable concerns owned by It.
The personal property OF Armour 4
Company, outside Of Its capital stock
mounts up towards $GO.O0O.OOO and
may exceed that sum, us this corpora
ton. unlike Swift & Company. does
not furnish Its figures to "Ohicago Sc
curlties." Armour & Company own
great deal Of stock In outside cor
poratl0ns, every dollar Of which |,
taxable here In Chicago. Among other
Armour 4 Company, Of New Jersey.
The following taken from pages 90
and ?02 Of the report Of the Unitet
States Commissioner Of Corporations
tells us something upon this subject
''The New Jersey corporation wa
formed for the purpose Of transactini
certain business which the Illinois cor
pOratiOn was not authorized to trans
act. Armour 4 Company, Of New Jcr
sey operates practically all the brancl
houses for the sale of beef and othel
packing house products supplied b!
Armour & Company, of Illinois. 1t ais
owns the Armour packing houses a
Sioux City and Fort Worth. For con
venlence the accounts of Armour 1
Company, of New Jersey are carried
on the books of Armour & Company
of Illinois. To ascertain the bushes
transactions Of the New Jersey cor
poration, 1t IL merely accessory to TAX
the accounts relating to the brancl
houses and those relating to the For
Worth ana Sioux City packing houses
The company, however, Is a genuln
one, having large actual assets OF 1t
own, not a mere paper name. 1t ha
no separate books and no profits ser
aratc from those appearing In the az
counts OF Armour 4 Company, Of Ill
nois."
How long the people of Chicago wi
continue to pay high taxes while col
Germs like this escape rs they do,
prOblematical.
~~
Samuel McROberts should tell a
when called before the Board OF II,
view.
<aCS&A
viii Corporation Counsel Brundae
get after Armour, Swift and the re-
of the boys? Assistant Corporate
Counsel John w. Hin startled b
hearers in the chamber where IL
Board of Review was meeting by d
claring that he has already secure
! sufficient evidence against wealthy ia