The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-07-23

shcso Who ehihA tuo rOdO 10 pOpuidFity Is Abuse of railroads. The railro.u.s are at the mercy of a special state Board which is headed by tho Cover nor. It is in the power of that Board to fix the valuation of all railroad property and they have been doing it for the last thirty years or more. The railroads submit figures. 1t is true, but they are like the average citizen and based upon their idea of what they ought to be taxed. Their figures have bcen systematically raised and for some years they have paid one-sfxth oi all the tax money that has reached the State treasury and paid their full pro- portion to cities and counties. We do not believe there is any species of property which pays as near a pro- portion to value as the railroads and if all other property was taxed upon similar basis the treasury would be Overfiowing all the time Here, again, is an illustration of the hollowness of the cry in this Stato of equal rights for all and special privileges for none" The proposition to fx by law an exact per cent of value of property as basis for taxation will come nearer bringing equality of taxation than any other plan that can be proposed. It is cer- tainly far more just than to put the power of taxation in the hands of one man, or any particular set of men. who could run rates up or down, as their political fortunes might require. This latter idea is full of danger to the well being of the State.
 That there is no fixed rule for arriv- ing at values in this State can be shown by making a few references. Montgomerys assessments have been
 increased 1S per cent. We do not know the proportion the assessments have heretofore borne to value, but we do believe that they have been as large as any County in the State, and greater than 90 per cent of them. It is only justice to say that property in the city has been taxed much nearer value than property in the County. and we suppose this is tho case in all counties which have cities of 2.0o0 population and up- ward.
 The followixn from The Opelika Post shows what has been done in Lee County:
 There will be no raise in the tax val uation of Lee Count for the present year. Judge Lloyd Robertson, Back Tax Commissioner for the County, mas withdrawn his recommendation to the Commissioners Court for a raise in valuation of the property or several hundred tax payers. The Commission CTS had investigated the matter fully, but had taken no actioc, and upon the
 Robertson's recommendation, 1t was de- cided to let the tax valuation remain as assessed by the Tax Assessor last
 winter. Tax payers cited to appear before the Court next week need not appear, as the matter has been dropped entirely for the present.
 The following from The Mobile Item would indicate that an effort at in- creased taxation Is creating consider able hubbub in that community: Assessment notices received by own | CTS of property in the down town dis | trict yesterday from Back Tax Com
 missioner H. M. Friend was like pour ing oil upon flames. There were sev- eral fare-ups. so to speak, and the as- sessments made were regarded as very high. While some regard the assess
 ments as rather excessive there are others who believe that as long as the tax fixed upon the property Is within
 the 60 per cent basis there IS scarcely any room for argument
 Still there are cases where assess
 ments have been made that are not
 only above this per cent but is far in
 excess of the real market value of the
 property Assisted, ,,a by gacS Gomm,ssi9ner Tax cmm
 missioner continues to grind out the assessments daily and in seven cases
 out of every nine there are claims of
 over assessment.