Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-02-06
UNEQUAL TAXATION
R. K. Brown Says Poor Man
 Pays Most in Proportion.

R. K. Brown, probably the heaviest rate payer in Waterbury, has ideas that are well worthy of careful con sideration on the question of taxation. He thinks We have lot of tax dodgers among owners of personal property and would like to see every one of them pulled into daylight and made to settle. A man who owns a building lot on which he is aiming to erect lit- tie home for himself and his family to live in stands no show of escaping the assessors, while the owner of dia- monds and other things in that line rarely pays copper on them. Speak ing on this matter Mir Brown explain ed his position to Democrat reporter as follows:
 "The question of taxing personal property under our laws, and how to reach it, is a subject soon to be open ed, if equality ill taxation is to be the rule. The assessing of personal prop erty so ridiculously low, largely made by guess work by the assessors, makes the tax on real property un- bearable. Of late years personal prop erty has escaped, owing to the short time given to do the work by the as- sessors. By law they are allowed two months, and in our small towns 1t is much easier than in our cities. In most of our small towns the vaula- tion is unchanged from year to year, but in the cities week may create great change, requiring months of work of the assessors. Look at the enormous amount of taxes some men pay to others. Men with but few hundred dollars pay more than some men with their thousands. Small property owners are crushed by a weight of taxation by rich men that are tax dodgers. Just how or what may be the best plan to tighten the burden, is matter of deep interest to all towns and cities, or find more property to levy tax upon. There are difficulties to meet with locating per- sonal property; the probate court often finds large blocks that have been exempted and then they are divided and disappear, so that one one-fourth of the bonds or notes and securities ever appear on the tax list. Will the reader go with me as travel through the cities, towns and villages in this country, and see the people as we pass. You see outwardly thay are happy and contented people, but when you look at them as a whole as supporters of the liberty they have been heirs to, what proportion are supporters of the ! country? Taxation comes as neces- sity and every person living under our constitution and enjoying its freedom, should with common instinct, be proud to pay his proportion. But you see the real supporters are in quite the minority, but all enjoying alike the same liberty and freedom. Can the majority rest easy and pluck and eat of the fruit which is but charity? The waste and extravaganza of the people when you compare it with &C., tual necessity. triple their real wants. Every man must live. but does that include his imaginary wants, his castles in the air? Night must be turned into day, the streets and walks both day and night must he kept at great expense by others that he at his option can pass to and fro and not stub his toe. All these things without so much as one farthing of his earn ings paid. Some attention must be paid to our constitution or we must acknowledge its nonenity."