The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-03-17
TAX PAID BY S. A. L.
A. In the Case Of other Roads
Tax IL Paid Under Protest
and Salt win BE

The seaboard Air Line railroad yes
| terday joined the set OF common car
riers which, have paid the foreign fran
chise tax imposed by the last Leg.
| islature on outside corporations for
doing business In AlabanR. and which.
win in a few days enter suit for tnr
frecoverv of the taxes.
The amount OF the franchise tax
PAID by the receivers Of the Seaboard
Air Line was s1.703.SS. \ This Is tine
tax based on approximately S1,066,Sy4
worth Of capital employed by that
| line in the boundaries OF the state
1t represents the tax on the Investment
and capital employed incident to some
eishty-one miles OF railroad in Ala
bama-
This tax was RENTED yesterday
to Probate Judge ]. b. CASTOR. II
makes the fourth foreign corporation.
to pay over this tax under protest
Several days ago the Louisville and
Nashville, the Atlantic Coast Line. ond
the Central Of Georgia lines paid theii
franchise taxes. all with the agree
ment between them and the .Date
judge and Attorney General Alex M.
CARRIER that the money would be with
held from the State Treasury until
the final determination Of the suits
which the roads are to bring to re-
cover the taxes.
The taxes of the latter three rosa 10
were as follows: Louisville and Nash-
vile. S23.659.82s Atlantic Coast Line,
s2.e43. and the Central Of Georgisl.
These suits will make test of the
franchise tax law. The counsel of
practically every foreign railroad cor
poratton operating In Alabama are mt
the opinion that the law is uncsnstlS
tutionai. They. accordingly. were go
ing to resist the payment of the tax
by direct attack on the act of the
last Legislature putting in effest the
tax annually on the capital employed.
Just before ! the taxes became de-
iinquent. however. conference was
held between counsel of the various
lines interested and Attorney General
CARRIER in Birmingham. 1t was then
that o compromise agreement was
reached which provided that friend
iy suit should be brought within thirty
days after the payment of the taxes
and that the tax monies should be
held by the probate. Judge until the
constitutionality Of the law was deter
mined one way or another. The rail-
road lawyers agreed to bring suits in
the State courts.
The Southern Railway paid its fran
chise tax to the probate Judge for JEFF
ferson county in Birmingham. It's
DAZr WR@A aOC 0AO06nb III OHO Oh tlC
State courts of that county while the
four suits by the lines which paid
taxes to the probate Judge OF Montgom.
cry county will be brought either in
the Montgomery City Court or the
county circuit court.
The new franchise tax, which is
payable annually on the first day OF
January by all foreign corporations
doing business In Alabama, scaled on
the basis of the capital employed In
side the State, is rubbing many cor
porations In many different directions.
To the surprise of the insurance COM
panies they were directed by Tax Conn
missioner w. NJ Blakey of Montgom-
cry county, recently to show cause
why they should not be compelled to
pay the franchise tax on what was
deemed to be capital employed, by
them and their agents in Alabama.
Ali companies. life. IRE and miscellan-
eous. have resisted the law, Claiming
| that It Is not applicable TO them.
What future courae Is to be pursued BY
Commissioner Blakey in this matter
Is speculative. II the law Is to be
enforced the companies have aiready
rendered themselves liable to penal
ties as the time has expired in which
70 pay the taxes for 1908.