The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1909-06-15

Guilrlr. Okla.. Jun" ll.-Alleglng
tha, the assessment of pupi C .ei'ice
corporation property by the state
board OF equalization for taxes in 1905
was 90 IL per cent in excess of other
properties. six Oklahoma railroads be.
gan actions I'm the federal court here
today 10 restrain collection OF the
second payments OF state and county
taxes which are delinquent on next
Tuesday
The plaintiffs are the Santa Fe, in.
Guiding the Atchison. and the Gulf
lines. the Missouri, Kansas and Texas.
Midland Valley. Fort Smith and West
ern and the St Louis. III Reno and
Western. and the defendants are OF.
ticers OF every county In the court
jurisdiction through which the rail.
roads companies operate Those coun.
ties in the Eastern federal court dis.
trict will be proceeded against at
Muskogee tomorrow. the total number
OF suits in both courts being seventy
and involving between $500 600 and
100000 in taxes Attorneys an.
nounce that the plaintiff railroad com
panies have already paid under protest
a sum equal to the first half OF the
years taxes.
Actions grow out OF the constitu.
tional provision that all property shall
be- assessed for taxes on a basis of
what II would bring at fair volun.
tary sale. Experts of the railroad
4 companies visited seyenty.two of the
seventy.fiye counties in the state and
compared the assessed values OF real
estate. including farms and city lots
and blocks. with what they had actu.
ally sold for, as shown by the trans.
fer records. and say they founl this
class only taxed at % 40 per cent Of
the sale va'ucs. Tncy accept ID p"r.
sonal property at he valuation 70.
turned to the state board of cqualza.
tiOn by the counties and which the
state board. they charge. reduced II
f'A A'lAt lllE 10 dHHfNNfu Ndluf'
S3 l.2 per cent of its presumed full
value. by combining two classes the
I experts arrive at an average valua.
. tion of only 60 l.2 per cent for real
estate and personal property Petitions
of the railroad companies acknowledge
that the assessment of the public ser.
vice property for last year was at
not less than their fair cash values,
but that all other property of the state
was Systematically. Intentionally, will
fully and purposely assessed under its
: fair cash value and AT not exceeding
63 $40 per cent"
The petitions charge that the state
board of equalization without cause
cut the returned values made by the
counties on all classes OF property
other than that of corporations II l-2
per cent and gives instances where
the state board went farther. Cattle
the petitions allege. were more than
, 81 per cent, sheep and goats more
'a'f'h - - ''llA i'NN AAhH AAl'll 'iAi
cash value throughout the state.
An intimation that the railroad
companies We're making corporal oil
! comparisons, came to the state board
a. of equalization during its recent hear.
ings when Tax Commissioner New
: Kirk OF the Rock Island systCl p"c,
+, sented a do ument that in eff.'. dcn.
onstrated that the full valuation
, clause of the constitution and he
statutes had been failure for 1903
AZ that time. members OF the board
announced they recognized the in,
equalities and proposed to correct
them If possible, The railroads were
valued for assessment in 1908 at STA,
529,l92, 23 per cent they charge OF the
total state taxes. The suits also at,
tack the legality OF the state board
as constituted by the legislative act
Of assessors. whereas. the constitu-
r tion holds that II shall be the state
/, board of equalization. which the rail
road companies charge. in SO far as il
empowers the board OF assessors to
assess property, is unconstitutional, /,
also that certain members OF the
board sat by proxy
Suits are pending in the federal
: court to restrain the collection of all
taxes against the Western Union and
Pullman companies. filed soon after
, tho laNV hapama affactiya