Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-12-15
Cumberland County.

covering several important cases:
Cumberland County.
John P. Squire & Co VS.. City Of
Portland. Rescript, Cornish, j.
Appeal from the decision of the as
| SCISSORS of the city of Portland refuS-
ing to abate tax levied for the year
1903. 1t appears that the appellant,
a corporation organized under the
laws of New Jersey, did not furnish
the assessors with a list of it's taxable
property prior to the assessment OF
the tax. 1t also appears that the APP
pellant has occupied a store in Port
| land since 1901 under a written lease,
| the terms or conditions of which,
however, are not given that a re-
| frgeratOr or receptacle for the Stor-
| age of meats and provisions has been
constructed by the appellant during
| its occupancy. That said refrigera-
tor is constructed of wood and occu-
| pies the whole width of the building
aforesaid at one end from wall to
wall, a distance of about % feet and
| is in length about 80 feet. 1t occupies
| the basement and the five floors inn
mediately above the same and is con-
structed by sheathing the interior
walls Of the building with wood, and
packing between this wood and said
interior walls. shavings to the thick
ness of some six or eight inches. A
double wall of wood similarly packed
with shavings constitutes the front of
the refrigerator, extending from side
wall to side wall, and extends from
the basement to the roof of the build
ing. six stories in all. The basement
of the refrigerator is separated from
the story Immediately above, as is
that story from the next succeeding
story, and so on, up to and including
the third story above the basement,
by a double wooden floor, filled with
wood shavings, Of some is inches in
thickness. which floors replace the
original floors of the building which
We're torn out by the petitioner with
the consent of the lessor in the con-
struction of the refrigerator and that
said refrigerator could be removed
from the said premises only after
having been taken to pieces.
Held.
l. That under r. S. Oh. 9, Sec a.
only resident owners" are required to
furnish to the assessors list of their
taxable property.
. That the appellant having been
incorporated in New Jersey, is a resi-
dent of that state and not of this and
therefore was not obliged to furnish
such list in order to preserve its right
of appeal. The appeal is maintain
able.
3. That the property in question
cannot be regarded as a trade fixture
and belonging to the lessee. because it
was really a substitution for essential
parts of the leased premises, not adj
ditiOnS thereto, was so annexed that
it could not be removed without ma
teral injury to the realty, and when
removed would be not structure or
machine, the parts of which could be
reaSsembled and set up in some other
place, but a worthless mass of lum-
Der. hardware and shavings. The
necessary inference from all these
facts is that according to the intention
of the parties the property became
part of the realty. and therefore did
not belong to the lessee and could not
be properly taxable to it.
Appeal sustained with costs. Case
remanded to the court at niSi prius
for the determination of the question
of generalization in accordance with
the stipulation of the parties. So or
dered