Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-09-20
The Shirt of Division.

|
ing and settlement. Frequently such
towns are those where summer colo
MES have grown up to bring substan-
tial increase to the taxable property.
The issue in these cases is usually the
old one of taxation and the expendi-
ture of the peoples money. The vii
have the preponderance of power at
the town meeting vote away the tax
es taking the lions share of them and
leaving the people at the village moth
ing to show in the way of modern i'm
II provement for the money it has paid
into the public treasury. This the dis
tricts always deny. and contend that
the village has always had more than
it's fair proportion of the public funds.
They assert moreover that the village
as the center of trade is more benefit
ted by expenditures upon the public
roads than are the rural districts and
that, as far as the summer colony is
concerned it has never been denied
anything in reason that it has even
asked for.
There is no need to say that any
such spirit of pickering and backbiting
in any town is greatly to be deplored
village or no rural districts, but one
strong, progressive, harmonious town
with all it's citizens proud of it and
pulling for it,; with all of them willing
and anxious to treat any man who will
invest his money there,-whether as a
summer resident or otherwise-1n
generous and hospitable spirit The
history of town division cases before
the legislature of Maine shows that
the opponents of separation as testi-
mony tending to show that property
owners have been heavily taxed with
little or no return for their money, or
that their holdings have been overval-
ucd as compared with the other prop
erty in the community. When either
one of these conditions could be shown
in testimony the legislature has almost
invariably, voted for division. The
be assessed upon fair and equitable
| basis, and the spirit of fair play de-
mands that property owners should not
be pcrpetually taxed for the benefit of
other interests but are themselves en-.
titled to some reasonable return from
| the money they pay into the public
| treasury. 1t is rare indeed that town
which recognizes and accords these
plain rights of property owners is ever
troubled by the spectre of division.
The associations which are the COM
mon heritage of a community, are al
| ways an argument against separation,
J and it is only when a strong reason for
| such step, based upon a condition Of
| inherent and intolerable injustice can
| be shown clearly and conclusively that
a legislature can be persuaded to vote
for division. To the honor of the towns
of Maine, be it said, that in nearly all
instances there has been disposition
to meet the summer resident in a spirit
of fairness and good will This is as it
should be, and is one Of the reasons for
the marvellous development which
Maine has enjoyed as summer resort
State-a development that has added
many millions of dollars to her taxable
property, to say nothing of the other
millions spent within her borders by
| the growing tide of summer visitors
who annually seek her hills and shores
and inland lakes for rest and recrea-
ton.
The division of county Is a matter
of rare occurrence, and SO far as now
| appears there is no immediate prospect
of contest of this character in the
Old Pine Tree State.
Just now the whole country is
watching a movement, which seems to
have originated in the city of Los An
geies for the division of the state of
California. 1t is distance of 10 miles
from the southern to the northern line
of this state, and it is not surprising
that, largely as resul. of the Unequal
tiles of growth. there should, at vari-
GUS times, have been more or less sec
ticnal feeling and bitterness. The re-
cent movement for division is directly
due to the claim that the State Board
of Equalization has added enormously
to the assessment roll in the south, and
that it worked on grossly sectional
lines. Under the new assessment the
valuation of Los Angeles county is
$685., 401, 1G4 as against San Francisco's
$3.50, 091 ,039. Los Angeles asserts that
this discrepancy is unjust, and hence
the Southern California State League
has started out upon the work of Sc