Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1910-07-28
HOW THE INHERITANCE
TAX WORKS IN RILEY.

Manhattan Nationalist: NoWNQero
is the way the Inheritance tax has
worked in Riley county the past year.
This brings 1t right to home. Wei
haven't space to mention all the IN
lust examples, because it would take
too much space. But Just few spec
linen cases are giyen,-taken from
the records in Probate Judge Morris's
office.
One school teacher was fined
s1S2.O9 cash, because she happened
to lose her brother by death, and ne
left his little property to her, This
was Jennie Knowles, Of Fancy Creek
township. Her brother, John W.
Knowles, leaving place appraised at
.O79, The state and county taxes
were paid-which are all that any
body ought to pay. But under the
pet plan Of Stubs, this unlucky
school teacher had to get busy and
pay $1S2.O9 in casn as an eAIra eaA'
The widow Kaiser, Of Riley, had to
nay an extra cash tax Of $10O.9O when
she lost her husband. The hand OF
the state tax commission, the
hand Of Governor Stubs behind it
reached out and took 1t.
A sample Of another unjust feature
Of the law is shown in the case of the
estate of George Wiser, of Riley. He
left a farm property and other prop
erty, which was to be used by the
widow for five years, and then divid-
ed among the children. But the lit
tie pet inheritance tax law won't
wait for that division five years
hence. Before the husbands body Is
hardly covered in the cemetery, the
little "joker" in the Stubs law step
ped in and forced the widow to COM
mence paying the extra tax now.
She paid $37.65 at once, and the
law will force her to pay some more
when she actually takes possession Of
her share, five years hence. This
instance is mentioned, Just to show
that NO man can fix his estate, even
by postponing a division of 1t after
death,-but that the, clever StubDs
law gets its robbing fingers on the
widow and children. Wagstaff says
this is an outrage; and 1t Is.
Now, Just an example to show how
what happens when an estate fig
ures up to less than $4,000.
william Anderson died last year
at his home six miles from Randolph,
in Swede Creek township. The son,
G. ]. Anderson, had to go to all the
expense of putting the estate through
the court. When the red tape had
finally been rolled up in a bundle and
sant TO the state tax commission at
Topeka, It was found that the ftgdreS
totaled 1914. This was under the
limit.
The state tax commission scratched
its head and then wrote to Judge Nor
ris. They asked him to go over the
records again, with view Of figuring
out some way to raise this valuation
SO as to get it up to $1,000, SO they
could collect the extra tax! Rotten
YOU say? Yes, but Stubs says this is
fine law.
But Judge Morris said that the ad-
ministrator in this case had assessed
everything plenty high,-that the
farm was really valued above what 1t
ought to have been,-and so the exr
ira tax was not collected. However,
everybody else through whose hands
the legal business passed, got their
"pickings' out of 1t. Had this parti-
cular estate been worth $26 more, the
inheritance tax would have been col
lected on the whole amount.
This unjust robber tax,-the IN
heritance tax-with its dragnet tixed
so low as to catch everybody-will
cost Mr.. stubbs more votes than any
other one thing In the campaign.
stubbs says the law is good one
He signed 1t, and he makes speech
es in favor of it.
wagstaff rays It is an outrage ana
wants 1t repealed.