New-York tribune., 1910-01-15
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.
TAX DEPARTMENT DEFENDED.

To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir: In the Mayors instructions to the
newly appointed Tax Commissioners yes
terday morning he gives to the citizens OF
New York the impression that the assessors
of the Department of Taxes are now and
have been in the past open to corruption;
that they have been receiving bribes Of love
and money for not assessing real property
at its full valuation.
1t is only right and just not only to the
rentpayers and taxpayers of the city of
New York in general, but to the capable,
conscientious employees OF that department
in particular, that he use his influence in
having removed at once any or every man
who is in any way connected with these
''manifestly wrong valuations" AS I am
and have been for the last seven years
connected with the department in cleri-
cal capacity, the action he takes in these
alleged wrongs is of vital Importance to me.
I dislike to think Of the Mayor as In
sincere in his efforts to give New York an
admirable administration, but in view OF
his opinion that 1t is . question whether
the deputy tax commissioners should be
in the competitive Civil Service class at all,
Lean only come to the conclusion that he
is entirely ignorant Of the whole subject
purposes of taxation as 1t is being done in
the Borough of Manhattan to-day.
Many of the assessors OF this borough
have been here through changing admins
trations tor the last twenty years. They
came as office boys and clerks and learned
their methods of appraisal from hard ex-
perience and careful study. To think that
any Mayor could take man. even though
he were a good real estate broker or agent,
and place him in any district in Manhattan
haphazard, to assess from ten to twelve
thousand pieces OF real estate Of all kinds
intelligently in the short period of three
months, is ridiculous. If, for example. Mr..
Gaynor should remove the present deputies
and in their stead place men who are as
capable as he seems to think his new COM
missionerS are, even, who does he think
would do the work? The assessors? No,
the clerks. And by the time the clerks
had taught these appraisers how they
should value property equitably, another
Mayor would be In Office, with another idea.
When the Mayor cited the Cutting prop
erty in Brooklyn I wonder il he took into
consideration the fact that after the valua-
ton of that property wac made public Mr..
Murray. the father.in-law Of one Of the
Cuttings, in applying for reduction of the
amount OF the appraisal, swcre I'm an afTi-
davit that the property was assessed then
at the rate Of $50 per cent-his contention
being that it was worth only S73,O00, while
assessed at sl,o13,o0o. 1t has always been
the custom of the Tax Office to give some
consideration TO the owners opinions of the
values of their realty.
Mr.. Gaynor further said that he was par
ticularly anxious about the Borough of
eodc ~
haitian realty in every section, Is assessed
at from so TO 110 per cent of its value, the
property in the outlying boroughs is in
many cases SO low that without a very
careful study OF the situation. it is almost
impossible to say just what the percenta ge
Is. Somewhere between 30 and 20 per cent
In relation 70 the Gillender Building
which was also cited, the Mayor asserts
that that property brought s1,40o000. while
assessed at $3.50, 900. If he had been fair to
his subordinates he would have first ascer-
tanned the present valuation before making
the assertion that reflected upon the hon.
esty and integrity OF the deputy who made
that appraisal The property is assessed
to-day at valuation OF s1.l50,o0o. 1t is
only fair that he wait and see just what
the owners say in their affidavit for a re.
duction from that amount, IL such an ap-
plcation is fled.
In the mean time, his honor would prob
ably get off his anxious seat II he himself
would take the advice he has given the
commissioners and leave his own Office long
enough to cross the street and Interview
the gentleman who made that assessment.
After half hours talk he would In all
probability return with better opinion OF
some OF New York's civil servants
EDWARD T. BRENNAN.
New York. Jan. Il, 1910