The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1911-02-11
RiDICULES
THE lacey MEASUR[
SHOWS ITS WEAKNESS

~ SlAuu@a,0uNu;NGS1GJS
PLACES HEAVY TAX ON SMALL
PROPERTY OWNER AND BoI.
gisAEs ALL OFFICERS Of! USE Tos
THE PEOPLE. Sss.ssa Al
CHARLESTON, W. a., Feb, Id.
"a bill to protect the special inter-
ests" is what Tax Commissioner
Townsend terms the Lacey bill, which
has been up In the House, and bys
which the Democrats are trying 10
abolish the commissioners depart,
,ment. In No: s Of his series OF sarti.
cles Mr.. Townsend 3ridiculesg the kbill;
as follows: e IA 81
House Bill No. s2 tthe Lacey bitil,
is a sham and a fraud. a. portion nFof
the title ot5this bill reads SasS follows:
TO abolish the office Of State Tax
Commissioner. etc. ItBwouldS be more 4
accurate to say: = A bill 70 reduce
the taxes of. the B. and o. Railroad
Company, the c,nnd O. Railroad Com.
pany, the N. and w. Railroad COM
pany. the Standard OIL Company, the
PHILADELPHIA Company and TO relieve
all other public service corporations 4
from the payment o. their Just share
Of the taxes, and to place add ditional9
burdens upon the farmers and small
property owners; also. to continue the
out.of,date methods Of accounting
which have been in vogue III West vir:
ginia for forty years, and to permit
dishonest officials to sqnanderj the
money Of the taxpayers, to stop com.
pelling them to pay back where they II
have been caught red handed, and 10
permit them to continue In the future
as they have IN the paat !.
Appropriate title, i
After the foregoing title. the pur.s: +
pose Of the bill would de better ex.
pressed II thread az: follows:
....Be e L q Enacted sby tae stature oi
8S1s11s ~; q e 81
THAT since 1905 the date the new I
tax laws went into feffect. the g. !. and
Q. Railroad Company, the {. and 10. Is
Railroad Company, the and w. Rail.
road Company, and other railroad COM.
panles; the Eureka Pipe Line Com,
pany, the Hope Gas Company. the
South Penn Oil COMPANY. The 5rhila.
delphia Gas Company, and other W
led interests of:the Standard oil Com:
pany have paid entirely too much n L
taxes, y Il K
.rAnd, further, that tie Adams Ex.
press Company, the United States tExs
press Company and the Southern Ex.
press Company have also paid dfmore
than their just share Of taxess the
aforesaid companies having been as.
sessed at their true and actual value
Instead Of their fair cash Syalle) \ that
henceforth and from the time this act
goes into effect and becomes operative
the aforesaid companies shali be lie.
lieved from the enormous tax bur.
dens which they have been compelled
to bear, and the burdens Which they n
have borne since 1874 shall 3bss shifted
upon the shoulders Of the small prop. h
erty owner and the honest farmer i
who do not have any paid lobbyists To
look after their interests around TIE
ySss NJ
rs Boost Tax Rate.
And, further. that West Virginia X
now has tax rate Of Aeon; the hun.
dred dollars valuation; that after this
bill goes into effect and is IN full ops Il
GRAFTON, this tax rate shall he sin.
creased to $2.15 on the hundred doll.
lars. Just as II was prior to 1s0s. i
And, further. the Tax Commission.
ers office having accom- plished no
good for the people Of West Virginia
a Continued on Page Thrss.l "