Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1911-09-02
MR.. GRAY SILVER
MAKES STATEMENT
Gives Some Figures to Refute Charges.
Made by Mr.. Jacob Sites In a Hn-
cent Newspaper Article

cent Newspaper Article.
Prom The World OF August Is
Editor The Evening World:
Dear Sir:--I have waited some oizyxas
before answering MIR. Sites article fEn
the Evening World, to give him tifnA
10 make good his word given 10 this
public in the columns OF the Worid.
that he world make deed TO alyou6s
who will give one-half the price,"
namely. 100000 for his property. MIR
w. S. Snyder approached him ancss
told him he had buyer Mr.. Ntas4
now wants somewhere between sS,0tvs
and $4,000 for the property of wifsTEn
he under oath as President Of tAkr
Board OF Equalization, assessed fws
himself at 81 800 for the land fSufTs&
Gent to make As lots) ana $4,000 fer
the brick house thereon.
Mr.. Sites tells us that one who with
colds property from taxation Is Sse
Annaaias. The Herticultura1 Society
calls IL malfeasance for an officiaf tC
knowingly overvalue or undervaAsss
property for assessment purposes.
Mr.. Sites tells us that he did nos
know that adding few dollars per
scre to the entire farm would nE6kR
the assessment valuation so high for
the small orchard. The HorticIlturuf
Socety's resolution agrees that they
did net think he knew. so the. socteyx
charged incompetence as well as nrxF
feasance.
Take one OF the parcels of land rve
ferred to by Mr.. SITES as an example,
the others all figure out the same wag
Ore hundred ald twenty three acrc<sy
raised by this Board OF Equalization
GU in the last few years from $35.t,et
to $500 per acre, because II has 2as
acres planted i'm orchard. Taking D.
w. Stewart Strong's land as a bsrsfS.
end am sure Mr.. Strong's land Wiz
sci, higher that this property acre for
acre, the assessment valuation should
be $35 per acre. Mr.. Strong's LAND
which faces the pike. Is assessed rEs
TO $50 per acre and that which does
rot, Is assessed $35 per acre. NOW
this one hundred and twenty-thres
acres lis probably one and half miles
from the turnpike much farther thar
any OF Mr. strome's. SO $s5 is plenty
high enough for It, Taking out tire
buildings, the one hundred and twenty
three acres is assessed at an average .
CT sS5 per acre or s10,455. Now t0
ret that total when we separate the
orchard from the farm and take the :.
81 farf N Ia nd a
s35 per acre. it raises the assessed
valuation of the twenty-three acres of
orchard TO s30239.
100 acres of farming land at
$500 S5,VVV.WFe
% acres OF orchard at 1902
80 6.955. Oh
Total .@lV,foo.0'
Mr.. Strong's valuation Is u'cd as -
basis for all the different tracts A1~,
che can work out the different or
chards for themselves and they WIZ
ind them running 5000, $500, s4oo aus
over per acre.
Mr.. Sites tells us he did not know
that adding few dollars per acre to
the entire farms OF J. M. CampbeIk
and w. p Coe would make such higkA
as easements for their small orchards.
Mr. Site tells us few more things
which ne did not know and then re-
fers us TO Skip Rathbone. who WAS
sent out here from the bunch i0
Charleston for the purpose OF assess
ing our property, for further informa-
ton. II is quite refreshing to have
Mr.. Sites say so much to confirm The
charge of the Horticultural Society
that he Is guilty of Incompetence.
Mr.. Sites did not seen to know ia
was wrong to assess some property az
more than 1t would bring and other
property at thirty, forty and fifty per
cent. OF what 1t would sell for. He.
simply heard his masters voice and
obeyed.
The Berkeley County Horticultural
Society seems to be right in its re-
quest for the removal of Mr. Sites.
The members OF that society desire am
honest assessment by people wIBcs
know and have no masters voice to-
obey.
Very truly yours, -
GRAY SILVER