The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-06-04

be the headquarters of the Alabama delegation and the Underwood March ing club. during the democratic conven- tion in June. This photograph was taken week after the fire, which visited the ........................ ......................... to secure sufficient public sentiment to coerce the board of revenue to induce them to violate their oath of office and to refuse to obey the Jaws they have sworn to enforce. This is not true. This committee Is endeayoring to protect themselves and the balance of the cit izens of Jefferson county from what they conceive to be unjust and unfair taxation. The Anglo-Saxon people have always carefully. scrutinized all taxes of all kinds that have been levied upon them or their property. They have the right to do 1t and 1t is their duty to do 1t and if at any time they con- ceive the idea that the taxes are un- just or unfair or disproportionate, if they should fail to resist the same by all legal means within their power they would surrender to the government one of the rights which they have claimed and exercised for hundreds and hun dreds of years
 Tt is also not true that the gathering before the board of revenue, composed as heretofore stated, of some of the very best men in the state, was attempting to have the board of revenue violate any ath of office which they may have taken in respect to the enforcement of the tax laws in this state. If the gover- nor had taken pains to have examined the law on this subject. before he gave out his interview he certainly would not have made such reckless false ac- cusation against these gentlemen.
 "The governor charges that the men who are leading this movement are prac- tically the same that swarmed around the corridors of the legislature and protested against the passage of revenue law drawn by the constituted authorities of the state, etc. The governor does not give the names of these men who swarmed around the capitol. He makes a general accusation without giving any information as to who is meant or as to who, in his mind, are the guilty parties No governor of a state should make a. general accusation of this kind against some of the best citizens in the state without being more particular as to the persons against whom the charge is made.
 Call It Ridiculous
 This general accusation made by the governor is so indefinite and uncertain as to be absolutely ridiculous and along with some other statements made by the governor in his interview, appears more like the assertions and wailings of a demagogue than the statements of the governor of great state like the state of Alabama.
 "It is some relief to the citizens of Jeff ferson county though it may not inspire much hope. to know that the governor. according to his interview, has directed the state tax commission to proceed as a,idl ,aocqfbla n correct inpQnalitlGS
 in the other counties of the state. and that every tax commissioner has been in- structed that the law requires that all property should be assessed at 60 per cent of Its value. But the question arises as to why the state tax commission should commence it's work in Jefferson county? The governor gives one reason in his in- teryiew to the effect that the assessments of the property in, Jefferson county were not raised during the year 1911. In this the governor is entirely mistaken. Dur ing the last year the tax assessor Jeffer- son county raised the taxes in the county over six millions of dollars, and in the
 last five years the average yearly raise has been ten or eleven million dollars year Every year these taxes have been raised The tax assessor of Jefferson coun- ty is a citizen of the county; he has lived here for many years and has been con- ei+7f17'SA fifteen or twenty years, and is thoroughly acquainted with the tax calues of all the property in the county. He knows wheth- CT or not the taxes should be raised, and wherever the taxes ought to be raised he has raised them So that as matter of fact. one of the excuses given by the governor as to why they commenced to raise the assessments in Jefferson coun- ty, is untrue and does not, In fact, exist.
 
 Take Up Other Counties
 ''The governor says that the tax com mission had to commence somewhere. Why did not the governor follow the ex- ample set by Oscar Underwood in the tariff matter, and attempt to take up the counties in which he and the state tax commission live first? We note from the last auditors report that the county of Lauderdale. from which Governor O'Neal came, drew out of the state treasury in the previous year $l0,479 more than 1t put in- to the treasury; the county of Butler, from which Mir. Powell came. and from which MT. Long came, drew out of the state treasury s19,4ef more than. it put into the treasury. and the county of Bar bour, from which Judge Evans comes. drew out of the state treasury s2f,205 more than it put into the treasury. When they commenced to equalize taxation. would it not have been peter for the gov ernor to have directed the tax commIs- sioners to go first to Lauderdale, then to Butler then to Barbour?
 The governor says that Jefferson coln- ty has one-tenth of the population in the state and more than one-tenth of the wealth of the state-how much more he does not say, but assuming that the wealth of Jefferson county is in the same proportion as its population, that is to say. one-tepth of the wealth of the state. then the county of Jefferson is paying largely more than her share of taxes. because while she has one-tenth of the uopula ton and one-tenth of the. wealth of the state she is paying more than two tenths of the taxes
 What It Would Mean
 "Again. is it reasonable to suppose that the governor and the state tax comnis- sion propose to raise the taxes in the other counties in the state in proportion to the tax raises in Jefferson county? If so. what would the result be? Jefferson country. say, owns one-tenth of the wealth of the state of Alabama, although pay ing two-tenths of the taxes: the proposed raise by the state tax commission and 3y the tax commissioner. and the raise of s1o,oG0. 900 made by the. tax assessor
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