The Butler weekly times. (Butler, Mo.) 1881-1918, 1912-10-03

STcSStve 1cc6mpz k6S1I "a 4 un'
equaled In the political history ~ any
other party in this or any other state
"A public office 10 public trust and
! the public servant must give asstrict
| account of his stewardship. The man
who has served in public life who
cannot place his hand upon some
thing accomplished for the benefit OF
the people has served in vain. AS
one of the executive officers OF the
state, l wish to tell you how your
business has been transacted at the
capitol by your Democratic executive
servants.
State Board Of Equalization.
The State Board of Equalization is
composed of the Governor, Auditor,
Treasurer, Secretary Of State and At
torney- General, four Democrats and
one Republican. In the discharge of
its duties it has written record of
which it can justly feel proud. In
equalizing the assessments among the
various counties in the state as to
personal property and real estate and
in assessing the properties Of the pub
lie service corporations, it has endeav-
ored to and has done as near as pos
sible equal justice to all.
The real estate in the country is
valued and equalized on parity with
that of the city. If the property in
county is lower in the country than In
the city in the same county, the State
Board of Equalization, under the law,
is powerless to remedy that condition,
as it has no authority to equalize the
values Of different pieces Of real
estate located in the same county, but
only to equalize the valuation in one
county, as a unit, with that of the
other counties in the state, the city of
st. Louis being taken as a county
The local condition in the county or
city can only be reached and rene
died by the local assessor and the
local board.
The State Board of Equalization,
under the law assesses the public
service corporations in the state, and
during the last four years we have
increased the assessment ON such
property $22,015,643 over the assess
ment as fixed by the Republicans in
the last year they controlled the
board, to-wit, 1908, Notwithstanding
they assessed for the first time during
the years they controlled the board
839 miles of new road, whereas we
have had but 229 miles Of new road. |
The assessment of the properties in
this state on June /, 1911, for the |
taxes of 1912, was as follows: Real |
estate. $1,1S2, 900,552; personal prop
erty, $36S,972, 522; railroad, telegraph
telephone, etc, $185, 498,514 making
the grand total of all properties ST.
736.371,5SS.
The total receipts into the state
treasury to the credit of the various
funds during the year 1911, and with
which to meet the demands on the
various funds and the expenses and
liabilities of the state government,
were $7.59S,067.5O OF this amount
nearly $5,000,000 went to the state
revenue fund. The revenues are am
pie and sufficient to meet all the de-
mands of the state and raise its
penal and educational
institutions to the very highest
standard and furnish the best evil
ience why the taxes of the people of
his state should not be doubled and
rebled merely to satisfy an appetite
or a spectacular and extravagant ad-
In 1909 the Governor offered a sub
'titute resolution, the purport of
which was to treble the taxes on all
cal estate, ETC., by assuming that the
was assessed at one-third its
'alue, and by requiring the property
o be equalized at it's full cash value.
The duties Of the State Board in
qualizing properties are fixed by the
and that provision is
elfenforcing
This substitute resolution was de-
Gated by the votes of Gordon, Roach
nd myself, thus preventing the taxes
rom being trebled. In other words,
the state tax on certain piece of
cal estate was $50, had the resolu.
ion been adopted it would have been
$50, net yearly increase of 500.
he adoption of the resolution would
OF have brought to the books for as
essment or taxation a single added
ollar or reached a single tax-dodger.
will not do to say the rate was to
e changed, as the board has nothing
} do with and cannot change the tax
ate. The state rate is fixed by stat
te and can be changed. only by an
ct Of the legislature. 1t needs no
rgument to convince anyone that the
'ebling of the assessed value would
'eble the tax. No amount of sophis.
y can escape this conclusion.
Secretary Of State.
Honorable Cornelius Roach, the
resent Secretary of State, is ever !
ctive in discharging the business of
ls office and in the matter of making [