The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1913-09-12

", without the aid or a university, in
creased over $500 in population.
Mr.. Light inquiries why Gainesville
shows greater increase in popula-
ton than Ocala? / reply, solely be-
cause of the university. The same rea-
son applies to DeLand, to Tallahas-
| see, and to Lake City, each of those
towns being the center of some uni
versity. But we again assert the fact
that notwithstanding that those coun-
ties in which those towns are located
have remained practically at stand
still in population.
| 1t is mentioned in Mr.. Lights arti-
I Gle that the assessed valuations in
Marion county have not increased in
proportion to the assessed valuations
of three or four other counties in the
state which Mr.. Light names-of
course selecting those counties which
suit his purpose. Examining, howev-
CT, his comparisons between Marion
and Alachua counties in regard to as
sessed valuations, | desire to say that
the comptroller's report shows that
Alachua county has assessed S3,233,-
4 10 of real estate, while Marion coun-
" abs assessed $3,1S4,300 in real es-
tate. or nearly as much, nOtWithstand-
ing the fact that Alachua county has
six or seven thousand more people
than Marion county. The public will
not be led astray by the argument
that Alachua county has increased it's
valuations, because it is thoroughly
understood that valuations are placed
upon property by the tax assessors of
the various counties, and that when
additional revenue is needed, either
the millage or the property valuations
may be raised 1t becomes, then, very
evident why Alachua county has rails
ed it's valuations so much; because,
after the saloons were driven out of
Alachua county, that county, needing
revenue. was forced either to raise its
millage or it's valuations, and PREFER
ed the latter course. But the few
counties that Mr.. Light selects to-
prove his contention do not, as mat
ter of fact, substantiate his point, be-
cause the counties of the state, taken
as a whole, show just exactly what
the population ofrthe various counties
of the state, taken as a whole, show,
and that is that taxes are lower in the
wet counties than in the dry counties.
For instance: Baker county, dry,
levies, 1919 mills; Brevard county
dry, levies 20 mills Citrus county
dry, levies % mills; DeSoto county,
dry, levies "a mills; Duval county,
wet, levies IL mills; Escambia coun-
", wet, levies 141a mills; Franklin
county, wet, levies IL mills; Herman
do county, dry, levies % mills; Jeffer-
son county, dry, levies 2012 mills;
Lee county, dry levies 23 mills; Man
atee county, dry, levies &c mills; Mas
sau county, wet, levies II mills; Pas
co county, dry, leviest 221a mills; Put
nam county, dry, q mills; ST. Johns
county, wet, 1872 mills; st. Lucie
county, dry, levies 2612 mills. In adj
dition to that, Mr.. Light has failed to
take into consideration that in the
dry counties much larger license fees
are paid. Marion county pays half as
much taxes in licenses alone as
Alachua pays on real estate to the
state of Florida, and about four times
as much license fees as Alachua coun-
" pays. Therefore, when Mr. Light
attempts, by three or four illustra-
tions of towns in which are located
colleges, which have been placed
there within the last ten years, to
show that Ocala and Marion county
are not on a par with those counties,
he has failed to give all the facts in
connection with the case, which prove
just exactly the reverse of what Mr..
Light is attempting to prove.
Why did not Mr.. Light mention in
his summary of the conditions in this
state the statistics as given above in
stead of taking a few illustrations
which suited his purpose? Is it that
Mr.. Light in his wisdom and his
searches into the facts and figures of
taxation, overlooked these matters, or
was il because he thought that his ar
/ ticle would be unanswered, and the
real facts given? We cannot say.
But. at any rate, I assert that the
comptroller's report and the census
report all prove that prohibition has
not only not benefited any county in
which it exists, but has been detri-
ment and injury to that county.
Briefly. in conclusion, it is men
toned in Mr.. Lights article that Ma
rs