Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-07-18
TAXATION At ACTUAL vALuA:
TON MUST AWAIT LEoIsLA.
TIVE ACTION.
MORE APPROVED METHOD
NOT As YET SUGGESTED
Suggestions Offered for Equalization Of
Taxation Merely Divert Injustice
Some Higher Assessments Looked
Fer-RaiIroad Attorneys Strike
Tartar in Clifford Thorns.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines. July 1S.-The assess
ment Of Iowa property at actual VAL
ue" is to be Dream until such time
as the legislature affords the machin-
cry fer such an assessment and tho
equalization Of all property on mar
ket value basis. 1t may be set down
as certain that there WIFI not be any
petty jugglery Of figures as a pretense
Of effecting full value assessment.
The state executive council will not
undertake to fool anybody nor offer
any apologies to any Judge of tbs
court.
The net result of the assessment
hearings which have now been con-
cluded is to show that, SO long as the
state insists on going along with de-
fective assessing machinery, and the
railroads and the banks and the mort
gage owning farmers combine to defeat
any legislation looking to any remedy,
the present method Of fixing taxable
values is about as good as can be de-
vised. At any rate nobody has given
diagram Of any plan that will cor
rect inequalities without working
greater injustice i'll some cases. This
Is fair inference from expressions
which cropped out during the hear
ings.
Railroad vs;uation increased.
Altho 1t was admitted that railroad
assessments had been boosted from
1000. 900 under the Shaw administra-
ton to over 100000 now, 1t is prob
able there will be some increase In rail
valuations: since it seemed to be pref
ty conclusively shown at the finish
that earnings Of railroads have been
on the increase in recent years quite
as much as at some other periods. 1t
was shown by Mr.. Thorne early in the
week that the Iowa railroads are taxed
less per mile than in other states and
that, II their value was to be esti-
mated on the basis of the selling price
Of their stocks they should be as
sessed at least $1O0,00O,000 more in
Iowa. There was no effort to dispute
the correctness Of the figures given.
tho the railroads were advised any
subsequent statement they may desire
to make will be received this week.
Thorns Calls Bluff.
It was while this phase Of the ques-'
ton was being discussed that some OF
the railroad representatives lost their
temper. The situation was decidedly
amusing. It Mas due to the fact that
the assessment bunch-the tax auditors
and other specialists-had never before
bumped direcly up against Clifford
Thorne, who in this case was repre-
senting the Iowa League of Municipal
tiles. They didn't know he was loaded.
For instance. he came near to pre-
cipitating a continuance OF the 1910
campaign, when he recalled his show
ing of the fact that the earnings OF
railroads had been on the increase, and
then Mr.. Baldwin, Of the Burlington.
reaffirmed his characterization of Mr..
Thorne as a liar which he first pub
lished in that campaign.
That part az the colloquy was fea-
tured in the local organ Of the cor
porations but not Mr.. Thorne's an
swes.
Now merely want to call your at
tention to the fact said Mr.. Thorne.
that in 1911 the interstate commerce
commission unanimously decided. and
with an ex-railway conductor on the
commission, that in fact the earnings
Of the American railways were higher
in 1910 than ever before In the his
tory Of railroading.. in fact they earned
$50. 900, 900 more than in any previous
year With that record before YOU
leave you to Judge who is the liar"
Seine Increases Expected.
whereupon Mr.. Thorne was subse-
quently let alone. James c. Davis. OF
the Northwestern. smoothed things
out by saying that he had come to have
a very high regard for Mr.. Thorne and
had found him usually accurate. and
he was sorxy any controversy mad
arisen between his colleagues and Mr..
Thorne. But some of those who at
tended the hearing, for the railroads,
were awfully indignant. One veteran
said that for thirty five years he had
been attending these hearings and he
had never before heard so many mis-
statements. But he couldn't offer any
corrections.
There probably will be not only some
increase in railroad assessments. tho
only slight, since their valuations have
been in the past thirteen years worked
out to near perfection. but also num-
Der OF increases in land assessments
in some Of the counties with view to-
getting more nearly at equality as be-
tween the counties and between classes
OF property. 1t will take the council
perhaps a full week to go over all the
work.
But the dream Of having all the
property of the state doubled IN value
for taxation purposes of hand must
be laid aside for the present. 1t Is up
to the legislature.