The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-07-10

assessor to go over his books and
change his figures
Whereas the Atlantic Coast Line
has been assessed previously at ST.
500 mile the assessment this. year
is $1,000 a mile. No change was
made in the assessments of the Sea-
board, which stands at $1,000 mile
and the Flagler system at $4,000 a
mile
The gist Of the matter is that
while the ordinary taxpayers will
pay on increased valuations the
Coast Line railroad will pay on a
smaller valuation and the other rail
roads will pay just the same, being
unaffected by the order of the tax
commission for an increase.
The valuations in Orange county
have been increased from forty
per cent basis to fifty and with in
creased mi1lage, which is told about
in another column of the Reporter
Star, the ordinary taxpayer will pay
an increase of about twenty-five to
thirty per cent.
Stirred by the inequality of the
matter and the broken faith evident
in the figures from the comptroller's
Office, Tax Assessor Arthur Burt has
written letters to the tax commits
sion. the governor and the comp
.troller on the subject.
If the railroad assessments had
been raised, as was agreed. there
would be some chance of a consider
able reduction in the millage, but as
it appears now there is likely to be
no more than one mill reduction.
Is There an African in the Stacked
Timber
Regarding this matter, the Re
porter Star editoTially says:
The Reporter-Star is slow to be-
lieve that the governor and comp
troller would be party to such piece
of jobbery, but if they have not been
they will be given opportunity to ex-
plain why it is that the assessment
of the railroad line having the great
est mileage in the state was actually
lowered while the other railroads,
whose assessments were less, were
allowed to stand without increase.
It is needless to suggest that these
officials are not acquainted with this
condition. The subject of tax assess
ments has been discussed far and
wide ever since the tax commission
was appointed, and the governor has
been fully acquainted with the opera
tions of the commission. The same
is true of the comptroller, and more
over, the railroad assessments are
made up in his office. lit is not sup
posed for a moment that ignorance
of the condition will be offered as a
plea in abatement, yet ignorance is
the only excuse possible for them if
| they expect to escape the sure and
certain visitation of popular censure
that will be visited upon both by the
/ people at the polls whenever the OPP
/ pOrtun1ty offers.
And from the present outlook that
/ opportunity viii come soon. The
governor will in all likelihood be a
candidate for United States senator
and the comptroller, it is reported
will be candidate for governor.
If these officials, who have sup.
posedly been friends of the people as
against the domination of the state
government by the railroads, have
, explanation to offer it will stanC
them we'll in hand to get before tht
people with it. Too often it is true
that appearances are deceiving anC
those who are ignorant often ar,
made to do pennance with the trans
) gressor.
We are ready to indulge the hop.
that Governor Trammell and Comp
troller Knott may be able to extricat
i themselves with credit from tn
: seemingly questionable tangle ID
l which they have become involves
: Through the jugglery of tax assess
mentS Drought ABOUT primarily Dy IN
: state tax commission.
It is absurd 10 think of the Atlant
) ic Coast Line railroad having its az
sessment of seventy-ive hundre
: dollars mile reduced when the take
2 of all individuals have been raise
] and when the bonded Indebtedness Q
: that road is probably as much a
} thirty Thousand dollars a mile.
An attempt has been made to in
= crease the taxable values to fit
2 per cent basis on real and persona
property While it is reasonable I
s doubt that an actual fifty per cen
r basis has in fact been reached, ther
E has been some move in the directio