Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-09-23
PULITZER ESTATE
SHOWS INCREASE
OF TWO MILLION
Total Value Of Late Pub
lisher's Holding Placed at
$18,637,545 in Report to
Surrogate.

NEW YORK, Sept. 23.-The report OF
the reappraisal of the estate of Joseph
Pulitzer, ordered by Surrogate Cohalan,
was submitted yesterday to the Surro-
gates Court by Transfer Tax Appraiser
Joseph 1. Berry.
The report shows that the gross
valuation of the estate has been In
creased from slS,526,l16 to S2O,S55,9S5, and
the net from Sl5,Si3.la to slS,69I545, a net
increase of Sl,794O6l. The estimated
amount of the total tax is 1896, 900. Before
the first appraisal $4,000 was paid into
the state Treasury In order to take ad-
vantage of the per cent. rebate, so there
will be refund of approximately $4,000.
In order to get at the actual value of
the Associated Press franchises held by
the Press Publishing Company (the New
York World) and the Pulitzer Publishing
Company (the st. Louis Post-Dispatch),
and to estimate the good will of these two
newspapers, owned by Mr.. Pulitzer much
testimony was taken.
After showing that there had been no
change in the appraisal of the real
estate fixed in the original report at
sS,27S, ,OOO Mr.. Berry placed the value of
1900 shares of the Press Publishing Com
pany stock at s3,2676S1, or S654.73 a share,
Pulitzer Publishing Company stock at
s2,677 ,262 or s29215 a share In thus APP
praising the stock, Mr.. Berry states, he
has added to the appraised value of the
corporations tangible property a good
wil' value consisting of the value of
the Associated Press memberships,
$iSO.OOO, and all other elements of good
will. In the original report the franchises
were not valued as such.
The aDpraiSnl IS arrived at in part by
taking the average annual earnings for
four years preceding Mr.. Pulitzer's death
as a basis for capitalization
One hundred and twenty thousand dol
lars Is allowed as an expenditure for
bonuses to employees. The appraiser also
considered the restrictions upon the sale
Of the stock of the Press Publishing Com
pany inserted by the decedent in his will.
In appraising the value of the Press
Publishing Company the average an
nual net earnings are set at Soll,3Ho
These deductions are allowed: sixty per
cent of increase in the cost of white
paper, $2l0. 600: allowance for decedentS
services, 500 900; per cent on capital
invested, s12l.35O and per cent. on value
of Associated Press franchise, s2S 500. The
total reductions are thus si6015O and the
average net earnings as a basis for 10
per cent capitalization, SSl $50.
The goodwill, originally appraised at
81, 100000 is brought down to SSH, SOP. The
appraised value of assets over liabilities
is S2,O22, ,5l4 as in the original report. This
includes two Associated Press bonds ur
$1,000 par value, and makes the total
value s33O7,671 gross and S3,2670Sl net.
The appraiser states that the average
annual net earnings OF the Pulitzer Pub
fishing Company for four years We're
siOS,i56 The average net earnings, less
deductions, are 1885,, all.
Under the new appraisal the total per-
sonal property is valued at $l7,O77 9S5
This. with the real estate, valued at
S3.27S. 900 makes the total 500 355. .9S5 gross.