Evening journal., 1915-07-03
CHARTER MILL GRINDS
OUT State REVENUE
With $50 Certificates Issued
to Date, 1915 May Hang
Up Record
$7S,256.57 IN
FEES LAST YEAR
Special to THE EVENING JOURNAL

Special to THE EVENING JOURNAL,
DOVER, Del, July 3.-With the
ending of the first six months of the
year 1915 on June 30, the number of
charters filed at the State Depart-
ment here will approximately num-
Der $50, the capital stock of MANY
reaching well into the millions.
While the majority of the charters
have been for business in this coun-
try, several have designated their
business as being transacted in for.
elgn countries, including South
America, Cuba, Panama. etc.
A comparison of the number OF
charters filed in the years 1913. 1914
and 1915 viii show the steady in
crease in this part of Delaware's
state revenue. In 1913 the number
Med reached 1896, while the number
In 1914 totalled 1923, showing a gain
OF u over the previous year. Should
the charters increase as fast this
year as they did last year, and with
lne present number filed for the past
SIX months of 1915. it is safe to pre-
dict the number will reach LOO or
over during 1915. This will break all
previous charter records in the State.
While the number of charters filed
IN 1914 we're greater than those filed
IN 1913, the State tax was over thirty
thousand greater than in 1914. This
is due to the larger amount of capitali-
zation Of the companies filed in 1913.
than IN 1914. In 1913 the State tax
paid INTO the State treasury. through
the Office of tho Secretary of State,
amounted to sos, ,4Se.24, while in 1914,
the amount paid over to the State
treasurer was S7S,256.57.
The increase in the number nf char
ters in 1914, over those of 1918. az well
as the part of 1915, was due to sumo
extent to the change in the corpora
tion laws of New Jersey, which had
been one of the main States for the
filing of such charters. This action
on the part of the New Jersey Lesis-
lature, was brought about by the op-
position of President Wilson, then
governor of New Jersey, who was
credited with having advocated the
Seven Sisters" acts, which were
passed, and thus deprived New Jer-
sey Of much of the revenue from
charters, Delaware. an adjoining
State being the beneficiary.
The work of receiving, comparing,
filing. computing State tax and numer-
GUS other things connected with the
charter business by the officials of the
state Department, especially in the
office Of the secretary of state, while a
laborious one as well as most particular.
is most efficiently carried on by the
corps of assistants to the secretary Of
State. and it is greatly to their credit
that notwithstanding the enormous
business, increasing each year. which
totals up into the many millions Of
dollars. there has never heen detected
an error of so much as one penny
Deleware's revenue from charters
in the past few years. especially since
1907 has not been so great as in for
mer years. from the fact that an
amendment passed by the Delaware
Legislature in 1907 to the corpora
ton laws, lowered the State tax with
the large corporations, but made no
material difference in the charters
whose capital stock was 100000 or
less.
The United States Government is
also profting by Delawares charter
bill in the supplying of revenue
stamps for each charter, which in
some cases amounts to considerable.