Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1916-10-07
ASSESSOR ! ". DODD ANSWERS
THE BOARD Of REVIEWS ARTICLE
TELLS WHY HE REDUCED ASSESSMENT OF real. ESTATE
PER CENT LAST SPRING-ARTICLE WAS PUBLISH
ED IN THE WORLD THURSDAY. JULY IL 1916
ro Nc Editor of The Morld


paper to make explanation as to Why
l reduced everybody's real estate >
per cent last spring
On January 29ta. 1916. I wrote "a
letter TO each member of the Board
of Review and asked them TO meet
with me and my deputies on Febru,
airy 9th in the Assessors office at 10
o'clock. When all were present !
stated that | had no authority to call
the Board of Review together Off.
cially but that We had gotten along
so well together | wanted to submit
some facts for their consideration
namely that the Board Of Public
Works who assessed the Public Util-
tiles of the county, the previous year
had reduced the railroads of Berke-
ley county i'll value to the extent Of
1926. 100000. | showed to the board
that the total amount of the Public
Utilities was less than one-third Of
the total amount of all the real estate
of Berkeley county, mark you, real
estate not personal property. | also
called their attention to the sale Of
both country and town property was
not selling at prices equal to past
years and stated that everyone knew
that the interstate commerce com.
mission had given the railroads ;
per cent increase upon freights and
that the railroads were now charging
more perton and per hundred than
Il a
they did not think it fair if the rail
road was to get reduction Of nearly
a quarter Of a million and they alone
owned so much less than one-third Of
the value OF real estate in berkeley
county was it not fair that i've ntl,ar
two-thirds should have n reduction
The whole matter was gone over and
the proper means how to proceed TO
co il were discussed
One member of the Board Of Re.
view made proposition that we re-
duce the town property of Martins
burg l. per cent land all the country
property 10 per cent. whereupon s |.
Dodd madeia calculation of how mueh
this reduction would come 10 which
quickly showed that the reduction
would be so much that tne co,lrt
would have to increase the levy and
this we did not want to do. frank
~ stated that | was opposed TO civ
ing the town any greater reduction
than the country and an understand
ing was finally agreed upon that 81
per cent would make a resIneLian of
about onehatf million. YAt rfSs meet.
ing was present S. Il. Dodd. l.. G.
Hoffman. T. f. Jefferson. Miss Flor
ence Hudgel. Who worked i'm the Of
nee, myself and the Board of Re
view
The following week went out IN
the country .auctioneering sales ana
at these sales | made an oral state
ment setting forth all the understand
ing with the Board OF Review and
told the people a ) per cent reduction
would be given upon their real es-
tate. Some time later one member OF
the Board OF Review came To my Of
ice and | was not present but wrote
a letter ana left it for me with Miss
Hudgel. whom / did not see for some
days after the letter had been writ
ten, because / left too early to see
her before she came to the office
When she delivered tie letter il stat
ed that it would cost me consider
able and advised me not to make The
change this year: that he Was satis-
fed that the Board of Public Works
would raise the assessment OF the
railroads the amount that they had
taken Oft the year before. But now
kind readers and taxpayers. if there
had. not been an understanding whv
did this member of the hoard write
me a letter at all? have this letter
in nv possession internreted maj
letter then inst as do now that tho
Board of Review did nor know what
the Board of Public Works was gong
10 do any more than did and if
did not reduce il in 1916 how did
know who would be assessor in 1917?
Ny card was not in the Daper AZ a