The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1917-01-20
SATURDAY MORNING, JANUARY 20, 1917
WHAT MIR. KELLEY LEFT OUT.

WHAT MR. KELLEY LEFT OUT
"a" the conclusion of his address Mr. Kelley fairly mobed
desired to offer their ordinations Miner
anne the
abe'From keleys
speech.
1t was good speech that which Mr. c. F. Kelley made
before his Helena audience Thursday evening concernng
taxation in Montana Mr. Kelley is fine gentleman and
good alker. If he not thus endowed he would not
be holding his present position chief attorney tor the An
aconda Copper Mining company.
The who rise such flights of oratory in dis
cussing the prosaic question Of taxation his
hearers to that ecsatc mental condition which they want
to fairly mob him from sheer joy, is indeed great or
possessed of that hypnotic power evidently
dangerous man to have around when Montana egsa-
ture is considering the question Of taxation.
1t was indeed great showing that Mr. Kelley made to
the and commercial operations of his client
during the past few years. the stupendous of its
payrols the hundreds of millions of pounds of copper
is extracting annually from the mountains OF Montana the
huge paid out for freight fuel and power the amount
of taxes paid on its mines and forests and railroad
During the of his speech he dealt in figures so
staggering to the ordinary mind that sounds like chap
ter from the enchanted tales of Arabian Nights.
With most of Mr. Kelleys remarks The Muscular is in
hearty concord We would despse any who would seek
in spirit of jealousy revenge, for real anced injury
to muc the Anaconda Copper Mining company any other
legitimate industry, in the form of taxes in any other
way.
We do not believe that there any such sentiment exist
ing in the minds of the people of this state in the Montana
legislature At the time there does exist that public
dstrust in nconsiderabe portion of the state stated
by the attorney for the copper company that it not
and has not been paying its propoonate part of the bur-
dens of taxation in Montana.
Stripped Of all oratorcal atmosphere that is the
question at ISSUE fthe big mining companies under the
very ingenious plan of taxation applicable to them alone
have escaped the relative that has been paid by
the farmers the home owners, the business men, the rail-
roads and the banks of this state then they should of right
be willing to their rghtfu share and if unwilling
the legislature of Montana will be derelict in its duty if
To
equitable taxation of all alike
Under the present system of taxation in Montana mines
are assessed five dollars per for the land involved
upon all machinery used in mining and all surfce i'm
provemens and in addition the net annual proceeds
cash value"
We will agree that other forms of property such as farms
livestock, dwelling houses business concerns and similar
forms OF investment probably assessed in excess of
40 per cent OF their actual cash vaue Banks are as
seSsed by agreement of the assessors at Is ner
cent OF their capital and SURPLUS
We accept as true Mr. keleys statement that the as
sessment OF the Anaconda company amounts to $51
$685. This, OF course includes the assessed value of the
Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railroad se> era million dol
lars OF timber lands in western Montana its coal lands most
Of the agricultural lands Deer Lodge county sawmls
stores livestock hotels and other forms of property owned
assessed in this state.
It, unfortunate that some member of the legislative COM
mttee tor whose special edcaton the speech was delv
cred ala not inquire OF mr. Kelley just what part of the
$33Oo3 represented the assessment of the mines Of the
Anaconda company.
That we understand it, the purpose of the hearing
For the purpose of this argument we can onv therefore
assume based on passed assessments that the
last year against the Butte mining interests owned bv the
Anaconda was something like $l4oooooo including met
For the purpose of the hearing therefore, Mr. Keev very
adroai total assessment of all kinds Of nro,e4,
owned by the Anaconda company and left the COMMITTEES
under the suppression that the Butte copper mines were