The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1920-02-12
Total

In other words, S244 of the 81 tax
rate is fixed by the state and the voters
of the city. and the 20 cents of this
s244. namely, the city highway tax,
comes under the supervision of the city
council The balance, the general city
tax, Sl56, added 10 this, viii make
Sl76 df your S4 tax rate that comes
under the direct supervision Of the city
government In 1914 the tax rate was
S2.25, which at that time was eonsid-
cred low. OF this S225, 30 cents was
city highway tax and Sl.05 general tax.
The city government of 1914, therefore,
under their supervision, had Sl.25 of
the S225 tax.
The increase in the amount of tax
required for city highway and general
city purposes from 1914 to 1920, pro-
vided the 1920 tax is s. is less than Al
per cent You may ask why this in
crease Of 4 per cent. IN 1914 city la
Dor worked nine hours a day for a COM
pensation Of approximately 20 cents an
hour At the present city labor works
eight hours a day for a compensation
of approximately 40 cents an hour.
Added to this the increase in city sal
aries and all the supplies required to
maintain and operate the city, and II
Won are fair minded you will admit
that ii 81 tax rate under present con
ditions is high. a 1928 tax under the
conditions that prevailed in 1914 was
excessive.
The city Of Barre at the present time
represents an investment of Sl.4j000O.
Bear in mind that our streets side
walks. sewers, domestic and service,
and bridges are not carried on the city
books as an asset. The total city in
debtedness at the present time Is S;i22,-
600. which is Sl20O00 less than it was
in 1914 In the period between 1914
and 1920. the city made permanent i'm
provemcnts by way of bridges granite
and cement streets. and cement side
walks of over S5j,000. TO say nothing
Of sewers. both domestic and service.
and other permanent improvements. In
other words, the city Is at least Sl1O,OoO
better off to-day than II was in 1914
Without hesitation. | can say, and it
Is with deliberation. that Barre, in the
midst Of the other towns and cities OF
the state. asks and needs no apology
for the course 1t has pursued, as it has
placed itself in the commanding posi-
tion Of the most progressive and wide
awake city in the state This is due
to the aggressivencss and progressive
ness al the class OF citizens that Mr..
Hollister would have us believe would
squander our finances
Mr.. Hollister. in his drive for an in
crease IN rents, would have YOU believe
that IL has been made necessary ON ac-
count Of the raise in general city taxes
for which the city government alone IL
responsible Thr increase in general
ritv taxes from z S225 tax rate 60 q 81
tax rate would mean an increase in the
taN burden On the average tenement Of
less than -. Would Il not be we'll ter
the tenant 10 look into the assessed
value Of the property be- occupies b..
fore he stands for a very material IN
crease m rcntse lt would appear from
Mr.. Hnlii~tcr- letter hat f the tenant
would not 20 10 the caucus and nom
mate q man ri the landlords choice,
the landlord would retsliate by raising
bis rents Truly. VIC have returned 70
& De dav ii scridem u q. Tor the voters
of Barre Is - ta the polls and register
their choice as e. whether they want
candidate who arc seeking election to
further Their ean personal interests, Or
candidates who are seeking ofiec for
thr purpose - serving the best inter-
ssls u ihe ~. =. y. Hcdi..