The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1921-12-02
TOWN WANTS TAX
CASE REVIEWED
Asks State Supreme Court
to Order Full Rec
ord Sent Up
CHAMPLAIN REALTY
COMPANY DEFENDANT
Findings of Board of Appraisers Against
Town-Facts Similar to Those in Case
Which Court Decided in Favor OF
RrattlebOrO.

Through it's counsel, Attorney Arthur
p Carpenter, the town of Brattleboro has
brought a petition to the supreme court
of Vermont for a writ of certiorari to the
state commissioner of taxes commanding
him to send to the supreme court for re-
view a full transcript of the record in the
case of the town against the Champlain
Realty Co. involving the taxes assessed
by the town against the company in 1918
The Realty Co. has been notified by
Clerk W. r. Daley to appear before the
supreme court at Montpelier the first
Monday in January next to show why the
petition for a writ of certiorari should not
be granted
The town seeks to establish the fact
that the pulpwood foated down West
river and held at the mouth of the river
until it can be fioated down the Con-
necticut to the Hinsdale rossing mill is
taxable in Brattleboro if it is here on
April l. The decision of a board of
appraisers appointed by the tax commits
sioner was against the town in this case.
but in a similar case the state supreme
court has decided in favor of the town
and the Realty Co. has appealed to the
federal question of interstate commerce
being involved.
In its petition for writ of certiOrari
the town sets up that during the winter
of 1917-191S the Realty Co. cut about
1000 cords of pulpwood in Dover.
NardsbOro. Jamaica. StrattOn, WinhalI
and Londonderry to be floated down to the
boom extending between permanent piers
across the mouth of West river at Brat
tleboro. West river in the spring of 1919
became sufficiently free of ice and open
for driving about March %, but the Con-
necticut river was not drivable until
about the middle of April On April |
about 1000 cords had reached the boom
and remained there until April II. when
the boom was opened and some of the
wood was let into the Connecticut the
rest being released two days later.
On April l the listers appraised the
pulpwood held back by the boom at
$4,000, and a tax of S25S.40 was levied
The company appealed to the board of
civil authority, which decided against the
appeal Then the company appealed TO
the state tax commissioner, who appointed
w \. Graham, Charles G. Miller and F.
w. Dunklee a board of appraisers. The
! board reported Nov. 26. 1920. that the
1 900 cords was not on April l, 1918, tax
lable by the town of BrattleborO, being in
, transit in Interstate commerce.
! Attorney Carpenter asserts that the
/ judgment was wrong for the same reasons
as stated in the opinion of the state su-
preme court in an opinion handed down
at the May term of this year in the other
case referred to, in which practically the
same facts were involved. He claims the
pulpwOod was not beyond the taxing
power of the state, not being in transit in
interstate commerce, but was at rest in
/ the boom for time necessarily indefi-
mite and for Il purpose beneficial to the
Realty Co.
| Harvey Maurise & Fits are counsel for
the Realty Co The case is important, as
lit involves taxes not only for one year
1 but for every year.