The Bismarck tribune., 1922-03-04
Saturday. Evening Letter
BY Justice J. E. Robinson
Bring the good old bugle boys,
Well sing another song,
Sing it as we used to sing it,
Twenty thousand strong"

Sing it as we used to sing 1t,
Twenty thousand strong"
Twenty thousand voters are signing
for measure to reduce by fifty per
cent, the unpaid taxes Of the past three
years, OF course objections are made
BY those who receive and those who
squander the taxes. 1t is said that to
cancel half the unpaid taxes will mean
that about $1,0O0,OO0.00 of registered
hail warrants will be worthless and
several other millions that may be
registered will also be held worthless.
To avoid any such claim the measure
expressly declares (as every one
should know that "a special assess
nent for hail insurance, or any local
improvement is not a tax" and it is
not, in any manner, affected by tax
reduction. OF course a general levy
OF three cents an acre against all lands
is tax and it is not legal. II there
might be levy Of three cents an acre,
there might be levy of $500 an
acre. Now it is quite manifest that
during the past three years the as
sessments, and tax leyies, were ruin
ously oppressive, unjust and illegal,
and any person who pays half the tax
levied against his lands does his full
duty regardless of the fact that others
may have done more than their duty.
Then it appears that those taxes have
been well protested; at the special
election in ToWller county, and at each
subsequent general election and the
recall election, the people protested
and voted against the excessive taxes.
Now if they do not sign up for reduced
taxes and vote for it at the primary
election, you may we'll call them dubs.
or course we must look for howl
from those who receive and those who
squander the taxes You can answer
them only by force of the ballot, or in
the way that Shylock was answered
when he insisted on the letter of his
bond. We have in the state many lit
tie Shylocks. or tax receivers, who in
sist on the letter of their bond, even
though it drive to ruin, and drive out
OF the state, thousands of good,
worthy pioneer settlers We need not
~ b uO W ~ OyC LudL LIc LdA lcuuCLlOu
can do no injury to any honest person.
The reduction, may for a>short time,
defer the payment Of some claims and
it may not defer any payment. It may
save the sheep that is lost. It may
save half the unpaid taxes Of nineteen
and twenty by giving hope and cour~
age to the pioneer settler and making
it possible for him to clear his land
titles by paying his just share Of the
taxes. That will show that the peo-
pie have honesty and courage to undo
a great wrong. You cannot fool all the
people all the time. They are not dubs.
Read the story Of Shylock and learn
how a party, may lose his wealth by
asserting an unjust claim.
. r. Sin the Tribune Of yesterday, |
Mr.. Obert Olson claims that without
his knowledge, or consent, his name
was used as one of the committee for
the petitioners on the eleven initiative
measures and <hat he did not know of
it until about a month ago. Here are
the. facts: In my Saturday evening |
letter Of January 14th, the first seven
initiative measures were published
with blank lines for the names Of the
committee. My Saturday, evening let
ter OF January 21st contained this
The following persons
are named as committee for petit
tions: Frank Evans, Cbert Olson,
Judge Coffey, o. E. Anderson and
Ed Hughes" One night of the week
prior to January 21st, in the lobby of
the Grand Pacific, Frank Evans sat
in his usual chair, Judge Coffey sat on
his right, Obert Olson stood just in
front of them. The talk was on the
initiative measures. asked Frank |
Evans to name member of the com.
mittee for the petitioners. He named
Obert Olson. l agreed to it. Mr.. o.
son smiled his consent and seemed
pleased, as we'll he might. 1t awas
sure to give his name state wide ad-
Vertlsement. Then on one night, with
III week, at my room in the hotel, |
the committee met. There was pres !
ent, Frank Evans, Obert Olson, O. E. |
Anderson and Ed Hughes The 'avowed
purpose was to talk over the measures
ana the work of the committee. We
read each measure, talked them over,
Tor perhaps an hour. Each person
was satisfied. There was no dissent,
either then, or at any time. Mr.. Olson
has always been recognized as a gen.
tleman, and scholar, and member
OF the committee. Fully three weeks
before the. petitions were printed and
sent out for signatures, the names of
the committee, and copy of the sew
eral measures were given the press
to challenge exceptions and discus