Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-11-09
Maine Assessors
(Continucd from Pace 10)

|
state and between citizens that there
| should be a uniform valuation of
property.
| But while uniform assessment is
to be strived for there is absolutely
! no assessor or board OF assessors that
it perfect. However, the assessors
should not be discouraged because
of this, but instead they should re-
member at all times that they are
, assessors and when they hear some
thing that may have a bearing on
the valuation Of property should
make q note of it for future reference.
! Judgement is an important asset in
the work of an assessor and must in
most cases be employed after all
other means of determining the val
uation of property have ben en-
ployed.
! He said that he believed thorough
| ~ in the three points that preceed>
! ing speaker had laid down for the
valuation of property. These three
points are. the initial cost, the de-
/ probation and the present valuation.
With this he said must be taken into
consideration other points such as,
the location of the property. whether
! in the town or country good RAIDS
CT bad. and other pints which go to
fix the market value of the property.
He also said that much of value
could be found through comparative
values of properties nearby, one man
knowing how his neighbors place
compares with his own. In many
cases the value of personal property
can be determined by noting the price
| which dealers will allow for articles
of that class.
Mr.. Thombs. before launching into
the article upon which he was sched-
uled to speak said that he mad hoped
to hear. anothers views on the income
tax but that as Mr.. Bryan was I'M
able to be there to speak he would
like to remark briefly on the income
| tax from his point of view, Mr..
Thombs said that while member
of the Legislature he was placed
upon n committee which had to look
into the matter of this kind of tax.
Through this connection he was sent
as one of a commission of three to q
national meeting of assessors which
was held in Chicago. They were a
! fine body of men there and they We're
rot just thinking of today but of to-
morrow.
While there he was interested in q
fine discussion on this subject and
was convinced that the income tax
law was better for the people than
the intangible tax. This belief was
| strengthened by the experiences
which were related by some of the
men from states where there had
been an intangible tax.
He said that he was pleased to see
that the members of this convention
who will be in the 1928 Legislature
were not afraid of stating their
preference but that he felt that they
could not be held to this preference
! without having first made an inves-
tigation for themselves. But the
people may voice their opinion on
this matter to the law makers and
the latter must of course take some
notice of their constituents. With
this in mind it is up to all who be-
to bring it to the attention of their
! State legislators and if the neces-
| sary laws are not passed this year,
| they will be at some future time.
In place of c. A. Byram of Patten,
who was to have been the second
| speaker of the evening, but who was
not able to be present, DR.. T. J. Win
slade, d. d. of Eastport, gave a most
| impressive talk. 1t was announced
that his talk would deal with the
problems of valuation and taxation
in Washington county, but his talk
| was more than that, it was a clean
cut portrait of the manner in which
an intelligent man views the pay
ment of taxes and the methods by
| which hey are collected. DR.. Winslade
| began his address by saying that he
knew nothing of the work of the as
SCISSOR or of the politician. He said
that this problem of taxation was
necessarily a hard one, but that this
is a day of hard problems, and he
| who solves onesbecause it is a duty.
will get the reward of duty, but he
who solves it because it will Ielp his
fellow men, builds for himself halo.
He said that in his belief the prob
lem was really about 30 per cent
imaginary. But the problem is there
and it must be settled, not for the
present, but for future generations
1t can be solved i'm ime, by use of
education. It has been said that a
little education leads away from the
desired point, but enough makes t