Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1923-08-22
WHY TAXES ARE HIGH
Dirt Farmer Plainly Shows
State Growth of Expenses.

of the Wisconsin Agriculturist,
tells the whole story of high taxes
and why they are not reduced, SO
clearly and intelligently that it IS
reproduced below. 1t IS worth
careful reading:
"The railroads paid the state OF
Wisconsin in 1921 over S7,OOO,OO0
in taxes. In 1900 the amount paid
to the state by the railroads was
only S2,OO0,000. This shows an IN
crease of three and one-half times
what the railroads paid twenty
wears ago. You and | are paying
five times, or more, as much tax
as we did twenty years ago on our
farms, stock, stores and other pro-
perty. :
Twenty years ago the state OF
Wisconsin appointed tax commls-
sion of three members, each draw
ing a salary of $4,000. The first
wear it cost the state $4,000.
Twenty years later the state paid
S298, 1850 for the tax commission
and supervisors of assessment.
(Stop and Think
'The Industrial commission ap-
pointed in 1911 cost the state the
first year $4,000; ten years later
it cost $289,479.11.
"The state Highway commission
which was created in 1911 cost the
state of Wisconsin $25, 1850 in
1912. Ten years later it cost the
state S284,8S1. 80. or as near as
can be figured it cost ten times
as much to maintain the supervi-
sors of the roads as it did in 1912.
"The Railroad commission, which
was not in operation until 1905,
cost the taxpayers of Wisconsin
in 1921 $780, 400.45. These four
commissions are costing the state
Of Wisconsin about S1,000,00O per
year at the present and they are
increasing every year. These are
by no means the only commits
sions that the taxpayers have to
maintain. There are dozens of
others, and the heads of these
commissions draw salary from the
state of from $4,000 to $4,000
each and in the case of the Rail
road commission there are three
heads each drawing $4,000 per
year.
There has never been a session
of the legislature in the past TWEEN
ty years but what there has been
some new commission appointed,
one of the latest being the State
Marketing commission which was
started two years ago (these COM
missions are exactly like the grain
of mustard seed mentioned in the
Bible): they are very small In the
beginning but they soon commence
to grow and have to employ more
and more help until in fact at the
present time the capitol at Madi-
son is not big enough to accommo-
date all of the office holders.
Many of these commissions, it has
been shown repeatedly, have never
done half the work that was ex-
pected of them. Then why not
abolish them? But it is far cas-
Ter to appoint a commission than
to abolish one.
LET member of the legislature
propose to abolish some commits
sion, what will happen? Every
member of each and every other
commission will start in to lobby
and try by any means to prevent
it. Why? Because they realize to
which they belong may be the
next one to be removed and it be-
hooves them all to stick together.
Now, then, if our state govern
ment today is not as satisfactory
to us as it was in days gone by,
who is really to blame? AS bust
nessmen and farmers will say that
you are to blame, for you have
been so busy (attending your own
business) that you have let the
state government grow to what it
is today-not very satisfactory,
perhaps. The majority of the
members in the legislature are
persons who have had no exper-
fence in governmental affairs, and
between them are a few business
men who find it uphill business
to better the conditions and after
one term in office they say what
is the use?" and quit.
THE real taxpayers in Wiscon-
sin are the businessmen and far
mers and until these taxpayers are
willing to give more of their time