Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1926-03-10

| the then city fathers, taken this bull
! by the horns years ago and showed
courage enough to build or to buy our
| water works, our water tax would to-
day be the rate now paid? Yet,
doubtless. such an action, especially as
it would necessarily have increased the
city debt. would have up pended that
administration pronto at the next
election, amidst the rejoicings of an
outraged popuIace,
William Allen White, in a recent
article. says that Empora, Kansas,
spends more than so per cent of each
tax dollar on education alone. We
howl with JOY because of our new high
school, but beat our breasts in
lamentation because of the cost.
Wherefore our logic?
Everyone considers himself over
| taxed, his neighbor undertaxed.
| Therefore, personally, 1 believe valu-
| ations should be fixed by disintereste ed
| parties; that, either representative
citizens should be public spirited
| enough to meet with and advise with
the assessors, or that the State board
| should be called upon for this purpose
| Then that each property should be
| taxed upon it's full valuation. In ad-
! dition, l would have a board of re-
| lief" consisting of three men from each
political party, and the assessors To
! this board, anyone having a complaint
! in regard to taxation could make an
| appeal, both orally and in writing. This
board would have full power to settle
the question at issue, giving it's reasons
whenever attachments were allowed
| both the appeals and the decisions
| with the reasons for such decisions. to
be engrossed upon the public tax
| records open to all for inspection or
criticism.
The only argument l have heard
against taxation on full valuation is
that thereby our tax paid to the State
would be increased. This | do not con-
slder a valid argument. If we owe the
State money, let us pay it as we would
any other honest debt. We are receiv-
ing benefits constantly from the State
and from the national government.
The money for such benefits does not
spring out of the ground, but comes
from our own and other like COM
munities, and I think the great failure
OF ELLSWORTH the State of Maine and
New England as whole, is that we
work too little in unity expect too
much from the national government
and labor too hard to gain our own
selfish ends at the expense of the
nation.
/ would urge, as a pressing neces-
sity. the purchase of suitable play
ground for the school a Pine and High
streets. Children must play; this is a
most dangerous corner, and were even
one little life lost it would be too
large a price to pay for niggardliness
in this matter.
Also, | would establish near our
municipal playground a comfort sta
ton where visitors, more especially the
wives of the neighboring farmers on
whose purchases much of Ellsworth's
trade depends, could eat their lunches
and spend an hour or two in rest and
recreation.
Moreover | advise the purchase of
what I believe in ten years would be
a financial asset much multiplied-some
place near Ellsworth on the tide-water
where her citizens and her visitors
alike may go for fishing, bathing
claiming, a chowder or picnic Ten
wears hence, in my opinion, a towns
man will be all dressed up and no
where to go" so far as getting to the
seaside is concerned. unless he is fortu-
nate enough to own his own place or
has a friend upon whose generosity
he may encroach.
This may seem visionary now, but
two years ago my dream of lock
at the Narro.ws and large ships in
Union river as a result, must have
seemed even more visionary. Never
theless, this present year the Standard
Oil Co. of New York, which is not
given to dreams or visions other than
that the term "Socony' is little
night -marish, in letter to Mr. Walter
Thomas, writes that one of their
boats was damaged to the extent of
approximately $4,000, short time ago,
by striking a boulder in Union river.
In the same letter, they write: 8
The project has been under consid-
Grafton for some time OF sending 10
Ellsworth boats of the Socony Boston
type, which are approximately 265 feet
long by 40 feet beam, drawing l2H2 feet
of water With the river in its pres
ent condition, you can readily see that
it would be out of the question for
boats of this type to be used.
1t may be possible in the future that
we may want to establish tankage at
Ellsworth, which will allow us to take
contents of one of these boats APP
proximately $4,000 barrels to the trip,
but with the river in it's present con-
dition this is a matter for future con-
sideration unless some work is done.
Five thousand dollars would pay
quite a bit of interest would it not, on
what such an improvement would cost?
And tankage of $4,000 barrels to the
trip-a single cargo-would seem TO
be worth trying for, call it Dream
nightmare, or common sense, as you
will.
Other opportunities I believe to be
presented are in financing our nelgh-
boring farmers in raising the excellent
Maine pea, as well as squashes, beans,
and the like, for canning; in procuring
a market for our sea- mussels, a very
satisfactory food and the cheapest by
far of all sea foods. [ believe that