14
THE NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT.
FEBRUARY 19, 1903.
HOUSE H0LLI7I
AisecUte Xditor Write a Letter to the
" Omaha lteand the-Wr Id-Herald
Excerpts from last week's comr-ent
on House Roll 171 were reproduced by
the Omaha Bee and the World-Herald.
Since then, learning that Senator Way
of Platte and one or two fusion mem
bers of the house had expressed them-
selves as opposing the bill, the asso
ciate editor called upon Senator Way
. to-learn the reason for his opposition.
I The senator felt that fusion papers
were attempting to whip him and
. other fusion members into line for a
bill which, in his judgment, if cer
tain defects were not cured, must re-
; gull in double taxation; and he re
sented the idea of an attempt to coerce
him into voting for House Roll 171
simply because Omaha people assure
him it is all right. The senator is in
favor of applying the home rule idea
for municipal taxation to all cities in
the state, but he pointed out certain
; defects, not so much in House Roll
171 as in the effect it would have
when applied with the metropolitan
school law in levying school district
, taxes. These are set out at length in
the following letter which wa3 sent
Tuesday to both the Bee and the
World-Herald.
In reply to this letter'the following
telegram was received Wednesday
noon : '
"Omaha, Neb., Feb. 18, 1903 Chas.
" Q. De France: Yours on House Roll
f 171 evidently written' without knowl
edge that amendments were prepar
ing to meet objections you raise.
; . "VICTOR ROSEWATER.",
This will be good news to those
; who wish to solve the problem of
equitable city taxation. Just upon
j what theory these amendments will
be made The Independent has -not
, learned. If the levy for school district
taxes in Omaha could be made on the
'' 'county valuation instead of the city
valuation, the difficulty would be over-
come1 as far as Omaha is concerned.
The associate editor's letter is as fol
lows: , To the-Editor: Your paper has
seen fit to quote from the columns of
The Nebraska Independent certain
expressions of opinion as to the' mer
its of House Roll No. , 171 and as to
the duty of fusion members of the
legislature to stand solidly by the
bill. Press of work had prevented
me from securing a copy of the bill
and I had relied upon the statements
of those in a position to know, that
its sole provision was to eliminate
from section 08 of chapter, 12a (the
Omaha charter) the words: "Provid
ed, that the tax commissioner tshall
take the valuation and assessment of
railroad property within -the city lim
its from the returns made by the state
board of equalization to the county
clerk." ; I was not aware that House
Roll 171 also attempts. to amend sec
tion 85 - of article I. of chapter 77
(the; revenue law). As to whether this
attempt to amend parts of tvO' distinct
and separate statutes contravenes
. that portion of section 11 of article III.
; of the state constitution "No bill
"shall contain more than one subject"
1 -M shall not discuss, although it
K" seems to me to come dangerously
near the unconstitutional line.
:Ln order that what follows may. be
made perfectly clear, permit : me to
quote section 2 of House Roll 171: '
Sec. 2. That section 85, of ar
ticle I. of . chapter 77, entitled
"revenue," of the compiled stat
utes of Nebraska, 1901, be, and
." the same hereby is amended to
read as follows: "Sec. 85. Rail
road and telegraph property as- 1
sessed by the state board of equal
ization, as provided in section 40,
shall be apportioned by the coun
ty clerk., among the respective
precincts, townships, SCHOOL
" : DISTRICTS, road districts, CIT
'.' IES, and villages in wbich the
same may be entered on the tax
1 list, and collected by the county
' treasurer; PROVIDED THIS SEC
' TION SHALL NOT APPLY TO
CITIES OF THE METROPOLI
TAN CLASS."
The proviso following the words
"county treasurer" is the new matter
in the proposed amendment. I have
capitalized the , words "school dis
tricts" and "cities" to call attention
to the fact that the proviso makes an
- exception in favor of Omaha, the only
metropolitan city in Nebraska, not
; only as to railroad and telegraph as
sessed valuation for CITY purposes,
but for SCHOOL DISTRICT purposes
as well. And herein lies the justice
" In the railroad contention that the ef
fect of House Roll 171, if it shall be
come a law, will.be either (a) to re
" suit in double taxation of railroad
property, or (b) to rob outlying school
districts along the railroad for the
benefit of the metropolitan school dis
trict of Omaha.
That the levy and collection of CITY
taxes, for CITY purposes, in Omaha
could in any manner have any con
nection with tlie levy and collection
of SCHOOL DISTRICT taxes out in
the state, seemed to me too absurd tor
any fair-minded legislator vto contem
plate for a moment, and tie articles
In The Independent were written with
this phase of the question in view. I
had no idea that those pushing the
bill, "asking only simple justice,"
were holding back anything. I firm
ly believed that the sole object of the
bill was to permit the city authori
ties of Omaha to do foi" purely CITY
purposes, what every fair-minded man
is willing to concede not only to
Omaha, but to every other city and
village in the state, that is to say,
"authority1 to assess and collect taxfs
. . . uniform in r pect to persons and
property within the jurisdiction"
something which Omaha, South Omaha
and Lincoln are not now permitted to
da "He who asks equity must come
with clean hands," however, and by
carefully avoiding mention of the
fact that SCHOOL DISTRICT taxes,
for the metropolitan school district of
Omaha, are levied upon the CITY as
sessed valuation, instead of the
COUNTY valuation, the partisans of
House Roll 171 . have placed them-.
selves in a position to defeat the
meritorious features of their bill.
It is obvious that state government
covers every foot of railroad within
the state, and so far as concerns state
taxes it matters little from what' par
ticular county or counties they come,
so long as railroad property on the
average pays as much state tax per
?100 of "fair cash value" as other
property over the state pays on the
average. Outlying counties along the
line of railroads having terminals in
Omaha contribute to the creation of
value in those terminals, and the sys
tem of dividing the total value of any
given road by the number of miles of
"line" in that road thus arriving' at
a per mileage valuation could have
no other object than to give outlying
counties; for local taxation, a greater
share of railroad valuation than the
value of railroad property within
those counties would warrant if as
sessed without reference to any other
part of the road. K
It is also obvious that county gov
ernment also extends over every foot,
of railroad in the state, and what
ever of the value of Omaha terminals
is not taxed for county purposes in
Douglas county is taxed for. county
purposes in other counties along the
line. Whether the entire assessed
valuation in the several counties is
high enough, as compared to other
property in those counties, is wholly
another question and need not be dis
cussed here.
It is equally obvious that school
districts cover every foot of railroad
in the state, and as far as concerns
the assessed valuation of railroad
property, the "distribution" for
SCHOOL DISTRICT purposes is just
as complete as it is for county pur
poses. But CITY government does not co
er probably to exceed a tenth part of
the miles of railroad "line" in the
state, and the "distribution" theory is
obviously, wrong even if we concede
it right for other purposes because at
least nine-tenths of the great ter
minal values in the larger cities
wholly escapes paying CITY taxes
anywhere.
I do not purpose to discuss the
merits oL the -'distribution" idea as
applied to state, county, and school
district taxes. It is amply sustained
by good authority and we have the
system. But CITY taxes pay , for a
peculiar and necessary service to all
property' holders ; within the city, of
which the railroads are doubtless
among the-greatest beneficiaries, and
all property within the city limits
should contribute toward paying these
expenses as the constitution contem
plates: "Uniform in respect to per
sons and property." This can best
be done by the method outlined in
House Roll 171, as far as it relates
to CITY taxes. That is to say, the
property values actually present in
any city jurisdiction should be taxed
fcr tity purposes without reference to
any o.l er place whatsoever.
But I note that section 21, sub-division
XVII., chapter 79, Compiled Stat
utes (relating to metropolitan schools)
empowers the city council to levy
school district taxes upon the CITY
assessment. Under the present Oma
La cJi?rter, with its railroad excep
tion, this does not disturb the "dis
tribution" as between school districts
along the lines. entering Omaha, al
though it works a discrimination be
tween the railroads and other taxpay
ers in Omaha, 6n account of the lower
rate of levy possible because of the
higher assessed valuation of other
rroperty. Should House Roll 171 be
come a law, and the terminals in
Omaha be assessed at their "fair cash
value," the result would be double
taxation, not because of the levy for
purely CITY purposes, but because of
the levy for SCHOOL purposes. The
major portion of the value of those
terminals would-also be taxed in oth
er school districts along the line. This
any fair-minded' man can see. Possi
bly this defect can .be cured by re
quiring the school taxes for the me
tropolitan district of Omaha to be
levied upon the assessed valuation of
propfrly as returned by the precinct
asFesscr? for state and county pur
poses. But House Roll 171 as it
stands, considered in the light of sec
tion 21 cf the school law above men
tioned, will t'o the very thing which
it.3 partisans have said it would not
do affect school district taxation
along all lines entering Omaha.
Unless these defects are cured, pop
u?ist and democratic members of the
legislature are warranted in voting
agams-t House Roll 171 without being
subjected to the suspicion that they
have put on the railroad collar. Cure
the cefects and let us learn "Who's
Who in the Nebraska Legislature."
CHARLES Q. DE FRANCE,
Associate Editor Nebraska Indepen
dent (Thursday morning: Representa
tive Ten Eyck has introduced H. R.
330, which takes the r.lace of H. R.
171 and cures the defects pointed out
above. Ed. Ind.)
Th 3 Dftflnln AnnrrwnH
II IBUUIO ftpplUIBU
In 1882 the assessment of 1,
944 miles of railroad in Nebras
ka aggregated $12,080,670, or $6,
519.76 per mile. In 1902 5,706
miles of railroad in Nebraska
were assessed for $26,422,732, or
$4,636.92 -per mile. At the mileage
rate of 1882. the assessment for
1902 would have been $37,197,880,
or $10,775,148 more than the roads
have been assessed for last year.
And yet John N. , Baldwin insists
that the railroads are paying more
than their share of taxes ... now
when every mile of railroad in
Nebraska is worth fully double
-its value of twenty years ago.
m Omaha Bee.
The Independent believes in a fair
statement of facts, and the above is
not so, for the reason that it assumes
that other property on the ayerage
was assessed as high in 1902 as it
was in 1882. Farm lands, which con
stitute more than 50 per cent of the
total grand assessment roll, were as
sessed on the average in 1882 at $3.05
per acre. In 1902 at slightly less than
$2.53 or a reduction of 17 per cent
in the assessed valuation.
Assuming that both farm lands and
railroads increased in actual value in
the; twenty years in about the same
ratio, J;hen the assessed valuation of
a mile of railroad in 1902 could have
been 17 per cent lower than in 1882
without violating any of the tenets of
uniformity. But if the Bee's figures
are correct, the assessed valuation of
a mile of railroad in 1902 was nearly
29 per cent lower than in 1882 which,
of course, shows a big tax-shirking on
the part of the railroads, but not po
great as the Bee's presentation indi
cates But. why harrass the public
with these figures now? The whole
matter was fought out last fall in
the state campaign and decided in
favor of the railroads. Mrf Weston,
the only member of the board of
equalization who was a candidate for
re-election, had the greatest majority
of any candidate on tin republican
state ticket, and he was the only re
publican candidate who stood up man
fully' for the assessment as made and
opposed any increase. The people bv
their votes said, "Well done, good and
faithful servant; we are willing to pay
a large portion of 'the taxes the rail
roads ought to pav in fqt. we like
it." So whv drag forth the corpse of
increased railroad taxation? It is even
more dead than free silver!
Feres! Trea Seedlings
Burr, pine and chestnut oak; ash,
elm,. black walnut, Russian mulberry,
sycamore, linden, box elder, yellow
cottonwood, soft maple. By the sin
gle thousand, or in car lots. In size
from six inches to twenty-four, one
year's growth. Same varieties from
six to twelve feet for parks or streets.
From one tree to car lots.
ROBT. W. FURNAS,
Brownville, Neb.
Cleveland is noncommittal about his
candidacy for the democratic nomina
tion. When asked the direct question
by the Cincinnati Times-Star he re
plied: "I cannot possibly bring my
mind to the belief that a condition or
sentiment exists that makes any ex
pression from me on theubject of the
least importance."
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Notice of Special Meeting:
Notice is hereby given that a special meting
of the stockholders of the National Manufac
turing Company, a manufacturing corporation
organized under the laws of the state of Nebras
ka doinir business at 1W0 to 15:4 N streotin the
city of Lincoln. Lancaster county. Nebraska, is
is called to moet at the office of said manufac
turing corporation at 0 p. m Monday, Mc-vo.
Kith, 1903, for the purpose of electing a boa. d of
directors for the ensuing year.
J. H. RING.
Dated February 11, 1903 Presidt-nt,
C. M. RING,
Secretary.
S. B. lianas, Attorney
the District Court in and for Laneater
county, Nebraska. Luiuer Batten, Plain
tiff, vs. John Young, Mrs, John Yovmg, his
wif, first name unknown, K. H. Young, first
name unknown, Mrs. E. R. Young, first name
unknown, E. R. Baybura first name un
known, and Mrs. E. R. Kayburn, first name
unknown, defendants.
NOTICE TO NON-RESIDENT DEFENDANTS
The.defondants John Young, Mrs. John Young
his wife, first name unknown', E. K. Yon:,
first name unknown, Mrs. K. R. Young, his wi 0,
first name unknown, E. R. Kayburn firsc name
unknown and Mrs. E. R. Rayburn bis wife
first name unknown, non-residents and defen
dants in said oause will each tak notice that the
plaintiff, Luther Batten on February litli 903
filed his amended petition against said defen
dants and each and all of (hem in the District
court of Lancaster county, Nebraska the object
and prayer of said petition being to' have title
to the real estate described as north (N Vi) of
'nth west quarter (S. W. 14) of section (8) town
ship eleven (11) range eUht (S) Lancaster
county Nobraska, quieted in said Luther Batten,
to have the cloud cast on pliantiffs title by the
claims of said defendants and each and all of
them removed and to have them each nnd all
forever barred from asserting any claim against
said lands and to have the record title of said
John Young cancelled as against said plaintiff.
You are required to answer said petition ou
or before Monday the 22d dav of March. 1903.
LUTHER BATTKv,
Plaints.
AMENDMENT TO ARTICLES OF INCOR
PORATION Notice is hereby given, that there has been
filed in the office" of the County C'erk of Lan
caster County, Nebraska, an amendment to the
articles of incorp' rat on of the Farmers Union
Ditch Company, whose original articles of incor
poration have been hitherto filed in the counties
of Buffalo and Dawson, Nebraska, which amend
ment was adopted at a meeting of the stock
holders of the said company, held at the office of
the Company at Kearney, Kebraska on Febru
ary 18th, 1902, and is as follows: Article II. The
principal place of business of this corporation
shall be the tity of Lincoln, in the County of
Lancaster and State of Nebraska.
HENRY U. LEWIS,
.. Secretary.
W .... I
