Democratic Sentinel, Volume 16, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 June 1892 — WEALTH OF THE WEST. [ARTICLE]

WEALTH OF THE WEST.

Valuation of Central States According to the Census. The Census Office has Issued a bulletin showing by States and geographical divisions the total and per capita assessed value of property for 1890 and 1880, and the increase per cent, of such valuation. For the North Central Division, which, among others, includes the States of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Kansas, lowa, and Missouri, the following figures are given: TOTAL ASSESSED VALUATION. State. 1890. 1880. Illinois $727,416,252 $786,616,394 Indiana 846,687,6*8 727,815,131 Michigan 927,577,728 517,666,359 Wisconsin 592.890,719 438,971,751 Kansas 348,459,944 160,891,689 lowa 630,695,141 398,671,251 Missouri 786,343,753 532,795,801 The bulletin says that as the laws of Illinois provide that property shall be assessed for taxation at its true value In that State, but that the Board of Equalization for 1880 officially declared that the assessed value for that year was but one-half of the true value, the figures of the assessed valuation of Illinois property should be increased fourfold to show the true increase during the decade. The per capita assessed value In the same States in 1890 and 1880 is given as follows: State. 1890. ISBO. Illinois $190.11 $255.67 Indiana 386.19 367.90 Michigan 442.99 316.24 Wisconsin 351.47 333.69 Kansas 244.17 161.52 lowa 277.58 245.39 Missouri *. .293.50 245.71 For the decades ending With 1860,1870 and 1880 the estimated true value of all property in the United States and th* value of real estate and personal property as assessed is as follows: Assessed Estimated Years. valuation, true valuation. 1860 $] 2,084,560,005 $16,159,616,068 1870 14,178,986,732 30,068,618,507 1880 16,902, i»93,543 43,642,000,600 1890 24,651,585,466 Should It be found upon completion of the inquiry in relation to the true value of all property in the United States that the same relation exists in 1890 between the assessed valuation and the true valuation as existed in 1880, the absolute wealth of the country may be estimated at $63,648,000,000, or more than SI,OOO per capita, as against $514 per capita in 1860, $7Bl per capita in 1870, and SB7O per capita in 1880.