Jasper County Democrat, Volume 2, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 February 1900 — Liars Will Figure. [ARTICLE]

Liars Will Figure.

In a long-winded article the editor of the Official Apologist accuses everyone who has claimed that Jasper county’s tax rate has ’been unusually high compared with other counties as being “liars, dissiminating false statements” and many other bad things. He then seeks to prove that our tax rate is about the lowest of any county in the state by making a comparison for 1899 with White, Pulaski and Carroll counties, but neglects to add our bordering counties of Benton, Newton, Lake, Porter and Starke to his list—only selecting two bordering counties. He also makes comparison for 1899 only, and purposely conceals the fact that by reason of The Democrat’s onslaught on high taxes in Jasper county the commissioners reduced the county levy from 65| cents to 50| in 1898, and the county couhcil in 1899 reduced the levy to 45|, which is a total reduction of 20 cents, or almost one-third in two years. This reduction in the county levy has been made, bear in mind, notwithstanding the assessed Valuation has been reduced about $300,000 by reason of mortgage deductions, etc. This juggler with figures also purposely neglects to add that Carroll county, has 114 miles of free gravel road and White 1000 miles to keep in repair, while Jasper has but 23 miles.

This George Washington editor refers to Pulaski as follows: “Pulaski county, the most strictly reliable democratic county in this portion of Indiana, is indeed a ‘bute’ when it comes to high taxes.”

Now we have before us the official tabulated vote of Pulaski county for 1898, and we find that of the county officers the republicans elected a clerk by 97 plurality, auditor by 42, treasurer by 6, surveyor by 110, undone commissioner by 19. The democrats only elected the sheriff, coroner and one commissioner. Pujaski may be a “bute” but it is hardly “strictly reliable democratic,’’nor has it been for some years, a fact which the gifted editor (in figures) of the Apologist well knew, or, if he did not know, should have found out before proceeding to write his longwinded and grossly false and misleading article. Another point; Pulaski levies a sinking fund tax to provide money for paying off her court house bonds. Nothing of this kind has yet been done here, and soon an additional levy must be made for this purpose. The 10 cent, levy at present made is for paying interest on court house bonds only, a fact which every intelligent voter knows. An additional levy of 5 to 10 cents court house tax must necessarilly be made soon for the above purpose. We have not the 1899 levy of all our bordering counties at hand, but Newton and Benton counties are lower than last year. We have, however, the levy of 1898 from the various county auditors themselves, and herewith present them for comparison. Remember, too, that Jasper county’s levy was reduced 15 cents in 1898, but still she headed the list.

Levy on each SIOO Jasper cents Pulaski Porter 28Mi “ White.... Lake 23J* “ Benton .23 “ Newton

The above figures speak for themselves as to whether Jasper’s tax rate has been excessive as compared with neighboring counties, and no amount of lying or subterfuge will change them in any way. The Apologist editor dare not attempt to prove one statement herein made as false, and he well knows it. He can not dispute the fact that the county levy has been reduced a full 20 cents in two years, while the valuation is $300,000 less than in 1898. The fact remains that Jasper’s county levy has been excessively high—among the very highest in the state—but it is now coming down somewhere in reason,, for which no thanks are due the gifted individual who presides over the destinies of the Official Apologist, who so loves to pay taxes that he lists a $5,000 newspaper plant at themunificient sum

of $350, and forgets several bits of other personal property altogether.