54 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



value appreciates rapidly, as is shown by the fact that many of 

 our wealthiest citizens have made the rise in value of such prop- 

 erty the basis of their accumulations. 



From events which have recently transpired in our State, it is 

 evident that such lands are still regarded by capitalists as desira- 

 ble forms of investment. Such property, however, let us not 

 forget, will never bear its just proportion in assessments, so long 

 as the percentage system is maintained. Is it not surprising that 

 in consequence of the fallacious notion of abatement of State tax, 

 or from that singular quality in human nature which leads it to 

 underestimate its own possessions when under the inspection of 

 assessors, or from whatever other cause, towns should adopt and 

 maintain a practice so clearly adverse to their own interests, 

 disregarding the principle that property gravitates to localities of 

 low rates of taxation, whereas by the percentage system the rate 

 is unnecessarily high ! It is true the amount of revenue would be 

 neither increased nor diminished by assessment on actual value, 

 but the 7-ate of assessment would be real, would be uniform under 

 like conditions, and would have the very decided advantage of 

 always being lower than by the percentage system. Moreover 

 this method would be in accordance with constitutional require- 

 ment regarding assessment by State authority. Article 9, section 

 8 of the Constitution of Maine, reads thus : "All taxes upon real 

 estate, assessed by authority of this State, shall be apportioned 

 and assessed equally, according to the just value thereof." Ac- 

 cording to the just value, it will be observed, and not according to 

 a percentage value. 



Foil Taxes. — In chapter 6, section 40 of the Revised Statutes of 

 Maine, it is provided that in the assessment of all State, county, 

 town and plantation taxes, the assessors "shall assess on the 

 taxable polls therein one-sixth part, as nearly as may b~e, of the 

 whole sum to be raised ; but the whole poll tax assessed in one 

 year upon an individual for town, county and State purposes, 

 except highway taxes separately assessed, shall not exceed three 

 dollars." 



The outcome of this regulation is, the poll tax in most towns is 

 a fixed sum, viz., three dollars. A moment's examination of the 

 relation between the entire poll tax of the State and the whole 

 amount of tax will show that it cannot be otherwise. In 1870 the 

 valuation of the State was $224,822,860. Assuming the percent- 



