The Van Buren Press

ABOUT TAXES.

The Tax Payers League Attack the City Tax and Collector's Bond.

[Little Rock Gazette, Feb. 11th.]

Some time since, it will be remembered that Judge Rose, counsel of the Tax Payers League, filed in the Circuit Court application for supersedeas to prevent the collection of the pavement tax levied by an ordinance of the City Council. The order was granted for the time being, no final hearing having yet been had. This estopped the collection of the tax.

On yesterday Judge Rose filed three other papers of a similar nature.

First—H. L. Fletcher vs the City of Little Rock, and W. S. Oliver, Collector of Pulaski county. Petition in this case sets forth that the following taxes levied by the City Council for 1873, are grossly illegal, and therefore prays that a writ of certiorari may be issued, to compel the city officials to certify and send up a correct transcript of said ordinance, and that a supersedeas issue to prevent Oliver from collecting said tax, viz: For general purposes, five mills; police purposes five mills; prison, one mill; fire department, one mill; paving indebtedness, five mills; sinking fund, one mill.

Second—William B. Wait vs. City of Little Rock and W. S. Oliver, Collector. This is a petition similar to the above, asking that a supersedeas issue to prevent the collection of the three mills tax levied to pay for certain outstanding railroad bonds, for the following, among other reasons: That the Auditor did not certify the amount of said levy to the Clerk before the first Monday in October, 1873; and that the levy includes the principal of said bonds.

Third—W. W. Adams vs. William S Oliver. This petition sets forth that the amount of tax assessed and to be collected by Oliver is $682,229 19; that the bond of the Collector should be in the sum of $1,364,458 38, or double the amount of said taxes; that said Oliver is proceeding to collect the taxes without such bond: that on the 1st of January 1874. Oliver presented his bond to the Board of Supervisors for $900,000 signed by himself and George W. McDiaz mid, John Stoddard, William Hunter, Powell Clayton, Thomas M. Bowen, A. P. Curry, O A. Hadley, Henry Page, Jas, Garibaldi, John G. Price, J. T. Chidester, Jas. W. Mason, M. W. Benjamin and Alex McDonald; that an examination of the records shows that the said Oliver owns no lands in said County; that Wm. Hunter, Thos. M. Bowen, O. A. Hadley, J. T. Chidester, Alex. McDonald and James M Mason own no property in said County, and that nothing can be made out of the above-named sureties by legal process; that Powell Clayton and A. P. Curry own no property except a homestead, and that the property of the other sureties, over and above incumbrances, does not exceed in value $150,000: that none of the sureties on said bond justified. nor was there any satisfactory evidence adduced of their solvency and sufficiency: that not exceeding the sum of $200,000 could be made by execution out of all the obligors in said bond. Therefore, an order is prayed to quash the order of approval of said bond by the Board of Directors.