Salt Lake Tribune | 1907-07-21 | Page 4 | The Benefit of Forgery

THE BENEFIT OF FORGERY. Tho Doserot News has for many years been tho beneficiary of a forgery upon tho assessment rolls of this count)', which has saved it tho payment of taxes on $20,000 of value which was actually assessed upon the property of tho News, and onterod on the roll. Tho tax. on thin $20,000 at nn averago of threo and one-half mills would bo $700 per year. Allowing that this forgery has boon in effect for ten 3'eara, it is clear that tho Nows owes to tho public $7000 in taxea which it has withheld through fraud and forgery. for-gery. That tho News was aware of tho crime, that it know it was swindling swind-ling tho public by paying $700 less per year than it ought to pay, there can bo no doubt. But tho News is insistent that the taxpaj'ers of this community aro entitled enti-tled to protection, and to have a full knowledge of how their money is raised and expended. Thc-e can bo no question ques-tion about this. Everybody not only concedes that point, but insists upon it, Tho only question remaining is whether tho News is willing to live up to its professions. It insists that the taxpayers shall bo protected, but it has swindled tho taxpayers of the count)' out of at least $70u0 in the past ten years by the forgery committod in its interest upon tho assessment rolls of tho county. Now, will the News make that swindle swin-dle good? Will it como forward and pay the amount of money that it ought to havo paid, and that it would necessarily neces-sarily havo naid had it not been for that forgery7 The tniolic is entitled to protection against crime of this kind. It is entitled to protection against the fo-lonious fo-lonious tampering with the public roc-ords, roc-ords, which has allowed certain onos to escape their just public obligations through the employment and paying of criminals to commit this felony. As, a principle of ethics, morality, propriety and decency, however, it does not lie in the mouths of tho beneficiaries benefi-ciaries of this forgery and felony to como forward with virtuous protests against wrongs upon tho taxpayers and with pleas that tho taxpayors are entitled enti-tled to protection. The taxpayers are as fully entitled to protection against theso. forgers and the beneficiaries of forgery as thoy aro against any other kind of graft and criminal grabs.- Let the Nows make good tho money which it has swindled the public out of in taxation in tho last ten years by roa-'son roa-'son of its being a benoficiao' of that forgery, or forover hold its peace.