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Show I Published by the Salt Lake Federation of Labor in the Interest of the Men and Women Who Work for Wages. Vol. 1, No 31 Salt Lake City , Utah, Feb. 10, 1917 Price 5 Cents t S JT I maomrm privately P OWNED PUBLIC assessed according to a criterion of ation is capitalized at $10,000,000 and view of having certain measures to value determined by a multiple of net is the owner of a subsidiary corpor-- 1 their liking crystalized into law. The proceeds of productive mines. It was ation known as the Pleasant Valley various interests above referred to apCoal company, which is capitalized at proposed that the value of a mine to be practically agreed upon cerpear should be fixed at three times the net $2,000,000, the two concerns owning tain important phases of certain legis- vast areas in the heart of the coal proceeds, plus the small acreage valu- . lation, and my purpose In addressing ation exacted by the government from fields of Carbon county, aggregating this communication to you is to Invoke tributed the following Open Letter the purchaser at the time of its acbetween 30,000 and 40,000 acres of land. consideration careful such of proyour to" the Hon, Simon Bamberger, govquisition. This proposed constitutionOf this tremendous area the greater before the general posals ernor of Utah, and the members of al amendment was submitted to a vote portion was acquired from the State of ' public may become bound by your acof the people at the election held in the Legislature. tion. Utah, through selections of the state1916, and was defeated by a' November, land board made under and in pursuis It interests proposed by mining same was 'this press quite active very large vote. The proposed amendante of the act of Congress known as metalliferous and coal that mines shall ment embraced many argumentive and during the recent election in an enthe enabling act. A reading of this act be taxed, first, at the price paid the deavor to convince the voters that ambiguous provisions, which doubtless will disclose that sections 2, 16, 32 and which, in the case of met- government vote voters to many 3( of every township within the state persuaded against $5 is alliferous taxes were already a greater burden lands, approximately Other considerations en- - per acre, and in the case its were adoption. donated to the State of Utah by coal of lands than they were able to stand and latered into the result which effected United States for the. support of the In $20 and that acre, per borious editorials told us that the the defeat of the proposed legislative - approximately the common schools. In addition the addition to the tax upon lands and the plgn. r The situation at the present value of surface uses an assessment same act donated to the State of Utah proposed constitutional amendments time which the and year, during past shall be made against two or two and approximately 1,370,000 acres of land to would further increase these burdens has been an exceedingly prosperous be selected by the state from the pubone-ha- lf the amount times of annual upon the' small home owners. one for all the productive mines of .net lic domain of the United States and proceeds. Labor News advised its readers to the state,' has been so discriminatory to be held in trust by the state for ' permit me to direct your attention certain designated public institutions. fa- vote for the amendments, but our ad- - as to excite a demand on the part of to the fact the that plan proposed the taxpayers for a revored by such lobbyists in behalf of . These institutions include the Agriculvice was not heeded. By reading this vision either of the constitution or of 1, coal tural college, University of Utah, Deaf mines is inequitable in the exopen letter and taking into consldera- - the laws of the state, which will esand Dumb asylum, insane asylum, the treme and - 'will work oppressively tablish a fair plan of taxation. Since against the great mass of small proption the fact that these same newsInstitute for the Blind and other conthe present Legislature convened this to each of which definite acreowners cerns, the state. of to one refused it erty papers give publicity, has been before one of Its comsubject was assigned. It is a fact notoriage A GOOD ILLUSTRATION. is enabled to understand why they mittees, and various committees repreous that during many years the Utah As were so fearful that the taxpayer permit me to cite Fuel company has senting banking, mercantile, metallif.absorbed, , the Utah Fuel company. " This corpor- - through the state gradually land board, extenwould support a measure that was . erous and coal mining interests with a sive areas in the Carbon county coal destined to equalize the burden of fields until virtually all the accessible . . conducting the government. coal lands so granted to the state have How long is it going to be possible passed into the rapacious maw of that These lands have been corporation. for big business to convince the represold by the state through its state land sentatives of the people that lands con board at prices ranging from $1.23 to taining millions of tons of coal are $2.5U per acre, the greater portion havworth but a dollar or two an acre? ' ! Trig been sold at $1.25 per acie.r Such t sales were, effected .upon the theory men honest about time that Isnt it that the lands so sold were agrieul- .were chosen to do the states business or giazing lands. A careful ex- tural and protect the interests Of the state's ' amination of the charters of the Utah Fuel company and the Pleasant Valley . r wards? , w Coal company fails to icveal that boards If the members of the that of these corporations Is engaged either ' had these, dealings with big business either in agriculture or stok laising. Yet the state land board has divested interests were honest, they also were ' the state of title to the most valuable incompetent. of its mineral possessions for merely . Its time an investigation was had ' nominal considerations until the grants and the present Legislature will not have become virtually exhausted. Past Legislatures devised certain , have done its full duty to the people safeguarding laws for the protection of until it starts something with this end the interests of the state in the in view and let us have an investiga of such lands. Such laws pro- tlon that does not provide for a coat vided for the appointment of the state r land board, whose duties were defined or two of whitewash for both criminals to be the examination, classification and incompetents. and appraisement of all land selected, Here is the open letter that the and provided, further, that when con- . refused ducive to the interests of the state space: daily press such lands should be sold at such apI have been deeply interested in the praised prices after such examination efforts of the Utah Legislature, and , classification. and i of the various committees appointed by ! to COAL an devise ST1TK Utah business interests, UDS ' StiVANDKRKD. equitable scheme of taxation.be It has able to occurred to me that I might The Utah Fuel company is mining be of some assistance by suggesting at Castle Gate in lands pur- today certain facts worthy of investigation chased from tho state of Utah at $1.25 which have aparently been overlooked per acre, and their officers have boastby yourselves and the general public. fully exhibited photographs showing in For many years I have been connecta single seam twenty-tw- o feet of clean, ; ed with tax paying interests In Utah, merchantable coal opened therein. and am therefore reasonably familiar In the recently tried case of Ketchum with the system of taxation in vogue ; Coal Company vs. Pleasant Valley Coal ; since the adoption of the Utah consti- Utah Fuel Company and Den Company, the Under that instrument tution. ver & Bio Grande Railroad Company, greatest degree of encouragement has- . in the district court at Price, Utah,. C. been accorded Investors in metalllferH. Gibbs, the geologist of the Utah ous and coal properties, with the very Fuel company, testified on commendable object in view of encourto the following effect: (Com- aging the development of the mineral mencing-a- t page 914 of the testimony): resources of the state. All mineral I have been in the service of the property has been taxed initially at the Pleasant Valley Coal company and Utah price paid the government therefor. Fuel company since 1905, and my pres To this has been added a tax upon the ent official position is that of geologist. reasonable value of the machinery and these years I have made a con During improvements employed in mining opand extensive investigation of tinuous surAnd cases in where the erations. area in the CaStle Gate section. ' the coal face of the mining property so acquired Several bi Utah corporations are advertising; ail over tho country I have Investigated by diamond drilling has been used for purposes giving it for labor of all kinds, both common laborers and skilled labor. The adverand other means the coal areas all 'f n Independent value, such surface through that section. In the No. 2 mine tisements state that no huor troubles exist here. of mining claims has also been taxed. at Willow Creek there are five seams . There lias also been collected a tax There are no labor troubles at present; nor is there any need for of coal that tarry workable of the mines. upon the net proceeds more men. There are more men here than can find employment and are By that I mean coal five feet By an act of your Legislature, passed or more In thickness. We are at the being; turned away from these places every day, , in 1915, certain abuses, made possible g present time actually operating on the under It is quite evident that these corporations . are endeavoring; to flood laws, were attemptD seam, which has an average thicked to be corrected, and It was provided labor troubles. this vicinity with men with the object of starting feet. I figured ness of twenty-eigh- t the within state that all property Labor papers are asked to "ive prominence to this condition in Utah, 110,000,000 tons of marketable coal on should be assessed at its full value, and the several pieces and in the No. 3 , and advise their readers that there is no real demand here for men at the certain maximum levies were also area. It may go up to 200,000,009 ; mine fixed by that act. The act contemplatgoing wage. tons, Included within the 3009, acres ed an amendment to the constitution (Continued on Page 11.) under which mining property might be Being' denied the columns of the public press for giving publicity to one of the many crimes inflicted upon the citizens of Utah several public spirited citizens had printed and dis- tax-payi- ng . -- - i - ? fair-mind- . ed I is COMPULSORY ARBITRATION -- - " ' dis-pos- al -- . -- -- , cross-exam-inati- on , , LABOR PRESS, ATTENTION'! 5 T thick--nesse- s. pre-existin- , I i H , |