Thousands Strike By Air, Sea
liiMa . ' . I."'.
mm ;.. In ""
iimNiw'V ,1" .
! The
Day's
j News
f y ' "
tfrank Jenkins
Aj this is written, along about. In other words, our schools are striving in our junior
the middle of the morning on Fn-:am senior high schools to teach citizenship, a better un
,iay, no more wh'.pper ' " ,Prstandin)? of our government, pride in our American heri
been set otf. Old Kroosh hasn t , n , , ' 1
blown his top about anything new. tKC W"Pct for our flag.
There are no new political scan
dais. No new tropical hurricanes
are on the prowl. So far, 'here
have been no allocking new mur
ders. But
Tlierc'i a slory in the news.
H's an oddly interesting one.
It starts off like this:
The homesick islanders of Tris
tan da Cunha. 262 of them, sailed
this morning into the 20th century
world to make new homes for
themselves following the volcanic
'destruction of their island home
where they had been living, for all
practical purposes, IN THE 18lh
CENTURY.
- They arrived in Southampton,
England's big southern port, on
the liner Stirling Castle. They car
ried their forlorn possessions, ti.-d
tip in cardboard cases or sacks
"or blankets. They saved only a
few of their things when on Oc
tober 10 their islond blew up.
- Thev were entering a new worm i
-almost as new to them as if
they had been stepping out of a
space Jiner onto a new planet.
." llow come all this?
Well their island was discovered
in isu Dy a l-oriugcse navigator
named Tristan Da Acunha-nence
l1:".' TJLZ "tinin '?n
11 is a part of the Saint Helena
island group, and the most excit
ing thing that had ever happened
in that part of the world was when
Napoleon Bonaparte was banished
to Saint Helena in 1815.
". Nothing much else happened un
til a month ago, when Tristan da
Acunha's volcano blew its top much
as our Mount Mazama did when
Crater Lake was formed.
. When that happened, the island
ers were moved temporarily lo
.the adjacent island of Ascencion
and from there they were taken
back to England, whence their an
cestors came. They were perplexed
ami bewildered when they landed
in Southampton. And VERY
homesick.
"I'm afeard for us all," their
island chief explained when thev
came ashore. "Now," he went on,
our children must face evil for
-Ihe tirst lime, my people are nuuu
and innocent. We will nevr forset
our island. A lot of us will go
back, if that is possible. I want to
go back. Tray for us that we may
remain as we have been. I do not
want your world to change our
pcople.
7 These islanders come from a
'simple place, without complica
tions without TAXES or red tape.
No automobiles. No trains. No
planes. No I'ltlSONS because they
nave liau " siuiit-. i.u uu,i.nii.
No noise. No MONEY they have
lived by barter.
Pitv them. What problems they
are going to be up against. Its
little wonder they hope they can
go back home someday.
In conclusion, one touch of na-
. ture.
Some of the women cried as they
landed from the ship that had
brought them into the 20th ccn
. tury. Anxiety and concern showed
' THE YOUNGSTERS W E It E
Bl BBLlMi WITH EXCITEMENT
AND INTEREST.
That's the way of the world.
Two-Car Collisions
Claim Many Lives
SAI.EM (AIM Thirty-seven per
ntinl nl (irnimn'e filial truffle H.-i'i. I
; dents in the first half of llus year
. were the result of collisions be
' tween automobiles, the Highway
, Commission said today
in i,' i, '
lite higner
That figure is a li
than it hud been in the preceding
' five years.
Twenty-eight per cent of the fa
lai accidents svvir mustu y ti
running olf the road, 9 per cent
and 15 per cent by pedestrians'
being hit by cars.
lift. In r r n s i ft If .'( illnHt si '
amounted to 4 per cent of lhe!
; ,otill j
AVERAGE ACREAGE UP
The average size of 3 7 million
. farms roumea in me i.i census what's In Name ' " ' i'' '"n rour million oi ine seedlings and
of agriculture was 302 acres. In I W hat's in a name" Tula Fmk-I Kll',, ,h'" km(' llh much ror''- 9.512 pounds of seed will be plant
1900, the overage size of S 7 mil ilea is Cd (harisse. Aaron (hatt mor,y "I ' unUi someone cd on the Tillamook Burn.
lion farms was i acres, ine liu-ns
rcati of the Census found the av -,
eiage oge of fanners to be M'j
ears. I
The News -Review
Publithtd bf Nw-Rvmw Pvblithtng C.
54S S. E. Main St., ltotburr Ortfon
CHARLES V. STANTON ADDYE WRIGHT
Editor Business, Monager
GECRGF CASTILLO DON HAGEDORN
Managing Editor Display Adv. Mgr.
Member of the Associated Press. Oregon Newspaper Publishers
Association, the Audit Bureau of Circulation
Entered s second class matter Hay 7, 1920, at the post olfice at
Roseburg, Oregon, under act of March 2, 1873
Subscription Rates on Classified Advertising Page
EDITORIAL PAGE
4 The Newt-Review, Roseburg
LESSONS BY EXAMPLE
By Charles V. Srinron
Previously in this column
of Americanism in our schools.
For one thing, I am told, our teachers are trying to
teach l'lajf displays, flair nalute, the National Anthem, cit-
izenship, liehavior in Fchool and at puliiic functions. In
i-i i . i .I
addition there are many subjects under the general clas -
sification of American heritage. Particular emphasis on
citizenship is given in classes on history, American prob -
1 cms
(civics) and social studies.
J'oxxibly, we can speak or this as a revival.
Our schools once gave a great deal of lime and at
tention to the teaching of government.
Half a century ago pupils were .inspired with stories of
national heroes and heroic achievements. Our heroes
largely were military characters. We gloried in military
achievement. We placed military leaders on pedestals of
public worship. We reveled in pictures of bewhiskered
generals riding their prancing chargers into the hail of
enemy steel while, with flashing sword, they led their
brave forces on to victory.
Age Showing
But, as a nation, we got
dieams. We began to realize
day feet. Someone exploded
the cherry tree. The "Indians at the Boston Tea Party
were portrayed as a group of paintod delinquents. Some
of the generals we had been taught were so brave and
death-defying led double lives, according to the era's
"frank" biographers. Too, asserted some of these "ob
jective" historians, the (leneral wasn't deliberately riding
into the hail of enemv steel.
niiiir hwiiv and its munrinir
, tu,.n j into 8 ,.etl-eal. ;
.
I Anyway, we began growing away from our intense na-
jtionalism about the sarre time we began giving up our ac-
claim for military heroes.
j,Pn of sc,ence medicine, ai t, literature, we were
ertervtK more p,.aise than those who in a foolhardy
idisplay of bravado defiantly sacrificed their lives at the
lamo.
We started treading lightly down the balls of history.
We spoke little of the Destiny of America, but explored
possibilities of One World. We dropped emphasis on our
particular form of government. We took educational stress
off teaching concerning political parties. We began talk
ing about individuals rsither than parties. We dropped poli
tical conventions. We substituted the direct primary for
representative appointment. We opened the door to self
starters. We failed to inculcate into the minds of our
young people the fact that each individual voter is just as
responsible as is the President of these United States for
good government.
Poor Teachers
Our schools, in my opinion, have no reason to go back
lo the old forms of idolatry. On the other hand, 1 do be
lieve our young adults, soon to become voters, should have
a thorough understanding of our government. They should
be taught to be proud they are Americans but they
should know the "why" of that pride.
The lessons taught In our schools, I feel, should be re
inforced by good example from adults. Our adults, in mv
opinion, aren't giving our young people very good example
in the matter of individual responsibility in the manage
ment of government. People who permit emotion and self
interest to govern their actions, rather than reason, aren't
helping teach lessons in good citizenship.
Hut the example is even worse than that.
Our schools are trying to teach respect for the flag.
A very impressive ceremony is presented at every school
athletic contest. The band is massed to plav the National
Anthem. Chosen Hoy Scouts raise the flag. Students stand
at respectful attention.
Hut do adults set a good example?
Most of them do. The greater number uncover, face
the flag, salute with hand over heart, observe a respect
ful silence.
Hut there are a few who seem irritated because their
conversation is interrupted, who show no respect for the
flag or for the flag-raising ceremony. Some men don't
even uncover.
The. effort by our schools (o teach patriotism, love of
country, respect for the Flag and good citizenship certain
ly isn't helped much by the actions of such adults.
Hal Bole
Most Dangerous Rooms
Of House Are Bedrooms
NEW YORK (AP) Tilings a,
columnist might never know if he'
uuin I open nis man: lall people who suiter a coronary
The most dangerous room in; thrombosis recover fully and arej
the average home is the bed-ih ,0 'esume Iheir normal ac-;
room. Three-fourths of all acci-1 tivilies j
dental falls occur in the homei Former President Harry Tru-I
and more happen in the bedroom
,hln 0ll, par, of ho nous(. j
Do von feel crowded in a mod
urn irtilanM iiiIi' If u . uuirca
,n the days of the stagecoach. A '
ticket then entitled you to t.i
inches of seating spare and you I
naj1 pay dearly if you tra veled I
)"" rounds of lug-,
b1
sll, oddity: If a man made
a different billiard shot every
j.r,'iiu. lit- nuiiin iiNtc iw pi
-J hours a day for more than two-
I billion years to make alt Ihe pos-
hle shots.
Bed Buttons. Fred Austerliti
ls Fred Astaue, Jim Stewart is
Stcuait Granger and Marlon
Brando is rrallv Marlon Brando !
. i
Ore. Mon., Nov. 6, 1961
I commended Ihe teaching
away from our juvenile
that some of our Idols had
the story of Washington and
The doggone horse was run-
came from his frantic efforts
were
Don't give up hope if you have
neari auaiK. ai icasi nait oi
man says he r!
scientists think
he doesn t dream. But
everybody dreams;
I whether he can recall them or:
1 not on awakening. The average:
y , - " .. ' , .
mrumiMK. iiuuien usually uieani
more than men.
combim
"'J'
Language lesson Television ts
nation of 'tele." a Greek,
distant." and "isiun,":estrv lierjaitmcnt Dlans In nlant .
i.oun iur imaKr
Oldtime etiquette: Bells and
whistles were sometime put in
table knives a century ago. If a
guest at dinner bragged or told a
1:111 " ,m hosl " b'l or
r " '" " ""a """ri-'.
":n ,n lm" w,ln low of Cafe
St . ",'n"' ' French restaurant:
"Wr "I"'11 English here "
Best bet: your son will have 1
better chance to wind up in the The state department said 47
White House if he studies law. : pounds will be used to seed K2
Twenty four V. S. presidents were, acres of state forest land in Doug
attorneys. Only one was an en las Countv. The area is located in
jineer Herbert Hoover. Two; ihe western part of the county in
were former newspapermen j the Elliott State Forest.
Warren Harding and John F.
Kennedy. FIGURES FOOL
Women and Horticulture Married women nmnumhere,l
Wisecrack of the wcck; 'There
re only two kinds of women
I clinging vines and power plants "
Nature note: The stool pigeon
is one of the world's moat valu-,
able bulls. II is estimated that up
to 9(1 per rent of felonious crimes
are solved with the help of tips
by police informants.
Reader
Opinions
I Camp Fire Seeks
wsmpcrgnr bcaaers
ya The Ki itor -
i I wonder if you and your readers
'11 neP ( mP 're Girls find
ufV? .have heclJ
, looking for? We don t know what
; Jhe louks but Jht jg marrledl
probably, and may have girls of
j her own, but this isn't necessarily
.She is a wholesome woman, has
I Kood sense of humor, and doesn't
mind few crumbs on the rug or
a little noise. She has never said
it in so many words, but we are
sure that she has confidence in the
future, and believes that adults
must guide children toward be
coming competent and responsible
citizens and homemakers.
She is apt to be a pretty busy
woman, and when you discover
her, her first impulse may be to
say that she's not the person you
are looking for. But don't take
"no" for an answer. Remind her,
please, that busy women are usu
ally the ones with the most inner
resources. Inform her that there
are Camp hire and Blue Bird
groups who haven't been able to
mnrl V.it cinr-n tnhnnl .t.ri.J li.
cause thev have no -rnuD leader.
j and that there are countless other
i children who should be enjoying
the benefits of the splendid Camp
rire program, but who can t, as
long as no new leaders are avail
able. If she protests that she doesn't
have the training to be a group
leader, tell her that this is the
easiest obstacle to overcome. Train
ing classes are offered every Tues
day morning for Blue Bird Leaders
at the Presbyterian Church social
room, with baby-sitter service.
Every Thursday morning, there
are training classes for Camp Fire
guardians at the Camp tire office
637 SE Hose
Is there a reward offered for
this woman? Of course. She gets
all she can take of enjoyment, the
satisfaction you get from workin
with youngsters, and her own con
tinuous growth as a human being.
I am sure you will find this
woman. When you do. have her
call the Camp Fire office immedi
ately, or get in touch with me.
Mrs. R. "Dusty" Rhodes
Group Organization
Chairman. I'mpqua Council
Camp Fire Girls
1653 NW Eslelle
Roseburg, Ore.
Local Distributor
Of Surplus Food Asked
To The Editor:
I have had many telephone calls
and inquiries from citizens of
Douglas County asking the one
question "What happened to our
surplus food plan for Douglas Coun
ty?" I was informed several months
ago that surplus food was avail
able to Ihe people who would qual
ify in Ihe Stale of Oregon. Quali
fication means only: unemployed
or if your income falls below an
established amount. !
On June 8, 1961. International ,
Woodworkers of America, Local
Union 3-436 submitted a resolution!
to the Oregon AFLCIO Convention
which was adopted unanimously in
support of "Distribution of Surplus:
Fowls." I
Since this plan has been formally I
established by the State of Oregon
and the U. S. Department of Agri-1
culture, it is necessary that an
agreement be signed with the coun-1
ty commissioner of each county
before proceeding with initial steps:
for the ordering of foods and de-1
vclopment of a program in each j
county. !
Other counties in the Slate of
Oregon who's county officials seem
to be more interested in the wel
fare of their residents have al
ready taken the necessary steps
to establish this program.
It appears that the Douglas Coun
ty officials are dragging their feet
by not having this program in ef
fect which I feel would be a great
help to the residents of this county
in the face of winter and season
able unemployment.
1 feel in order to get this program
'established, residents of Douglas
County should write their County
Commissioners.
Marvin S. Williams
Financial Secretary and
Business Agent
l ocal I nion 3 436
International Woodworkers
of America
P. O Box 788
Roseburg, Oregon
HHVV TrOA PlMltilMI
'" w vw m
r.l . J.l. J p. A
dCneUUiea TOT UreqOn
SAI.EM IAPI The stale For
I2J.78S acres of state lands in
Western Oregon in the coming
planting season,
There will be planted 6 4 million
tree seedlings, and 11,170 pounds
of seed.
ine res! will De pianieu in loos.
Clatsop. Douglas, Klamath. Lane,
Clackamas and Marion counties
on small tracts where the timber
has been sold
married men. 42 7 million to 4J t
million, in the I . S in the MM
census count. Most of the differ
ence is attributable to the absence
of married men in the Armed Fore
es abroad and married crewmen
of merchant essels at sea or in
foreign rrts, the Census Biue.u
says. ,
Tax Methods Explained By
By L. W. SVARVERUD, JR.
Douglas County Assessor '
During this time of the year
many of our citizens become aware 1
that all things are not free.
This is about the same time
they open their property tax stale-1
ments and wonder how in the
world they should be expected to
I pay any such sum of money, par
ticularly when it is more than
I last year, and their neighbor's taxi
I bill is less. Besides all they did
to the old house was patch the ;
; roof and put a little paint on the
i carport.
I Regardless of all the propagan
da, information, talks and explan-
alions there are still a large num-
ber of people who remain unin
j furmed about our property tax.
In talking to people in my office,
reading letters to the editor, anJ
'listening to comments on the ra
dio, it would appear that an ex
planation of our property tax sys
tem would be worthwhile to many
people.
A tax is a tax and as such it
is a burden to pay. There are
however, many different kinds of
taxes both in the manner in which
Insert bf here
they are derived and the use
made of the tax. Most of us are
familiar with income tax that the
government collects, sales tax that
many states collect, and lots of,
taxes that we can see on our pay-i
roll deductions. The property tax'
James Marlow
Khrush Had Many Reasons
For Debunking Stalinism
WASHINGTON (AP) The Rus
sian people must now go through!
a revulsion and revolution in
their thinking after seeing Stalin1
excoriated and his body hauled j
from the shrine beside Lenin.
The result should be creation!
of a new skepticism about the J
absolute Tightness of their Com
munist leadership and a soften-j
ing of the party's rigid control j
over their minds.
But it does not follow this willj
mean a softening in Soviet for-!
eign policy or any lessening of;
Premier Khrushchev's demands!
on Berlin. It should he remem-l
bered the Russians are intensely I
nationalistic, and always have
been. I
So. no matter what their doubts
abo-jt the wisdom of their leader-;
ship at home, they can be expect-1
ed to rally around the flag when
their government. Communist or)
otherwise, deals with foreign na-
tions.
By propaganda, edict, repres
sions and reprisals, practically all
Russians alive and able to read
and write when Stalin died in
1953 had been conditioned into
acceptance, muted or ecstatic, of!
his wisdom, rightness, goodness.
Unemployment
Declines In U.S.
WASHINGTON (API - Inem
ployment in the nation declined
by 151.000 in October to 3,934.000.
and employment rose by 786,000
to 67.824.000 a record for any Oc-1
tober. !
It was Ihe first time in a year:
that the idle total has been be
low 4 million, the Labor Depart
ment said Friday. J
Despite the big increase in em
ployment and drop in unemploy
ment, the seasonally adjusted j
rale of unemployment compared'
with the civilian labor force re-1
mained at 6 8 per cent, the samp
level as in September. This rate:
has remained practically the!
same for 11 consecutive months.!
Secretary of Labor Arthur J.i
Goldberg said in a statement that ,
the unchanging heavy jobless rate
"underscores that we have a stub-:
born and continuing unemploy-1
nient problem." Goldberg's state !
ment was cabled from Japan.1
where he is visiting.
But. speaking of the continuing!
high level of unemployment, the
labor secretary said: "I wish to'
reaffirm the determination of the'
Kennedy administration to reduce
ihis unemployment problem lo
manageable proportions " !
Se mour W'olfbcin, Labor De-!
partment manpower expert. sa:d,
in releasing the October job lig-i
ures Friday that the increase in
employment and decline in un-:
employment were largely season
al. October is a month that usual-!
ly sees the best showing of the
year.
The large gam of 786. Ouo is
double w hat is expected in Oclo-;
ber. However, this was attributed
largely to the fact that September;
job improement was less than!
expected, due to stormy weather ;
Nonfarm employment increased
hy 288.000 to 61.8IW.OO0. a record
for the month, but no more than
was seasonally anticipated.
Benson PTA Slates
Meeting For Tuesday
A program of special interest to
parents of first, second and third
grade students will be presented
by teachers at Ihe November
meeting of the Benson PTA se!
for 7 30 p m. Tuesday in the school
cafeteria.
Because of the teacher's insli
lute the meeting night was chang
ed from the usual Monday mh!
date
Sixth grade students will pre
sent a skit Refreshments will be
sersed by first grade room motn
ers.
SO PATRIOTIC
Tl l.S. Okla ( sPl - A sun ai
a service station reads. ' Gas
War: Knlmt heie."
lias some characteristics that dis
tinguishes it from most of the oth
er taxes we are familiar with.
The property tax is locally de
termined. The amount of taxes lo
he raised are determined after
budget hearings and often after an
election, if the amount exceeds the
6 per cent limitation. The prop-
erty tax is locally spent in ac- '
cordance with the predetermined
budget. For value received we
probably get more out of a prop
erty tax dollar that has been col
lected for a local need and spent
locally than any other kind of a
tax dollar. We are all aware of
the cost of sending tax dollars to
Washington, DC, and the subse
quent spending thereof. We should
be proud that we can still retain a
segment of local government even
Editor's Note This article
was prepared by County Assess,
or Svarverud expecially for The
News-Review to inform Douglas
County taxpayers concerning
mtthodi of assessment and tax
collection. The information, re
quested by The News-Review, is
designed to answer many ques
tions concerning the current tax
assessment and collection CVS
if it doesn't always work perfect
ly. It is my belief that our prop-1
ertv tax dollars are well-spent an.
that it makes a better commun
ity for it.
and Communist sanctity.
Now Khrushchev and others in
the leadership have revealed Stal
in as a pathological monster who
by his excesses, misuse of pow
er and self-idealization was in
effect an enemy of the people
and a betrayer of the revolution.
From these belated disclosures
the Russian people can draw only
one conclusion: They'd been had.
They had been bamboozled by
Stalin and since his death until
now by Khrushchev and others
who withheld the truth from
them.
They cannot avoid feeling like
fools when they remember how
by the millions since 1953 they
slond in long lines to see the body
of this man who had become as
much their "little father" as any
czar.
This will compel them to a
more questioning and critical
evaluation of the actions and pro
nouncements of their leadership.
It demonstrates how propaganda
can delude them. To this extent
the revelations about Stalin are
a liberalizing force. The leader
ship had to realize this before it
permitted the denunciations.
Ironically Stalin himself had
set loose the most liberalizing
force of all with the broad edu
cational system created in his
lifetime. No doubt he felt strict
partv control could keep it in
hand.
But controlling the millions of
illiterate peasants he and Lenin
inherited when they made their
revolution stick is not the same
as brainwashing an educated peo
ple, although Stalin did pretty
well at it.
The more the education, the
broader the intellectual class. The
greater the intellectuality, the
more the questioning, quietly or
openly, of what the government
does, particularly when govern
ment controls tend to be
medieval.
Sooner or later, therefore, there
had to he a loosening up in
Russia. There is no reason to
think it wouldn't continue.
But when nationalism gels in
volvedas it will in Russia's rela
tions with other countries emo
tionalism begins to affect the
judgment of intellectuals and
peasants alike.
For this reason it would be
wishful thinking to believe a
slackening of party control at
home means a softening of Rus
sian policy abroad, particularly
when it involves Russia's enemy,
Germany.
If anyone doubts the force of
nationalism, he can look closer
than Russia.
In this country there are polit
ical disagreements over domestic
policies hut intellectuals and non
lntellecluals alike close ranks
against any outside force, like
Russia, when they think Ameri
ca's vital interests are at stake.
Khrushchev no doubt had many
reasons for disenchanting Rus
sians about Stalin.
Some obvious ones come to
mind: to silence the Communist
party members who criticized him
for not being more like Stalin at
a time when he felt he needed
new methods; to rebuke the Stal
inists Red Chinese who now must
criticize the entire Russian Com
munist party, not just Khrush
chev; perhaps to give the masses
of the 220 million Russian people
a greater sense of participation
in the decisions of the Russian
Communist party which numbers
onlv 9 7 million members.
Khrushchev at this time had
goid reason for wanting atl this.
He is cai:er to build up Russia
economically witness his 20 year
elan which he says will carry
Russia ahead of the I'mted States
and this requires new resources
of energy, dedication and partici
pation. As limes goes on Russia, in the
process of building up a well fed,
prosperous and contented society,
will become more cier ati e. I:
seems to be mosing on that road
now. But c?tmrunim is still in
its experimental. lornuue sta;e
I; will be years before it can
In considered truly conservative.
But in time it mav prove to be
the most conscrt alive force in
Instoiv.
Many of us are agreeable to a
good lax, providing someone else
is paying it. Over the years there
has been considerable legislation
passed to determine who pays the
property taxes and how the prop
erty taxes are administered. To
have some idea of what is Behind
the property tax it may be well
to consider the basic premise that
our property tax is based on.
I'nder our laws, it is permis
sible for a group of people to form
a taxing district for the purpose
of making a tax levy for some
communal function. This commu
nal function may be a school dis
trict, recreation district, munici
pality, or number of other types
of services.
The taxing district will have
geographical boundaries and the
people in these boundaries will
vote as to whether or not they
want a taxing district. They will
also vote on the amount of the
budget and the subsequent tax dol
lar to be collected. They will also
determine who will be responsible
for the actual spending of these
tax dollars.
Budget Certifitd
When a district has been organ
ized and has determined a budget,
the budget is then certified to the
county assessor by July 15 of the
fiscal year the budget is to cover.
At this point the assessor deter
mines who pays the tax bills.
The assessor in order to decide
who pays the tax bills has to de
termine the amount of taxable
property in the taxing district.
The taxable property in any dis
trict in general consists of all
the real and personal property ex
cept certain exempt property.
The exemptions are principally
intangibles, such as bank accounts,
bonds and stocks, household ef
fects such as furniture, clothing
and jewelry'; and vehicles that
are licensed. This will leave for
taxable property then, the land,
buildings (if not publicly owned),
personal property, utilities and
timber if the taxing district in
cludes a timber area.
Individual Pays
Each individual in the taxing dis
trict is going to pay his share of
Ihe tax which is determined by
the value of his property in the
taxing district. This is the reason
our property taxes are called ad
valorem taxes because ad valor
em means "according to value."
The process of computing the
individual tax bill is mathemati
cal. The procedure is to take the
amount of money to be raised by
taxes and divide into it the as
sessed value (taxable value) of
the taxing district. This will re
sult in a percentage figure which
we call mills or millage.
The individual's assessed value
is multiplied hy the millage and
the result is his share of the tax.
To follow this through with an ex
ample let's take the city of Rose
burg for 1961-62 fiscal year.
The amount of money to be
raised by taxes for the city of
Roseburg was $428,523.64. The as
sessed value of the city of Rose
burg. was, as of Jan. 1. 11, $15,
616.003.00. Dividing the $15,616,
033.00 into the $428,524.64 results in
a millage of 27.5 mills. This
could be wrilten as a decimal fig
ure of .0275.
Share Reported
Now, if an individual owns a
house that has an assessed value
of $2,500, his share of the city of
Roseburg tax is $68.75. This fig
ure was arrived at by multiply
ing $2,500 by .0275. People living
in the city of Roseburg also pay
their share of School District 4
tax, the rural school tax and the
Douglas County tax. These taxes
are combined into one millage
rate which for the year 1961-62 is
83 4 mills. Consequently if one
pays on taxable property in the
city of Roseburg as in the ex
ample above, his total tax bill for
his share in the different taxing
districts is .08:;4 times $2,500 or
$208.50.
The principal duty of the assess
or is lo determine the taxable
value of property subject to taxa
ation. There are many misunder
standings about this phase of the
property lax picture which should
be clarified.
Assessor Determines Value
The taxable value, as deter
mined by the assessor, is not a
figure picked out of the air, al
though there are times when it
must appear that way. The meth
ods and means of determining the
taxable value are defined in var
ious Oregon statutes. The use of
factor books, the statutes of the
state, state Tax Commission regu
lations and our own skills all lead
to the taxable value that is used
on the assessment mil.
The assessment roll is I listing
of all properties and the amount
of assessed value for each parcel.
The tax roll is an extension of
the assessment roll, wherein the
assessed value is multiplied hy
the appropriate millage and the re
sulting tax is entered.
In thinking of value it should be
noted that value is opinion and
that anyone may have an opinion
of value and generally does. In
most instances, people trained in
determining value are better qual
ified to express an opinion of value
and we, therefore, employ apprais
ers for this purpose. Asain their
opinions are subject lo the various
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Assessor
qualifications aforementioned.
Main Geal Noted
Our main goal in determinint
value is that it will achieve equal
ization between properties and that
the market value will be the level
of value on which to base our
assessments. A considera
tion should be made here concern
ing market value in that market
values go up and down, and it is
impossible to always be in accord
with the current market value.
Since market value fluctuations
will affect values somewhat pro
portionately, equalization is still
achieved, which is the main goal
in determining the individual's
i share of the taxes.
One bugaboo that always pops
, up is "Are you going to raise my
taxes if I paint my house?" or
"All you do is penalize a person
for improving his property" or "I
am just going to let it go to pot
as I can't afford to pay taxes on
it."
Considerations Necessary
Two considerations should be
made here. One, does the assessor
actually change the assessed val
ue when you paint your bouse?
And, two, can the owner afford
to let his property go to pot for
the sake of a contingent tax that
might accrue because of good
maintenance or an improvement?
On the first question the assess
or cannot keep up with every
paint job in the county on an an
nual basis. Vnless the property
has materially changed in charac
ter there would be no change until
the normal reappraisal is made
every fifth or sixth year. At the
time of reappraisal, however, the
property will more likely be val
ued higher with good maintenance
than the property that hasn't had
maintenance. Any improvements
will also be considered at the time
of reappraisal if they llaven't been
previously.
Secondly, does a person consid
er that a possible $1,000 or more
loss in depreciation for poor main
tenance is good balance against
paying the taxes that might ac
crue because of good maintenance?
Actually no one is compelled to
live in good surroundings and in
a good community. They might
just as well pay rent or live in
the cheapest house available if
there is no desire to pay their
way in the costs of a community.
Questioning Needed
This does not mean that tax
payers should blithely run along
accepting every budget or assess
or's valuation without an inquiring
mind. After all a community can
spend itself out of pocket the same
as an individual and no assessor'i
valuations have always been per
fect. Another facet of the tax pic
ture that is overlooked to some
degree is, what does the taxpayer
do about taxes? With respect to
the amount of the budgets and the
amount of money to be raised by
taxes, attention should be given to
budget hearings and elections.
Many times budget hearings are
held, and no one appears. Also
many large budgets have been
passed with a small fraction of the
voters being heard. Being criti
cal without attempting to under
stand the problems is not being
much help. It may be that one
could help considerably by taking
an active interest in the lax prob.
lems and helping solve them.
What Can Be Done
The other half of the tax pay
ing problem is the assessor's val
uations and what can be done
about them. First, you should con
tact the assessor about the prob
lem and find out what the actual
situation is. If there seems to be
no remedy available with the as
sessor, an appeal may be made
to the Board of Equalization if
an opinion of value is the issue.
Other types of problems such as
exemptions and questions on legal
definitions may have to be deter
mined by appeal to the state Tax
Commission.
Eventually recourse may be had
in the newly-created Tax Court.
j w hich will have jurisdiction over
i circuit court level tax problems.
There is also a Small Claims Di
vision of the new Tax Court which
mil go into effect Jan. 1, 1962.
Appeals Procedure Cited
Appeals to the Board of Equali
zation must be made bv the first
week after the Board is in ses
sion. The Board convenes the
second .Monday in May to review
the assessment roll and appeals for
that particular year's assessments.
This meeting date is important, as
failure to file an appeal generally
precludes any further action by
the taxpayer, and when the tax
bills come out there is not any
recourse as far as appeal is con
cerned. Forms for appeal can al
ways be obtained from the assess
or and some help can be given lo
the taxpayer, if needed.
There are many complex prob
lems in the assessment of prop
erty such as depreciation rate,
economic value, changes in de
mand for property, ratios, new
laws and rulings, and exemptions,
as well as many other problems.
These all have to be fitted inio
the over all tax picture, and it is
not alwavs possible to simplify
many operations in the assessment
of property. This article. I hope,
will help explain some of the high
lights of the tax bill.