People ex rel. Central Park, North & East River Railroad v. Commissioners of Taxes & Assessments

Majority

p. 356

The People ex rel. The Central Park, North and East River Railroad Co., App’lts, v. The Commissioners of Taxes and Assessments of the City of New York, Resp’ts.

(Supreme Court, General Term, First Department,

Filed January 28, 1889.)

Headnote

Taxes and assessments—Valuation op capital stock op cobpoba— tian.

The commissioners of taxes and assessments are justified in valuing the capital stock of a corporation at its par value when it appeared that the stock was quoted at 140.

Appeal from an order confirming an assessment and dismissing a writ of certiorari.

Delos McCurdy and B. W. Franklin, for app’lts; George S. Coleman, for resp’ts.

The writ of certiorari was issued in this, proceeding to review the assessment made of the relator’s capital stock for the year 1885. In this assessment the assessable liability of the company was advanced to the sum of $1,461,518. This balance was obtained by taking the stock at its par value and deducting from the amount, the real estate, tracks and stock of other corporations. The difference seems to have been made, increasing the amount from the assessment of 1884 by diminishing-the assessments upon the real estate and tracks of the company, and deducting the reduced amounts-from the capital. Further evidence was submitted to the commissioners, consisting of an inventory of the

p. 357

property of the company, and an affidavit of its treasurer stating its expenditures, and giving his judgment of the financial situation of the company. By his affidavit it appeared that the funded debt of the company consisted of bonds secured by a mortgage upon its property and franchises amounting to the sum of $1,200,000. And these statements were considered by the commissioners, together with the other evidence alreády referred to, which they had before them, leading them to the adoption and adjustment of this balance, as the amount for which the capital stock of the company should be legally and properly assessed for taxation.

The reasons already given in the other cases (ante pp. 350-355) appear to justify this action of the commissioners. In addition to that they have mentioned the further fact that according to the Commercial and Financial Chronicle,. a journal devoted to financial affairs, and containing quotations of the prices of stocks, the stock of the relator in the-journal of January 3d, 1885, was quoted at 110 bid, 112: asked. And in the same journal, published on the 10th of the same month, the amount bid was given at l!l£ and asked 1 !!-<). They certainly, therefore, were still justified in holding the stock at least at its par value. And as they made all the deductions which the law required should, be made, the order should be affirmed with same direction as to costs.

Bartlett, J., concurs.