Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 8.djvu/185

 FINANCIAL HISTORY OF OKEGON. 177 levy by the county boards, say October 1st. From this copy, and another made from it, and placed in the hands of the Territorial Treasurer, the counties were charged with their respective amounts of territorial taxes. These the county treasurers were to pay over "on or before the first Monday in February" "in gold and silver coin" "out of the first moneys collected and paid into the county" treasuries. The chronic complaints of the Territorial Auditors indicate that some county auditors were unconscionably irregular in filing their assessment rolls at the territorial capital. The following table of annual payments into the territorial treasury show that the coin rolled very slowly, as a rule, toward the terri- torial treasury. A very small fraction of the territorial tax reached that destination the same year it left the pockets of the people. Date of Keceipt. Year for which the payments were made. Total. 1852 For 1850. $ 507 40 For 1851. $ 579 29 For 1852. $ 1,510 20 3,285 22 3,251 61 11,602 26 11,898 39 21,80085 20,936 58 18,689 52 1853 $ 2,596 86 For 1853. $ 998 33 1854 $ 165 58 For 1852. $ 16 61 For 1854. $ 9,902 26 For 1854. $ 861 26 For 1854. $ 660 47 For 1855. $ 1,429 69 For 1&55. $ 540 51 457 09 For 1853. $ 2,735 00 For 1855. $ 1,700 00 For 1855, $ 10,993 47 For 1855. $ 504 63 For 1856. $ 16,639 95 For 1854. $ 50000 1855 $ 3,251 61 1856 $ 11,602 26 For 1856. $ 43 66 For 1856. $ 15,680 12 For 1857. $ 13,520 10 For 1857. $ 442 96 1&57 $ 11,898 89 For 1857. $ 4,955 63 For 1858. $ 5,986 79 For 1858. $ 17,646 15 1858 . 1859 For 1856. $ 5000 For 1859. $ 9 90 Only four counties out of the ten paid the territorial taxes for 1850, and only five out of thirteen paid for 1851. From that time on, however, the response to the need of territorial revenues was more general. Still such outlying counties as Jackson and Josephine in the south, 89 Tillamook in the north- 89 The Territorial Auditor, in his report for 1858, says that "Josephine County levied no property tax for 1857, relying, as I have been informed, on the sale of Chinamen licenses to defray the expenses of the county, and to pay their territorial revenue; none of which has been paid during this year, except, $362.75 of the Chinamen tax due. Having no assessment roll, I could make no charge against said county for 1857, and would recommend some legislative action as a guide to the Territorial Auditor in the premises." On November 8, 1856, six counties had not sent in copies of assessment rolls for 1856. Auditor's Letter Book.
 * 2,596 86