another section which shall provide ter worthy of consideration, I may say for the imposition of a tax as follows: that from 1879 to October first last, Five per cent. on estates of $1,000,- $823,534.51 were expended for com000 and less than $2,000,000. mittee expenses, exclusive of contested election cases, as is shown by the following table:

Ten per cent. on estates of $2,000,000 and less than $3,000,000. i Fifteen per cent. on estates of $3,000,000 and over.

This proposed amendment does not in any manner affect estates of less than $1,000,000, but it does aim at a material increase in the tax paid by very large estates. It will be a matter of interest to show what the effect of such a law would have been, if it had been in force during the past three years.

PAYMENTS MADE FOR SPECIAL INVESTIGATING
COMMITTEES OF EACH LEGISLATURE FROM
1879 TO OCTOBER 1, 1896, EXCLUSIVE OF
CONTESTED ELECTION CASES.

This would have made a difference of over $19,000,000 in the tax for three years.

I would again respectfully call attention to the unsatisfactory manner in which the expenses of legislative investigating and special committees are met. As evidence that this is a mat

1879
1880

1881

1882

1883

1884

1885

1886

1887

1888

1889

1885 to 1890, Senate Com-
mittee, Taxation and
Retrenchment

1890
1891

$8,684,187 90 $27,714,590 00 1892

1894 and 1895, Joint
Committee, Investiga-
tion of Departments
and Institutions. ...
1894

1895
1896

$30,992 01 14,982 46

17,090 80

45,622 19

19,098 65

60,692 73

51,518 77

50,934 72

39,704 85

73,839 30 16,520 09

15,374 47

75,297 78 52,769 26 46,099 80

11,863 63 112,929 02

82,196 80 6,007 18

$823,534 51

Real and Personal Property. The table given below shows the aggregate valuation of real and personal

Aggregate
valuation.

property and the State and local taxes for each year from 1846 to 1895, inclusive.

2,637,869,238
2,681,257,606
2,783,682,567
2,872,257.825
8,004,591,872
3,197,163,785
3,224.682,343

8.361,128,177
3,469,199,945
8.567,429,757
8.683,653,062
3,779,393,746
3,931,741,499
4,038,058,949
4,273,942,431
4,292,082,167
4,368,712,903

State taxes, exclusive of school tax.

$616,824,955
632,669,993

651,619,595
665.850,737
727.494,583
1,077.881,630

1,168,335,237

1,266,666,190
1,364,154,825
1,402,849,304
1,430,334 696
1,433.309.713
1,404,907,679
1,404,913,679
1,419,297,520
1,444.767,430

$370,557 44
302 579 27
325,638 72
334,555 96
364.003 75
578.546 88
292,641 69
1,285,125 88
1,020,926 49
1,751.717 78
1,430,000 02
3,221,775 42
2,457,533 80
2,458,599 10
4,376.167 35
4,505,523 19
1,449,303,948 5,797,215 79
1,454,454,817 6,181,432 97
1,500,999,877 6.754,499 45
1,550,879,685
1,531,229,636
1.664.107.725
1,766,089,140
1,860,120,770
1,967,001,185 11,827,225 07
2.052,537,898 9,048,271 24
2,088,627.445 16,970,097 99
2,129,626,386 12.138,870 40
2,168,307,873
3,367,780,102
2,466,267,273
2,755,740,318
2,738,378,600

6,067.816 77
7,369,042 63
10,567,084 06
8,035,705 59
8,138,028 87

13,015,847 24
11,246,955 48
5,446,340 23
5,626,303 15
5,013,971 22

2,686,139,133 4,773.269 24

6,370,454 21 2,976,195 94 3,757,971 47 6,235,676 66 4,582,178 58 6,065,673 65 5,804,428 22 5,377.805 09 5,620,103 91 9,097,945 88 4,788.748 98 1,417,272 65 3,853,106 66 6,460,894 30 3,779,893 85 9,871,788 99 7,688,934 71

Town, county,
school and
special taxes.

$4 276,904 44
4,541.046 33
4,969,819 51
5,214,425 32

5,948,783 58

6,180,891 38
6,715.046 39

8,060,097 03
8,615,164 36

9,924.454 62

11,312,845 04 11.941,363 94 12,968,004 78 13,894,687 46 14,579,857 15 15,896,753 29 13,659,072 61 16,865,367 69 33,119,446 11 39,593,623 85 33,199,202 06 85,951,837 56 36,262,130 31 38,033.503 13 83.501,459 14 36,626,215 68 46,541,838 13 39,305,655 87 44,795,584 68 45,679,515 21 46,702,028 14 44.610,860 91 43,033,270 75 42,375.205 80 42.747,327 97 46,310,576 61 43,815.848 60 44.701,118 80 47,790,528 12 51,196,976 87 52,305 650 74 51.953.886 49 55,019,702 81 51,456,062 18 55,704,289 19 58,816,962 00 59,835,316 71 60,310,923 23 63,386,789 75 62,686,116 55 63,864,524 25

Total taxes.

$4,647,461 88 4,843,625 60 5,295,458 28 5.548,981 28

6,312,787 88

6,759,638 26

7:007,688 08 9,345,221 91

9,636,090 85

11,676,172 80 12,742.845 06 15,163,138 86 15,425.538 58 16,353,286 56 18,956,024 50 20,402,276 48 19.456,288 40 23,046,800 66 39,873,942 56 45,961,440 62 40,568.244 69 46.518,921 62 44,298,485 90 46,161,531 50 50,328.684 21 45,674,486 92 63,511,936 12 51.444.536 27 57,811,381 92 56,926,470 69 52,148,368 37 50,237,164 06 48,047,241 97 47,148,475 04 49,117.782 18 49,286,772 55 47,573,820 07 50.936,788 95 52,372,707 00 57,262,650 02 58,110,078 96 57,331,191 58 60,639.806 72 69,553,028 06 60,493,088 17 60,284,234 65 63,688,423 37 66,771,817 50 67,166,683 60 72,557,905 54 71,553,458 96

Total..

587,411

376,650

$581,178,701

70,000

22,000

50,000

21,000

62,500

3,900 521,550

841,450

40,300

10,375
179,500
92,500

76,800
292,750
30,000

9,000

25,600

83,800

110,850

207,000

78,005
1,642 760
1,303,075
195,950

100,750
271 225
437,300

110,490

119 350

24,200

147,175

8,446,250
10,150

111,950

467,540

392,910

280,400

52,975

119,255
2,614,935

344,275

128,375

282,900
5,884,250

2,558.200
333,875
710.710

170,505

291,415

988,255

391,650

610,620

1,808,275
139,135
151,950

693,155
3,462,675
362,061
213,900

$12,913,310 $229,268,105 $61,630,411 $134,761,444 $53,987,184

$31,671,521

This report does not include the exempt property in the city of Utica and the towns of Ava, Bridgewater, Forestport, Verona and Westmoreland in Oneida county; Fayette and Varick in Seneca county, and Ulster in Ulster county.