Richmond & Danville Railroad v. Board of Commissioners

Settle J. This court has held that if County Commissioners proceed upon a correct principle to assess property for taxation, there can be no appeal from their finding of facts as to the value of such property; but if they proceed upon an •erroneous principle, an appeal will lie, and the courts will afford relief. In the charter of the North Carolina Railroad Company, we find this provision: “ All real estate held by said Company for right of way, for station places of whatever kind, and for workshop location, shall be exempt from taxation until the ■dividend of profits of said Company shall exceed six per cen-tum per annum.” It is alleged in the complaint and admitted in the answer that the dividend of profits of the said North Carolina Railroad Company have at no time exceeded six per centum per annum. And yet the authorities of Orange *509 county admit that they have assessed for the year 1875, the real estate belonging to said corporation in said county, and held for right of way and station places, at the sum of $40,-064, in addition to the assessment levied by the Governor, Treasurer and Auditor, on the franchise of said corporation within said county. This is a palpable violation of the contract which the State, at the time she entered into it, had a right to make with the corporators. By the Constitution adopted in 1868, all the real and personal property in the State, with certain limited exceptions, is required to be taxed uniformly according to value, and wo may hope hereafter to be relieved from the evil effects of such unwise legislation, but there, is no relief from such contracts as the Legislature sees proper to make, and has the power to make. It also appears that for the year 1874, the Governor and his associates assessed for taxation, not only the franchise, but all the real and other property belonging to the corporation. Of course they had no more power to violate the contract than the Commissioners of Orange county had; and besides, this court has said in the Wilmington, Columbia and Augusta Railroad Company v. The Board of Commissioners of Brunswick county, 72 N. C. Rep. 10.’ “ We conceive that the General Assembly has no right to confer on such a board the power of valueing the tangible real and personal property of' a Railroad Company. Such power is by the Constitution vested in the township trustees alone, and cannot be taken J1,.- „ 5? -Li a. uAIUIJ-a. Citation of authority for the positions herein assumed is not required, but we refer to a few of the latest cases on the same subject, which have received the consideration of the Supreme Court of the United States, and which fully support our conclusions. Wilmington Railroad Company v. Reid, 13. Wallace *510 264; Humphrey v. Piques 16, Wallace 243; Pacific Railroad Company v. Maguire 20, Wallace 36. The judgment of the Superior Courtis affirmed. Let this be certified to the end, &c. Per Curiam. Judgment affirmed.