The pilot and transcript. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1840-1841, 1840-07-18

the public eye on the political relations ct the
scheme, they may be learned from the past OK
perience of the federal government
The constitution confers on Congress amPie
pewcr sFto lay and collect taxes, duties, lmposts
and excise" for the federal government,-pr
cd only; that all duties, imposts and eXclses lald
nv Coneress shall be uniform throughout the
United States; that no tax or duty shall be laid
on exports, and that capitatlon or other direct
taxes Shall be apportioned among the States ac-
cording to federal number
Il was the early policy of the government to
raj se its necessary revenues, far as it might,
by means of duties on imports, or indirect tard-
tom for two classes of reasons-frst, industrial
reasons, the protection ef our own industry
against the inroad of other nations,-and second
ly, the political reasons to which shall hereai-
ter advert
These considerations have always been so
powerful, that direct taxation has been resorted
to only at two periods Of the greatest exigency
in the history of the government, one in the case
of the defence of the country against apprehend-
ed war with France in 1877 and 1888, and the
other in the last war with England. Direct tax
alton was, in each of these cases, tcdr-aReaSuTe.
The direct tax and internal duty acts of 1897
and 1898 were speedily abolished, for reasons
briefly assigned by Mr.. Randolph, in his report
to the House of Representatives on the Sth March
1902
The reasons were, first, the very great expense
!
insuperable.
Thus, the gross receipts of the year
lSOU were S5Z5,UuO
And the expense of collection, $4,000
Leaving for nett proceeds only $4,000
Secondly, he said, GA wise policy, it is believ-
ed, will induce the United States to ObstGi1l,
.oherever practicable, from exercising the right
of taxation on those subjects ouer tohtch the IN
dividual States possess concurrent right"
That is the great principle. But MIR. Ran
dolph added:
"Cther reasons concur in producing an opin-
ion favorable to the repeal of these duties. They
consist
/. In the vcxation and oppression of many of
them, some of which are peculiarly obnoxious to
! our citizens
| g In the nature of the excise, which is hostile
to the genius of free people.
| 3. In the tendency to multiply officers and in
crease the patronage of the Executive"
| And he speaks afterwards of the 'host Of Of
fcers," which the system required
The Secretary of the Treasury, at the time he
recommended those taxes, had ALLOW, I'd for a loss
OF fifteen per cent, for attachments, erroneous
assessments, and charges of collection.
Altogether, these reasons were considered so
weighty that, for the next ten years, the Federal
Government, instead of touching the source of
| revenue by direct taxation, of which the States
which they meet their own expenses, confined
| itself to duties on Imports of which, by the Con-
| stitution, it has exclusive control.
The necessity of tie war OF 1912, however,
compelled the Government TO have temporary
| resource once more to direct taxes; but these it
abandoned again Immediately on the return Of
peace, and has ever since wisely adhered to the
raising of revenue by indirect taxation alone
for the same reasons which had previously guild
/ ed its policy in this respect
/ | lay before YOU some few details of the acts
of 1897, 1898 and 1873 in confederation OF the
objections to direct tax, summarily stated by
Mr.. Randolph.
The ister7,al duties of 1897 and 179S, were
levied on refined sugars, carriages, distilled spi
rits, stamps, licences to retailers, and sales at
auction Those of 1913, applied, also, So va
rety of articles. The direct taxes of Ia9S, and
of 1913 to 1915, were on houses, lands, and
SldUcS
The act of 1898 allotted out the Unsted States
into multitude of assessment and collection dis
tricts, with (of necessity host of Supervisors,
inspectors, collectors, and auxiliary officers.
The vexations, irseparable from the system,
were such, that even the staid and prudent State
of Pennsylvania broke out in nsurrcction.
The acts of iS13and 1915 also allotted out the
United States into numerous assessment and col
lection districts, with multitudinous body oil
assessors, assistant assessors, collectors, deputy
ry, by which alone the lands, houses, and slaves
could be assessed, and the directytaxes on them,
and the various internal duties could be collected
Thus, each assessor was to divide his district in
to ga convenient nNnber of assessment districts,
and to appoint an assistant assessor for each
Moreover, each collector was 20 appoint as
e'many deputies as he may think proper" The
board 'sf assessors for each State also had q
} sfclerk cor clerks"
Being at that time in the quiet halls of the I'm.
versity, aoccupied i'm the absorption into my owr
system Of given G unity of Latin and Greek
Mathematics and Metaphysics, / have no per
sonal knowledge of the workings those drec
taxes on che feelings and system of the people
a but appeal this point to the Eecollections q
all who were on the stage of active life then, tG
testify whether those taxes were 'Kot among the
sorest griess of a state of war.
And that odous method of raising revenue
IS now proposed on the side ofthe administration
to serve as one of the attendant blessings or frs
fruits of the.Sub-Treasury Bill.
ask the States whether they prepared I,
see the Federal Government step in, and skin
off the cream from all those sources of interna
re venue, by means of which their own Stat
, Treasures are now supplied
/ ask the people of the United States whethe
4 they are prepared to see the agriculture, mines
commerce, manufactures, fisheries and forests o
r this country, placed at the mercy Of Britain
Francse or Germany
l ask them whether they wish to see the pow
? er and patronage of the Federal Government
Il enormously increased, by having network o
81 internal revenue collection districts spread al
l over the United States, with all the inspection
), and cole ction machinery of the Federal Govern
Rent in our sea-ports carried into every tow
: and village in the land, with assessors and as
u he. ii Il.