Sentinel of the valley. [volume] (Woodstock, Va) 1841-1848, 1843-01-26

land. twelve and half cents on the hun.
dred dollars Of value. All lands, pro-
ductive- and unproductiye, are taxed. and
slaves only above twelve years. If the
value of slaves Of all ages was estimated
at an average ofSao0, a-rate not suppos-
ed to be disproportioned to the assessed
value Of tive lands, and the same ad va
loren tax imposed upon them as On land,
viz: twelve and half cents perhundrea
dolGrs Of value, it would be 25 cts.
per head: the number by the census be-
ing about $3.50 600, the aggregate tax
would amount to ST. 2,0O0-it is now on
ly 100000. gain-S50,oOO Of asses
sed vatue of land pays now $t62 so. The
annual product of the land cannot aver
age overs per cent, viz: $1,000. The
tax OH this amounts to four and one-sixth
per cent. $4,000 in slave. over twelve
years, at ~SSS5 each, would be $50 in
number: their hire, al $40 each, per an
mum, 5000; the tax, at 40 cents each,
500.
The next subject is the graduation Of
merchants licenses. la many States
merchants capital is taxed; Eut in the
revolutions Of trade. their capital often
tfucsuates; it might be injurious t" them
to expose it. The object can be prubab-
ly shore' equitab!y attained by gra,lua.
ton Of The license. The present license
tax is manifestly UNJUST, imposing the
same tax on the merchant who sells S.
oooor $50, coo worth of goods. would
propose, in lieu OF the presenttax of TWEEN
ty dollars upon all alike, to Tx mini
mum, say. $4,000; the Licenses should
be required 10 be paid as at present, and,
Oh the application for it, the merchant
required to give bond with security that
at the I. lose of the year he should make
return of the excess of his sales over So
600. pay pho rata on such excess. ltmay
be argued. that they should not pay in
proportion to their sales, as the merchant
who sells a large amount Of goods sells
for less profit. | would reply, that a
merchant selling only $4,000 worth oil
goods. attesllng to it himself in person,
his services as clerk are worth $500 per
annum, the interest on his money $3.50
$3.50 Or Is per cent. upon mis- capital
beiure he,reaches the profit point.
All capital in bank stock, State stock.
Insurance companies, joint stock com
panles, monies at interest, &C., making
the land tax the standard of taxation up
on those objects, and to avoid the hard
ships which would arise from their .tluc-
tuation, the tax might be levied upon
their dividends or annualreceipts. The,
tax -on.land being g cents in the hundred
dollars of value, assuming the annual
product ofland at>slxaper cent. double
its actual product, and so far in favor of
the maniedecapitalist.) the ncome of.the
land would be-two per~centum,; then tax
two per centum upon the dividends of
these stocks, and two per centum on the
excess ofinterests actually received over
interests paid by individuals loaning mo-
ney. II may be objected. that. the Banks
paying bonus, they sht MOTTO be taxed.
In reply, | would estate, that the bonus
was paid for the exclusive privilege OF
banking-a privilege, which is denied to
all other citizens, and cannot be more
justly construed to,exempt them from the
equal participation in the burthens Of tax
alton, than a merchants license should
exempt his other property.
Another subject of taxation would be
on monied income not derived from mo-
ney, property or stock, such as the sala-
lies oI public officers, officers of joint-
stock companies or wages received from
individuals, the income not under $3.50.
Here again the same principle should be
applied of two per cent. as being a fair
proportion with the land tax. $4,000
worth Of land, its income estimated at
6 percent, The tax on it $50, or 2 per
cent. on ITS income. A salary of S.
600 at 2 per cent, is $60--the salary is
uncertain in its durs ton, but certain in
amount. The land permanent, but en-
tireiy precarious in its annual income.
The ability of the monied income to pay
fer the time being, issnuch greater than
that iof the land. Rather than subtract
tflom the necessities Of the citizen. |
would fix limit of $3.50, below which
the tax should not he levied; thus,
man receiving an income of $500 should
pay one dollar-$400, three dollars
$500, five dollars and 2 per cent. on. the
increase. a tax on professional men
this was War tax. and upon the princi-
pie OF ability to pay. is certainly a just
one. An objection may be urged against
it, as tax on knowledge or intellect.
And is not intellect and Knowledge the
capital ofthe professional, as,mach as
his goods or money are the capital of the
merchant, or land of the farmer? If
great, it produces money, and capacity to
pay surrassing often that Of monied or
landed capital. knowledge is power of
that of which its possessor cannot be de-
prived as long as life and reason last. If
the .proiesssor has not the powor of the
Alchymist to.extract gold from stones, he
can, relax the grasp Of the miser and ex-
tract meney from hun, for the restoration
Of his health or the protection-of his pro-
perty. If gifted with intellect, improved
by labor aud the advantages ofeducation,
| ii places him next in the order Of beings