Democratic banner., 1851-01-13


in 1853. recommend. also, that provision be
made for their redemption and payment.
The system of assessing and collecting the
revenue, from tax upon land, has in j. radical
defects, which require some legislation. From
an examination Of the records in the Office Of
Register Of Lands, It viii be seen that there wss,
on the first day Of June last, standing in that
office, 46, 465 tracts of land, which had been adj
vsrtissd, sent out to the proper counties, and Of
fered for sale for the taxes OF previous years.,
and not sold, but returned IS forfeited, and upon
which there was at that time due 10 the State
$45, 1852. In the year l849, there were return
ed as delinquent about 8. 900 tracts Of land, upon
which there was due As taxes to the State, about
$4,000. These two items Of forfeited and de-
linquent lands, show the amount Of State tax due
up TO the first of June last to be about $55, 1862
These lands have been advertised. and were Of.
fered for sale in October last, with view to col.
lect the taxes. The report of sales made to the
Register Of lands, shows that an amount has not
been received sufficient TO remuneraie the State
for expenses incurred in advertising and paying
collectors and clerks fees.
recommend that system of numerical as
sessment be adopted, and that the tax book be re.
quired to he so made cut as 10 begin at the low
est number of range and township in each co,in-
ty, and in each township, commencing with sec
tion one, and running upto So; and that town
lots in like manner, be numerically assessed.--
II this system be adopted, it will be most efEec-
tual in having lands assessed by their proper
numbers. By this plan, also. the Stale will get
the taxes upon many tracts OF land, which, on
account Of some negligence or omission, have
been dropped from the assessors book, or were
never placed there. To show that this is proba-
be, shall present one fact for ths consideration
of the Legislature: by the aggregate statement
from all the counties in the Stale, ior the year
l849, the number Of acres OF land assessed for
taxation, is e,eOS COB, and by report from the
General Land Office, il will be seen that up TO
the Both of September, ls49, there had been
sold and posed OF by the General Government,
in the State of Missouri, and consequently after
the lapse Of FIVE years from the day cf sale, sub
ject TO tsxatiun, IS 907 ,027 acres Of land. Take
from this the probable number Of bcres embTsc-
ed in all the town lots in the State, not embraced
in the aggregate statement Of the number Of acres
Of land, assessed foI taxation, and also the prob
able number Of acres entered within The last FIVE
years before, and consequently rot subject 10 be
taxed, and yet, in my opinion, il will not reduce
the amount, as shown by the General Land Office
report to be entered, by many thousand acres.
down 10 the number Of acres, ss shown by the
aggregate statement TO be assessed in the State.
The plan Of numerical assessment will remedy
another error which cften happens under the
present mode. il is now frequently. the case,
that the same lands are twice assessel-once up
Oh the resident, and once upon the nonresident
list. The consequence is, that the tax 10 paid
upon the one and the cther is returned delin.
quent.
have examined tire aggregate statement Of
the taxable property for the years l848, l849,
and 1850, in one Of the medium counties, which
has for wears been steadily increasing in wealth
and population, and yet find this statement to
show tha: the revenue was upwards Of $500 less
in l849 than il was in 1913; and for the year
1850 il was upwards Of 5000 more than it was
in l849. This is but sarple Of the irregulari-
ty Of assessment; and, by comparison, such cases
will be found to exist in many counties in the
State.
By.an act of the last Legislature, the Govern
or was authorized 10 dispose Of that portion of
the land, (part ofthe SOC, 600 acre grant, which
had not been previously selected by the State,
amounting to 1000 and 3S. l00,hs acres. In &C.
cordance with the provisions of this law, 4 have
sold the same for 1882 SO, (beipg 81 25 per
acre, which has been paid into the treasury.
The subject ofinternal improvement will
demand more than ordinary attention from
the Legislature.
Missouri is susceptible being made one
Of the most desirable States in the Union.
But in order to this, the Legislature should,
by acts Of muni6cent, but Judicions legis-
lation, give cid and assistance to the enter
prise now struggling into existence among
the people, which aims at a development
of the resources of the State-to bring in
10 the channels of trade those counties mill
lions ofmineral wsslth-open to the farmer
and me chanics new sources Of wealth and
industry-to point out to the capitalist a
sure means of profitable investment, and to
sucure to. industry, in all its branches, its
surest and most ample rewsrds.
The great error as our efforts to make
improvements has been, that we have not
given the energies of the State to the com
pletion of ona or two objects at time; but
but when Legislative aid has been sought
for some usnful improvement, it has been
clogged by other proposition. perhaps equ-
ally deserving, until even 10 the opinion Of