The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1851-10-07

An impression prevails in this country that our
Newspaper press incurs great deal more expense
You 4 that opinion i-i DO not know what your OK
pense IL; should say that 100000 dollars year
are paid BY our association Of the six leading daily
.tins Of i. psp:1: For what You you get n
Yes; We telegraph great deal in the United
States. For instance, the Scientific Association
held its annual meeting IN Cincinnati this year, and
We, and presume other Journals, had special re-
porters to report the proceedings at length; 80 we
have reports every day 1000 miles,-from New Or
leans daily, and st. Louis, and other places.
The British Income Tax Committee.
THE HON. DUDLEY sELDRN's TESTIMONY.
THE following Is an extract from the volumnous
testimony of Hon. Dudley Selden, given before
late committee Of the British Parliament, on the
income tax in reference to the system of taxes and
collections Of the State Of New York;.
BY all personal property. either in or out Of the
United States becomes chargeable!-Yes; If We
can find it tax it. There is another question to
which perhaps may allude, as matter OF interest,
and that is with regard to the taxation of real
estate, and mortgages upon it. In our State, ever
since have been in public life Il was member OF
our Legislature for several years, ana nave oeen
of the great grievances under which the agricutu-
raj class in our country have labored, and they
have sriven strenuousy to counterfeit 1t, to over
ty pay fairly the real. 1t will be seen at once
that all our real estate pays-it is liable to taxa
ton; the complaint of the farmers that mercantile
men engaged in commercial operations do not pay
to the passage of the law to which have alluded
during the last year. 1t has been the subject Of
great struggle with regard to that. You will see
at once that land sold as ost of ours was original
ly, with only part of the purchase money paid,
and with mortgage upon it, paid two taxes in re.
atty. The farmer was Obliged to pay the full
value or the assessed value, whatever it was, and
the person who held the mortgage had to pay, and
pocket of the pxfchasey it really did for it almost
always entered into the barg that the farmer
had to pay two taxes; that was the real working
CHAIRMAN-Tha is to say, the mortgage was
charged separately as personal property, being in
fact an item in the value of the real property
Yes; but the tax was paid by another man.
Its effect was to fall as double payment on the
landed proprietor!-Yes.
Mr. JAMES WusoN-Do you mean by that, that
a man in lending money on mortgage included q
his loan for the tax that he would have to pay!-
Our interest is regulated by statute; a man can
charge only so much, except fraudulently; We
have a usury law, which is very strict indeed.
In what way can you show that the man pays-
In the purchase money. If the Individual took
the mortgage back, he would take it, and add,
perhaps, little more than he would otherwise have
charged.
Suppose man, with bis own money, had pur.
chased an estate and found it convenient afterwards
to mortgag it!-Then there would be nothing; he
would only pay the amount OF interest.
In that case the land pays the tax, and the capt.
taist pays it agan!-Yes; but the great complaint
has been Of the inequality of taxation between real
and personal estate. In the one case we secure as
near assessment as we can, and IN the other, 1t
is very defective.
Has that com plant arisen from the great facility
with which you arrive ut the value of real property,
and the impossbilty, Of arriving at the exact
amount of personality!-Yes. The difficulty with
us is in acquiring ton as to the actual state
Of a mans personal property.
Can you tell US what means you have adopted, in
order to make that more perfect!-A law passed in
the last session of the legislature authorizes and
empowers the to require from every indi-
vidual a statement of his personal affairs.
In the first instance!-Yes; they have right to
require him to give statement OF the amount OF
his personal property, substantially saying how
much he has, what it consists OF, and the amount
Of his debts and liabilities.
CuAIRMAY-His furniture, and everythingl-It is
required under general head do not think the
law requires all that detail.
Mr.. J. Wu.soN-Do they furnish form to be
filed up!-I presume the law does require that, but
| cannot speak to that.
Yes Yes ''O"' A 's"'N' VAC ''''''''
Isthe assessor bound TO secresy!-Yes; think he
is bound not to disclose the information. do not
think it would be open to the public, and he is
bound to submit it to the boards OF supervisors.
There was great objection to the law in It's original
form, and II was very much modified on account Of
its being very injurious to commercial men, mans
credit being his property; and often the only pro-
perty he has. disclosure OF this kind, If made
public, might prevent him from getting a,commo.
dation which would otherwise enable him to 60 on,
and where he really ought TO 60 on successfully in
business. That was the great objection to it.
Mr.. j. WI.soN-Then are the COMMITTEE, to un-
derstand that by this new law which you have
mentioned the plan which the last witness described
of the books being exposed to the public view, both
10 the parties themselves, whose asse sments are
inserted, and to their neighbors, is abantoned'-
No; tina. is with the assessors. That IS the data
from which they derive their means OF fixing the
amount of the pro perty to be taxed.
When the amount is ultimately fixed, the exact
amount Of q mans property, whether personal or
real, is exposed to view, as has been already des-
Mr. HoRsMAN-Can you state whether the asses
or supervisors take any oath of secresy NO;
| do not think they do. We have only the general
oath, which is administered to all our officers, which
is, that they will support the constitution of tho
United States, and the constitution OF the State OF
New York
There Is nothing to prevent their disclosing any
facts which come to their knowledge mo; i do
not think there is !; do dot remember
Colonel RoMnLY-Does that roll which is opened
to public inspection, make distinction between
personal and real property Yes there are Two
and then its value then the personal property and
its amount. The only body that can make any
alteration is the legislature, by the enactment Of
law to remedy the difficulty; there is no appeal
from the board Of supervisors.
II counties were unequally assessed, there would
be no means Of setting it right by appeal mo;
and that has led to the regulation which | stated,
az to the manner in which the real estate Is now
required to be valued in order to correct those ne-
qualities which have existed in counties.
With respect to CONNER sal companies, take
canal or a railroad company, for instance, you
have stated that they would be assessed upon the
whole Of their capital, whether paid up or engaged
to be paid up l-Yea
Would any allowance be made for their debts!-
No.
None whatever mo.
60 that if they borrowed a very large um Of
money upon the faith of taeir tolls, no allowances
would be made Mot IL they we're deriving an in.
come from It they must be taxed upon the amount
of their capital paid in, secured to be paid in,
and it Ia all required by our laws to be secured
No allowance in that case would be made for any
debts which they might have made mo.
Although those debts would be entitled, in the