Nashville daily patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1855-1857, 1856-04-10
Thursday Morning, April 10, 1856.
our municipal Affairs.
TAXATIoN-CONCLUDED.

head by reference to the revenue obtain
ed by some Of our Municipal Governments,
which is always separate and apart from
the revenue levied by the General and State
Governments.
AS New York is the most populous and
wealthy city in this country, SO it Of course
has to raise larger amount of funds for
the sustenance of its Corporation. The
annual amount paid into the Treasury Of
the city Of New York, resulting from taxes
levied, approaches the enormous sum of
six millions of dollars! An additional tax
is laid for widening streets, which is imposed
on property holders benefited, or supposed
to be benefited, by such improvements. This
special tax on certain individuals, frequently
exceeds half a million. For paving streets,
in the same manner, over one million is
annually expended and received. In fact,
New York is burdened by high taxes in
one shape or another The public money
is often prodigatcly sqIandered, and hence
we find the City Comptroller talking thus,
in recent annual report to the Common
Council: Extravaganza, to a greater or
less extent, pervades every department of
the Municipal Government The prevalent
theory that the greatness and glory Of the
city is to be estimated by banquetS, and
shows, and wastefuI expenditures Of means,
not earned by those who squander, is an
error which must be corrected, or the con-
sequences will be NEST disastrous to the
rising hopes and otherwise fair prospects of
city which, if honestly and Justly admin
istercd, has a more brilliant future than any
spot on the globe"
Unlocking over the items of the expendi-
lures, we are convinced of the fact stated
by the Comptroller, as to extravaganza
We find that s., 66l so was paid out for
carriage hire for the year ending LIST of July
last; and that the amount paid for station
cry for the same time, run up to $4,000
The total value of real estate and per-
sonaI property, as assessed in New York,
reaches the sum Of 1886, 998, 278.
We have heretofore stated that the City
of Providence, Rhode Island-which, by
the way, is an old and wealthy city-has
four or five times the amount Of assets than
its debts. The reason is twofod: it has
been, in the main, economically managed,
and it has also had more estates and means
donated, by actual gift, than perhaps any
other city in the Union.
The rate Of Corporation taxes in our own
city, is 81 % on the hundred or SO so
on the thousand-being 81 on the hundred
for the Corporation, and twenty-five cents
for schools; or $40 on the thousand for
Corporation purposes, and two dollars and
fifty cents for schools. SO, it will be seen
that one-ffth of our taxes on real estate and
personal property goes to the support of our
Public Schools. All the "head- tax" is APP
propriated to the'samc purpose
In the City Of Savannah, Ga, the Corpo-
ration tax is about the same as in Nashville.
At Charleston, s. c., it is less, but the diff
ference is more than made up by taxation
in other shapes. For instance, every pleas
ure carriage pays $40 per anum for the
privilege of running the streets. Capital is
also taxed and the State Bank of South
Carolina is not exempted from Corporation
taxes like the State Bank of Tennessee at
Nashville is At Mobile, Ala, $27 Oh the
thousand, or nearly three per cent, is the
rate Of Corporation tax. At New Orleans,
the tax is S25 on the thousand, and at st.
Louis it is the samc-just double the rate
of our taxes. At Louisville, the tax is
SIS 90 on the thousand. At New York,
so so; at Philadelphia, $l9; at Cincin-
natl, $40, and at Knoxville, Tenn, 10, or
one per cent. From which it will be seen
that the Corporation tax of Nashville is less
than that of most other cities
Nashville taxpayers have a heavy load
to carry, however, on account of so much
of its property being exempted from cor
poration tax. All the land and improve
ments contained in the sixth ward is exempt,
because it was grant from North Carolina,
before Tennessee was organized as State,
for school purposes. Property belonging
to the State as well as all that belonging
to churches, charitable institutions, hoSpi-
tails, &c, is also exempted Another dis
elimination which has heretofore existed
against the citizens Of the corporation, has
been removed by an act Of the General
Assembly. The act referred to, provides
that the county tax hereafter paid, shall
go into the hands Of the corporation treas
urer, instead of being paid to the county
trustee. That portion of the county rev
enue collected by the clerk of the county
court from privileges exercised in the limits
of the city, shall likewise be paid over TO
the treasurer Of the corporation. The
school fund OF the State and that collected
for district schools from citizens Of Nash
vile, goes TO the city school fund. As the
county has heretofore refused to cXpcud
dollar on bridges, roads or any thing else
in the corporation, this new law is said to
be more equitable than the plan heretofore
pursued. The city, however, has TO pay