Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1859-05-25


tial immunity from taxation" as well as other
property.
Then see the fathers in the early legislation OF
the State discriminating in the imposition Of taxes,
not because they were Indifferent to equality in tax
alton, in consequence of the small amount OF reve-
nue. necessary to be raised las has been suggested
by some,) but because they saw as did the trainers
of the old constitution, that general and uniform
system of taxation could be devised that would in
its administration be equal and just upon all tax
payers; and hence it is, we see no provision in the
old constitution regulating the mode of taxation ;
and the amendment to the constitution requiring
capitation tax to be equal whites and blacks, was
made to secure from innovation policy determined
and fixed by the fathers of the State, contemporary
with the formation of the federal constitution; the
propriety and necessity of which was indicated by
the position given to slaves in that instrument IN
relation to the basis of representation from slave
States in the Congress of the United States and
would no doubt have been incorporated in the old
constitution of the State had it been formed subse-
quent to the federal constitution. The WISDOM
prudence and propriety of the policy is so manifest
that it is with surprise hear it said by North
Carolinian that it is "a libel upon the principles OF
democratic republican equality. and an insult to the
intelligence, se!frespect and patriotism of our IA
TIERS" How an insult to Our fathers? They did
the deed.
The foregoing shows conclusively, l think, the
faacy of the grounds on which the justice and pro-
priety of ad caorem is advocated, and its assumed
practicability is equally fallacious.
No system of valuation that can be devised can
make it equal No one set of assessors can assess
all of the property in the State in one year. and if
they could it would cost too much money. If there
are assessors appointed in each county, there will
be no equality in the estimates through the State;
and that too, would cost round sum annually;
! y II ortx
(which strikes me as the most practicable because
himself only can know the amount of his debts
which will have to be deducted from the value of
the property he possesses toshow the net value ofhs
estate )then whilethe honest man will place fair val
uation on his estate the cupdty of others will cause
them to place too low value; and perhaps the
pride of some and the Indebtedness Of others will
induce them to fix too high value. There must
necessarily be great inequality in valuation, no mat
tor how it is made.
Nor can all of the property in the State be taxed
without discriminating greatly to the prejudice OF
some. 10 illustrate, suppose. Mr.. B. has farm
worth So, COO which he sells to Mr.. H., on time,
say two years. Mr. II. gives Mr.. B. his bonds, bear
ing interest, and receives deed for the land Mr. B.
puts the bonds in his pocket takes his family and
negroes and goes to the State of Texas there settles
himself on tract of land that he buys on credit
he will find no difficulty in doing so, because his
negroes and the exhibition of Mr.. HIS bonds will
give ample confidence. Who then will pay tax
on the $25, 900 worth of land sold by Mr.. B. ? Not
Mr. H., because he owes for it not Mr.. B., because
he is not citizen Of the State. What is the con-
sequence? why the State loses the tax on $500
worth of land for two years. This is improbable
case but it is almost certain that many similar cases
amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars will
annually occur, to the great prejudice of the tax
payers of the State, and highly detrimental to the
public revenue.
Id ralorem will be highly injurious to the in
debted class Of the community, and place them in
an awkward and most painful dilemma, from which
they cannot escape. Credit and confidence to some
is worth as much as their property. Their prosper
upon the amount of confidence and credit they have
from the community in which they live. The man
indebted, therefore, must when he gives in his tax
list, make up in his mind to which of the two evils
he will submit, e. give in what he is worth. in
Guiding his debts, and pay tar on them, or risk his
credit and subsract his debts, and show on the tax
list his probable Indebtedness by the amount given
in, compared with the value of the property he
holds and should that comparison show him much
more indebted than before supposed by his credi-
tors the consequence is inevitable They lose con-
fdence press him for payment, destroy his means
to carry his business and it will frequently happen
that poverty and ruin will be the result Is it right
is it just is it prudent to subject good citizens to
such necessity or to such an exposure?
Nor will the poorer classes be benefited or their
tax lessened The poor man now only pays poll
tax, but under al ralorem he will have to look
about and estimate the value of his horse and mark
ct cart, his and calves, his hogs and sheep his
plantation utensels his HOUSEHOLD and kitchen furn
ture the bedhe sleeps on and the cradle he rocks his
baby n the poultry in his yard and every other thing
that he that is worth adime; and then give in on
oath to thetaX list aker the value in dollars and cents
ofa these things, to be taxed in addition to his poll
But it may be said that poll tax will be reduced by
ad ra1orem, and, therefore, the poor mans tax on
his property added to his poll will not be as much
as his poll tax is now But many of the poor pay
no poll tax now, being As years old all such
and widows who have any property at all, will CO.:
tainly pay more tax than they do now. :
/Ad raorem will be both troublesome and unpleas-N
ant to tax payers. To be compelled annually to
take an inventory of all the property We own will
be troublesome; and to fix value on it under oath,
and place the amount in figures on the tax list for
the gaze of every body-our own sworn estimate of
what we are worth! will be not only unpleasant
but revolving to the feelings of most men.
A system of all ralorem taxation in North Carroll
ma would be impolitic. 1t cannot be adopted with
out aboshing capitation tax far as negro proper
ty is concerned. If the Legislature abolish capita
ton tax Gf indeed it has the right to do so) then
white polls will not be taxed at ALL condition of
things that very few owning property would be will
ing to submit to, because we should deem it not
ly unjust but unfair, that persons owning no prop
erty, and therefore paying no tax, should have the
same weight at the ballot box those who bear the
burdens of the government. Then to enable the
Legislature to tax negroes as property the consttu
ton of the State must be amended. How is that to
be done? By legislative enactment? l think that no
Legislature of North Carolina will ever make such
an amendment and if it is done at all, it must be
done by general convention. Is there any sane
man who believes that convention would meet,
organize and strike from the constitution of the
State the article requiring "capitation tax to be
equal throughout the State upon all individuals SUBJ
ject to the same" and do no more? Would it not as
certainly as it destroyed the present relative position
of whites and slaves in the mode of taxation, pro-
coed to change of the basis Of representation to
white population? The one would as certainly fol-
low the other as the falling of a monument when
its pedestal is undermined. Take from negro prop
erty its personal quality, which it has always main