Daily Democrat and news. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1859-1864, 1860-02-10

Oar kcpubiIca'i "''S"" "
of "Wednesday gravely informed the
peopIe that our tares arc comparatively
Hght'
Year before last, under Republican RUE.
the State taxes were reduced one h.ndrtd
thousand dollars, and last year forty thousand
dollars. During Democratic rule IN Iowa III"
average of State taxes was too aud one s'h
tecnM mills Daring Republican rule Tue LAX
has averaged one and hall malls, yet In th'r
time hundreds Of thousands have been si,' M
in the erection Of charitable institutions. The
highest tax ever inflicted on the people OF loo
wa was three mills on the dollar. and this VAS
under Democratic rule.
As we stated in our article OF yester-
day when Iowa became State, and the
Democratic party was then the control
ling one, it was necessary in order to set
the State Government in operation, TO
make loan. This was absolutely ne
cessary and was the only debt left by
the Democracy on the State when they
went out Of power. The great objection
made 10y the opponents OF the change
from a Territorial to a State Govern
meat, when the matter was first pro.
posed was the expense it would entail ;
but so anxious were majority of the
people of Iowa for the benefits oi a
State Government, that they resolved to
come into the Union and no longer b.
dependent for support upon the Federal
Treasury. To Tighten the newly as
sumcd burden, however, AS much as pos
sblc, the Democracy, in that spirit Of
economy which has always character
lied their management Of the affairs OF
Iowa, framed the Government as simple
and as inexpensive as possible. The sal
aries Of the State and County officials
were made small, and every device used
to cut off needless and useless cxpendit-
ures. At that time and up to 1850 the
population Was comparatively small, the
amenable property, the wealth Of the
State, was but little, and to bear the bur-
den Of the State Government at it's in.
ception and in its primary operation, the
rate of taxation for two or three years
was necessarily heavy. That it was not
caused by reckless and extravagant ex-
pendltures any one can see by glancing
at the Auditors reports made while the
Democratic party were in power, and
that the rate of taxation under Demo
cratic rule in the early days Of the State
was a natural consequence of the adop-
ton of the State Government. The
people knew it then and were willing to
bear it. County taxes had not then
commenced to run up on them as they
have done of late years.
But about that reduction Of taxes that
our neighbor boasts of as having taken
place under Republican rule. From so
to 81 our State increased in population
and wealth with unexampled rapidity-
the assessable property was vastly en-
larged, yet We find the Republican Off
Gals in 1856 borrowing of the School
Fund $500 for State expenses, and in
1857 the Republican Board of Equal
cation raising the rate Of State tax from
one and one-fourth to two mills on the
dollar, and yet all this was not suffi-
cient, and at the last session Of the Gen
eral Assembly they had to borrow $780,
600. When they are borrowing at this
rate, when the State debt has gone sew
eral thousands Of dollars over the con-
stitutlonal restriction, IL IS to be hoped
that some reduction will be made. II
they borrow 5000, 900 they certainly can
afford to reduce tho State taxes 500, 900
1t surely is time that our State expcndi.
lures were somewhat reduced and oul
debt diminished but borrowing from
one quarter to pay in another is only
working in circle from which You can
not escape, and from the demands nov
made ut DesMoincs for additional ap
preparations, it seems pretty evident tina
the State Tax will have to be increase,
this year, or else we will be compellet
by our Republican Administration I,
borrow again. Republican officials mus
be fed-principlc alone will not sustain
thea.