The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1861-10-27
NEW YORK. HERALD, SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27, 1861.

THE UNITED STATES INCOME TAX LAw.-We
called attention to this subject few days ago,
and we now find that the erroneous idea to
which we then referred as existing in regard to
the scope of the law, was not confined to the
popular mind but had actually taken possession
of official intelIects. In Governor Bucking-
hams message, transmitted to the Connecticut
Legislature several days ago, he speaks OF
the act Of Congress as "imp6sing a direct tax
Of S20,OOo,o00 annually upon the United States,
and appropriating (apportioning) to Connect
cut the sum Of $500, as its quota, to be levied
upon incomes and real estate"
Now this "quota,s as we have shown and as
any one reading the act carefully will perceive,
is TO be levied not upon incomes generally, bat
upon real estate, or, in the language Of the thr-
teenth section, "on the value of all lands and
lots OF ground, with their improvements and
dwelling houses" excepting public property and
also small private residences 'worth the sum
of five hundred dollars, y whether such lands
and lots yield any income or not. Value does
not always depend upon income. man may
own and occupy q palace which, instead Of in
creasing, would only exhaust his income. lie
may be the proprietor of Central Park lots,
whose only yield for the present is an annually
recurring bill for taxes and assessments. Still
he must contribute TO his States quota of the
twenty millions. As to that, the act declares
it s'shall be assessed and laid on the value" OF
his lots.
Having thus provided, in some forty odd Sec
tons, for the raising of "a direct tax
of twenty millions" on the value Of real estate
alone, the act then proceeds in section 40, to
directthat there shall be levied "atax (meaning
obviously another tax) of three per centum on
the annual income" of residents of the United
States over eight hundred dollars, whether de-
rived from real estate, or stocks, or bonds and
mortgages, or business, or trade, or professional
earnings, or official salaries or wages, "or any
source whatever" For the raising Of this tax IL
different and additional set of collectors and
assessors are to be appointed at any time;
whereas, under the other branch Of the law, in
order to give the States an opportunity to
assume their quotas, no appointment can be
made until on or after the second Tuesday in
February" The assessment, too, in the one
case is to be as of the LIST Of April in the other
as of the LIST of January. What house or
farm will be "worth in money on the first day
Of April, 1862" can only be determined after
that day arrives. What the income Of person
will be for the year next preceding the LIST Of
January 1862" can only be known after the
year 1861 shall have expired.
Again, how could it have been intended thai
the tax on incomes was to constitute part Of the
twenty millions when the whole twenty mil
lions had already been apportioned upon the
real estate alone, and when, too, a fixed rate o.
three per cent, on an unascertained aggregate
Of incomes, might possibly, and even very pro-
badly, yield OF itself much greater sum than
twenty millions?
Assuming, then, that the income tax, as laid
by the act in question, is an indefinite addition
to, and not merely component part OF, the
previously apportioned S20,0O0,000, and that it
is not apportioned by the act among the several
States according 10 their respective numbers
as ascer.ained by the census, nor apportioned
among the States at all, as States, but among
individuals as residents of the aggregate Union,
presentation, can it be upheld as valid enact
ment under the constitution OF the United
States
The third section of the first article Of that in
strument expressly provides that "rcpresenta-
tives and direct taxes shall be apportioned
o,,cn,. 4bo covaral poooun;opm Tho
binding force OF this injunction as to the twenty
million tax, the act declares, in section eight,
that ''the same shall be, and ishereby, appor-
toned to the States respectively in manner fol-
lowing-To the State Of Maine, 1920, SIG; to
the State Of New Hampshire, S2lS, 406,' and so
State of New York as its share So, 6G3,9I8. And
whoever will look into the last census will find
that these figures bear the same ratio to each
other as the federal population of the States
respectively, and that the tax therefore, is not
only .apportioned among the several States"
but apportioned rs required by the same sec
ton, according to their respective numbers
and, as a consequence, according to their re-
spcctive representation in the Congress Of The
United States. Ana yet when providing for
the income tax this article OF the constitution
seems to have been wholly overlooked. The
Inconsistency, it is said, may be explained by
the fact that the provisions in question were
originally contained in Independent bills, pre-
pared by different and independent hands, and
afterwards, without proper consultation, incor-
poratcd together into one homogeneous enact
ment The act ought 10 be amended at the open
ing Of the next session Of Congress.
City Intelligence.
s~.rAsyuKs MISSIONARIES FOR CHiSA.--Qute an in
tcrestng occurred yesterday, At the foot Of
Eleventh. street East river prior to the departure Of the
po Yang FOR Hong Kong China party of missionaries,