Arkansas true Democrat., 1861-04-11
Rate of Taxation and Financial Condi-
 ton of South Carolina.
EXECUTIVE OFFICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY,
 CHARLESTON, March %, 1861.

ton of South Carolina.
 EXECUTIVE OFFICE, | DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY,
 CHARLESTON, March %, 1861. ) To Ills Erceuency, r. Y. Pickens- In compliance with your direction, that l sh9pl( prepare a statement of the taxes to be ra set under the act Of the legislature ol South Caro d to raise supplies for the year SCI, and explai i' practical effect of the rate Of taxation on lands and also to make an exhibit of tie financial con diton of the State, beg leave to submit to yet the following report:
 A SCHEDULE OF THE TAXES FOR THE YEAR lool On slaves, per head. .............. SI oI On free persons of color, between the ages
 of l , and 90, excepting those who are ln- capable of maintaining themselves. , UU On every Sl00 of the value of lands, accord ing to classification n................. l o0 On every SI00 of the actual value of city
 and town lots, with improvements. %@ On every Sl00 of income or profit, from fac
 forage employments and professions, and
 from commissions by yendue masters and
 commission merchants. ~.......... Uu On every Sl00 of bank capital which has not paid bonus to the State. .......... 4O On every Sl00 of foreign bank capital em-
 ployed by agents in the State. SD On every Sl00 Gas Light Company stock. 40 On every Sl00 of premiums received by in-
 surance companies, not chartered by the
 State. l 50 On every Sl00 of sales of goods, wares
 and merchandise, made within fiscal year 22 On every Sl00 of sales of goods, wares and
 merchandise, if made by transient persons. 9O On every Sl00 of money invested at interest
 out of the State. .......... ........ lO On every Sl00 of gross receipts ot foreign
 commercial agencies. ................. l oO On every Sl00 of salaries above $500..... l 50 On circus exhibitions, per day. 20 % On theatrical and other scenic entertaln-
 ments, per day 50 On every billiard table. .................. l5 u0 On the sale of every pack of cards within
 the State. is This schedule comprises all the taxes levied by the act to raise supplies for the year 1861. FINANCIAL CONDITION OF STATE ON lsT OCT, 1860.
 DedtOrs of tte Slate. The Bank of the State, for capital . .sl ,947 ,O0O The Bank of the State, for sinking fund ,6o9,000 The Bank of the State, for deposit of
 United States surplus reYenue...... 050,00 The Bank of the State, for balance at
 credit of the State treasury. 3S1 ,000
 S5l74, ,000
 Creditors of the State. The holders of bonds and stock issued
 by the State, being the funded debt of
 the State ...................... .S4, ,046, ,00O Balance in favor of the State ..... .$l ,l2S,0 ,0C0 The State holds stock in the several rail
 road companies in the State 10 the
 amount of. S2, ,65l ,000 And the State has guaranteed--
 The bonds of the South Carolina rail
 road company. y.,...................s s, ,OOO, ,OOO ne bonds ot the Laurens railroad com DanV. U(Nl The bonds ofthe Charleston and Savannah
 railroad company y................. 5l0,00O The bonds of the Spartonburg and Union
 railroad company. y................. 450, ,000 S3,035, ,000 The chief sources of revenue are slaves and land. prime male slave is worth $l 300, and the tax on such, at Sl 30 per head, is at the rate of 10 cents on the SlO0 of value. Slaves ill q gang, i"- dudins old and young, are worth $700 per he !. and on such the rate of taxation is less than cents on the $l00 of value.
 The land tax of South Carolina is so singular and anomalous that the rate of taxation does not, in he le3st, indicate the centage of the on tie nlue of that kind of property.
 | Under an act passed more than forty years ago, all the land in the State, for the purpose of taxa ton, dividc into ten classes, and to each class valuation was affixed which has not been changed The valuation of these classes ascends from 20 cents to S2G per acre. The land tax is assessed on the value, according to this classification I he 0tal number of acres returned for taxation is IT, 300 ,000; of this number more than 10 ,000 ,000 a arc returned in the class of 20 cents an acre; IT, han GOO ,000 are returned in the class of 40 e m acre, and only somewhat over ,000 ,000 acres gre returned ill the classes valued over Sl per acre | Under the act of l66l. the tax payable on 100 eres of land returned in the class of 20 cents an are, is t~enty-Sir cenis. In the class of 40 C A acre, the tax on 100 acres is 52 cents. TT a ta on one acre assessed at 20 cents, is mills ar 60ths, so that the owner Of less than i acres c z lad can pay no tax, because one cent, the lowe, con, exceeds the amount of his tax. A very large potion of the most valuable cotton lai in the Site, worth from Sl0 to S2O per acre, is return fo taxation at 20 cents per acre. 4 tract of ,D0J aces, salcable for $2O, GOO, and chased at p cen | pc acre, is assessed for taxation on the statute 1 yalation of S200, and pays a tax of c2 60. If the ,000 acres is worth 10000 or 5000, it pays tie same tax of s 60. According as the ,oU0 aces may be worth either of the three sums beto mentioned, the tax actually assessed under the 0le6l, instead of being at the rate of Sl 30 on slOO of value, is, in fact, ,ilsscsscd only at the of cent and 3 mills on the Sl00 of value in cge first stated, and at tie rate of , cents anu nils in the second and at the rate of cents a 2aills in the last case.
 t must be noticed that only land is taxed, and no the improvements, however costly or valuable thy may be. If a cotton factory in which half million of dollars is invested, be located on lot otland less than four acres, within the class of lar valued at 2G cents per acre, the X to be as- Sesed under the act of 1861 on the land and i'm pryements would be less than one cent
 The best Sea Island cotton lands are returncl fotaxation at four dollars per acre. The marke vmei is from fifty to one hundred dollars per acre. Fen at the lowest figure, the tax is assessed on a vmation more than twelve times less than the aclal value, which, in effect, reduces the nomr ra of Sl 30 on every hundred dollars of value amctual rate less than eleven cents on every hun du dollars of value. The best quality of lice las classified at twenty six dollars per acre; tly sell for one hundred to two hundred dollars peacre. If one hundred and fifty dollars be taken ashe average saleable value, the assessed value is OIy about one-siXth of the actual value, and the nninal rate of Sl 30 is reduced to the actual rate olbout twentyone cents on every hundred dol la of value.
 t is thus shown that the actual tax paid on lge portion of the lands returned in the class of tpntv cents per is at the rate of one cent and tee mills on every hundred dollars of value, bng only the one-hundrah part of the statute rate osl 30 on every hundred dollars of value.
 In tue best Sea Island cotton lands, the actual r@ of taxation is only about eleven cents, and on thbest tide swamp rice lands the actual rate is oE about twentyone cents, instead of Sl 30 on ePy hundred dollars.
 will be noticed that on city and town lots, wch are assessed for taxation at the actual value othe land and improvements, the rate is only tpnty two cents on every hundred dollars of value. in exhibit of the rate of taxation on the agSre- Be of the property which is taxed will present a Ire satisfactory view of the State taxes.
 will assume seven hundred dollars to be the vue of slaves per head and six dollars to be the a4rage value of lands in the State:
 B. 1000 savesa at S700 per head, is. .$270 GOO ,000 l5O0 ,0OOacres ofland at $6 peracre 105, 5,O00,OOO Ie total of other subjects of taxation rom the report of the Comptroller General for the year 1860, amounts
 o ................... 73,OOO, ,OOO
 S448, ,000,000 The rate of taxation provided by the act of 1861 | Ns estimated to yield S300,0 which makes an aerage rate of l734 cents on every hundred dol Is of the value of the property which is taxed The exhibit of the financial condition of the ate reoutes few remarks.
 The deposit of the United States surplus revenue