The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1861-10-05

The INCOME Tx.-As Congress will be again
in session before those portions Of the late act
on tbls subject 60 into operation, it may be
well to suggest some necessary and proper
amendments.
| The act consists Of two parts: the one relat-.
ing to the indirect taxes, in the form of duties
on imports from foreign countries which, by
raising to that extent the price of foreign CON-
modites, are indirectly paid by the domestic
consumer; the other relating to the direct
taxes in the form Of assessments on all kinds Of
real estate over five hundred dollars in value,
within the limits Of the United States, and on
all kinds Of income over eight hundred dollars
per annum, whether derived from property or
"irom any other source whatever" if the recipi-
ent be a resident Of the United States, whether
at the time actually within its limits or not
The real estate or land tax is fixed at the
gross sum Of twenty millions, apportioned
among the States according to their respective
population, and not according to property or
income; 80 that house or farm in one State
may be charged with two hundred dollars,
while similar house or farm in another State
pays only fifty-or, in other words, only one
fourth of the per centage of the former-a SEEM
ingly very unjust inequality, resulting, how
ever, not from any oversight of Congress, but
from an express injunction of the constitution,
which at the same time provided what was sup
posed to be an ample counter-equivalent, in
the form of representation. Representatives"
it Declares "and direct taxes shall be appor-
a,
included within this Union according to their
respective numbers" &c.
In the adjustment, however, Of the other
branch of the direct tax Congress seems to
have lost sight, not only of this constitutional
injunction, but also of that which declares that
mo capitation or other direct tax shall be
laid unless in proportion to the census or emu
rleration hereinbefore directed to be taken"
The income tax, as imposed by the act in
question. utterly ignores State lines and State
representation. 1t prescrbes no fixed amount
to be raised, and, of course, makes no appor-
tionment OF such amount ''among the States
according to their respective numbers" A
general income tax of three per cent, it is
obvious, makes each State pay according to its
wealth, and not according to its votes. How
ever equitable such law to some may seem to
be, it is clearly not CONSTITUTIONAL and its en-
forcement can only lead to the most ruinous
litigation.
A cursory reading might lead one to suppose
that the income tax was only one of the means
for raising the duly apportioned twenty mil
lions, and not an indefinite additional sum over
I.r,z 1l,.tn D,,A
Election will dispcl this error. The aggre-
gate of the incomes to be taxed is an unknown
quantity; and o fixed per centage on an un-
known quantity must itself be equally I'M
known. A tax of three per cent may raise
twenty millions, or it may raise forty. All that
is certain is, that in every case of small State
such as Rhode Island for instance-with large
individual incomes, the burthen imposed will
not be in proportion to fixed and known repre-
sentation, but in proportion to unknown and
unascertained revenue--a result, as we have
seen expressly prohibited by the federal con
stitution. A State Legislature, where its own
citizens alone are concerned, may impose such a
tax: Congress cannot. The power in the former
case is given in the latter it is not only not
federal constitution--unike the wise men of
later period in some Of the Statcs-intended
and expressly provided, that, so far as the ma
tional government was concerned, they who
laid taxes should pay taxes; that if taxes were
to be imposed, as they must be, according to
votes they should be paid also according to votes
1t is we'll that these points should be clearly
understood before Congress proceeds again to
lesislate upon the subject Of direct taxation,
which it will undoubtedly be called upon to do
as soon rs it meets.
MATER FAMILIAs IN Town AGAIN.-New York