The New York herald., 1862-01-11
Revelation in Taxation.


Means is about to urge upon Congress the
Secretary of the Treasury's plan to raise
by taxation upon the whole community
sufficient revenue to sustain the paper
money about to be issued, for the purpose of
carrying on the war, it is deemed advisable that
our State Legislature should follow the exam
pie, and effect reform in the mode of taxa
tion which has hitherto prevailed. As the
taxes in this city have become so enormous, it
is impossible that they can be raised by real
estate alone, especially since the disruption of
the Union and the war have so greatly reduced
its value. In England taxation is not confined
to real estate. as in the State of New York.
Money is raised by duties upon articles of home
consumption produced in the country as well
as upon those importcd-articles in general
use, such as sugar, tea, Office. tobacco, wine.
spirits, malt-by stamps. by direct taxes by
assessments upon occupants OF dwellings, and
by per centage upon income. Thus taxation
is distributed over the whole body of the peo-
pie, and is not limited to class. This is as it
should be; but more particularly would its JUS
tice be felt in the United States, where all have
a common interest in the public safety, and
where equal protection is afforded to all.
In this city the taxes for the year 1861
amount to SI2000,000. OF this sum real
and personal estate pay sj,sOo.OO3, Of which
the real contributes s4,0oo,oOt and the per-
sonal 81 100000. About sixty thousand
persons pay the whole OF the sl2,OOO,OO
which will be increased to sl4,O)OO0 in 1862
1t is clear. therefore, lhat out of population of
nearly 100000 persons, upwards of 900 900 do
not contribute a dollar directly to the support
Of the city government. Foreigners and men
of large capital, doing business in the city. and
often residing out of the country, are not
reached at all. Other classes are exempted
from their fair proportion of the burden which
ought to be common to all. An entire change
in the system of taxation is necessary. The re-
ducton Of the burden on real estate would be
advantageous to the community at large.
Rents would be reduced, and classes that do
not occupy houses, but who are wallowing in
wealth derived from the national resources,
would be compelled to contribute to the sup
port Of the government which protects them.
IL will be necessary for the Legislature of this
State to devise system Of finance analogous
to that of the general government. Other
wise bankruptcy will ensue. Taxes must
be imposed to pay the interest and
to provide for sinking fund, and these taxes
must be spread over the whole community. To
issue unlimited paper money, without provision
for the payment Of the interest and the re-
demption Of the principal at a fixed date,
would be only the revival Of financial blum
ders exploded by the experience of the past.
And this is just the mistake made by the finan-
cier of the World, who identifies the plan of
Mr.. Chase with the system of the French finance
of old, and the American Continental sys-
tenn at the time of the Revolution, when
there was no revenue to pay the interest and
reduce the principal. Now the case 10 entirely
different. There is wealthy population in the
United States, able and willing to "pay for
their whistle" and revenue must be raised to
meet both interest and principal. Had France
and the American colonies had the same means of
sustaining their paper money 1t would not have
deprecated, and the debt would not have ac-
cumulated as it did. We have the means, and
we must apply them, both to the exigencies Of
the general and State governments. We have
the resources, and all that Is needed Is to or
ganize them by means Of judicious system Of
paper money aunported bv eouitable revenuca