Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1862-02-05
Letter Principally About Taxation and Banks.


have just got your letter and answer il
through the Herald with unusual prompt
luess. / have just been stung with vote
allowing So additional postage stamps, and
found It difficu. to call out the ayes and
noes. On proposition to amend by $40
instead Of So, we were willing for the ayes
and noes on that, and would not refuse it
Oh The original resolution.
In response to the railroad tax, we have
| Just fixed it at per cent. on the gross
earnings. There were several reasons in
ducing those in favor of a higher license to
vote for this measure. In the first place,
can the tax or license fee be collected at all,
the railroads being unwilling2 If they re-
fuse to pay, and the supreme court decide
the license unconstitutional, can the chart
ers lie forfeited under chapter ia disco
for rei,ssng to comply with an unconstitu-
tional license law? The license fee, to re-
alize anything out Of it cannot be collected
if tie roads are unwilling. The managers
finally concluded, the managers ofthe pay
ing roads | mean, to pay 3 per cent. The
tax assessed upon the gross, he's to be paid
out Of the nett earnings as you are aware.
This will require the Mineral Point railroad
to paw 81 200 out Of its nett, and will Grip
pie it. 1t will suspend the Kenosha seven
miles long, until it can meet its terminus;
which it can't well do, as long as it is sus-
pended. We could not impose upon an
OK under our rule a greater burden than
caIf-railroad could carry. The idea first
preached that some Of the railroads were
escaping by paying one per cent. under the
act of 1850, is not based in law. A license
is not contract, and may be rocked,
though paid for. But the smaller roads
will refuse payment and put the law to the
test. If they succeed, perhaps the larger
roads will also stand back The only
terrorem is antagonistic legislation. |
think if the necessary revenues Of the gov
eminent must be collected by direct taxa
ton, that it must cause a quarrel between
the poorer western and the seaboard States
second only to the rebellion. Look at the IN
Justice of the constitutional provision APP
portIoning direct taxes according to popu-
iatlon. We pay almost as much Of the
90 millions as Massachusetts that has ten
times our wealth. Such inequality cannot
be endured. | see the seaboard States are
driving at this fatal wedge. The revenue
must be raised by indirect taxes operating
upon individuals and not States; upon
whiskey, beer, cigars, paper, DC. The
principle to govern such excise to con-
siderable extent, is, what sort Of articles
can YOU find III bulk, before distribution
among the people? We must 90 to the
manufactures, where cotton goods, wEis-
key, paper, &C., are found in bulk, you can
collect the excise The excise on tobacco
would lie collected off the retail merchant.
In reference to the banks, they have tax
en- our war bonds as a security for bill hold
ers. Time in this period Of universal sus-
pension, they ask. The reply is, pay your
debts like other people. The banks say,
we will do this, provided you will return
the money the State received from US fol
the war bonds; no viii GLADLY tben sur
I render the bonds, and escape from the ru-
in with which our eonacSion with the Stale
threatens us. Fy exposing our assets to
immediate sale, the State itself mounts the
auction block and offers itself to the bears
and bulls Of Wall street. As | under
stand the law, the sale Of one of our wal
bonds in Wall street at so cents on the
dollar, (they would not bring that,) would
knock the corner stone out of our entire
State currency. A system which stands
on so precarious foundation must some
time fall with a crash. The banks are wiz
ling to redeem in this State with the best
New York funds; but the New York
banks refuse to pay coin, and in our chase
after it we are snubbed there also.
| think the Legislature will make des-
perate effort to prevent our war bonds be-
ing brought to market by a sudden wind
ing up Of the banks. OF course, if ouI
banks had The specie, they would hold on
to it, and compel the comptroller to sell
our bonds first. We can't prevent this ac-
ton Of the banks, as it Is assumed no
amendment to the banking law can be
made unless such amendment is submitted
to the people The reason, or oae Of the
reasons, our bonds are utterly worthless in
New York is the doubt whether we can
issue such bonds, undel our constitution,
unless the State itself IS invaded. The
condition we are involved in brings a fu-
ture no man can comprehend. Every mo-
nent that is dealt out to us off the present
is sworn like freemason, not to disclose
what the next E-oment may bring forth.
| see no hope, unless we shall win such a
victory as will render the early suppress
sion Of this rebellion absolutely certain. In
the meantime, l can discern no tendency
in the Legislature to retrenchment, which
distinguishes it from other sessions.
don't pretend to be censor over my breth-
rem here. say mono Of us comprehend
the future before us; we cannot. | know
immediate success would bring unwonted
prosperity, and retrenchment in small mat
tiers would be regarded then, as the fright
Of a mere croaker | think that minimum
retrenchments, recurring self-denial on the
part of numbers, are .air test of the tenn
per of the legislature 70 retrench radically.
| Pepper and salt are small articles, but they