The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1864-12-02
a New Financial Programme.

1t is suggested that at the next session
of Congress the tax law will be further
modified SO as to produce still larger rev.
enue than at present. The Journal Of
Commerce speculates as follows in refer
ference to the future policy on this bead
The great feature of the new financial
programme will be the recommendation
that the entire expenses Of 1865, both or
binary and extraordinary, be raised if pos
slble without any resort to further loans.
To secure such vest increase Of income
variety of ingenious expedients will be
suggested. The income tax will be in-
creased aud made more inclusive. Aud
here, we trust, the present unjust discrimi-
nation against large incomes will be par
italy II not entirel y removed. If incomes
are TO be taxed at all, there is no reason
why any should be excepted at time
when the peril Is SO great aud the omergeu-
cy SO pressing. Tue majority Of those
who have an income below six hundred
dollars are quite as able to pay a per cent
age tax upon it as those whose annual re-
ceipts are between tW elve and fifteen hun
dred dollars. In fact the small taxes upon
small gains would ill the Treasury with
less apparent burden to the people, than
II the same amount were raised exclusive
ly from so-called wealthicr classes. One
reason why the revenue which has been
collected from imports in the more pros
porous days Of the country, has been so
lutte felt, is that it was so widely distribu-
ted among all classes of the people. The
laborer who earns two dollars per day can
as we'll afford to contribute six cents of it
as an income tax into the national treasu-
ry, as the clerk whose pay is twelve hun
dred per annum, or the small tradesman
whose annual profit is two Thousand.
Whatever the income tax shall be, it
should be uniform upon all taxable in
comes, without reservation or exception.
Under the present law there are many viii
lagos where not one dollar of income is
collected; and other towns of considera-
BILE size where only two or three residents
are made subject to this charge Where
one family in the village thus pays fifteen
or twenty dollars, there are perhaps two
hundred others that should pay an aver
age of ten dollars each 8; this would add
Immensely to the recei pts without giving
to any one more than his fair share of the
burden.
We hope, however, that there will be
some provision for a direct taxation ac-
cording to representation, under the plain
provisions of the Constitution. We re-
commended this at the outset of our trou-
bles, and should have preferred it for many
reasons over the more intricate method
adopted in the internal revenue system
If the money is to come from taxes, it is
far better that a certain definite portion
should be raised in this way. The States
should be allowed bonus for collecting it
through their own machinery, and it
should be added to the regular list, and
collected with the ordinary State tax. At
least one hundred and fifty millions should
be levied in this way directly upon the
taxable property of the country. 1t would
have been done long before this, as it sug-
gested itself to the common sense of every
body, except for considerations Of political
expectancy. These need not have the
same weight at present, and we hope to
see an honest effort to bring the resources
Of the country fairly to the task of main
tanning this right arm of governmental au-
thority.