The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1864-03-26
state Compensation.

ryland would be unjust and oppressive; es-
pcciaially to the people of Cecil county.
The Cecil Democrat (the organ of its par.
ty) in an article headed ''the Proposed State
Convention speaking Of Emancipation and
Compensation, used the following Ian
guage:
MEN may resolve as much as they please
that the great outrage upon the right of pro
perry shall be perpetrated without Compen.
setion. But, sooner or later, compensation
will have to be made. If one Legislature
will not do it another will.
Assuming, therefore, that compensation
will ultimately be made, and that there are
10000 slave in the State at the PRESENT time,
allowing 10000 to have escaped since the
war commenced, and putting the value of
them at about one half their market value
before the war commenced, say $780, we
have the large sum Of $40, 000, 900 charsea-
bic upon treasury
Here, then, We have The Democrat, not
only contending for the principle Of State
Compensation, but with their account actu-
ally footed up, knocking at the doors Of the
Treasury, demanding forty millions Of de-.
lars, and avowing in emphatic term1, that
sooner or later the money must be paid
Perhaps they have not properly esti mated
the cost. If they have, they must know that
to raise this enormous amount will require
heavier taxation than was ever before known
in this country.
The assessed value of the real and per
sonal property of the State for the year 1863,
amounted to $3.50, 1872 $40; from which ".
deduct the assessed value of the Slaves, as
near as that value can be ascertaoned, which
is l3,775,sG2. Balance, 1926, oO6, sOs.
This calculation gives us the amount Of
property in the State liable to taxation to
raise the forty millions Of dollars for the
slave owners. Taking this as the basis, it is
easy to demonstrate, that it will require a
tax Of $l4.4o cents in the hundred dollars
to yield the amount demanded for the slaves
In other words, more than one seventh of
all the assessed value of the property, real
and personal, in the State. Can it be that
the people will assent to such oppressive
taxation Let every property owner give
this calculation mature consideration, before
he advocates Compensated Emancipation.
knowing the assessed value of his property,
and dividing that amount by seven, which ia
Al very simple operation, he can readily de-
terminc his proportion of the tax.
The man owning seven hundred dollars
worth of property, will be required to pay
one hundred dollars into the treasury, and
80 on in the same ratio, whether the amount
of his property be small or large.
In Cecil county, from statistics we'll ar.
ranged, and thoroughly examined, we learn
there are 1G3 slave owners, and 594 slaves.
The assessed value of property in this coun-
ty, real and personal, Slaves included;
amounts to Sa,c3s,2 PSI; deduc. the assessed
value Of the slaves, which is si44,5so, and
We have balance of S7,sss,ss
We have before shown that the rate Of tax
IS about one seventh Of the whole amount.
The one seventh Of S7,sSs, 6Sl is ST, 1885,.
954 and this is Cecil county's quota of the
fund to be raised for compromising the slave
owners.
Suppose we pay for the 5s4 slaves in our
own county the price demanded for them,
which is $500 head. This gives US $297,.
900, leaving balance Of $500, 954. What
is to become Of this large balance7
If State Compensation j to be the order
Of the day, it must go into the general fund,
for distribution among the slave owners in
distan. parts of the State,
Thus we see, that the friends of compcnsa.
ted emancipation do not hesitate to take from
the people Of Cecil county, property to the
value of eight hundred and twenty. nine
thousand nine hundred and forty nine dol
lars, without allowing them any compensa.
ton whatever.
But when it is proposed, under authority
OF law to call Constitutional Convention,
which shall take into consideration,
among innumerahle other important subjects,
the propriety Of abclishing the relation Of
master and slave in Maryland, then these
friends openly proclaim, that it is "public
robbery to abolish that relation with.
oat providing ample compensation for the
master.
The property Of the non shareholders Is
quite as valuable to him as the slave properly
is to its owner. Why take from the one to
give to the other7
Had the friends q slavery been wise in
time they lnigt have secured ten millions
of dollars from the General Government
which would have been reasonable compen'
sa:icn for thei. dawes, at the present tint
ru.e. existing circumstances. Ii yet wise
they pay ysee;ys nues icr the wreck o
-Alasc:J. t. =:
+, Tie Geucysl Gr~erpment, x*en Of tbi
day. i offering IberA allowance for oil
..els.ks taken FIR public use. If their owuer
spurn liz offer they will have no just Csus
n complain if.the People Of Msryland shal
deci4e sgainssra.e compensation