Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-09-06
DAILY SENTINEL.


The Nsr York Tribune, the indianapolis
Journal and the Republican papers generally
With only one or two exceptions, take hign
ground in favor ofersmp,ing Federal bonds from
local taxation, or the burden Of supporting local
governments. They pronounce i "repudiatlon'
q violation Of faith. 20 insis, tia, the wealth oil
the county invested in United States securi-
tie. shall be subject to the same TAXATION which
other capital or property is assessed. The Jour
nal occupies ponderous column and a half with
quotations from the decisions % the Supreme
Court to demonstrate. What il not in controv ersy
at all. that the States have not the power. as
they should not have, to injure or destroy
the credit Of the General Government By
unfriendly legislation. This is not the issue.
IL Is not the question under discussion. There
is no crusade intended against the public
credit Of the United States by insisting that all
property should be subject to equal taxation to
support government, whether il be Federal. State,
county or municipal Does no, q person who
holds the bonds Of the United States have the
same protection "a the owners Of other descrip-
lions Of property, and upon what ground can ne
claim exemption from al equal share OF the
burden for securing IL There is none whatever
The Constitution, the acts of Congress, and the
decisions Of the Supreme Court upon the subject
do not conte n plateth exemption OF the Govern
ment bonds from the same burdens for the sup
port Of the Government to which other property
10 subject The States are prohibited from tax
ing the bonds at will, not because they are to
be exempted from equal taxation, bat for
the credit OF the General Government might be
subjected to the unfriendly legislation OF the
States IL is no, doubted but Congress has the
power 10 tax the bonds at its pleasure. While
they cannot be taxed "by and under the author
ity Of the States" the untensble position will not
be'taken by the exemptiOnists that Congress can
not authorize the States 10 tax the bonds just the
same as other property is taxed. The Republi-
can papers oppose taxing the bonds for local pur
poses upon The ground that to do so would be a
violation of faith equivalent to reputation.
They say that the debt WIS created or the
money borrowed upon three conditions: First. eI-
enption from local taxation; Second specified
interest: and third. a specified time. And the
Tribune. while contending that violation OF
any Of these conditions would amount to repudi-
alton, in its last Saturdays issue remarks:
"If our public debt and the income thence
sccruing can be absolutely shielded from taxa
ton, We believe that debt may yet oe funded on
an american consol, drawing per cent. inte-
rest, payable quarterly.
What is this proposition but admission that
taxation 10 arbitrary power which the sover
sgn has the right to sxercisef Aud does II not
yield the very grounds upon which the Tribune
has attempted 70 maintain the exemption OF the
bonds from taIations II Congress can say to
the bondholders that it will fund the debt Dor
rowed at 6 or per cent. in consols bearing only
4 per cent. interest, has il not just the same
power to tax those bonds annually or 3 per
cent? And would not this reduction Of interest
upon the public debt be equivalent to an annual
taxation Of the dhsrence1
The Journal. in discussing the question Of tar
alton, in It's issue Of yesterday. referring to the
decisions Of the Supreme Court. says:
Those adjudlcations ought TO be conclusive
with a party which is continually prating Of the
sanctl.y Of the civil courts. but Oopperhesdism
new attacks the decisions of the Court, and esps-
sially Chief Justice Marshall. who was unques-
tionasly the ablest jurist of his time. The lodi
ana State Sentinel speaks of him as one whose
erroneous and misehievous decisions have been
made the basis for every usurpstion of power.
and every attack on the reserved rights Of the
State and of the people, by Congress and the
Federal Executive. IL ia a little late, after the
decisions OF the Court have been recognized as
settled Law for more than quarter of century
for set Of disgrsced politicians to overthrow the
authority of the highest tribunal af the Nation y
The Sentinel did not 50 speak of Chief Justice
AARsHALL. The remark the Journal attributes
TO rs vas an expression of the New York Com
msrcisl. and 50 quoted BY US. just as staunch a
Republican print as the Indiana central organ or
any other. IL is an admission Of weakness when
paper is forced to resort to such subterfuges to
sustain its position. but it is line of argument
peculiarly characteristic Of the Journal and kin
dred prints.