New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-02-28
House of Representa- tIves

Inc House met at IL NJ, Mr.. Elan, Speaker, pre-
tem., in the Chair.
Prayer by the Rev. Father Chalons.
On motion of Mr.. Mutt the Senate bill for the
relief of the State Seminary of Learning and Mill
tary Academy, at Alexandria, was taken up, and
the bill being on its second reading, lie moved the
| concurrence of the House in it.
Mr.. Walker, as chairman of the Finance Com
mittee stated that it would be several days before
the committee could present its revenue scheme
and until then ne thought it wonld be unadysabie
to pass bills involving large appropriations, as the
one under consideration did. a
Mr.. Scanlan believed thatthe bills of the Finance
Committee to provide revenue, would not be
matured in less than two weeks, and he moved tc
defer the further consideration of the bill before
the House to this day two weeks. Adopted.
| On motion of Mr.. Fenner the Senate bill sup
Elementary to the bill to license the vending of
lottery tickets, to authorize the sale of stamps for
tickets, was taken up and concurred in.
On motion of Mr.. Eager his bill for the relief of
tax payers was taken up, providing that all costs,
interests or charges accumulated by suits for the
payment of State, parish or municipal taxes for
the years 1862, 1868 and 1864, shall be refunded to
those who may have paid, or allowed to them in
the payment Of other tax bills, and shall not be
collected from those who have not paid, and that
those who have not paid shall be granted an indul-
gence of one year to pay the taxes due for the
years specified.
Mr.. Eager addressed the House as to the import
ance of the bill and the advisability of its early
passage. Thousands of tax bills were now before
the courts and the costs and charges accumulating
would swell the bills up to three, four and some
times even ten times the original tax. In 1861 and
1862, from ten to fifteen thousand men had left the
city, leaving women and children without any
mastss G. ngysne debts or supporting themselves
but sieafedepate analseansy which soon ceased to be
af any available value. Many ii trss asl Ra
returned, broken in health ana fortune, broken ii
everything but honor. Others never would return
and had left widows and orphans embarrassed
and distressed. To save the little proper
ties of these unfortunate people--to secure
them from the grasp of greedy officials
was the object of the bill. He hoped the House
would do justice to these people. Gentlemen had
no idea of the manner in which citizens had been
harrassed and distressed by these officials. unless
they had witnessed it, as he had. One of those Of
tcals, he had hesitation in mentioning his name.
Mr.. George L. Bright the city rttorney, it was
well known had made an immense fortune out of
made, nor with the immense sum accumulating
before the courts for him, on taxes put in suit Mr.
E. was informed he was exacting interest upon his
fees! Mr. E. trusted that when the history of the
late revolution written the names of those who
had battened upon the misfortunes of friends,
neighbors and fellow-citizens would be transmitted
to posterity.
Mr.. Fenner appreciated the motives of the au
of nd tLo
(Mr. F.) could not vote for it, because the money
to be refunded would come from tax payers al
ready overburdened. If those who had exacted
these large sums for costs and charges could be
made to refund it, he would gladly support a
measure to compel them, but there was no posi-.
bity of doing that, and he did not think it just to
tax the people to compensate individuals for the
extortions of officials.
Mr., Eager again spoke in support of the bill.
describing the artices unscrupulously resorted to
by olcials in New Orleans, to precptate suits for
taxes and accumulate costs, during and since the
war The bill, Mr.. Z. urged, had been reported
favorably by the Judiciary Committee, which
might be regarded as the law adviser of the
House.
MIR. Leeds moved to strike out the word "muni- |
cipal" from the bill Everything pertaining to |
argued. The amount to be refunded under this |
bill, he believed, was very large, and interference
in the matter by the legislature might prove A
cause of serious financial embarrassment to the
city.
Mr.. Eager said the amendment would virtually
kill the bill, and trusted the gentleman would
withdraw his motion.
Mr.. Leeds repeated that everything relative to
Tow In
Mr.. Scanlan deemed it doubtful if any of those
ycessiye charges would be refunded. So far the
ill might be imperative, null, but that could do
o harm, and he should vote against striking out {
municipal" to stop the collection of the enor-
lous amount of costs that had accumulated upon :
npaid bills. He believed there were ten thousand
hts of this class now in the courts in New Or /
ans. He was opposed to tie whole system of c