The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1866-05-29

grandize some counties at the expense of others.
Take, for example, the tax on Express Com
panies four per cent. gross receipts The
counties 10 which these companies have ofhces
would derive large revenues from them, and, if
not driven away by the exactions, they would
raise their tariff of freig ights, thus imposing bur-
dens on their cons gnees, residing in adj joining
counties The banks whose Stockholders are
scattered throug bout the State, would contri-
butte to swell the revenues of the counties where
their banking houses are located .s.-
Again. said before, the machinery for rails
ing taxes from listed subjects was well adapted
to the collection of the county revenue. It.
needed no change to meet the requirements of
the larger powers of the County Courts. On
the contrary, the machinery for collecting the
taxes from unlisted subjects could not be used
without change for including county charges
Such change aras not made. The provisions
securing the leves under schedules B. and G.
for the State have not been moulded to secure
similar evies for the counties
Thus far on general principles Let US now
notice the words of the law 10 their bearing on
the present revenue act: The Justices of the
County Court are commanded. at the first court,
&c, to lay tax 'such subjects of taxation
within the county as may be taxed by the rev.
enue laws then 10 force," &c In the preamble
of schedule "A, the words "suhjects of taxation"
are used in reference to the taxes there imposed
while in schedule B, the expression is changed
and the Sheriff is ordered to "collectthe taxes
as set forth in this schedule annually, and grant
to each party paying the tax license"
1t will be noticed that the words comforting
jurisdiction in the County Courts are identical
with the description of taxable objects in sched-
ule A, while these words are not used at all in
schedule B. The tax in the latter schedule is
usually on the person, as the price Of license
for transacting- business, and it is expressly pro-
vided that on paying the State Tax the party is
entitled to the license. The requirement of
this license is to compel payment. Surely if a
county tax is likewise due, its payment would be
secured by similar reqnisition.. SO in the act
for collecting Revenue, the Sheriff is particu-
larly ordered to give license 20 merchants and
others on their paying the 'taxes imposed aud
enumerated in schedule B." So in section 80
bond is required of parties commencing business
after July lst to secure the payment of State
taxes. To ascertain these taxes the Sheriff may
administer oath, but no provision is made at
all to obtain county taxes from these sources
Again, by section SO the Sheriff must keep a
record of the moneys collected by him from the
Clerks of the Court G e. under schedule CO.
and under schedule b. and the clerk must send
a copy Of this very record to the Comptroller.-
The Sheriff must pay the moneys thus. ascer-
tanned to the Public Treasurer ; that is, the
Sheriff pays all the taxes collected under sched-
ule B and c to the State. He is nowhere or
dered to pay any portion thereof to the county
Trustee.
Again, by section SO of the "Act for Collect
ing Revenue" if the Clerk fails to pay over the
taxes received by him, (mentioned in schedule
c. suit is to be brought and it is expressly pro
vided that "the whole recovery shall be paid to
the Treasury" And, 10 section 81, all the tax
es received by the Clerk to be paid to the
Sheriff, and by him, as will appear, by subse-
quent sections, to the Public Treasury
So, in section A, on or before the lst day Of
July, the Clerk must deliver the Sheriff copy
Of the tax list, containing the public tax and
the taxes imposed by tire county court. There
is no other provision for Informing the Sheriff
of the amount Of any other county taxes, than
are imposed on listed sui jects. If any others
were intended TO be allowed, i: seems certain
some provision would have been made for noti-
fcaton to the Sheriff of their imposition
Another argument may be derived from the
words of the proviso, which regulates the mode
of taxation by the County Courts. The taxa
bles there spoken of are lst, things taxed accor
ding to value, and, secondly, "suLjects specially
taxed" The persons who in schedule B pay
specific per centage their gross receipts or
nett profits, are not appropriately described by
the terms used in the proviso
Other arguments might be adduced, but
think the foregoing considerations are sufficient
to establish the proposition that the county
courts cannot tax the persons and objects men
toned in schedules B. &
Very respectfully, KEMP P. BATTLE,
Public Treasurer.