The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1867-03-08
AUDITORS OFFICE, }
JACKSON, Miss, March 9th, 1867.

March Ovni AoW
Hon. Thos. r. SDann, auditor Pablo accounts,
AUDITORS Office. jackson. Miss
SIR:-In answer to numerous communica.-
tions addressed to your office, and TO myself,
and atyour suggestion, give you my oIhclhi
opinion on questions of Revenue herein en-
braced.
The ambiguous language used in para.
graph SO, SEQ. /, of Revenue Act, approved
Dec. 9, le65, has given rise to much diversity
ofconstruotion. a
The language of the paragraph of Revenue
Act referred to, is as follows:
"On each and every male inhabitant OF
this State between the ages of twenty-one
years and sixty years, tho sum ofone dollar;
and any person, firm, partnership or corpo-
ration, having in his, her or their employ
and one who Is subject to pay the said tax,
the said person, firm, partnership or corpo-
ration so employing, shall be held resi- ISL
BILE to pay the said tax, and may charge 1t TO
the person or property for whom the same
was paid: ard to secure the more certain
collection Of this tax, it is hereby made the
duty of the Sheriffs or Tax Collectors OF the
several counties in this State, to report from
| time to time the name and place of resi-
dence of all persons who fail, neglect or re-
| fuse to pay the said tax, when required so
! to do by said Sheriff or Tax Collector, to
the County Court, and to notify the said
delinquent to appear at the said Court at a
| time by him, the said Sheriff or Tax Collec-
| tor, to be fixed, and show cause, IL any they
have, why they should not be declared de-
faulting tax payers and 1t shall be the duty
of the said County Court, If the party or
parties arc in default, to issue an order
authorizing the said Sheriff or Tax Collec-
| tor, to compel the said delinquents, and each
of them, to work for six days on any public
road or bridge, or other public work in his
county, and if there be no public work in
said county to BIO done, the said Sheriff or
| Tax Collector shall be authorized to hire
said defaulters and each of them for the
term of six days, to any one who will pay
the said tax of one dollar, and one dollar for
costs, which costs shall be divided between
the Sheriff or Tax Collector, and the said
County Court Provided that all manned
and disabled Confederate or State soldiers
shall be exempt from poll tax"
1t is apparent that the primo object
of the Legislature, in this act, was
to simplify the mode of Assessing and
Collecting the Taxes, imposed by it on
employees, and to authorize the Assessor
to assess and the tax collector to collect,
from the employer, the taxes due by the per-
sons in his employ, when the employer
chooses to give them in on his tax list, and
become responsible for the amount of taxes due
the State, the employer deducting the
amount from the wages due by him to his
employees.
The subsequent provisions Of the par
agfaph under consideration, which provide
the method of enforcing the collection of
the tax by report to the County Court, and
sentence ito work for six days on the public
works." or in the absence of any public
works, the hiring of the defaalter ''for the
term of six days." to any one who will pay
the tax all clearly point to the party on
whom the tax is laid as the person who must
suffer the penalty, in default of payment
1t would be absurd to suppose that it
was the design of the Legislature to compel
IAN employer" to work six days on the
public works." or "be hired out for the term
Of 81 xdays" for non-p payment of taxes, when
he might possess ample personal and real
property, which would be liable for his
taxes and subject to be distralned In the
manner provided by law.
1t must, therefore, be the proper construc-
tion of this paragraph of the Revenue law,
taking it altogether, that when the employ
er chooses to assume the settlement of the
taxes of his employees, for the convenience
of the Revenue officers of the Government
deducting amount out of wages due by them,
he may do SO: but the assessment must be
u3thhov ohOh CmPlOJCOi anu IL ~ luOCOhOo
necessary to resort to the mode and method
Of enforcing the tax pointed out by the law,
then it must operate upon the person upon
whom the law fixes the tax. To hold other
wise, would be to make the employer guar
antee the fidelity of his employee, and that
he would remain in his custody from the pc
Rod of assessment until the taxes should
become due and collectable, which certainly
it could not have been the intention of the
Legislature to do.
With reference to the other questions of
Revenue submitted by you, / am of the
opinion that the tax receipts executed by
the various sheriffs, under the Special Tax
Act of Nov Ii, 1865, are receivable by the
sheriff of any county in payment of cotton
tax of 1866 (see sec. a, act of Oct. 30, 1860
and also in payment of general tax assessed
under act of Dec 5th 1865, when they re-
main in possession of the parties to whom
they were originally executed, they not
being transferable, (see sec ID, act of Nov. 16,
1862
The tax receipts given for cotton, growth
OF 1866, are not receivable in payment of
General Revenue Tax of 1866, it being part
Of the General Revenue of 1866 There is
no provision of law making receipts execu-
ted under Judge Sharkey's provisional tax
act of 1865 receivable in payment of taxes |
Yours Respectfully,
G. Il. HOOKER.
Atty Genr Miss