Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1867-05-17
A Word TO County Commits
afOnPrg.

A Word TO County Commits
siOners.
We have heretofore had occasion 10
speak of the very high rate of local taxa
ton in many counties of this State, COM
pared with the amount levied to carry on
the State Government, support OF public
schools, and to pay the interest on, and re-
duce the public debt to the extent or one
million dollars per annum. We know that
debts were contracted by counties to q
large amount during the war, and that a
considerable portion of the taxes collected
by them for the past two years have been
devoted to liquidating war obligations, but
with all these, it does seem to US that most
of the counties local taxes are unnecessa-
rily heavy. -
As the time is near at hand when Coun-
ty Boards will make their estimates and
determine the amount to be levied for the
current year we trust they will be impressed
with the fact that this is an excellent time
TO reduce expenses. For the last two
years, one or more of our staple crops has
been short, wheat almost an utter failure,
and business and the usual profits OF in
dustry have consequently been scriousl Y
curtailed. Until the last debt is paid; I'M
til generous crops shall enable the farmer
to pay taxes with less difficulty than now,
all extraordinary expenditures that can be,
should be deferred.
Congress has reduced the annual taxes
of the General Government 800, O00, 900;
the Legislature has reduced the levy for
State purposes twenty per cent, and If the
local authorities of townships and counties
will be equally considerable, they will emit
tie themselves to the confidence and graft
tude of those who bear the burden OF taxa
ton.
We do not expect our advice to have
any influence on the local taxation of Demo
cratic counties. The commissioners of
such counties as Allen, Fountain, Floy d
and Bartholomew will consider it an Abo-
lition scheme TO subvert the Constitution
and destroy the liberties of this land, but
we feel confident that our political friends
will give it due consideration.-Ind. Jour.
The Commissioners OF Marshall County,
we hope, will seriously consider the above
suggestion. We think our County taxes
inordinately and unnecessarily high. This
thing of collecting from six to ten thou
sand dollars year from the people, to be
expended at some future time, in the erect
ion of Court House, is to say the least,
hazardous. The money, if used for specu-
lation or electioneering purposes by those
inside the ring, win surely be squandered
ana lost, and the temptation to use it in
one or the other, or in both of these ways,
is very strong-we will not say irresistible.
If we must have new Court House, we
are in favor of commencing operations as
soon as possible, SO as to prevent the
amount now on hand, not less than fifteen
thousand dollars, it is supposed, from be-
ing squandered.
In our opinion, it Is poor financiering to
collect the money necessary to build the
Court House. in advance. The people
would much prefer paying reasonable in
.erest on loan for that purpose than TO
pay eight or ten thousand dollars out Of
their pockets annually, to lay idle in the
treasury for two, three or five years longer