The home journal. (Winchester, Tenn.) 1858-188?, 1867-09-12

Now add to that our State, county and
municipal taxes, and ask yourselves if
there ever was on he face Of the earth
such a tax ridden people US We are.
l have made these same statements
before, and n newspaper referring to
them said that probably some poor
Democrat who never paid acentoftaX-
es, went away after hearing the speech,
much grieved at the idea oflow severe
ly he was taxed. But is it true that the
laboring man pays no tax? So far
from that being the fact, the reverse is
true the actual truth is that labor pays
all the taxes. When | speak Of the Ia.
boring man l don't, coniine myself sim
ply to the day-laborer, because every
man that produces anything Of value is
q laboring man. The farmer is u Ia.
boring man, for his farm will produce
nothing without labor, The mechanic
is n laboring man. But why is it that
labor must pay the taxes? Because
they must be paid by property. When
thetax- gatherer comes round, if you
have no money you must sell your
property, or work to get money to pay
your taxes. AS nothing in the world
that is valuable can be produced with
out labor, it follows that, in the end, In
Dor pays the tax. A speculator adds
nothing to the wealth Of the country.
Take q rich bondholder--and | don't
say this to prejudice people against
them-but take Il man who produces
nothing he don't add rs much to the
payment Of the public debt as the little
boy who plants cor in the hill. But
the laboring maj certainly pays taxes
he must have clothes to year and food
to eat. Suppose a yard Of cloth cost
q manufactures 81. If there were no
tax he could afford to sell it for 81 so,
But if the Government taxes it 81. he
must sell it for "a so. Then he sells it
to the merchant, who, after paying an
other tax, sells it again for IS so per-
haps. Then the laboring man who
buys the cloth pays the tux Of the man
utacturer and Of the merchant and when
he goes to the tailor, who is also taxed,
the tailor charges him q greater price
for making the coat than when he paid
no tax, so that in the end the laboring
man pays three taycs-the manufacture
cr's, the merchants, and the tailor's-
before he gets the coat on his back.
And yet they say that the laboriug man
pays no taxes. 1t is not true. There
is not q mar or a woman in the United
States that is not heavily taxed under
the present condition OF things.
II REMEDY.
Now, what is to be the remedy? Are
you in favor, Judge Thurman, ofrepn
diatlon? am not in favor Of repaid
alton. What | say is, thati these men
who hold these Government securities
will do what is right, the American peo-
pie will do what is right, because they
are an honest people. IN the first place,
l say this Notwithstanding Mr.. Ben,
Wadc's %dehunciation Of any man who
says that those who hold one seventh
of the entire property Of the country
ought in justice to be willing to bear
their fair share OF the burdens of the
Government. / say that there should
be equal and exact justice.
1t is also necessary to cut down the
extravagant and enormous expenses OF
the Government. Draw five hundred
and sixty-onc millions out OF the peck
cts of the people, lay IL tribute on all
they eat or drink or wear, and on all
they own and earn; and spend five hun
dred and twenty millions Of dollars II
year, and exempt one-seveath Of the
property of the country from taxation,
and expect them to remain quiet under
i'll! You might as well expect that the
Mississippi would turn and run up
stream. 1t cannot be, because no peo
pie could long bear such Il BURDEN
Then You must quit squandering the
public money.
Now l can not, at this late hour, 90
into this matter fully. But let me give
you specimen: Here were a set OF
shoddy contractors who got rich during
the war. Their wealth sprang up like
II mushroom in n night. Men who
were not worth ten dollars at the be-
ginning Of the war soon had the finest
carriages, and clothing, and bank ac.
counts, and residences in the country.
These gentlemen did not like to give
up their grip upon the public treasury,
and so after peace was made with Tie
rebels, what did these fellows do? We
had hardly heard the word peace in the
country before some OF them set to
work to kick up an Indian war out on
the Western borders and what has
been the expense Of that Indian war:
Why, the Secretary Of War reported
that the expenses Of that war for 1865
and 1866 were thirty odd millions OF
dollars, though the people, did not
know there was an Indian war in 1868,
and knew but very little Of it in 1866,
AMI how many Indians did they kill
There was q Reverend Colonel Chiv.
ington, who, in cold blood. mastered
one hundred and seventy four Indian
men, women and children, living under
the guarantee, the solemn guarantee OF
the United States, perfectly peaceabl'
and perfectly friendly. If yoa want tc
find a particularly base man, find ont
that writes "Reverend Colonel bcfor,
his name, and you have got him. Bu
how many hostile Indians did they xii
with these thirty millions Of dollars o
tue public money? Mr.. Window, il
the House of Representatives, maieth
assertion, and challenged contradic
ton, that every hostile Indian they ha,
killed cost this Government more tina.
two millions of dollars more than tw,
millions of dollars to Il scalp. Why
there was General Sully's expedition
the subsistence of which cost the Gov
ernment six millions ofdollars, and til
General reported that he killed one IL
dian An express rider says he did IL
49, - AI.I L. I:lI,xl Al. 1T.