Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-10-26

| natlOnhl ueDt anu natiOnhl TAXATION, unu
/ shall be very brief indeed.
You are at this moment the most
deeply indebted people on the face of
the globe. Seven years ago, Great
Britain was the most deeply indebted
country Now you owe more than she
does Great Britain has population
of thirty.six millions of people within
the limits of the British Isles In India
and her colonies she has 100000. 900
more, making 236, 900, 900 of people who
are subjects of the British Crown. We
have but 81 900, 900 ofpeople, 205, 600, 900
less than Great Britain, and yet we owe
more money than she does. Again, let
us see. Great Britain draws from the
pockets of her people 1854, 900, 900 each
year in the shape Of taxes. In this
country the General Government alone
drew from the pockets of the American
people, the last fiscal year, five hundred
and sixty odd millions of dollars-more
than 5000, 100000 more than is called
from the British people
Again, let us look at il. The wealth
of the United States, that is, the value
of the real and personal property, is es,
timated at $l4,000,000,000. The value
of the real and personal property of
Great Britain, within the limits of the
British lsles alone, is $36, 1000, 900, 900,
nearly three times as much as the value
of the property of the United States, aud
yet we owe more than she does, and we
pay to the General Government, alone,
more than $200,000,000 a year more
than the British people pay.
Again, let US look at it III another way.
The rate of taxation in Great Britain is
ninety cents on the one hundred dollars.
In the United States the rate of taxation
of properly by the General Government
alone is three dollars and ninety-thrce
cents on the one hundred dollars-more
than four times as much as the taxes of
Great Britain. But, says some one, how
can that be2 Where do you get that
information ? tell him get it from
the official records of the government,
from the official report of the Special
Commissioner of the Revenue made TO
Congress, and published by Congress
itself. But, says some one, surely there
is some mistake about that. pay no
three dollars and nine. three cents on the
one hundred dollars to the General
Government. Yes, my friend, you do.
You don't pay it, perhaps, directly; you
may never, perhaps, see the tax
gatherer of the General Government, yet
you do pay tribute to the General Gov
ernment on all you eat, all you drink,
all you wear, all you own, and all you
earn.
Let me illustrate how this thing is
done. suppose there is not very
young Copperhead in this audience who
would not like to own six shirts.
Laughter. If there is any young man
ambitious of owning these six shirts, let
him slip over and ask a merchant what
he will take :or eighteen yards of muslin
to make them. The merchant will say,
four dollars. Why, says the customer,
seven years ago you sold me the same
amount of goods for two dollars; how is
it that you now ask me four dollars
Now if the merchant is sensible man,
and understands the matter, and is dis,
posed to tell the truth, what does he say p?
He says, lis true that seven years ago l
sold you these goods for two dollars
now l ask you four dollars; but you
must recollect that since | sold
the goods for two dollars, the United
States has laid a tax of three cents
per pound upon every pound of cotton
produced in the country. The cotton
producer pays tax, and sticks it on the
price of cotton when he sells it to the
manufacturers. Then comes Uncle Sam
to the manufacturers, and says, my dear
Mr.. Shoddy, | did you many good turn
during the war; | paid you full price for
shoes that didn't last two days march,
and for pantaloons that burst in the knee
the first time the boys kneeled in the
ranks to fire. Now, Messieurs Manufac.
turers, want you to do little for me.
Therefore | have laid tax on every
yard of shifting you manufacture of that
cotton. Well, Mr.. Manufacturer pays
the tax, and claps it on the price when
he sells it to the merchant Then comes
Uncle Sam again and says, my dear Mr.
Merchant, we are little hard up there
fore we have laid tax on all your bust
ness. The merchant pays the tax and
adds it to the price. So by the time you
come to buy the shirts you find all three
OF these taxes on the price. So that,
after all, it is the man who puts the shirts
on his back that pays the whole of these
taxes.
Why, my friends, you have not thing |
upon you-not a coat or q pair of boots |
or shoes-you have not thing that you |
are wearing that has not paid from three |
to five taxes to the general government,
and you who wear them are the men who
pay the taxes. Why, when / have made
this argument before, there was one man
ignorant enough 20 say the poor man
The laboring man-who never sees a tax
gstherer, never pays taxes. 1t would be
a great deal nearer the truth to say that
labor pays all the taxes. That is the
ruth How is it? just look at it. The
lnly way in which you can add one
single cent to the wealth of the country
IS by labor. There is no other way 10
ldd TO the wealth of the country. A
nan may have the finest genius in the
world, and invent the best machine ever
'een in the world, but until labor comes
n TO build the machine, nothing is
yained by the invention.
Take the rich bondholder, and don't
lllude to this class to make an invidious
but merely for illustration.
Take the rich capitalist, who tolls not,
neither does he spin, and yet is as fine
IS Solomon, in all his glory. He does
rot add as much 10 the wealth Of the
country in a year-if he produces moth
ng, but simply lives upon the interest
,f his money-as the shoemaker's ap-
prentice, who makes a fifty cent pair Of
hoes for a child lApplause.l Now il
s just precisely because you cant create
wealth except BY labor-can not pay
axes without having wealth % pay them