Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1867-08-30

/ taxation South Carolina could tax
! every bond, that would pass by any
| possibility into the hands of any citi-
/ zen resident in that State, out of exis-
/ tence In a year, and could tax it out Of
! existence for the very purpose of re-
/ imbursing the money that South Car
Olina spent IN the uuholy work Of
rebellion and disunion. I need not
I add a word further on this point. If
the Government of the United States
is to be trihed with thus in the name
of State sovereignty and Democracy,
touching these bonds, why may they
not go still further, and say the Gov
erument of the United States is not to
be permitted to maintain intact the
patent she issued to your father and to
mine, for these farms of yours upon
which you live this day? Let those
gentlemen answer this question.
They are for equal taxation. They
are for taxing the poor by the same rules
under which they tax the rich. They
are for taxing the men who sweep
away our forests, and scatter the seed
and gather in the harvest, and give
bread to the nation, by the same Oner-
GUS rule that they win tax the million
aire in New York who counts his in
come by the hundreds of thousands
Well, am not. The nation is not.
That is not the rule of taxation that has
been adopted. I am willing that every
man in the land shall bear his reasOna-
bic proportion of the burden to extin-
guish tl1is great debt contracted in the
holy war for the Union but am not
willing and challenge Democrats to
the issue, to strike down the exemption
that, for wise purposes, has been placed
on your statute book, which declares
that the humble mechanic, the honest
farmer, whose earnings do not exceed a
thousand dollars, shall be subjected to
the same taxation that Stewart is sub
ieCted to upon his income over a thou
sand dollars. i would not have the
farmer pay his five per cent. upon the
thousand dollars he earns, as Stewart
does. Why Because he is able to do
ib because he is willing to do it; and
because he ought to do it. 1t stands by
holy writ, that "tO whom much is given.
much shall be required" I would not
fmuzzle the OK that treadeth out the
corn - would not fetter the hand
needlessly that feeds and clothes and
shelters the nations. I would encOur-
age honest industry.
But, say the gentlemen, we are for
equal and exact taxation we will
break the plighted faith of the nation
but we viii have it, It is no concern of
ours, they say, that the Government
pledge to three hundred and fifty thou
and needy and suffering braves, that
the bonds which might be distributed
to them, to their wives, their mothers,
or perhaps their orphaned children who
awaited ther return from the war; it is
no concern to us that the pledge was
given we would send the tax gatherer
into their little dwellings, and exact
five per cent. of their earnings, inst as
we would from john Jacob AstOr, of
New York. Yes, they would send the
tax gatherer alter that Hsimed hero,
who lost his limbs on the nights of Get
tysburg, when that rocky altar smoked
with twenty thousand slain, and ask
him to pay over to the nation ten or fif-
teen dollars as tax Om the bonds you
gave him in payment for that loyal ser
vice. You will do that, will you, and
do it in the name of Democracy? ? DEM
Ocracy, indeed DemOcrcy is a time
hOuOred word I; but this would be sim
pie robbery. 1t has no more decency
in it than rObbing hen rOosts or sheep
folds.
What more is there with these gem
tlemen2 We are for equal taxation.
they say we are for issuing any quan-
tity of paper money, and getting aid of
the interest on. the bonds to pay the
debt. They are for issuing, as they say
these unconstitutional legal tender
notes, and for getting the bonds out of
the way, and then rep6aiating the
notes.