Democratic enquirer. [volume] (M'arthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1867-1873, 1868-10-08
poliital


I
Under the caption of Facts for the Fai
mers' q bucolic newspaper concern, en-
ployed in the interests of bondholders
indites a column of the most unmitigate
swash that ever appeared in print, not OK
cepting good dose of the same sort tina
has appeared in the principal bondholderf
organs in this city.
1t is repetition Of sundry feeble Jacobin
efforts to convince stupid people that "equa
taxation means unequal taxation; that tn
democratic proposition means just the re
verse of what it says
In order to make itappear that this non
sense is not intended for sort of feebl.
Nasbian joke, it is found necessary to as
sumo that the democracy intend only tC
make federal taxation equal upon 'ieyery
species Of property according TO its value,
but not any other taxation That they in.
tend to subject lands, houses, and farm
stock, rs well as bonds, to taxation for fed
eral purposes; but not to subject bonds, as
well as lands, houses, and farm stock, tc
taxation for state purposes
That would be ''equal taxation" with q
vengeance II would be unequal taxation
OF the same gross, oppressive, outrageous,
and one-sided character that the Jacobin
party has already imposed upon the conn
try. 1t would be a sort Of taxation that
would suit the bondholding class and their
advocates; bnt which hepeople now protest
against in the radical party, and which
they would Of course protest against in any
party
The democratic proposition is Just the
reverse of that. The democracy demand
the equal taxation of every species OF
property according to its value" The
word "tlxation : isa sufficiently explic tt I'm
TO all who understandable English language
It is not limited in meaning to particular
kind oftaxation, or to yayatjon for q partic-
ular purpose. 1t comprehends the whole
body Of the public burdens The demo-
cratic demand is, that the public burdens
shall be equalized, and shall be made to
rest on property OF all kinds in proportion
to its value. That the owners ofSl60, 600, :
600 in government bonds shall bear the
same proportion of public burdens az the
owners Of $500, 600, 900 in farms and farm
stock. That the latter shall not be taxed
more heavily in proportion to their value
than the former which, under Jaoobip rule,
are not taxed atal.
Farms and farm stock in Illinois are as
sessed, according to their value, ortaxation
on valuation equal to ope-thirl of their
actual value. Government bonds owned In
illinois are not assessed for taxation on n
one-third valuation, or any other. One
hundred thousand dollars in farms and
farm stock pay taxes to the amount of 50. 900
annually. One hundred thousand dollars
in government bonds pay taxes to the
amount Of not o single farthing. The dem
ocratic proposition Is to equaliEe the taxa
ton, taking $1,000 from the farms and
farm stock and placing it on the bonds,
dividing the burden equally between the
two kinds Of property, according to their
have. There is no difficulty In the way
but the money power which now controls
congress and refuses the federal consent to
its equal and exact justice to ALL
The attitude of the democratic party
might be further illustrated by directing the
the attention Of farmers in Illinois to the
gross inequality Of taxatien in this state.
which called for Legislative remedy at the
last session of our state legislature. 1t was
found that a tarmerin one county, owning
property worth $4,000 paid double the
taxes that his neigbbor paid in the adioin-
ing county, whose property was worth the
same. So itnow is between the plowholder
and the bondholder, excepting that the
property of the latter, instead of paying half
as much taxes, as the former pays no taxes
at all. The democracy say 1t is not right
and that it can only be made right by
equalizing the taxes, and levying them
upon property OF all kinds according to its
value. The bondholders say it's right and
that it would be doing them a grevious
wrong to make them share equally in the
public burdens with the plowholders. This
is exactly the difference between the two
parties on the question of taxation. No
OF party demagogues can make it
appear otherwise to intelligent men. Chi
cdqo Times 21St inst.