The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1869-09-22


1t shows the receipts to have been,
from taxation and sale of public lands,
$I09, 847,618 81, or reducing the amt
collected in gold from the customs
(44,O21, ,S34,77) to currency, at 335
per cent, tho receipts for three months
werc s124, ,521 ,228 SO, or more than
five hundred millions for the year at
the same rate. It also shows that In
addition to this enormous amount
from taxation there was realized from
loans $44, ,952 ,422 20, making total,
for three months from all sources, i'm
currency, of one hundred and sixty
nine millions of dollars.
During the same time tho cxpendi.
lures are stated for ordinary expenses
at $66, oil, ,024, or reducing the inter
est on the public debt to currency
S75, 161, 100, and for payment on ac-
count of principal of the debt, $49,-
258, ,707, total of $l24,349, ,876.-
This jugglery about the debt 1 hardly
comprehend. It seems we borrowed
forty -four millions, and paid forty
nine millions, leaving an actual pay
ment of about five millions, but in or.
der to effect this payment there was an
excess of revenues over expenditures
of forty five millions, and the Score
tary paid q premium of one. million
three hundred and seventy four thou.
sand six hundred and eighty dollars,
or more than twenty five per cent.
EXPENSES OF ARMY AND xAvY, s't
The army consists Of so, 600 men.
and costs $4,000. 900 Il year. The
navy costs $25, 100000. Why do We
need these i,past armaments? For
what useful purposes are they kept upS,
And if it is necessary. to have many
nen, why should we have General and
staff officers sufficient for an army ten
times as great. 1t is said q do not
youch for its truth) that Brigadier
General sits in the ante chamber OF
the White House and plays usher to
the President. An expenditure of
$15, 900, 900 for the army and So, 600
900 for the navy would bcIample. a"-
/ said the taxation was enormous.
Have 1 not proved it l said it was
unequally. and 'unjustly distributed.
The last official statement of the value
of all property in the United States
was sic, 900, 100000. The last oflici-
alistatcment of amount of bonds out
standing is $2,172,000,O0 Taking
these figures as nearly correct, the
capital invested in bonds is moro than
one-cighth of the whole. We know
that the only tax paid by the bonds is
five per cent. on the income. The
income for that quarter was $27 49,
406, upon which five per cent. would
be $I,372, ,52O-that is to say, one
eighth of the capital of the country
paid 81, 800, 900, while sevcn-eighths
paid 1923, 100000. Active capital en-
gagged in business, requiring labor tn
make it profitable, supporting men and
women and children, and giving.
health TO commercial and social sys-
tenn, and liable to reverscs and losses,
paid seventeen times as much, dollar
for dollar, rs the dead, inactive capt.
al of the bondholdcr, which, without
labor and without loss, brought him
six per cent. interest in gold. -
TARIFF.
But this is not all, Of the whole
amount of taxes thus collected for three
months, the tariff duties paid $44,-
021, 1884 in gold, or S58, ,695, ,445 in
currency. Mr.. Senator Sherman, I
perceive, says this is Just, holest.
reasonable tariff, based ON the princi-
pie of taxing luxuries-not necessaries
and of of furnishing reasonable pro-
lection to American industry Let as
see. Coral, pearl and tortoise shells
are admitted duty free; cameos,I dia-
monds, emeralds, garnets, gems and
rubies pay duty of ten per cent: Gd
i,dlorem !; bracelets, chains, of gold or
silver, earrings, studs, gold rings and
manufactured jewelry pay duty, Of
twenty-five, per cent; clothing, forty
per cent. ad ealoren,, and fifty cents .
pound in addition; hats and stockings
pay thirty five per cent and fifty cents
a pound in addition; linen clothing
pays forty per cent; gloves fifty per
cent; sheetings thirty-five per cent,
and fifty cents per pound in addition;
carpeting thirty-five per cent, and for"
ty cents a yard in addition I; sole leafh-
er pays thirty five per cent; glassware
forty per cent; hatchets, chisels and
brace-bits forty five per cent; coal.oil
about thirty per cent; iron nails about
fifty per cent; bar iron about fifty
five cents; pig iron about sixty-fiHe
per ceat.;. tealpays sixty; per cent;
sugar thirty to fifty per cent; and salt
one hundred and twenty-fve per cent.
And this Mr.. Sherman calls taxing
luxuries and not taxing, neeessaries.+
Jewelry of the most expensive charac'
ter pays nothing, or at most ten per
cent, but l oes and spades and hatch
cts and nails, articles used by work
inghen, pay thirty to fifty per cent.
A. lace shawl worn only by the very
rich comes in at twenty-five per cent;
a worstcd shawl worn by women who
live by washing or scwingI had al
most said who die by washing or sew
ing-pays forty per cent. and fifty per
cent. for every pound OF its weight
Diamonds are admitted at twenty five
per cent. ad uaLorena, but coffee, and
tea, and sugar must pay forty to sixty
five per cent. Every article of luxury
is taxed lighly. Every article of ne
cessity, every implement of industry,
every tool by which the farmer, the
or the day laborer plies his
is taxed havily. 1,
TAX ON WOOL.
And rs If these were special de-
sign TO oppress our Western agricu1-
tural interests, the raw material, such
l. ~ =, L.