Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1869-10-16
Letter from Washington.
NA'a'asIss e"I, sept - 1873

hAsaiNGIsS Cur, Sept, -, ieos-
| T. tAs ksiis. sfiAs nsiias HsTala.
have repeatedly said in these
letters that tho internal Revenue
Department levied tax upon far
mers either as manufacturers or
produce dealers. This statement OF
mine has been denounced and do
Ried by Radical Journals, although
the farmers know il 10 be true, |
herewith give you tho decision OF
the Internal Revenue Commissioners
on the subject, which fully eorrObo'
rates my statement. In reply TO q
question asked by Assessor Beleher
Of Georgia, whether parties should
be taxed as retail dealers who soil
fruit aud vegetables in excess of ono
thousand dollars per annum, Act
ing Commissioner Douglas replied
that il Was not necessary 10 sell TO
the amount Of ono thousand dollars
20 make him liable 10 special tax,
II IL is bis occupation or any part OF
his occupation TO keep agricultural
or farm products, or 10 sell them
(except by peddling them on FOOT
he should be taxeda sa produce bro
ker, and also without regard tothe
amount Of his sales. A man ia also lia.
BILE rs n produce broker oven though
he makes no sales at all, but pur'
chases only. A person who cells
fruitssand vegetables from a store
or stand is liable as n produce
broker, oven though his annual
sales, including sales Of all other
merchandise. do not exceed ono
thousand dollars, and without rc-
gard TO whether the fruits and vcg-
etables and farm products are of his
own raising or not. In accordance
with this ruling the Assessor of the
District of Columbia has already
notified number of Maryland and
Virginia farmers coming into Wash
ington and Georgetown, who bring
fruit, vegetables, hay and other farm
products to market, that they must
take ont. tho license required by
this decision. A great deal Of ex-
citement is manifested here on this
subject. Now, above / have opit-
omized the decision Of the Commits
sioncr. You will note thatOanrcs !
son who sells fruit, We }:
from q store or stand, ,out
o license. What is the Uommis-
sioner's definition of stand? We
cannot be guided, in asking this
question, by any reference to such
obsolete old fogies as tho lexograph-
ers. The age is progressive, and so
arc tho meanings of words, and rs
tho age is expansive so must the
force Of words increase. The deci-
sion of the Commissioner Of Inter
nal Revenue is tinal-there is no
appeal from 1t, except to himself.
Suppose he decides that if q farmer
should sell his crop Of wheat at the
thrcshing ground, or even before
being harvested, what is to prevent
the Commissioner declaring the
threshing floor or the ground itself a
stand within the meaning of his de-
cision? Suppose q man hauls n
load of wheat from his farm to Il
market-may not the place where
he sells, or the wagons which con-
tain it be declared, in the discrel
tion of the Commissioner, stand I
So with corn, cattle, cotton, tobacco,
sugar. rice, oats, and everything
that can be raised. And let it not
be said that my conclusions are far
fetched. Tho Commissioner of In
ternal Revenue is rs supreme as
the Star Chamber, or the Venetian
Council of Ten. He can do
as he plcases He has the power TO
assess man at his own valuation,
the power to refuse him a hearing,
and imprison him for the debt which
the Commissioner has declared is
due from the debtor to the admins
tration. OF course then he has the
power to make an arbitrary defni-
ton of the word stand. The object
of the Internal Revenue Commis-
sioner in making this decision is
two fold. The administration and
its thieves want more money. Like
the Horse Lcech they never cry
"enough." Secondly, they want to
influence the farmers of Ohio and
Pennsylvania TO vote the Radical
ticket for fear the taxation will be
made worse if they do not, A moro
infamous and diabolically unjust
system of taxation than ours cannot
be devised. And yet when l look
at this entire system, l see "the
handwriting on the wall" Said
Julius Cesar once, OF certain Gallo
traitors against the peace of Rome,
"Whom the Gods wish to destroy
they first make mad" And these
Radical leaders are mad. This de-
cision is but ono of q thousand
proofs of their insane condition.
And through the terrible dissatis-
faction and indignation that are
oven now laundering against the
Internal Revenue Department and
its authors, the Radical party, we
shall very soon behold it's destrue-
tion, its final and utter destruction.
THE FAITHFUL WIFE.-A true and
beautiful tribute to woman by
Daniel Webster: