The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1870-04-08

during the year ending the Both 81
June, 1869, according 20 the report oi
3 the Secretary Of the Treasury, the
: sum of 1896, ,923 ,402 for the supper:
: Of the Federal Government and the
further enr chment of frightful mo.
nopoly. The heavy load of State
county, and municipal taxation rests
, upon the same industrial classes. To
uphold the thirty-seyen local govern
ments into which this Union is divided
, and the still smaller corporations oi
. cities and counties and townships un.
der them. is costing the American peo-
!. pie an additional amount of $3.50 ,000, :
OG0 per annnm. Thus, for each seed
time and harvest of the revolving year,
the toiling men and women of this
I, Republic pour into the Golfers of tax
alton the vast aggregate OF $G16, ,923,
402.
Annual Federal iaxetion 3gS. .923 .4C2
Annual Stale AMI local tasati"n"... 2J1 .0o6 COZ
Total per ......................siG9 ..... 923, ,i02
There is no language within the
scope Of the human tongue that can
oxaggerate the overwhelming signif-
cance Of these II tliable figures. The
great fact stands out with the awful
distinctuess OF II mountain upon n
plain that no people beneath the circle
Of the ssn, between the two poles OF
this fertile globe, IRE taxed so deeply
upon the earnings Of their hands rs
this people whose Representatives VIC
are. The official statistics of Tie five
great Powers Of Europe and OF III the
withcred and ancient realms Of Asia
and Egypt bear constant witness to
this dreadful truth. The submig-
siye subjects OF the eldest and wealth
lest kingdoms and empires of the earth
nre not 50 heavily laden as the citizena
of this young, free nation, and they
walk more erect in the presence Of
their tasl-mastor3.
| Sir, in the face Of all this, standing
IN the presence Of these mighty facts,
from which there Is no escape, how
shall | characterize that policy which
makes free from all tax or tribute more
Ithan one-tcnth Of the property of tue
/ United States, property that cost less
by one-hG1 than any other To obtain
lit, yields double the interest clsew here
derived, and Is owned Iy those who
dwell in the palaces of the fand?-
With what patience shall l speak OF
those who stand idly By and behold
the lcnI proceai5ns Of industry fill
Iing out - their daily task; who look
on with folded arms of Incidence
while scllcol-housca are erected ard
highways built who out Of their cas-
lily and ill-gottcn millions contribute
not farthing to their State CT their
local burdens who were treadiug soft
carpets, reclining upon couches oi
/ down. and bapqueting upon smiles
and wine during the last fiscal year,
while from tho sweat of the laborer' :
>! brow, alone and unnided. flowed the
/ following streams OF Federal expendi-
Iiture:
ciyi! seFs!ss AMI rnisesllancoa'.. ss.i7f,oti -
+ n,i..nz aud Ih3iau4........ :55ig g.5H 81
War Department ............. 5s.5el 800 el
Nary Department. 20 .ogo.I51 %
In.rrst pubiic iebt..-........... l%e.CFt2I2 st
Freiaiam IF seven trIy LEiiei
States Trca,,lfy a"tc. .............. 30o. COS ot
Total. exs;as:Ts Ct l5aus ..........sj@I / -. -
4 An / told that the boadholdor pays
n tax ON his income? Ii every dollar
is collected which is due by law it will
not amount TO the trifing sum oi
81 900 900 n wear. The entire tax on
all the incomes and salaries of the
United States together, according to
/ the report of the Comm;s sioner of In
ternal Revenue, is only S34 ,79l $50
OF this sum the bondholler has paid
not over the pitiful sum of $780,
1000 Us his miserable contribution to-
ward revenue of over 5000. .O00, ,000
raised by the universal exertions OF
the people. Every other income is
assessed rs we'll. and everything else
in the land besides. 1t is now said in
many quarters that even this contempt
ible levy upon the bonds should be
abolished. Not so. Let it stand
Not for its value, but to illustrate hui
man meanness; not that it constitutes a
single drop in the great ocean of reve-
nue. drawn from the busy hands of la
Dor, but for the purpose of showing
how despicable the rich mans mite
appears in the contrast; not that il
amounts to more than a miserly and
imperceptible atom IN the gigantic
general account, but for the purpos c
of proving by this beggarly exception
the disgraceful truth that the rich
owner of bonds is substantially free
from taxation, as the law declares him
to be.
i Fortunately it is not difficult to dem
onstrate how much the public Treas
ury has lost, and, correspondingly,
how much the burdens of the people
have been increased by this exemption
of the bondholder from the common
duty of assisting to defray the expen-
ses of his Government. In order to
raise the 5000, 600, 900 necessary fol
county, State, and national purposes
no one will dispute that the assess.
ments are over two. per cent.-two
dollars on the hundred, in the famil,
lar language of the farmer. Taking
the entire taxable property of the
!. country as basis of calculation, and
], two per cent. upon it will not yield
the revenue which is annually collect.
ed. Bnt assuming safely that low
rate, W find that our bonded debt
which the Secretary of the Treasury
a few evenings since in public ad-
dress stated at 50, 100, 900, 900, escapes
! annually just tax, according to the
j load imposed upon other property, OF
1 $40 ,000, 900. If we seek the average
u time that this privilege has been run
II ,,;uo II will ba dateT1ninad at oho,,i