Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1870-09-23

] nues improved. Every subordinate
/ felt that his position depended on his
: fidelity. Every. taxpayer realized
r that what he paid went into the Treas
f ury, and that his dishonest competit
or, by his side, could not any longer
2 escape his share of the public burdens
f And the same Internal Revenue laws,
! honestly administered without fear or
favor, the same taxes faithfully col
Iected, brought millions more per
month into the Treasury, for which
The Sentinel now attacks the Admins
Z tration.
In the Custom service also (the Tariff
there has been increased eficienev.-
Fraudulent systems of undervaiued
| invoices have been broken up snug
Cling has been detected and arrested
And the same Tariff laws thus Welded
millions more per quarter to the Treas
ury under President Grant than under
President Johnson.
Look at the following official state
ment of the increase Of receipts during
the first 18months of President Grants
Administration from March, 1869 to
September, 1S70), as compared with
the last Is months of President John
sons Administration (from Septem Der,
1867 to March, 1861:
Increase In Internal Revenue re-
celptS............... SOB 255, 3l9
Increase In Custom receipls........-.. a. 75l 431
increase in Land sale receipts 1 S12 ,5l6
Decrease in miscellaneous receipts
premium on surplus gold, &C.. 10,62l, ,l0l
Net increase in all receipts.-....-.-Ss7,2Is ,2Is.7s5
| which has paid off just that much debt.
of course, and relieved the tax payers
permanently of s., 100000 interest per
| year.
Making all allowance for increase of
| business, does not this prove that the
/ Administration has been a faithful
| guardian of the public interests COM
mitted to its charge? ? The benefieent
results of this increased revenue flow
ing from increased efficiency and hon
/ esty in the public service, have been
felt by the people in more ways than
one.
PAYING THE PUBLIC DEBT-REDuCTIoN
OF TAXATION.
First: While nothing was paid on
the debt during Mr.. Johnson's last
| year, the reduction under President
| Grant has been constant and crafty
/ ly large. Without any increase of the
public burdens, he has paid off over
one hundred and sixtY-nine and half
millions of our bonded and overdue
| debt, in the first eighteen months of
ms administration, and has perma-
nentIy reduced the annual interest TO
be paid to our creditors nearly nine
| millions per year. Up to this date the
| bonds he has purchased with our sur
plus revenue have been stamped and
kept as a Sinking Fund. But the last
Congress ordered, as fairer way, that
they should all be destroyed, now and |
hereafter as purchased, so that they
should no longer be in existence, even
in a cancelled form.
Secondly; With this healthy eondi- |
ton of our finances, Congress felt that |
a large reduction of taxation was not |
Inconsistent with the maintenance of /
our credit. And accordingly a bill |
was passed reducing our Internal Tax
alton at the rate of over S55, ,000, 900 per
annum, and on Tariff Taxation about /
S25. .000, ,000-in all $50, 600 600 per year.
striking off at one blow one-fifth of all /
our remaining taxation of all kinds. /
These reductions in our Internal Tax |
system have been Ofthe most sweep
ing character. All the burdensOme |
and veXatiOus special taxes are abol- |
isheds to take effect at the end of the |
year for which they are now paid-I /
refer to those on lawyers. doctors, |
claim agents, insurance and real eS-
tate agents, conveyancers, architects, |
manufacturers, photographers, apoth- /
ecaries, butchers, plum bers, eating |
houses and hotels, merchants, dealers |
of every kind excepting spirits and |
tobacco). The taxes on sales, with the |
above exception, on boats and barges, |
on Watches on gross raeeipts of rail |
roads, steamboats,, Expresses teIe-
graphs, ferries, bridges and turnpikes |
on legacies and SUGGESTIONS, on pass
ports, on receipts, and on all notes un-
der 500, are not again to be levied or |
collected after the first of next month |
The Income tax is reduced one-ha1f |
limited to two years, and the eXemp-
ton doubled, being $1,000 in addition /
to all taxes and interest paid, losses |
and bad debts, rents and repairs, and |
amount paid for labor, thus removing
its burden entirely from those who /
are poor or of moderate means, and re- |
quiring it to be paid at its reduced |
rate. only by those whose income rem
ders it easy to bear. In fact after this |
month, nothing will remain of this |
once aIl-embracing Internal Revenue |
system except the tax on spurious and |
malt liquors, cigars and tobacco, ma
tional banks, gas, incomes and stamps; |
and probably all these will disappear |
also before another fiscal year has |
passed away.
Thirdly: Annexed to the bill were
sections altering, and in the main |
largely reducing the Tariff to take ef- |
feet at the end of this year. Hundreds
of articles used as raw materials in our
home manufactures, were placed on
| the free list. and nearly two millions
of duties thus remitted, while our in
dustrial interests received a healthful
impetus from this relief. Many others,
which did not pay the expense ~ col
| lecting duties on them, were also made
free. A specific duty of S28 per tun
| was placed on Bessemer steel instead
of the As per cent. ad valorem, which
shifted in amount with every ductua-
ton of the European prices, which had
varied in a few years from $3.50 to $55
per tun. The duty on pig iron was re-
duced nearly 25 per cent, from SO to 81
/ per tuu and on scrap iron from So to So
| per tun. Pepper and other spices, and
| fruits, were also very largely reduced.
/ Coffee was reduced from five to three
| cents per pound, less rate than it was
| taxed by the administrations of Wash
ington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison,
/ and Monroe, from 1870 to 1928, during
| which time it was taxed from four to
| five cents per pound, except a few
| years at ten cents. Tea was reduced
| from 25 to Is cents per pound, a less
rate than the duties for the So years
just alluded to, during which time the
tariff on tea was from l8 to 25 cents per
pound, except few years at SO cents.
Sugar, which has always been taxed in
our entire history, under all tariffs and
| all Administrations, was also largely
reduced, so much so indeed that on
es, the reduction amounts to S12, 900, 600
/ per year, as it does to IS, ,000, 900 on cof-
fee, $4, 600, coo on tea, over 81 100000 on
pepper and other spices, and $500,O00
on fruits. Thus faithfully fulfilling
/ the promises of the last campaign, we
shall 60 on in the future with the work
of "equalizing and reducing taxation
as rapidly as the national faith will
permits" even if, as in the present
case, we have to pass these bills aboI-
ishing internal taxation Of the people
and reducing the cost of tea coffee
sugar, &c, over, and in spite of the
opposing votes of the Democracy.
Their reply to this arraignment Of
them for adverse votes is, that ''all the
details of the bill did not suit them.
But this is a very old excuse, We
heard it often during the war. They
could not support war measures be-
cause they did not like all their s'de-
tails" They carried New York in 1862
on ''the more vigorous prosecution of
the war" but could not vote in Con-
gress for any bill whose details were
Intended to aid in its more vigorous
prosecution. They declaim now against
taxation, but cannot vote for anV bill
to reduce it. They talk bitterly, too.
about the debt, but are not satisfied
with General Grants reduction of it.
| They denounce the interest which it
I haars as ton high. hut Nnta anainst nr1r