The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1871-07-01
For the Hickman couris,
Taxing City BOnds.

CITY C0uucu ndU louHN d O"an plon TO 7
defend their action, for exempting the
oity bonds from taxation in the hands Of
any one, in the person of W. R.
Mcdaniel, and it forcibly brought to my /
mind an incident of recent date, which /
must relate: A gentleman in his i'm
mediate locality advocated the right of /
submitting to the people the question of
voting tax to build a county jail, know
inc full we'll the people would vote ii 1
down. aud thus leave the Magistrates Ia.
Mo 10 n fine of one hundred dollars
each beside being bound for all damage
! that might arise. The principle is, Fit
matters not how much others suffer, 50 I /
escape
But as your correspondent has treated
the question presented by him courte
ously and respectfully, shall revieF all
the prominent points made by him, hear
hing on the issue in the same spirit, yet |
cannot permit him to dodge the Asue
presented in my inquiries TO thecity
/ Council, and quote rifle cannon nll''
decisions of the Supreme court @ the
! Federal Constitution, when its provisions
are entirely different from our cityshar
ter. Probably "Mc" you drew Ds the
ostsg aa9yss sa.s ssisJ e1sSsss.Sii FOR ianr 4
law, and as being applicable to the (
but you should remember that possibly,
| that lawyer has got some city bonds, aud
! you know that oar interest, sometimes
causes ''us'' to stretch the truth, pervert
/ the law. and silence conscience.
The Constitution of the United States,
/ in Art ! Sec 8, provides That Con
gress shall have powerto levy and collect
taxes, but all duties, imposts and excuses.
shall be uniform thron2 hout the United
States" leaving the question of taxation
unlimited aud Without uniformity, while
our city charter Gays stakes shall be
uniform on every description of proper
1 ty, except buildings for churches, school
houses, &c, &c, aud city bonds are not
/ 10 the exemption, aud then goes on to
provide, that the City Council shall make
a list Of all the taxable inhabitants in
said city, aud afix against his name the
amount Of his real estate, together with
his personal estate, whether it be goods,
stocks OF other property and may be re
quired to be sworn to, aud our Legisla
ture has said that the words, personal
estate" includes every thing which upon
the death of the owner would GO into
the hands of his administrator
Now the Constitution of the United
States is to Congress, what our city
charter r. to the Council of Hickman,
and while Congress has unlimited power
to tax, or exempt from taxation, the
/ Council of Hickman have no right to
exempt only the specific property therein
. ba..
TENS or plans OF taxation generally adop
ted and ~ use-oue specific, the other
al ualorca-and If eMc" had looked at
the fifth and sixth inqg'ges that pro
podnded, he would have seen that it was
to the latter mode referred The decis-
ion of Chief Justice Marshall s'like to a
I ball II. rife cannon, straight ahead
Gown every thing before it" has
no X-16lication to this case, a. it was
founded - different state of facts, en-
tirsly diss'milar, and pronounced On the
tauthUrity Of the clause of the Constitu
/ ton above quoted, where the right was
1, given sio.exempt them from taxation. I
have ever decided that city bonus, corpo-
ration bonds, or eous. or State bonds
/ arc exempt from taxation under the
equalizaSen law in the hands Of the
owner. aud is it not little strange Chat
VI SO Ration under the equalization
I laM tNbeen in force in Kentucky for
over 7tltnty years, that no one, before
our friend Me" has ever questioned,
! or tested it,
/ Nc" says ''to tax tie bonds at home.
! is to drive them abrod9 thus causing
ceasele.s drain Of currency to pay the
1 foreign bond holder, and money is the
/ life blood of town This is good
/ theory and reads well, bat the aisfor-
} tune Is, that 1t IS contrary TO the truth
and must yield. Three or four years
ago majority of our city bonds were
held Nd owned by parties outside the
city, and were not exempt from taxation,
now four ffths of the bonds have been
bought up and were owned by our citi
zens before the time they were exempted
from taxation Facts VS.. Theory. Which
will you choose?
"Mo" says, sit looks ridiculous to see
government, or city, pay its interest on
its bonds with Que hand and take part
of it back with the other, and then
quotes another principle of law. Won
der where he got that principle from z
Well il may look ridiculous in Mes"
eyes, but il is a way the people have done
it long time Don't our State govern /
ment pay its public officers, judges aud
creditors what is due them with one
hand, and take part of it back for taxes
with the other? Don't our county gov
eminent pay off its officers add other
creditors with one hand, and take part I
of it back for taxes with the other ?
Don't our city pay its Mayor and Coun
cilmen with one hand and take part OF it
back with the other? s.Why not reduce
the salaries and debts to the amount of
the tax ~ If it is so @ridleulous. Echo +
answers, whyl!l
"Me' then gives me his "fatherly ad-
vice, and e@utiops the .s-s IS Cd Sc tools
for which be has my thanks, and goes on
IN half column about political econo-
my, high taxation, labor and capital
which in my opinion are as pertinent to
this issue, as Davis, Toombs and Silver
tooth S 'lost cause" speeches are to the
live political issues of the day. Tie live
questions that | desire to present are
these, and they are not legal ones, (for l
admit that he cap beat me 10 getting up
law but are arithmetical ones. IF the
city exempts s25, GEO in value of bonds
from taxation, at one and half per cent,
don't the city loose from her revenue
1915 each year? Don't the bondholSers
gain, or save, the same amount? If the
city is in debt, and that debt is to be
paid, must there not be an additional tax
collected from the other property TO
make up this amount Of 1915. Another
question IS moral one. The charter
provides for the taxation of all property
IN the city, (excep; churches, &c. bonds
not IN the exception). the Mayor and
Councilmen take an oath to support the
charter OF the city, how can they ex-