The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1871-01-12
The Act Authorizing the Auditor
of Public Accounts 10 Levy a
Special Tax.

Taxation IN any form Is ndrusnlp
which ought to be regulated so as to in
flict the least possible suffering upon the
people. AS fundamental principle, it
ought to be laid down that no tax should
be oppressive in amount or in the manner
of its collection and that Government
has no right to impose taxation for any
purpose except to provide necessary
means for its support.
The imposition of taxes is the highest
prerogative of Government. On this
subject a people who have the spirit of
freemen are more sensitive than any
other. 1t inaugurated one English rev.
| olution which drenched the land in blood
and in the end cost a sovereign his head.
A trifing tax on tea kindled into flame
the revolution of '76. When the British
authorities inquired of Franklin if the
colonies would be content in case of the
repeal of the tax, he replied in substance
that they would not so long as the princi-
pie was asserted that the right to tax was
| lodged elsewhere than in the hands of
those who bore the burthen. The war
was fought out and the principle contain
ed in the reply of Franklin became a cor
ner stone of the Governments, State and
Federal, which were dedicated to free
dom in the new world.
In the progress of events, the rulers of
this country have wandered far away from
the old landmarks. The melancholy
fact has been brought home to the people
of our State in the arbitrary proceedings
of the men who have been put in posses
sion of the Government by violence and
fraud. The essential principle of the
accountability of the public agent to the
people, is ruthlessly trampled in the dust
by band placing fifty thousand dollars
at the disposal of the Governor and
shielding him from responsibility to them
for the manner of its expenditure. And
another usurpation even more outrageous,
is committed in the act providing for
''the issuance of certificates of indebted
'ness."
This act vests in an officer of the State
Government, the more than ki'agly prerog-
attire Of imposing special tao on the PEG
pie. The 9Th section provides THAT for
''the purpose of retiring the eertii-
Coates, x X x the State Treasurer is
authorized to prepare bonds, in the
name and on behalf of the State to the
"amo,uat Of five hundred thousand dollars, -
"&c., &c.
The 18th section declares ''that in or
"der to provide for the payment of the
'interest and principal of the bonds is
Issued by the authority of this act, the
"Auditor of Public accounts, shall levy a
Sufficient special tar Which shall be per
"eentage Of the ordinary State tar and shall
"be collected and paid into the Treasury IN
''the .. S. currency, (Greenbacks). The
''first levy shall be made in 1871, and be
"made each succeeding year until the in
"debtedness caused by this act shall be dis
Charged &C., &c.
A long series of abuses have prepared
the minds of the people for almost any
act which the Radical rulers may COM
NIT, but we are sure they were not pre-
pared for usurpation so monstrous as
this, authorizing the Auditor of Public
Accounts to dive his hands deep down into
their pockets and extract from them the
last farthing that the fingers of the tax
collectors may have left untouched in
gathering the tax enumerated in the reg
ular revenue list. Does the Legislature
intend to permit this abomination to re-
main on the statute book We pause
for reply.