New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-03-16

strong and powerful enough to protect the
person, property and liberty of its humblest
subject, without the necessity of the citizen
ship being walking artilleries or household
powder magazines apd living arsenals, and
for these reasons am in favor of such law.
The House having under consideration
the supplementary amendatory revenue bill
reported by the Committee on Ways and
Means, Mr.. Souer, Of Ayoyelles, said:
Mr.. Speaker, as one of the members of the
Committee on Ways and Means of this
House. and further, in view of the public
demands on the refOrmatory needs OF the
hour, deem it due my constituency to give
my views On taxation and the duties Of this
House in the premises. Mr.. Speaker, al
most century ago Edmund Burke, one Of
the most honest as well as profoundly philo
sophical of statesmen, uttered these wise
words in the British Parliament: ''Our re-
sources may be as unfathomable as they are
represented. Indeed, they are just what
ever the people possess, and will submit to
pay. Taxing isan easy business. Any pro-
.ector can contrive new impositions; any
bung!er can add to the old. But is it alto
gether wise to have no other bounds to
your impositions than the patience
of those who are to- bear them
All l claim upon the subject OF your
resources is this: that they are not likely
to be increased by wasting them. 4 sys-
tenn of frugalitv will not lessen your riches,
whatever thew may be. 1t will not be hotly
disputed that those resources which lie
heavily on the subject ought not to be OBJ
iects Of preference they ought not to be the
very first choice to an honest representative
of the people"
This wisdom of Burke is quite as wise to-
day as it was hundred years ago, and 1t Is
Just as applicable now to the excessive and
Il Ia
for many bad purposes as 1t was when
Burke denounced it, for the exclusive OBJ
iect of government which represents no
particular part, but the whole of commu-
nifty, is to do justice to all of its subjects.
and that it has no authority which Is not
justified by the purposes for which it was
created to receive or expend cent OF
money. l hold that all legislation which
conters special privileges, which grants to
certain men or bodies Of men rights which
are withheld from the balance Of the com
munity, is not merely improper but illegiti-
mate and inconsistent with the very
grounds of just and free institutions. l
hold that the right to labor, and to the free
exchange of the results of that labor, is
one of the clearest and most invaluable of
the natural rights of man, standing on
level in the purity of its derivation and
importance with the right to free speech
or to the untrammeled worship Of God; and
that to interfere with it needlessly, to tax
it in order to benefit some other labor or
some other exchange, is as much an act of
spoliation as it would be to p4lfer the
products from the domicile of the owner or
to appropriate them on the high seas, in
the manner Of Captain Kidd. ''when he
sailed. Taxation is necessary and lawful
when it is imposed to defray the expenses of
government in the accomplishment of its
specific and legitimate purposes.
All the authority that any government
has to tax its subjects, or to interfere in
any way with their liberty, property or ia
dividual responsibility, is simply an author
ity to provide for its own existence, and
the proper execution Of its primary ends as
the impartial organ of the collective will.
1t has no indefinite privilege to cOntiscate
the rights and possessions OF any OF the
people from whom its very being is derived.
1t may exact taxes, therefore, for its reve-
nue., but not for objects lying outside Of its
proper functions. 1t may call upon US all
to pay for its support, but it may not call
upon us to pay for the support of an army
of useless placemen and Office-hOlders. 1t
may fill its own pocket to the extent that
money is required to enable it to secure its
ends, but it may not filth pockets of mo-
Ropolists, spectators and favorites. at the
expense either Of the general community.
or of any Glass;. or OF any individual OF that
community.
Mr.. Speaker. or the general principles l
have herein expressed / have favored the
amendatory revenue bill now under con-
sideration for it lessons the burden of taxa
ton on our people, and strikes away the
heretofore unjustifable emolulhents OF the
tax gatherers. 1t says ito the people of
this State, pay taxes only for the support
OF your government. 1t tells the tax col
lectors and assessors. you are the servants
of the people, not their masters; hence, you
must be contented with living compensa-
ton for Your services, for the day has
passed in which your class can enrich YOUR
selves at the expense of the many. These
amendments also make many other reforms.
and, in view of the circumstances surround
ing us, it is the best we can offer the people.
Therefore l hope the bill will be enacted
into law, for it will show on our part an
earnest indication to respect the voice OF
the people, who demand Of US, their ser
wants, honesty and economy in the admin
istration Of as well as protection III the
government of the State of Louisiana.
Mr.. Harry Lott, of Rapides-In reference
to the funding bill l want simply to
make a remark or two relative to this fund
ing bill. In the first place, want to know
what benefit it will be to the State of Lou
isiana, and whether or not State warrants
will be receivable for taxes. We all know
how low our State warrants are, and. if / I'M
derstand right this bill when passed brings
up these warrants to par or almost par. l
want warrants receivable for taxes, l do
not think it is right that the State should
paw persons off in warrants, and when they
come to pay the State for anything they
must pay money dollar for dollar.
Now l ask if there is any justice
in any such transaction. A man who re nders
services to the State of Louisiana, puts in his
labor, talent and energy, must be paid in
or seventy cents. Go to the fiscal agent
and ask him to pay these warrants as they
should be paid; he will answer Il have no
money! and so it is all around. Now. if
you want to do justice to the people OF Lou
isana, to your constituents. pass a bill that
will make. State warrants redeemabie for
taxes. Now If we can not do that, let us
make some provision for making warrants
receivable. If we can pot get whole loaf.
why we will take the half.
Mr.. Young, of ConcOrdia, said IN refer
ereuce to chartering railroad through his
parish:
Mr.. Speaker | can. not understand why
members upon this floor object TO this bill
passing through the House. The. PROJECT
does not cost the State one cent, and 1t will
improve, benefit, and add greatly to the in
terest Of my parish, as well as the many
parishes it passes through. If my distin-
guished friends, who object to the passage
of this bill, were only acquainted with the
route which it is proposed to. run this road
| through they would know that there is a
| great deal of waste pine land, of no earthly
use to any one; now, will it not improve
| these waste lands, will it not add over a
| hundred per cent to their present value /?
| Now, have heard some gentleman remark
that one man owns greater part Of the
| proposed route, or another who owns
a great many acres. Now, even if this is
| lo LII Il. Il