The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-02-15
NOG Taxation.


The great subject of dog taxation is one
which ought to adapt itself to the capacities
of the present Legislature. That body ought
to have no hesitation whatever about taxing
dogs. Ii is estimated that there are more
than one hundred thousand dogs in Virginia,
exclusive of caTnet-ha@Gers and rcpudiators.
Each one of those dogs would dcspisr HIM
polf Il he could not destroy his OWN weight III
sheep whenever lie met with it. There are
GOOD qualities about dogs, and so there may
| be. for aught we know to the contrary, about
| flies and bugs, but when they become too nut
mcrous and destructive we do not hesitate
| to kill them. The conduct of 4 dog, more
| over, depends Il good deal upon his master.
| II his master is gentleman, and has the
training Of his dog. he is likely to be gen
| tlcman also. The Eitrirk shepherd IS re-
ported by Christopher North rs saying that
| dogs in time come TO look like their masters,
| and tlrlt sometimes when he could not go to
church, lie sent his dog Hector, and that the
minister could not tell the difference. Once,
lie said, the day after he had sent his four
! footed substitute 10 church, the minister
COMMUNICATED the shepherd on the attention
he paid at tie service the day before. "lIec-
| tor and l." says the shepherd, were bath
| like to split, and the dog, to hide his amrse-
ment. jumped over the fence. and pretended
to be hunting cartridges" The principal own
cIs of dogs III this State, however, are not like
the Etirick shepherd. Almost every negro in
| the country must have 4 dog, who gets to be
very much like his master in more ways than
one He considers that somebody has got to
| feed him, and il he don't get it from his
owner--which in many cases he does not
| he will forage Upon the public After awhile
| the dogs will want TO vote ard to have 4
civil rights bill. We don't know that any
more harm could come from accedins to this
wish. or that it would be much more prcpos-
ferrous han universal human suffrage. Very
| likely there are some dogs rs capable of self
government as some men. We nave never
seen 4 dog yet whom we would not sooner
trust than Ben. Butler. The honesty of the
animal in his attachment to his master and in
defence of his property is undenma0lc.
ANY prejudice which rcpudiators may have
against dogs on account of this trait ought
to lead them to vote for dog taxation. Al
the saline time we are constrained TO own
that dogs belonging to dishonest masters are
apt to be dishonest tliemSclvcs-at any rate
is far as depredating upon other people than
their master is concerned. When ii is recol-
lectrd that sheep-raising is one of the most
prOnClbe branches vi Iuflu lnuustiS, anu
that Virginia has localities which are no
Where surpassed for this valuable business,
it would be good thing in an economical
way to kill oil the one hundred thousand
dogs in the State, and raise in their place one
hundred thousand sheep. Dogs are of little
practical use to any one, but mutton and
wool pay. We knew a man once in Rock.
bridge whose description of All utterly thrift.
less farmer was that she keeps five dogs and
one hog" This will get to be the general
condition of Virginia unless we can persuade
the dogs. like true patriots, to die for their
country, or else tax them to death
Lychturg Ne,os.