Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1872-06-20
Why the Public Schools are Suspended.

treasurer aTher 0d6 WTllceIl q leIter l(
the School commissioners Of the several
Counties of the State, with view to ex.
onerate himself from the responsibility OF
closing the free schools. The letleris very
suggestive in navy respects. In tie first
place, it admits the closing Of the public
schools-a statement OF which by Wash
ington paper, SOME time since, the truth
Fful Union pronounced q Democratic lie"
We presume the. onion will hardly deny
the fact longer.
In the second place, the reasons which
the State Treasurer assigns why the school
appropriations nave not been paid furnish
I",t for very extensive comment. Ac-
;yrdiug TO Mr. Parker, all the money re-
tc;ve' for taxes since Noyember last, and
prlle.g.iy in January last, was expended
he!o.e the appropriation was made for
school purpo, es on March l3. This tax
was for State purposes alone-seven mills
on the dollar-and should have realized in
the r"ghborhood of 81, 100000. Since, as
state1. 10y Mr.. Parker, neither the appro-
prial. rs for the Lunatic Asylum, SGtc
Orphan Asylum, Deaf and Dumb Asylum,
State University. salaries Of officers, DC,
have beon paid, the query NATURAL. arises,
where in the name OF common sense, has
this 9I, ,30O,0 900 gone?
7 The, assertion Of the State TreasEyer,
that not more than lwo-thirds of the AK
es have been collected for the last iouy
years, is rather thin. The amount OF TAX
es levied for State purposes during the last
fopr years sums up t$6 100000 One
third Of that amount would be S2,000000,
which, if MIR. Parkeies assertion be true,
is.now due for taxes. The idea that one
third Of the taxes have not been paid, is
absurd. Some time since, When the Radi-.
calls were desirous Of bul!ing the fraudu-
lcnv State bonds treir organ, the Unioa,,
published statements and made comm Ills
nearly every day, sho@;ing Win vii
proiaptness the people were paying their
taxes. There is long list Of delinquent
taxpayers published, it is true; but it is
well known that The greater part of them
ire reported Incorrectly. Instances with
out nulnrer have been brought to our at
tentlon in this county, where property
has been advertised Tor safe to pay taxes,
when the owners have the receipts ron
the county Treasurer, showing that they
have paid their taxes lnng ago Hun
dreds OF other cases We heal ot, where the
property is advertised in the wrong per
sons name. The owner OF the property
has already paid the taxes; but the identi-
cal property is taxed again in the pamc of
some person to whom, perhaps it belonged
years ago. A great many poor sand-hill
white people and colored people, who had
only q small tract of land and no other
have been sufferers by these de-l
Iinquent sales. But the rich have not
been hurt, except in some rare instances,
where there was some question about the
.ltlos to the property. 1t is the poor man J
the poor white man and the poor COL /:
bred man-whom the Radical marty pro-
less to care for 80 specially, and whom they Z
promise to- provide with hpmesteads, that
nave lost; what little land they had, by the /.
enormous taxation levied by this same .
party. Why is it,, We should like to know,
hat the State is compelled to make an ab-, Is
,olute sale Of real estate, or to try to do it,
N order to secure the payment Of taxes? {
r the'yearly rental value of land is more I,
han sufficient to pay the taxes levied,
;heptheistatesis doing. its humble citizens
! wanten injury in selling the fee simple
o his lands, when q less estate would an I
,wer all the purposes Ifthe yearly rent ! "a
i value Of land is not more than the tailxx tax. i