Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1873-09-09
CoMpENsATroN EoR rAxEs.

we nope no fe2def Vi tn1s lSA48aa n1S
failed to peruse Mr.. Ensley's elaborate letter
to Coy. Brown on the Importance OF taxing
movable property lightly in cities and else
where, TO draw capital, encourage business
of all kinds, increase population, and add 10
the wealth and power of the State. His
facts are indisputabla, and his CONCESSIONS
logical and unavoidable. While conceding
the wisdom of taxing movable capital light
ly to prevent its departure, and to invite II
mos city, county on State, may we not
properly study the compensation, returned
TO the owners Of real estate both In town
and country, for the taxes annually col
lected on their property The universe is
constructed on the principle of an exact bal
ance in all nature. Action and reaction
are the same, and just COMPENSATION in all
elements and forces when moved or changed
is law of the Creator. But all communi-
ties are prone TO overlook the duty Of COM
pensating all property or its owners, folly
and fairly for the money assessed and col
lected for public uses ard purposes. If the
right to tax was never abused, no one
would have right to complain, and very
few would complain. Let the tax
payer see that not dime Of
his money is wasted or misap-
piled in any way, that the pub
lie is largely benefited, including
himself, and be will be satisfied. Tennes-
see contains 29,1s4,OOO acres of land, of
which only one-ffsh part is under any sort
of improvement. What is the compensa-
ton returned 10 the owners Of some twenty
four million acres of uncultivated land in
this State for the annual taxes paid on the
same? Suppose We exempt all personal
property from taxes to keep il from leaving
toe State with It's owners, aud place the
burden mainly on unimproved real estate
Can this unproductiye property bear taxa-
ton any better than dry goods, hardware,
bank capital, notes and bonds drawing full
interesJ? All must see that unproducciye
wild land in the country, and uuproductive
r4al estate in cities and villages, are really
less able to pay tribute to Cesar than any
active business capital. The great error
lies in OVERRIDING the very popular, but very
c3Hsuuing and wfsteful trade of trying to
tax people into pr, sperity. A few years
before our late civil war the farmers of lii
nois paid tax of from IL to Is cents on
one hundred dollars worth of property.
Now, when Their farms are worth nominal
ly three or four times more money psr acre,
their taxes are FIVE per cent on The valuation. |
We are not quite so deep in the mire Of |
taxation in Tennessee, but we soon shall |
be unless We discontinue the suicidal feuy |
and wrong of robbiDg Peter simply because
Paul and John have hankering for Peters
money, and being two against one, they
easily outvote Peter, and assess bis property
for their own benefit. A natural and easy
abuse of the elective franchise places ell the
property of the minority in this country at
the mercy and forbearance of the majority.
Hence the growing misuse Of the taxing
power in all States and cities, of which there
is almost universal complaint. If tax
payer gets fifty cents worth of benefit for
every dollar paid in taxes, bis compensation
Is above the average. This is an evil of re-
vitality and rapid growth, and
oae that should be thoroughly discussed by
the public press. Vigilance and inteili-
yence on the part of all property holders
might correcs this blight on our property,
and nothing else can. Calling our State
population the same that it was at
he last census, and of the. three
hundred and thirty million dollars paid
nto The federal treasury in taxes in the last
iscal year, the people of Tennessee paid
)ver ten mil ion four hundred thousand dol
ara. Here is load Of taxation which Mr..
Eosley's system does not reach and cannot
emove. 1t is the great curse of all that
Expresses the American people. 1t is equal
o eight dollars and twenty-seven cents poll :
Ak on every human being in the United
states. what Is our compensation Tor all ,
his money taken from our pockets? 1t
nay interest some of our readers to be told
hat the State of Pennsylvania does not tax
cal estate at all in city or country for any I
tate purpose. Corporations pay SO per
ent of all State revenue, and personal pro- J
arty 81 per cent. In the end, all taxes
ONE from productive industry. Every
hing carried on the Pennsylvania railways .
avs part Of their State taxes, as the con-
lmers Of goods pay the hire of clerks and
Re rent of stores. As labor flslly pays all 9
xas, including all insurance and interest
q capita, it should vote for greater econo-
" in Ill governments, whether municipal,
tate or Federal