The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1873-11-27
INQUIRER.
Proceedings of the legislature.

The active and intelligent correspondent of
the Charleston Nc,cs and Courier furnishes e1-
cellent reports of the proceedings of the Cen
eral Assembly, and we make the following
extracts from recent letters:
COLUMBIA, November 19.
The tax levy upon which the House is now
engaged seems likely to create as much trouble
and confusion as the settlement of the funded
debt The comptroller's report of the new
assessments has not been made, and, besides, it
is considered extremely doubtful whether q
tax can be legally levied at all at an extra ses-
sion of the Legislature The bill came up as
unfinished business in the House to-day, Gen.
Wallace holding the floor from yesterday. He
spoke for few minutes in the same impressive
tone as on yesterday. Reading from article 10,
section Of the constitution, he maintained
that only regular annual tax was contempla-
ted or authorized, and the present bill would,
therefore, even if it passed, be unconstitutional,
null and void. The time was very near at hand,
he said, for the regular session. The cOmptrol-
ler can have his report prepared III The mean
time and furnished the General Assembly, and
then proper aud intelligent Legislative action
might be taken in the premises. He closed
with motion that the bin be postponed until
the regular session. Had vote been taken at
once, the motion would have been sustained,
for the members were evidently impressed by
the views advanced But the lovers of the
loaves and fishes saw the danger their dar-
ling bill was in and came rushing to the
rescue.
Bowley (colored,) of Georgetown, who is
chairman of the committee of ways and means,
was first to the front. He hoped that the
House would not postpone the bill, because the
necessities of the State demanded its immedi-
ate passage. The levying of a tax for the new
fiscal year was, he said, one of the main pur-
poses for which the extra session had been
convened, and ought not and could not be dis
regarded or postponed. The opposition by the
Conservatives, in his opinion, amounted to
nothing, for, be said, they had fought every
tax bill which was ever passed by the General
Assembly. They would not be 80 pugnacious,
thinks Bowley, il it were not that their con-
stituency demanded it of them, and their seats
were dependent upon their carrying ont the
wishes Of their constituency. What pity it
is that the constituency of Bowley and Of other
colored members were not of the same way OF
thinking. Kent, (colored,) of Darlington,
agreed with Bowley. He thought the tax ne
cessary, and he believed the people could pay
it with less Inconvenience now than later in
the winter. Starvation, he said, was staring
the people in the face, and be knew many in
his county who have scarcely enough money
on hand to pay the poll tax, and if the levy
be postponed they would not have even that
much.
Mr.. Cannon, (Conservative,l of spartanburg,
favored the postponement of the bill. He had
been, he said, to see the comptroller and u.s.
certained that the returns from the county
auditors were not yet received, but would be
within few days. Until they were received
he maintained that the General Assembly
could take no intelligent action in the prem.
ises.