The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1873-09-26

State officers to an utterly impracti
cable extent. No one will be so foo
| ish as to insist upon such thing
no one expects it. But what is ex
pected and required Is, that publ
expenditures shall be kept down t,
! the measure of public necessities anC
Tresources. While that is done th,
amount of expenditure may be con
siderably enlarged without making
the burden of taxation relatively any
greater. In proportion to the prop
erty of the State, it may even be less
tel5 bY the taxpayer, because spread
lover a larger surface.
In accordance with these observa-
tlons, we find that relatively speak
ing State taxation is not so high now
as it was eighteen years ago, under
Democratic management. Then the
levy was 81, ,S07, on taxable val
uation of $3.50, 0,877,S24; now it is S4-
Ala, 557, on a valuation Of 81, ,524 323-
118. To put it in another form. the
levy in 1855 was .032 per cent of
the taxable valuation; in 1872 it was
but .O29 per cent. The rate of the
levy of 1855 was three mills and two
tenths per dollar, while in 1872 it was
but two and nine -tenths. That is to
say the rate is three-tenths of a mill
less now than it was nearly twenty
years ago, when the Democratic scep-
was over us.
Another suggestive fact that may
be mentioned right here is, THAT the
taxable valuation of the property of
the State wss not as large in 1859 as
it was in 1854, whereas it has nearly
doubled since 1850. This shows a
degree of prosperity that is anything
but discreditable to Republican rule
In what precedes,we have referred
only to taxes for State purposes,
which is the only species of taxation
.ofwhich the Legislature has absolute
control. If local taxes are inordin-
ately increased in any county, town
ship or city, in nine cases out of ten
the local authorities are to blame.
Every inteiligen taxpayer knows this
and also knows that four-ffths of all
ne pays into the treasury of his coun
.ty is levied for local purposes and
expended for local improvements.
The aggregate of taxation on the
grand duplicate last year, was not
twenty-four millions, as the Newark
Advocate states, but $23,24S,9G9, of
which sum $18,S32, ,422 was levied by
counties, towns and cities for local
purposes. Only $4,4l4,257 was lev
led for State purposes, and of this it
should be borne in mind that 81 ,523,-
354 wos levied for the support of
common schools, and $I,2I7, $50 for
sinking fund, and reduction of State
debt. Only $1,673,S52 was devoted
to the current expenses of the State
Government.
Teese facts show with sufficient
clearness, we think, that Republican
tinanciering in Ohio has not been ex
travagant, but wise, careful and eco
nomical OfDemocratic administra-
tion we have also given some illus
trations, but we might mention ano-
ther a little more recent. In 1853
50 the Democratic party had a ma.
jority in both branches Of the Legis-
lature, and the result was that We
had three sessions in q year, and the
largest outlay for legislative purpos-
es ever made in the State. That lie.
gislature sat longer than any Other
that ever convened in Ohio, and pass
ed more partizan and prosecuting
measures. So lar from diminishing
public expenditures, it largely increa-
sed them, and was compelled by its
own extravaganza to add five mills
per dollar to the levy for the expen-
ses of the State Government. Re
membering this as memorable il
lustration Of Democratic reform, the
people of Ohio are not likely to want
any more of it.