The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1874-01-19
General Assembly Of Virginia.
SATURDAY, January u, 1874,
Neither branch of the General Assembly
was in session to-day.
rFxtroct from the annual report Of the superln'
tendent of Public Instruction.
The Payment OF the Cap1tation Tax
Condition Of Voting.

Condition OF SOsanE.
The argument in favor shf making the
p,yment Of the capitation-laX condltion OF
voting NAV be summarily stated as follows
~ If the law requiring every citlzen 10
nav the tax is to have any penalty at all, we
are compelled to choose between pnysica'
coercion and the withholding of the elective
privilege until the tax is paid. The former
il far more diff ult, costly, and degrading
mode of collection than the latter.
(2.) It depriyes no man permanently OF
his right to vote, but only requires that ne e
shall first discharge the most fundamental
of all duties by paying his very Sma!i snI We
of the public expense. The privilege can , Du
recovered at any moment by simply oo'nS
his duty. ors would
RAJ The effect upon the taxpayers wou tha
be q good one. The relation oeIm n,,id he
citizens duty and his privileges " oonnects
forcibIy indicated by the law Mni'm , ;o
the performance of one WIN w ;, ;nanoncaJ
of the other. And so far us nc IS lniuenuea
W, t tbe nenaltv in paying his tax, be is moved
W. W. w Dar,bv object of ambition, and by that
49,, ~ :efrespect which leads man to
.I,r;nE from theeXposure Of bis delinquency.
"a" ~ II wonld be an effective mode OF col
lec an the tax. The privilege OF voting IS
one Which is highly priced by even the
Iumblest and most ignorant OF society: Al
present one man in every three assessed tails
10 nav bis capitation-tax, and there are pro-
badly near 10000 men not assessed every
wear. According to statement received
from the Auditor of Public Accounts, the
average number of heads assessed during
the three years preceding the present was
244,O00. ~"
And vet in 1860 there were 2G9,SS4 regis
tered voters, who no doubt represented an
adult male population of 100000 num-
Der which has been increasing from year to
year, Assessors fail to make complete lists,
owing, no doubt, to the small amount OF
the tax, aud the difficulty Of collecting it in
many cases. The result, as the matter no"
stands, is huailiatipg. About $1,000 OF
those assessed fail 10 pay, and $4,000 are NOT
assessed, so that $4,000 out of 800, 900 citi.
zens pay nothing! In other words the State
gets $1G2, GOO, where she ought to get $780,
600.
But if the tax were doubled in amount
and the prospect Of collection good, every
man would he listed and the tax would he
generally collected. Then we should have
an income from this source OF over half
million, instead of $4,000, as now-an
amount double as great as is now received
from the State property-tax.
(51 Another forcible argument is that
those who would cut themselves OF from
voting by the nou.payment of the capitaton-
tax are men who ought not to have the priyi-
lege of voting. AS a class, they are upde-
serving, unappreciatiye, and Incompetent as
electors.
Co. The measure proposed would give
new dignity TO every taX.paying voter. His
appearance at the polls would testify to the
world that he had made his contribution to
the support of public education. In this
view an effective appeal may be made to the
poorest and humblest classes OF citizens.
a. 1t has been objected to this measure
That candidates for office would buy votes by
paying the voters tax. This regard as an
argument in its favor. a yote-buying cam
didate would take other and worse means for
securing votes, and voter who can be
bought with tWo.dolar taX-receipt can also
be bought for gallon of whiskey, If not for
a pint! It is certainly better for the candi-
datc's money to 60 into the school fund than
into the grcg.sbop.
(S) This proposition is only mild form
of the old law Of Virginia. Until recent
period. no man could vote in Virginia who
could not produce his tax-receipt. Well
may We ponder the wise counsel and exam
pie of our fathers !; and confidently may we
appeal to it as evidence that this movement
is not aimed at the rights, and privileges OF
any particular color or condition. ln
parts of New England to-day the re-
strictions on the elective franchises are much
more serious than the one here proposed.
II one-half of, our Virginia voters should re-
move to Connecticut or Massachusetts Mey
could not uote dtdH; for in Connecticut no
man eau vote, who is unable to read. or IN
who Is unable to. read s ana
1 am persuaded that there Is 50 much in in
this subject to commend it fayorably not
ONLY to tie patriotic and, the Intelligent, Dnt
to every friend Of justice, and particularly =!
Of education, however hnenlgnteneQ ny
NAV be, that It could be easily carried. d. q