New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1875-04-21

I Of officers, etc.
|, Referred to the Committee on Judiciar,
, BY Mr.. Piles:
, House bill No. 50, entitled an act to il
corporate the Independent Fire Compan
No. 2 Of Brashesr.
Referred to the Committee on Judiciary
By Mr.. Young:
House bill No. IL, entitled an act t
amend and re enact sections one, two, three
four, five, six. seven. eight. nine, ten
eleven and twelve of act No. III, approved
March B. 1850, etc.
Referred to the Committee on Corpora
tons.
By Mr.. Bower:
House bill No. ~. entitled an act t.
emancipate Estelle Eliza Campbell. and te
repeal act No. 70 OF the session Of 1874, etc
Referred to the Committee On Judiciary
By Mr.. Booth
House bill No. 50, entitled an act to re-
new and extend the charter of the New
Orleans Chamber Of Commerce.
Referred to the Committee on Corpora
tons.
Mr.. Bayley, Of Orleans, presented the
following memorial, which was ordered
printed in the journal, and referred to the
Judiciary Committee:
Memorial Of the Mechanics and Working
| mems Association OF Louisiana to the
| General Assembly,
| The Mechanics and Workingmen's Asso-
| Citations of Louisiana respectfully memorial
! ize the General Assembly of the State and
! represent: The evils of bad government
| and burdensome taxation are as keenly felt
| by the mechanics and wOrkingmen of a
community as by any other class Of citizens.
It is impossible they should prosper when
public credit is impaired and private enter
prise destroyed. Labor. not less than cap
ital calls for confidence and profitable en-
ployment. Labor, not less than capital. is
declared employment, without the estab-
lishment of public confidence. We are not
Indifferent to the facts that our government,
both State and municipal, are greatly en-
barrassed by debts imprOvidently made
heavy and depressing burden upon the
taxpayers-a greedy absorbent OF the pro
ductive industry OF the entire State; but we
are still more keenly alive to the
Importance Of reforming the abuses of ad-
ministration, and so remodeling the laws as
to reduce expenses to the lowest just mar
gin, and to punish and prevent frauds and
REGULATIONS. Without such reduction of
expenses and remodeling OF laws the public
employments of the State and city will
continue to be sought by men who de-
sire them only tor their elnoiuments
and the opportunities they offer tor the
safe practice of those frauds and pecu-
lstions which in other men and under
other circumstances would ccnsign them
to prison walls. Such legislation would be
the beginning of true reform. 1t is fuEda-
mental to all plans for relieving the burdens
OF taxation, and without it all attempts to
limit taxation, to stay payments OF interest
or scale debts will be hyDocritical, if not
immoral. We therefore urge upon your
consideration the enactment Of laws:
l. To prevent the bribery of officials,
legislative, ministerial and judicial.
.. To place all officials on fixed salaries,
in no case to exceed the sum of $1,000 in
the case Of civil sheriffs and clerks of civil
courts. Justices of the peace and con.
stables, whose compensations are received
in fees, provision should be made for an
affective scrutiny of their accounts, and all
surplus funds paid promptly into the public
treasures. 1t is particularly urged that
all assessors and collectors Of revenues be
paid fixed salaries, allowing collectors COM
missions only on such snms as they may
collect over and above say eighty-fve per
centum of the total amount Of revenue due
~ 10 pTUNAuO AOI OUly Cuo dss6SsOE
and one collector in each parish. including
the parish of Orleans, and that assessments
shall be made only once in three years, in
the CITY of New Orleans, and only once in
FIVE wears in the Other parishes of the State;
assessors and collectors to be required to
execute their work, within limited periods
to be specified, and that they be paid &C
cordingly. Your memorlalists do not deem
it necessary to express the details of the
lac hot vrOn1H ha for
and collecting the revenues in accordance
with the suggestions.
4'Your memorialists believe that the
most equitable basis Of taxation is real
estate, with a limitation, founded on popu.
lation. No man lives without the use of
real property, and if taxation is limited to
that kind OF property (exempting none),
distributed upon all the non freeholders as
well as tho freeholders. The population of
Louisiana is reasonably estimated at
$1,000. Our plan would be to levy
tax, according to the wants of the
State, so much per capita. to be collected
exclusively from real estate. On the basis
of population named, a per capita tax Of
Sc would produce a revenue of $3,500,OO0,
an amount in excess of the real wants of
the State. An amount equal to 81 or S. per
capita is all that ought to be levied and
collected.
Your memorialists ask that an amend.
ment to the State constitution be submitted
to the voters of the State, at the earliest
practicable moment. providing that the
total taxation shall never exceed an amount
to S. per capita of the entire population, the
same to be levied and collected from real
estate exclusively.
Your memorialists are not unaware that
this proposition will meet with opposition,
but they are persuaded that the more it is
discussed the more certainly will it appear
to be Just and equitable, distributing the
burdens of government with unerring GER
tainty and eveness upon all and upon each.
not according to the amount of real prop
erty each owns, but according to the
amount and value each uses.
Now, it is certain that all use some, and |
therefore, all must pay some. The effect |
of such law would be to bring into the |
market idle property or otherwise render |
them productive. Men who own large
estates, more than they can practically |
utilize, would seek to have them utilized by |
others.
5. It was the purpose of your memorial. |
lists to ask you by act to authorize a sus- !
pension of the bonded and other indebted |
ness of the city of New Orleans for period |
of five years, in order that the city might |
be able to recuperate its PROSTATE energies. |
and thus save the people from despair; but |
we see that measures have been proposed |
to scale the interest and to suspend the |
debt in different and more modified form, |
and to consolidate and fund the same. |
We are not prepared to say that the plan |
already laid before you is not better |
measure Of relief than that which it was our |
intention to urge. But we are prepared to |
say that, in our opinion, one or the other
of these propositions must be speedily |
adopted if the Legislature would save the |
city of New Orleans from the most injuri |
nus rasnIts