The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1875-03-09
'MoxraoMrRY, Maroh 8:4Ths recent

6t0So8 6onAt0 Oy 0peuCHr WAS printed
In tho Adcertiser. this morning. end
denounced for its staten ents. Harris,
q white Republican Senator, rose ia
his seat on question Of privilege.
Hs denounced the memorial, aud said
he never signed it and had never seen
1t until this morning. He said he
voted for nearly all the laws which the
memorial denounce.. and concluded
by the statement TINT his name was
forged. Royal, a ooiored Senator,
said J. B. Bigham brought paper to
him and asked his signature. He did
not read it, but understood the paper
to be petition to make Arthur Big.
ham postmaster Of Montgomery. Ho
said he would never have signed the
memorial kuowipgly. Another negro
Senator said he thought he was sign
ing u protest against Parsons appoint.
ment 10 United States Judgeship.
Several uth.r Republican Senators re-
pudiated all knowledge Of it. and one
OF them. q negro, said he had voted
for the bills which the memorial CON-
planned of. The Senate appointed u
committee &c al,a ous Who wsre the
guilty parties in practicing this fraud
upon the country,
The Houss of Representatives, by a
unanimous vote. expelled negro
member named Gaskln for proposing
to do certain thugs in his legislative
capacity for $500 The committee
consisted Of three Democrats aud one
white and Que colored Republican,
and reported unanimons that he Was
guilty.
The Committee on the Judiciary of
| the Senate, to whom WAS referred the
petition OF the oitizens OF DeSuto
County. Mississippi, praying the ro-
turn of taxes assessed aud collected on
cotton for the years 1865. 1866. 1867,
1868 and 1869, say IN their report:
The petition of the citizens OF DsSoto
County. Miss, asks tho return Of the
tax on cotton for tho years 1865 to
1869. inclusive. on the grounds that
the tax was unjust aud oppressive, aud
because it was unconstitutional. The
Government of tho United States has
been obliged to raise large amount
by taxation to defray the expenses of
the recent war. The property and In-
dnstrles at the North have been Ieuv, y
taxed, and as cotton constitute Il the
principal wealth of the South, the
com mitteo seq no reason why tax
upon it should be considered unjust or
oppressive. The cotton tax has been
claimed to be unconstitutional for the
following reasons: Firs,-Because it is
equivalent to a direct tax. aud ia not
laid according to the population. When
the Constitution was framed. the larger
States were careful to providu that IL
direct tax should be according to po-
pulation. for fear that tax upon land
by the acre might impose large and
unequal burdens upon them. Hence,
the Constitution, Article I, Section 2,
provides that direct taxes shall be ap.
portioned among the several States ac.
cording to an enumeration made every
ten years. But the cutton tux is not
direct or u land tax; it is tax on the
productions of land; it ia an excise on
cotton severed from the land in bale.
aud by the pound. Second-rhe tax
is claimed to be unconstitutional be-
cause it is not uniform. The 9th SEQ
ton OF Article I provides that all ex-
cises shall be uniform throughout the
Unitad States. This tax is uniform.
1t is the same. whether the cotton be
in Maine or in Louisiana. The fact
that cotton ia gyoVntAt the South, and
not at the NQSth, ,OgeAtes no want OF uni.
formity ep1 mora tliani The fact that mu-
nufaosuEef5Gze found at the North more
than at &ho Spash, EGnders tex Oh the
products Se the Northern mechanic
partial and 1ooas. Any one can raise
cotton. and, A6a matter OF fact, North.
ern oapitaliahe i4sestAd In, its psoduc-
tion. The-eAoifs jsaaiform. Third
1t is said tha tax is Unconstitutional u al
because it is d tSx on exports. The 9th
Section QsssAstielo provides that no
tax or ddsy ysshn1l he laid on articles ex-
ported from, aDy State. !. The fact that
any article may Be- d. is largely ex
ported, does not make the article an
exported article. Thia Is simply a tax
on cotton. The object or the Consti,
tuition was to prohibit o tax on expdr.
tasioh. and this tax ls not that. Tie
committee, therefore. recommend that
the petition be not allowed. a'G' ,.,
Until within few days the plan Of
arbisfatihy Louisiana affairs. so far as
tho dom mittee we're conoerned, was
not positively fixed. It may how be
stated that the case will be considered
by the whole committee, and that they
will commence work az soon;as papers
coming from New Orleans reach them,
probably as early as "Wednesday or
Thursday OF next week.s The propri.
ekv OF an extra SaeshioH9t6p Aha Toni.