The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1875-03-18

AT least ~ per cent. OF this amount
is paid by the industrious classes.
That the use of whiskey and tobacco
is often abused signifies nothing. The
important thing is that far too large a
proportion of the workingman's daily
wages goes to pay the tax on whisky,
lager beer and tobacco, and that the
Government gets far too little of the
money which is eXforted from him
under cover of the tax on these arti-
cles. Sugar, from which the Govern
ment last year derived revenue OF
nearly S35.000,000 and from which,
under the new tax bill, it will derive
q revenue of over $42.OO0,000 at d
heavily increased cost to the consumer,
is a luxury of universal use and is even
more indispensable to the family of
the working man than tobacco and
beer are to him. Cheap cotton and
wooden goods, on which a heavy tax
must be paid to tic government and q
far heavier tax TO monopolist pro-
ducers of these articles, are almost
wholly used by the people who must
go comfortably or scaniily clad accord
ing as the price OF cloth is high or
low. iAnd so with breadstutfs, drugs
for the sick and other articles of abse-
ulatioI. The labor OF the country is
overtaXcd not TO promote the indus
trial prosperity OF the country but To
benefit the few IN onopolists who as
sumo to represent its industry. OF
the S90,0O,00o of customs and inter
nal revenue taxes not represented in
the above table, the laboring man must
pay the greater amount for the use OF
crockery, glassw ware, imported spirits,
and ale, if he uses these; soap, starch,
fancy goods, cheap mixed silk goods,
leather goods aud numberless minor
articles, all of which the government
taxes heavily. Without Knowing the
cause of hard times the working -man
feels their pinch. He is taxed in r
roundabout way at least two dollars
where the '.pauper" labcrer of Eng
land is taxed but one dollar. The Eng
iish hl;tboring:man is taxed only in the
use OF tea, coffee, spirits and tobacco
while his American cousin must pay
taxes on everything he or his family
use c:pt tea and coffee, which
Radical Congress has refused to tax
only to he .nd that it might have an
excuse 10 tax him the more heavily on
other articles of necessity. But the
worst OF this system is that th' amounts
paid tothe Government 30 not nearly
represent the whole nor the half of the
taxes paid by the people. For every
dollar That is paid by the paople to
the Government by reason OF the tax
on cotton and wooden goods, for in
stance, at least ten dollars is paid to
monopOlist manufacturers of these ar
ticles who, with their fellows in other
branches of production, claim to rep
resent all that is worth fostering in
American industry. Their claims have
been only too freely and fully allowed
by the PARTY. which yesterday surren-
dere3 controi OF Congress. The con-
diiion in which they leave the country
is a serious one. Democrats who are
elected to the Forty-fourth Congress
cannot too soon set about the earnest
study of ;lle pyoblem whial, they are
called upon TO solve in removing the
evils and the abuses bequeathed them
for removal. That problem is to dis
tribute the burdens Of taxation more
fairly, and under the saving principles
of Hard Money and Free Trade, cause
them to rest more lightly on all class
es than they now rest Oh any class un-
der the pernicious enactments of a
party wedded TO fiscal and financial
theories which belong to past ages OF
barbarism or Of blind popular delu-
sion rather than to the latter halt of
thisilusty nineteenth century.