Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1875-04-02

facts to show that we do not , -iers TO these
cash value of such machine ~. low ,s T Via ans
Will suggest one little IN regard 70 whlch
an up stairs room I'm. we Keep ia
complete deseripti' OF one !pe eiI,,io L.
ting twenty me- nat roOm-capable OF put
of LAWYERS DR. al TO work on to get ont briefs
and such H. dctisine I'm the Supreme Court,
The mate -ings as are wanted very rapidly.
In The rial runs two months i'm a year.
four cong seasons, of course il would run
is Months I'm year. The key OF the room
n, turned. II we have To payIS per cent.
-pon the total value of the stock. we hal
better throw IL away or sell IL at ten cents a
merely keep il for the convenience OF those
lawyers who come here with a view of prac-
ticing In the Supreme Court, and want briefs
and other papers gotten up speedily. 1t
really cripples our business. All we ma xe ia
the product of the labor, just precisely the
same as the workman VINO works upon the
road: y printers capital is his brains; not
much else. All that he uses-the tools he
uses TO make those tools productive under
this bill-we are taxed for.
Remarks by MI. W. q. Netzerott.
MT MetZerott.-I should like 20 m IA one
single point have understood that this law
Is in effect in Ohio. and since IL is effective
IN ohio. 1t has been said that it might be
made effective here, but 1 am not of this
opinion. We are lying here on the border of
Two StateS-N1rginia and Maryland. Under
the law, any citizen Of those states who PAYS
u TAX IN those states, is naturally exempted
IN the District from any taxation whatever
Now I have a little farm out here. ab1nt
eight miles out of the city, where my family
reside Tor about eight months il toe year,
ard perhaps longer. L 90 there almost every
day-gOing out in the evening and returning
in the morning. All have To 10 under the
clTcumS stances il To goodwin to Marlboro and
tell the assessor there that am worth a Ger
tain sum of money. and that / have a certain
amount of stock in my establishments, anI
ask him TO assess me. In the state of Maryla
IL is left entirely with the assessor. He can
assess you whatever he sees proper; the per-
sonal tax being only one-fifth OF one per cent.
He will probably saw to me. ssWell if Won
are worth so much | will tax halC Of what
you say you possess He gives me a recent
and come back to- Washington, and when
receipt got from the assessor in Maryland.
and say am citizen of Maryland; that /
am assessed in that state, and pay taxes
there on what have here, and it Will be inn
possible, IN that case, for the authorities
here To collect any tax from me. Now. what
can do ten thousand others can do if they
want TO. They have the same privilege.
Whilst. Of course, | would not avail myself
of a privilege of that kind as long as nv fei-
low citizens suffered under the taxation
here only instance this to show the Com
MiS>iOneTS that in this city the tax can be
evaded IN this particular way.
Remarks by Nr. John HI. SeEimeS.
MI Sen1IneS.-NIth regard to taxing the
stock on hand, would like to say wOrI.
would like to ask You, sir. with regard to
your schedule. | think in one respect il il
very much at fault. l go to the city of Bait
imoTc, or New York. purchase n stock of
gOOdS-Say so .OCO worth for which ! Issue
my paper. You tax that as my personal eff
ftctS. i was deferred three days ago from
making purchase on account Of this very
law. did not expect To make over one a
half Per cent. on the goods III / hal bought
them, and / Thought 10 would he useless to
b. euCUmherin" Inyself with u lOt of goo -
WREN could not make over one and a half
per cent, and would have 10 pay q tax
OF just That amount. Every merchant doing
business owes more or less money. SupIO,e
II would be difficult 10 find one in Washing
ton who does not. ana | contend if have
goods IN my possession, tor which I owe
they are not mine. If anything happens to
me. then those goods belong To my creditors.
ami therefore they are not mine, ana ought
rot be taxed. 1t il impossible, / think. to
tax man for what lie does not possess or
what ne does not own. / possess the gooiS,
but somebody else holds the paper. II Is not
a rare occurrence for man 10 buy goods
with view OF diSpOsIng of them within the
next 90 or 90 days. Our stock might Oh the
lSt of April, be double what il might be at
any other season OF the year, so that L con-
NEVER INTENDED TO TAX FLOATING MER-
CHASDISE.
! observed from the record in examining this
thing. that they could not have so intended;
that The most that was supposed was that
The personality OF this District was from
ell,G0o,cOo To sij,O00.0Co. That includes stocks,
bonds, mortgages. furniture, carriages and
horses. and everything OF that kind. There
are more groceries in Washington than would
amount TO Sl2o00,O00 or S15,0O0O00. suppose
the stock OF the grocerS in this city today.
take every store in the town, would almost
yield S1OO,0Jo at one and half per cent. IL
You tax the stock on .nd, certainly We
should be entitled 10 or .iij upon VIVA. We
owe on the stock, not " .i.tJ is on our books.
We may have $1,000 O car books. and owe
Soo,COu. We get credit ;,'T the $1,000 and vet
have tn pay q tax o. "a stock OF u-rhanS
~i0,tCO. With regard to taxing q mans debts
or what is owing 10 him. / can cite an in
stance where within the last ten days a mans
accounts were supposed to be worth "a nun
dred cents ON the dollar. ! had converse
ton with gentleman about this person
Within the last ten days. / asked him what
he would take for this mans accounts. He
Sald '-ifty cents on - dollar / wouldn't
give him p cents on dollar for il. IL Ger
taiuly never could have been the intention
81 Congress 10 tax our stock on hand, AMI at
TIE same time charge q license To do bust
ness. That is taxing double. We pay II on
8 Thousand now To do business. Our stock
Is estimated i'm the fall of the year by
an average amount OF stock that we have.
the assessor comes to my store and wants
me 10 give him a schedule of my stock. |
must 60 to work and make an Inventory of
everything in IL. Who is To assess il he or
j? make the schedule, he must do the assess
II e. IL seems TO me that Congress never in
tended anything but a personal tax. such as
We nave been in the habit OF paying here,
tCsether with bonds and mortgages. which
bonds and mortgages when taxed must be de
Quoted from the real estate which they
J present. i say now that was deferred;
/ was impOrtUned on Monday - buy Ger
tain goods which should have bought but [
SAID, NO. / cannot buy goods and pay one
ard half per cent upon them unless / am
. OlnS TO realize something out OF them. and
besides, take all the risk Of buying and sell
ing on credit. Congress never intended any,
Thing OF That kind. There is no occasion for
taxing bonds and mortgages If they are not
Credited against the property. We are here
Tor The purpose OF trying to prevent Iitiga-
ton on this subject. We are satisfied il the
placed upon the law is adhered
u that there are large number o. men who
VIII undertake to
CONTEST 1T IN TIE COURTS.
For the purpose. OF advOiding that we held
th.> meeting in order to have some definite
action. We have not come here for the pur-
pSe OF using threats. 81 anythin. of that
KIND, but simply for the purpose OF seeing il
we could not have the schedule modified in
nrjer tOpreyent litigation, AS il stands now
mat = sure a. follow.
MI. GlVen.-If there rs no other gentlemen
who wishes to address the commissioners /
would say lii behalf OF the committee, as its
chairman, gentlemen, that tender YOU our
lhanks Tor our very cordial reception and
IOf the very patient manner with which Won
nave listened 10 the suggestions which have
been thrown out We trust that Won will
take them into serious and careful cOnSider;a-
ton, and that the objects OF this very pleas
ant interview, as far as the cOmmitte Il con-
cerned. and doubtless so with the Commits
,ioners, may be fruitful of the most happy
hax