The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-01-28
Tie Ultimate Recovery Of the Cotton Tax

In his late Message to the Legislature of
Tennessee, Gov. Brown says this in behalf of
the ultimate recovery of the Cotton Tax:
I beg to renew the information and recon-
mendations contained in my message to the
thirty-eighth general assembly. -
The thirty-sevehth general assembly adopted
q series ofresolutions ilistructing our senators
and requesting our representatives In congress
to introduce and support such measures, during
their next session, as would cause: to be, refun-
ded, without deiay, to the people of the cotton
growing States, the tax imposed and collected
upon cotton for,the years 1865, 1866. and, 1857.
A bill for that purpose has passed two readings
in the house of representatives and is now be-
fore the committee on ways and means. The
second section ofithe bill provides, among 9TH
er things "that the secretary of the treasury of
the United States, when said bonds shall have
been authenticated as aforesaid, shall be au-
thorized, and he is hereby required and direct
ed to turn over and deliver to the several gov
ernors, or other authorized agents of the sever
al States and Territories herein mentioned,
bonds equaling in amount the amounts claimed
by the United States from tax on the cotton in
the several States-to be held by said States to
be refunded and distributed to the parties who
actually paid said tar, either in full or in part,
pro rata, as circumstances may require, or 9th
erwise to be disposed of as the several legisla-
lures may direct by law, if it shall be found
impracticable to refund or distribute said sew
eral amounts as aforesaid among the parties
who actually paid said tax, with authority
to the secretary of the treasury to use currency
to pay fractions Of S100 in all settlements with
said States"
1t is well known that the farmer seldom paid
the tax directly to the government agent He
generally sold his crop to the cotton buyers at
the market price, less the cotton tax, the cotton
buyer retaining the amount of the cotton tax
out of the market value of the cotton to pay
the revenue officers. .,,....
Then, who lost the amount of tax? Ger
tainly the producer-the farmer. And it was
upon him, and not upon the factor. or buyer,
that the tax operated as burden.
You will doubtless concur with me, then,
that the tax should be refunded to the pro-
ducers. .'..1 .- M; o. -.
I therefore recommend that you instruct our
Senators and request our Representatives in
Congress to procure, if possible, such an
amendment to the bill as will secure the re-
funding of the tax to the producer, at least so
far as Tennessee is concerned. That will re-
move all doubt as to the construction of the
language "actually paid" and place the rights
of the producer beyond hazard: '4-
suggest that you further instruct your SEN
ators and request your Representatives, if it is
found impossible to secure the repayment of
this unjust, iniquitous, odious and unconstitu.
tional cotton tax to producers, that it be paid
to the States respectively whose lsborers paid
the tax, to be held, as school fund, OR applied
to the extinguishment of their debts.