Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1875-10-09
THE EVIL OF THE TIMES.

Governor Tilden, of New York, in his
recent speech to the farmers at the New
York Central Fair, at Utica, called tax
alton the evil of the times, He pro-
ceeded in the course Of his address to
make some startling statements, which
cannot fail to arouse the attention oil the
American people, and referred again to
the statement made by him in his mes
sage to the Legislature last winter, that
the people of this country had paid in
taxes for the ten years following the war,
800, 900, 900 a year or $7,OOO,O 600 600 in
the aggregate. This sum he told his hear
ers was altogether too large a proportion
of the little all which they can earn to be
appropriated. he reminded them that
the whole national debt is only the
amount of three years taxation. Within
the last forty years, said Governor Til
den, the country has constructed 10000
miles of railroad. The nominal amount
of the stock and bonds of these roads
may be nearly 81. 200, OOO,O 600. In a
word, what it cost to build these 10000
miles of railroad, in a period of forty
years, is covered by the taxes to the
country for a little less than three years
and a halt. He illustrates the case in
still another way. Thus: While we
boast as a people, aud justly, that we are
the greatest gold and silver producing
nation on the globe, and that we export
grain, provisions, cheese, petroleum, to-
bacco, and especially cotton for the
worlds necessities-the cotton crop of
itself yielding from 5000, 900, 900 to
$3.50, 900, 900 to foreign experts-after we
have raked and scrsped the continent
from the Lakes to the Gulf and from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, and sent these
products to the seaboard at a cost equal
to that Of raising them, we have done no
more than paid ten months taxes.
1t may be remembered that Governor
Tilden predicted seven years ago that
while this rate Of taxation could be
borne SO long as values Of all kinds we're
swelling "out of the froth of apparent
and i~llusory wealth" as soon as prices
settled again to their normal condition,
as they were certain to do, it would con-
sumo not merely the earnings and the
incomes of the people, but it would eat
into their capital itself. he now claims
with great force that the time Of its full
fllmeut is at length come and is upon
the people. mo human continuance"
said he, mo act Of the government, can
prevent the reaction that has grown out
of a fictitious condition of values. When
it disappears and prices recede then
there settles around you like a dark
cloud this weight Of taxation which you
should have foreseen and avoided years
ago." He warned the people that il
they would repress and retrench these
evils they must join in a determination
to be represented in the government by
none but honest and capable men. The
system of government, said he, cannot
be preserved unless you purify admins
tration and purify legislation. The act
Of stealing money is not the whole o.
corruption; it is the sapping Of public
virtue and public morality, until finally
popular government ceases to exist, al
republics have heretofore decayed in the
history of the world from general de
moralization and corruption. These are
startling words, and should arouse the
people to a sense of their danger. NJ
man in the country is better posted thar
Governor Tildeni no one more fearless
and bold as q reformer.
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