The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1877-10-06
To The Editor of tie Pacific Commercial Advertiser .

To The Editor Of the Pacific Commercial advertiser {:
SIR: In other countries, it is the practice
to publish official lists Of the taxable property in
the state, and the rates of taxation levied there
upon. The advantages of this system are obvious
the taxpayer is then presented before the public
for what he is really worth, and all dishonest at
tempts are defeated on the part of individuals who
try to secure a fctitions credit, as the owners OF
property which they really do not possess, 1t can
harm no one, who is honest and upright in his
dealings, to have it set forth in an Official lists what
is the exact amount OF taxable property placed
against his name; only the cheat, the swindler and
the theft can be affected by such q procedure.
Robbers who prey upon the public credulity by an
affectation Of wealth which obtains for them a
credit highly dangerous to the best interests Of the
community, alone find in such a system a motive
for raising an cutlery. In Great Britain, the monied
man pays his income tax, and the exact amount
of his wealth may be at once calculated. The
possessor Of other taxable property Of whatever
nature il may be, has his name registered, and the
precise sum which he pays for taxes formally stated
in official lists of rate-payers, so that his credit
can be ascertained without difficulty. Indeed,
I believe that it would be impossible for any large
mercantile community TO continue for any length
of time in a normal condition, If the publicity
given to the rates Of taxable property and amounts
paid in taxes by each rate payer did not act as q
safeguard against dishonest efforts of fictitious
credit. In our Hawaiian mercantile community,
heretofore there has been q want Of publicity which is
very perilous to credit. The tax-gatherer is made the
depository of the taxable community. No official
lists are publshed OF the amount OF taxes paid by
each individual Of the community. An air Of
mystery envelops the entitle business. Here a man
may go into business with no capital at all I;
be succeeds in imposing upon public creduilty by
an afectation of wealth; he secures q fictitious
credit, and after a longer or shorter caseer Of fraud
and swindling he goes down to the court as an in
solvent, causing loss and ruin TO others also yet,
perhaps to the very day that the craGh becomes motor
ious, he has succeeded in deluding the cleverest
business men into the belief that his credit was
unimpeachable. Now, it is evident that, if an
official published list existed somewhere, in which
this swindler's name had been set down in front
of the property for which he paid taxes, the public
could never have been SO completely gulled, and
defrauded by his dishonest pretensions to solvent
credit. / consider that this question merits some
attention, and believe that the eystem in force
elsewhere of publishing official lists Of taxable
property, and the amount of taxation levied thereon
against the name of its owner might be found to be
@ decided improvement upon our present system
of secrecy and mystery, so dangerous to the
healthy condition Of mercantile credit. x