Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-03-02
opposed by thinking men. From the first,
large part of its friends have been made
under the impression that it would become
popular and advance their political fortunes.

| IRE I've Still IN the Days ofFeudGlisme
To the Editor of the The GLOBE:
EDEN PRAIRIE, Mimi, Feb. %, 1885,
From time to time articles relative to the
iron-clad tax law, have appeared in the
Pionee,. Peess, but TIE GLOBE, with the ex-
ception of brief communication in its col
umns week or so since, has little or moth
ing to say upon the subject. Myself and
others would like to hear from it.
The Senate has already re-enacted the
| notorious statute, and it is feared by some
that the House may follow suit; but I, out
of many thousands, hope not
This iron-clad remnant of the days of
feudalism is the offspring of Mr.. Mealy, of
Wright county, who, under the pretext of
patriotism, has made it his hobby, laboring
under the delusion doubtless that it affects
the rich as well as the poor. Mr.. Ms view
| is that of scores of shylocks who infest this
region, seeking like vuftures, whom they can
to prey upon, but it is not correct. neither
is 1t honest. 1t is in great favor-this idea
of making the poor as well as the rich and
the rich as well as the poor pay their taxes
promptly-with that class of folks who are
ever ready to take usurious interest and
speculate upon the necessities of the needy;
and any law which permits them to do SO is
always in high favor. But
Is il right, is it honest, is it honorable on
the part of our legislators to make any law
that works to the injury of one class and the
benefit of another? Is it patriotic in them
to pass law to take away from, to rob, to
steal, to defraud, to swindle poor man out
of6 low e, of no 4,1 l.;
is due he is unable to meet it?
Looking at the passage of this iron-clad
law in the Senate it strikes me the State of
Minnesota is going back on herself. She
passes laws for the relief of grasshopper
S lfferers, furnishes seed wheat to the needy
and all that sort of thing; makes stay laws,
interest laws, prescribing penalties for tax
ing an usurious per centage, &C., &C., and,
yet, when she herself is creditor, when
any one of her citizens owes her penny,
she stands ready, Through such illiberal
men as Mr.. Mealy,) to go right home for
them, shylocks-ike demanding her pound
of flesh, because it's in the bond! In other
words, the State is at one time an angel of
mercy at another a demon of destruction.
There are here many persons who own
large quantities Of unproductive land, land
that cannot be sold just now at any figure,
nor will capitalists loan money upon them
no matter what rate of interest is offered
and these landholders are, in one sense, the
poorest of our poor; because their tax bills
come along regularly and that which is taxed
produces no return; nor will any bank or
money lender help them the old song-''we
cannot loan money on unproductive prop
erty''-being sung in their ears whenever an
application to hire money is made.
Some of the results brought about by the
old iron-clad law are becoming visible
throughout various portions of the State
up in Stearns county, for instance, where an
Industrious father of family has recently
been ordered off land which cost him thou
sands by an iron-clad tax-title owner who
bought the property from the State for a
his kind, and Mr.. Mealy and his friends
should hunt them up, because they are the
aeauties of the statute in question. There is
t way to right this evil of non-payment of
axes, and in my opinion, this is it: Let the
Legislature pass a law allowing five years re-
demption upon all lands heretofore and
hereafter to be sold for taxes, fixing the rate
Of interest at 10 instead of "a per cent. At
the end of the five years we shall doubtless
be over the hard times, and then these many
thousands of acres which are now owned by
our land-poor men can be sold and the tax
on them paid off. No doubt the greater
portion of the tax will be paid off before
half the five years have expired, because the
commonwealth iberality will give courage
to those who owe her.
In the early days Of the State-twenty OF
more years ago-when the tax law was made,
the penalty Of "a per cent. was put down be-
cause the usual rate of money lenders at that
time was from two to three per cent. a
month; but it is different with us to-day,
for money can be had in abundance Oh good
security at 10 per cent. per annum. There
is now, therefore, no reason why q per cent
interest should be charged. Looking the
thing squarely in the face and remembering
that Minnesota has law inhicting pains and
penalties on those lenders of money who
charge over II per cent. is it not piece of
fraud, a swindle, downright steal for the
State herself thus to e1to1t from the people a
rate of interest unexampled anywhere under
Gods sun, not even among the Turks OF
Hottentots? Afguring up of the extra OF
iNegn1 interest thus paid the State will show
it to be several millions of dollars! How
can we prosper with such a wholesale rob-
berry of her own people in the past and q
continuance of in the future?
Yours respectfully, EDWARD MORRIS.