Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-10-07
"a BUSINESS MANS VIEWS


Delinquent Tarpayers B,o,.ght to Time by
the Purchase of Tae Titles.
To the Editor of the Globe
ST. PAUL, Oct. 6, 1851 extract the
following from the St. Paul Dispatch of
October 4th:
Capitalists should put it down in their little books
thirteen mills the dollar. Where is the Western
city that has like showing?
And the following from its issue of last
evening, the 9Th inst:
"a SAMPLE FINANcrER.
In its report of the meeting on Thursday
evening to organize a Donnellv club, the
GLOBE, under the lead of "A Business Mans
Views, gives the following statement of one of
the speeches:
Mr.. Ansel oppenheim being called out said he
| could only talk from business standpoint, and in
this connection stated these propositions desirable:
First-The repeal of the resumption act.
Second-The entire reconciliation of silver.
Third--Legislation to curb the extension of the
vast corporations.
Forrth-The repeal of the national bank system.
Upon these few subjectathe gentleman enlarged,
and met the high approval Of his audience. The
speaker referred to the depressed condition of bust
| ness how everybody was mortgaged, and that debt
contracted years ago required double the amount to
pay it This brought about by the false leg
islation of the Republican party. Out of this des-
pairing state of aft airs need the help of such
as Ignatius Donnely. Applause The speaker
closed by saying he knew he would be elected. Ap-
| plauseJ
''The GLOBE will be astonished to learn that
| this model business man. is engaged in the
laudable business" of buying up tax titles of
| the property of the poor people of St. Paul
| and squeezing blood money out of them at "a
| per cent, hnally confscating their property, if
| they let the matter run an hour beyond the
| time for redemption. We have no doubt he
hos %la{ tlo4 e
widows and orphans-we propose to investigate
| that point, and report. At any rate he'G a
| pretty bird to talk about finance. He can
| sit down."
Business is business with me- if it is con-
| Quoted honorably and while / do not care
flip" for the last above article personally
am unwilling that my individual transactions
| should be made the text for an attack uron
| political organization, which promises to be
useful in aiding to secure this Congressional
district, and place in Congress a man of the
! people.
The masses of the people appear to be aroused
| upon political topics and their interests being
identical with those f all classes who labor with
either head hand, all classes are combining
against sheer capital, which tolls MT neither
does it spin.''
| The boast contained in the first extract
quoted is justified; and is true, with the ex-
ception of the city of Detroit, Michigan. Why
| is it true2 The great reduction in city taxes is
owing in part 30 the iudicinus and economical
administration of the city government.
| 1t is, however, due in much greater degree
| to the act of 1874.
Prior to that enactment the city taxes were
about twenty-five mills, or, in other words
about double the present rate of taxation. The
| principal cause of these extravagant taxes was
| the large accumulations of delinquent taxes
! 70
| large property owners.
Poor Deop'e, men in moderate circumstances
| widows and orphans etc., pay their taxes
I promptly.
| Non-resdents trusting to what has formerly
| been the notorious laxity of tax laws in West
ern States, neglected the payment of their
taxes, and in the end com promised with the
| government for trifing per centages of the
| actual tax.
| The same thing was notably true in this
| city with the large property owners.
| could readily furnish statistics to prove
| that hundreds of thousands of dollars have
been lost to the revenue from the nonresident
non-taxpayers and the delinquent home
patriots.
| The result of this was that taxes were thrown
back by reassessments from year to year upon
the poorer classes, who, being universally the
larger, of necessity shouldered the heaviest bur
| dens of the government.
The operation of this law has been to bring
capital ito time;' to force upon it the necessity
| OF sharing taxation equally with the masses of
the people.
This, although in miniature. is one feature of
the warfare now being made by the people all
over this Union against the minlons of power
ana the pampert pets of legislation.
| 30 1ar as relates to the morality of the bust
ness referred to, am content to follow the ex-
ample of the late Gerrit Smith, conspicuously
the purest philanthropist of this country
| 1lS COLOSSAL fortune made nv tax titles.
II 1t be reprehensib!e to aid in compelling the
rich to par their taxes as well as the poor I'M
der existing tax laws. at least portion of the
blame should be devolved upon the distin-
guished jurist, and gentlemen who drafted. and
the legislature which enacted the supposed OBJ
| noxious laws.
have written more than was in.
tended, and conclude by repeating that
/ with me business is business and
SO long az l can command the means
shall continue to contribute my quota to re-
duce taxes: meanwhile challenging the promised
Il mn fko &c <Lo