The Lamoille news. (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1877-1881, 1878-07-10

not rowing against the tide, the stric-
test caution and economy should be
demanded Of legislators as well As all
other public officials. But the great
injustice to the poor tax payer and the
land holder, in the way our grand list
is now made up and taxes apportioned
among the people, especially calls for
additional legislation, and we should
knowingly send no man to represent
us in either branch of the Legislature
whatever his other qualifications
NAV be-who will not honestly and
faithfully take all honorable measures
to bring about a reform in this respect.
There is no justice in polls and real
estate being made to bear the proper
ton of taxation now imposed. There
is no justice in compelling a farmer
owning a farm worth only a few thou
sand dollars and more especially that
class who are weighed down with mort
cages to stand a large list and pay
annually more taxes than his more for
tunate neighbor who has his tens of
thousands at interest at q per cent.
several times greater than the farmer
can realize from the income of his farm
and labor combined. There is no JUS
tice in allowing men of great money
ed wealth to locate or remain only in
such towns as they can bargain with
to assess them at op!v a small fraction
ofwhat they really on ht to be assessed
at. If there are men who are not will
ling to bear their fair and proportion
ate share of taxes, let us have more
effectual laws on that matter; laws
that will secure to us more fully some
of the constitutional rights named in
article nine of our State Constitution.
In many of our towns the annual per-
centage amounts to several dollars on
each dollar of the grand list, making
some five or six dollars poll tax to pay,
which, on the part of a great many,
requires great effort and sacrifice to
meet. Farmers, too, have to pay con-
siderable of the cream of their prof
its for taxes, and yet many men who
aspire to a seat in our halls of legisla-
ton, yes, and many who get there,
especially from our large towns and
moneyed centres, hold to the theory
that polls and real estate should bear
all the burden of taxation, and such
men will of course oppose any at
tempt ut reform in this matter, and, if
we do not awake to action, we are liza
BILE to become worse off in this respect
than we are now.
With business profits no better than
before the war, and yet our taxes up
to war prices, | believe it to be our
duty not only to diminish them as fast
as practicable, but as equally as pos
sible divide them among those consti-
tutionally required to contribute to-
wards the support of the government
according to their individual or cor
porate ability to pay. Those who
know that | am one of that number
who have in these later days become
what is properly termed land poor,
may claim that | I'm selishly interest
ed as a tax payer in this matter. Yes.
| am, for l am with my agricultural
brethren getting tired of paying, {
/, large share, or any share of oul
neighbors' taxes in addition to such
taxes as we ought as loyal mem.
bers of civilized society, to cheerfully
pay. Surely if there is one class
: above another who can afford to pay
i their full share, it is that class who's,
property is chiefly in money drawers
and note rolls, as the purchasing val.
lie of that kind ofproperty has of late
largely increased while nearly all 9th.
er property has largely deprecated il
! value. Again there is altogether toe
: much property exempt from taxation
by law, and exemption from taxation
! should be very limited and in favor O
the poor class. Asth safety Of ourper
sons, the protection of our property
' our educational interests, and in fac
: all the rights and privileges we enjo,
above heathenism are dependent up
on wise and humane legal enact
ments properly enforced and obeyed
s it is very plain that each member O
society should pay the costs Of sucl
rights and privileges according to tn
amount of property he has to be pro
tected. If this wers done we shout,
see a wonderful change in our grant
8 list and tax bills. Fellow citizens an,
6 tax payers, in the selection of mem