Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1878-05-03
TAXATION.

state; also, u may be Tor corporation,
district or other purposes. | don't ex.
pect TO advance any new or original
ideas upon this subject in the present
essay, because it has been often dis.
cussed by the oldest minds Of the age.
aad it has been remarked that taxation
is the most difficult part of government
However, l shall attempt to point out q
few Of the evils we have here at home in
our own State of Tennessee. Taxation
is of very ancient origin, and was probs.
bly, in existence at a date more remote
than any Of which we have an historical
record. The e%arlisst rulers resorted TO
almost all kinds of devices for raising
revenue-such as fines, coniscations of
property, etc.-often practicing the most
cruel extortions. The Jews had some
thing Of a regular system and were
very heavily taxed. chiefly for the
support of the Levites and the
service OF the tsbernacles, and it is
said that taxation during the reign of
King Solomon was so heavy, being
caused by the building of the temple and
the expense of his magnificent court,
that the revolt Of the ten tribes at the
beginning of the reign of bis son was
mainly caused by these expressions.
During the time the old feudal system
prevailed there was no system of taxa.
ton. The kings lived mainly upon the
produce of their lands, and the great
lords upon their v~assals, and in time of
war the lords were required to furnish
the king with a certain number Of armed
men, and also to maintain them. The
nrst trial Of the present system of taxa.
ton seems to have been made during the
middle ages by the Republic of Venice,
which levied taxes upon lands and also
a duty upon manufactures and imports,
from which large revenues are said to
have been derived.
Taxation is of two kinds, direct and
indirect, the first being in the shape of a
tax upon the valuation of property or
upon persons, and the latter being in the
shape Of q duty upon manufactures aud
imports; 1t is also considered 10 be the
most extensive in its r~amifcations, be.
cause when a duty is put upon an article
the manufacturer or importer adds il to
his selling price, and it is eventually paid
by the consumer.
1t has generally been thought ft and
proper by the various governments to
exempt the produce of the soil from tax
alton, and oy this government the man.
afsctuTe OF the most articles Is free from
taxation, or, at the most, a small stamp
duty is offered, aud yet the government
has selected one or two articles which
are extremely heavy on our State. l re-
Ter TO the tax on tobacco and distilled
liquors, Tennessee being the third State
in rank as regards the culture,of tobacco.
| have collected the statistics for the
year 1875, and during that year Tenueq
see raised %, 1884, 900 pounds Of tobacco,
upon which the general government col
lected the sum of sixteen cents per
pound, making the sum of $500, 600,
nearly three times as great as the value
Of the crop. This sixteen cents is the
duty on manufactured tobacco, but prae.
tically there is no other duty paid. The
government, in its inscrutible wisdom,
has decided that the taking of a few of
the natural leaves of the plant, pulling
out The stems and twisting the leaves to-
gether is manufacturing, and that the
twist must be stamped by the inspector
IL has also levied the tax of five hundred
dollars, and fifty cents q pound upon all
tobacco sold-upon any person selling
the natural leaf at retail-whieh looks
as if they wished TO protect the big man.
ufsctories, and crowd the poor old dark
les, who used to peddle their little crop,
out of the market.
1t may be urged against my position
that we here in Tennessee, pay nothing
of this money except for what we COZ
sumo of tobacco or whisky, which may
all be true, but we lose a great deal, and
| will endeavor to show how. Before the
ate civil wal the United States furnished
the largest portion of the tobacco ship.
ped abroad and sold in European mark
cts, and the States which raised it as a
staple were consequently prosperous;
yet now the manufacture is taxed and
we cannot compete with other tobacco
growing countries in these markets,
what, with the import duty there and our
duty here, and have consequently lost
our advantage aud the culture has Ian.
guished.
How long do you suppose New Eng
land could compete with old England in
her cotton manufactures if she had to
pay a tax upon every yard m~anufactur
ed, or Texas if she had to pay a tax on
every pound OF her beef. l say take off
the tax on tabacco manufacturing and
you will see the demand for it increase.
30 that Tennessee will probably raise
treble the quantity raised in 1851
| think our representatives in
might do equally as much good By a
little effort in this direction as by SO
much discussion of politics. of the
internal revenue taxes collected by the
United States government in 1875. taxes
on distilled liquors we're S52 O8l. 99l IL;
on fermented liquors, 50, I4l, 39l &C; on
tobacco, $31 500, $40 06, and other or.
tieles about $ll, 250, 900. This tax on
tobacco is, Of course, in the nature of an
indirect tax, and is a blow at one of the
largest agricultural products Of three
Southern States, to.wit: Kentucky,
Virginia, and Tennessee, being named
in the order Of their rank in the pro.
duction.
There was also, at one time, a cotton
tax levied, but, happily, it was repealed
before the people had fairly begun to
feel its burdens,
All taxation should be uniform and
according to the ability Of the parties
taxed to pay, and should be paid will.
ingly and as a duty one owes his State
for the protection given him. Adam
Smith, the great writer on political econ.
omy, laid down the following maxims Of
taxation.
Il. The subject Of every State ought
to contribute towards the support Of the
government as nearly as possible in pro.
portion to their respective abilities, that
IS in proportion to the revenue which
a