The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1879-04-22
PRINCIPLES OF TAXATION.

The General Assembly OF New York is just
now engaged In On effort to solve the very
difficult problem Of taxation, and to establish
certain fixed and accepted principles as the
basis of system for future fiscal legislation
This ID question involving very intricate
problems In the science OF political economy,
yet it appears to be one In which the law
makers are but poorly versed.
The great difficulty In the way Of the tax
reformers appears 10 be the inability to agree
upon definite principles Of taxation and as to
the method by which 1t shall be imposed and
collected. The report made to the New York
Legislature proceeds upon the idea that real
estate should be exempted as much as pos
sible from the burdens Of taxation. Never
theless, it comedies that the taxation OF per-
sonal property is very difficult, and utterly i'm
practicable beyond certain extent. The best
economists who have been called before the
legislative committees or have given express
sion to their views In the press, insist that
real estate and corporate institutions
should bear the burdens OF taxation. Tax
alton must be simple and uniform,
and these conditions cannot be obtained by q
general tax on personal property. Such a tax
is necessarily clumsy vexatious and ineff1-
Gent In operation, and extremely difficult Of
collection. There can be no better Illustration
| OF these truths than has been afforded in the
revenue bill Of this State passed by the Legs-
lature Of 1878, In which the taxation OF per-
sonal property was pushed to the utmost
limit. Had the bill been practical 1t would
have yielded an immense revenue, but 1t would
have required an army Of detectives to make
1t operative to the extent contemplated. 1t
imposed taxes on jewelry, watches, money In
a mans pocket. and every article of value that
could Be conceived Of. The equal and uniform
enforcement of such bill is simply impos-
sible
1t strikes us that the true principle upon
which taxation should proceed is to make the
public burdens as light as possible on the
peculiar local interests OF the State imposing
them, thus, In a measure fostering those In
terests. The burden OF taxation In this State
must necessarily fall on real estate. and there
is no doubt but that. in the end the tax on
this character Of property diffuses itself more
generally among owners and lessees, who
comprise the whole people, than 1t Is possible
for any other to do. Yet we should not forget
sh6t LOubIhua 40 I'LL bSilCultutdl Othb', Huu
that she must look to the landed estates for
the basis Of her wealth and prosperity.
Whatever favors the State has to extend,
then, should be given In this direction. About
all that the Convention can do In the matter
ls TO absolutely take away from the Legisla-
ture all power to exempt from taxation any
species Of property or any character of en-
terprtse- ally right to grant franchises OF
exemptions to corporations which are not re-
vocable at WILL or which will impart con-
tract nature to charter privileges. Let all
corporations be subjected to taxation on the
basis Of the market value Of their stock. in
Guiding In this assessment their personal and
real property and franchises. Beyond this,
the Legislature will have to afford whatever
relief is possible In the way OF reform and
method In the matter of taxation. There Is
certainly vast room for Improvement, for a
moro cumbrous, unmethodical and inefficient
system than the one now prevalent can hardly
be imagined. The objects Of taxation should
be very few, but these few must be wisely
selected. This is the principle upon which
the revenue system OF Great Britaini Is based
where there has been no taxation OF personal
property since $780, There Ia no reason why
we should not utilize her example In many
particulars