The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1879-08-16
THE TAX-EATERS.
What it Costs to Collect tie Taxes in Cecil County

" 49, ~ OOsts W 1a1ee CeCll COuQty,
mat was an admirable platform the
Democracy adopted last week in Balti-
more. But unfortunately for the Bour-
bon carpenters that constructed it, the
taN-rldden people of Maryland have no
longer an iota of confidence in the honesty
or sincerity of the political tinkers that
patched it up. They know by the expo
Renee OF empty pockets, and the heavy
burdens imposed in the past, just what
such meaningless platitudes signify. As
an adroitly-framed political fly-trap, in
which to beguile innocent Blue Bottle
bourbons, it may be all well enough. but
certainly no intelligent voter in Cecil
county or elsewhere can he deceived by
such deceptious promises to the people.
The idea Of the Ring managers. among
"nom sit in honored seats those ever
lasting political barnacles, Levin Wool
lord and Jesse X. Hines, surprising the
people Of Maryland-who know the his
tory of the two sclf-created offices they
oceupy-could be hoodwinked by any
such stuff as this, is simply ridiculous.
DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.
.. II "tH be tie duty Of tile merit General
-lSStht0Ly I" dghtc0 tie burden Of taration
=" M'S state By obolishing all offces not
It"f&EGrY t"r tie p"dlic scrricr; By reduc-
Eng al s"la1tes and fees subject to its con-
tro! I" tie limit Of the compensation IF per-
sans f!s9aged IN stmtlar employment IN pri-
f"'e tle; oy compelling tie practice of econ
""'y N efery detaa Of Tate, county and
.. I"bltc offices tcGre not created for the
0[nctt J md1ttdnals, nor for tile purpose
81 Fetcd1dtng polHtcal serrices. bit rere in
fe""'a $olcty TOR tie p"blic attcantage. Tile
PtffeFSsoh q hetr use to any other pur-
pose IS tMJurtous to good m0rals and to
93od g0fCrhment.
Now every man in Maryland, who
knows anything, knows that the self
styled leaders of the Maryland Democ-
racy have, for years past, forced upon
the people of the State an infamous and
atroclous system of official robbery
That year by year, by the reckless waste
OF the public moneys, iilched bv thou
sands from the treasury and the people.
by the multiplication of useless and nm
necessary otliceS-of which Woolford and
lines are conspicuous exalnples,-and by
the Thousand and one methods known
to the professional politicians who con-
troll the dominant party, the office-h hold
ers have waXed fat and aggressive, while
the impatient taxpayer has been gradu
ally, but as surely. growing poorer And
HOW, wien the time has come. to ask of
the voters of the State a fresh lease of
power, they belle every act of their party
history and talk about economy" "abo-
luton OF useless offices, and the miser-
able cant of the platform above quoted.
But as charity-even to an opponent
begins at home let us turn for an illus
tration OF the Democratic practice, to
'ecil county, recalling for the moment
Pie delightful assurance of the above
platform that "all offices. not necessary
tor the public service" should be abol-
lshed. 1t requires fourteen mon, all ex-
cciient Democrats, none of them averse
to the personal diScomforts of Office-hOld-
ing, to collect the taxes of Cecil county.
The cost to the people for this large
and cminently respectable official corps
against whom, as Individuals, we make
no insinuations, even of personal dishon-
esty or Disqualification about as fol-
lows:
Three County Commis'ers whose
aggregate salary for the year
1879 amounts to. Observation-Disclosures. S1,21460
Nine Tax Collectors, aggregating
about .................. 100000
One Clerk TO County Commission
ers, whose annual salary defies
all successful speculation, say. 100000
One Assistant chow paid, never
discovered) Observation-Disclosures. 10000
n