The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1881-04-20

left so Or the 100000 property the treasury
has its $1,000. relllg paying $500,
81 900 and C $500, according to the value Of
each mans property. AS property consisted
in the conditional title he had to one half Of
C's and the whole Of D's estate. BIS property
was his own unincumbered estate and C's
property was the uuiucumbcred half Of his
own estate when his debts were all paid
As write, have not my own article By
me or accessible, but l can see that l have
been singularly unfortunate in not making
myself unde-st Cd. Instead Of 3 payirg all
the taxes" as J. NJ. Il" understands me,
would have hi pay more, for the law taxes
property, and when he has paid his debts he
has no proper y left.
1 think B / ~ possession q az and The only
property there IS a. he oiSs that he has no
property Of his own really, because his debt
10 Is the entire value Of his estate, and when
paid he has nothing left, and should pay no
property tax: that As claim.iS valuable as the
undisputed erid-Rcs Of rights to the property
in B's possession for which it is holden, and
no; as property, which l hold it is not, any
more than the title deed is property separate
from the land, of which it is simply the evi-
dence Of ownership: that there Is but one
property, valued at Sl0O 200, and not two OF
100000 each: that the Government has no
claim for taxes upon any more, and that A
should pay them, as he holds the only tHiE-
ctais5srst claim on that property. In short,
Mr. Editor, believe that all property should
be equally and impartially taxed that no man
has property whose debts if paid would alb
serb the whole of his possessions, but every
one should pay according TO what he has, and
not what lie has not that for uniformity and
simplicity all property should be assessed to
the party in possession: vet to the extent of
his debts the taxes paid should be refunded
by his creditors, SO that his payment would
remain only on The iHiRcEm5ersd property lea
him after his debts were paid Probably no
refunding would have TO be done in one case
out Of ten.
thought wrote in my last letter that it
would be no greater hardship Cor the creditor
TO pay over the amount of taxes to his debtor
than 10 have paid them into the treasury, nor
for the debtor to pay to the collector than to
pay it in the form Of interest to the creditor;
whilst the assessment TO the party in posses
sion would be the simplest way and least
liable TO abuse. Probably did not so write,
or your correspondent could hardly have
overlooked it. Respectfully yours,
S. y. CASTLE.
P. S.-B's property is worth 500, 900 cash.
subject to AS claim it will sell for nothing
diminish As claim and it will sell for Just
what As claim has been diminished. As
claim is worth 100000, because the property
TO which 1t is contingent title is worth $780,
600; but if the property deteriorates or
shrinks in value, the value of the claim will
shrink IN exactly the same proportion. There
is only 500 900 worth of property. This is
all upon which government has any just claim
for taxes whoever may pay them, but as A is
the only one who has an unincumbered title
/ (though it be conditional one only he
should pay. SN.C.