The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-02-05
TAXATION.

One of the apparently unbeatable nuisances
with which Illinois is afflicted is the everlast'
ing patching and tinkcrng by our legislatures
of the laws in reference to taxation. Inc TACT
alone of this ceaseless tinkering is enough 10
demonstrate the wretchcdness of the system.
The state needs about $500 900 year for
school and all other purposes OF this sum
the Illinois Central railroad pays nearly a
million, and a million more raised for school
purposes had much better be dropped and
raised bv the counties and school districts
themselves by which the money is expended.
This would leave trltle over million and n
half to be raised by taxation.
Now to raise this sum by a general biennial
assessment of all the property, real and per
sonal, IN the state, aud then to have the assess
ment revised by that stupid and expensive
contrivancc known as the State Board OF
Equalization, seems to be system so ponder
Gus, expensive and in every rational aspect, so
absurd, as to be worthy only of the KING OF
the Cannlbal islands"
No tinkernG this system can possibly re-
ceye can be Of any but very slight benefit,
The proposition of Senator Whiting to allow
persons whose real estate is lncumbered by
proportion for such mortgage and to assess ii
upon the holder Of the mortgage, looks fair
upon It's face, and is certainly an improvement
upon the present system, which taxes both the
Lo rod N tl Dir
full value; but the only reform in that direc-
ton that will ever amount to anything is to-
tax the land alone-the visible property-anS
pay no attention to the mortgage. Under the
present system, in localities where the taxes
frequently amount 10 or ) per cent no hon.
est man can afford to lend money at 8 per-
cent ana pay the taxes levied on his security
papers. The result is, that our capitalists eth.
er lend their money outside the state, or lend
il in such way as to dodge the assessor. Yet
the poor borrower Is obliged to pay high rate
OF interest because the lender claims he isl
obliged to pay so large proportion of his
interest to the tax gatherer Remove the taxes
on mortgages entirely, and money to loan will
be ten times more abundant at and 6 perl
cent. than it is now at and 10 per cent
But the only sensible suggestion yet made
in our Legislature on the subject Of revenueI
and taxation Is Mr.. Linegar's BILL to cas-,
aside the whole business of assessing and tax.
ing real and personal property and raise the
small state revenue needed by a tax on the
gross earnings Of the railroads and system
OF licenses like that under which much larger
amounts are so economically and satisfactorily
raised in Pennsylvania Wisconsin, and other
states.
The only opposition to the adoption Of this
great reform appears to come from the large
horde of otliCc-holders whom it would Dust
The Office of the state auditor alone would bel
of small army and then a vast
army of assessors, collectors, the State Board
Of Equalization, and all its mutitudinous un.
lerstrappers, printing jobs, &c, &c, would bel
done away with OF course all these have an
active lobby at work, but comparatively few
)f our legislators are corrupt, nor is 1t suppos-
able that very large proportion of them are
fools, so that they ought to BE able to pass sol
amncntly sensible a measure of revenue re.
form, at least after time enough is given them
10 "woOl' it,