The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1884-02-29

they have borrowed and to maintain their
families in the meanwhile. They are not free
agents, but through their necesstiesare COM
PEELED to borrow money on terms which the
lender eXacts in business way and which
terms would be, rs they have always been,
that the borrower pay all the taxes which
the State may levy on the mortgage debt
The farmer already pays tax on the full
value of his land. If he pays n tax on the
mortgage debt also, he is unduly burdened
by the State and required to pay more than
justice demands of him. Is it right for the
State in such case to add to the misfortunes
of the debtor farmer by imposing upon him
punishment for mortgaging his land, for in
substance 1t amounts to a penalty paid by
him for going to the money-lender2 If it is
desired to tax the capitalists, evidently the
capitalists cannot be effectively reached in
that way for while it might prevent the
escape from taxation of few rich men, it
would punish very large number of poor
and needy borrowers, land owners, by making
them pay the taxes due, theoretically, from
the holders ofmortgages on their lands, he
sides paying the taxes on the full value of
their lands, as they are now required to do.
If it be said that the necessities of the State
require resort to this additional source of
taxation, it may be answered, by way of n
be built, ndmoney is necessary to bnild them
with. Nevertheless those who want to build
the church or hospital could not defend II
highway robbery by alleging that the rob-
berry was committed in order to raise money
to build the church or the hos pital. 1t has
been found in practice that the mortgages
always couples the mortgagor pay the tax
as he does every other expenses incident
to the mortgage; and he always will do
so, for the simple reason that the borrow
er in order to obtain the assistance he desires
must do so upon the terms of the lender
The position has recently been taken by the
advocates for the tax that however it might
have been when the rates of interest on
money were high, the present low rates of
interest and the difficulty of getting invest
ments for money have altered the condition
of things so that the lender and not the bor
rover is now the suppliant. This position
is utterly falacious. 1t is happily true that
the rates of interest are no longer so exorbit
ant as to be absolutely ruinous, but it is not
true that the people of the counties, the
southern and eastern counties, have any ac-
cumulated wealth among themselves which
makes money easy amongst them. They are
borrowers from the richer men of the cities
or some OF the upper counties the prices of
their own lands are low, labor amongst them
is scarce and high, and while there may be a
greater number who will lend to them at
lower rates of interest than before, there is
not that competition among lenders, nor is 1t
likely there soon will be, which will put the
borrowing class on equal terms with them
The State cannot afford to replenish its treas
ury at the expense of depressing any portion
of its citizens. And until some scheme of
legislation can DC devised which in practice
shall equalze the bourdens of taxation, it is
the bounden duty of the State TO abstain from
the exercise of n power which rs an abstract
theory is defensible, but which in its actual
operation would be onerous, tyrannous, and
unjust to the last degree to a portion of the
people who have in u great measure been the
unfortunate victims ola course ofevents over
which they have had no CONTROL and from
the bitter consequences of which no way of
escape has yet been fully opened.