The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1885-03-11
No Tax to Vote.
4. POWLY.

NO Tax TO vote.
Pensacola Commercial.
| The people of all the states of the
Union are gradually coming to the
knowledge of the truth that the payment
of taxes for the support of the govern
ment is one of the highest and most in
estimable privileges of Amerit an free
men. The man who dead-be his way
as a member of the body polite is no
more respectable as citizen than is the
tramp and beggar as man and men,
| Der of society. The citizen is sovereign.
| Those in office are his servants and en-
ployees, and his contribution in proper
ton to his ability towards the payment
of their wages and the costs incurred in
public administration reduces itself to
| question of simple honesty so long as he
| continues a member of the confederation
/ of citizens that administer public and
| political affairs. In every properly Or
ganized society for secular, benevolent,
or even religious purposes, the non-pay-
ment of dues legitimately payable is
disqualification, and deprives the default
| er, not in all cases of his actual MEM
| bership, but debars him from the privi-
| lege of exercising the franchise and par
ticipating in the choice of officers and
determining the policy and expenditures
of the order or society. This is one
among the many pregnant considerations
| that present themselves to convince us
| that the trainers of the new constitution
of the state of Florida should establish
it as a fundamental proposition that
| there should be no representation with
out taxation, and that the payment of
| the tax should be a condition precedent
to the right of voting at any state, coun-
| ty or city election,
The new constitution should go one
step further, and should provide that
the evidence of the payment of the tax
should refer only to the year preceding
| that in which the election is held ex.
| cept in the cases of immigrants who
have acquired citizenship within the
year and those coming to adult age in
that year, in which cases the payment
of the tax for the current year should
carry with it the right to vote.
The reasons for this are obvious In
the first place the tax, if levied as it
should be, with due regard to uniform
ity and equality, must, in the case of a
large number of persons, be very small
in amount, and if the payment of this
| tax is in the same year and and at or
near the time when the vote is cast it
would afford corrupt politicians an op-
| portunity that in other states has been
largely used for corrupt purposes. Now,
| as these men can never make their plans
year in advance Of an election the
wisdom of the above suggested provision
is clearly manifest.
The objections to the payment of tax
as prerequisite of the right to vote
have mainly arisin from this cause, and
| the payment of taxes has been, in States
where it is necessary to pay before being
allowed to vote, very often deferred
until the day of election, when the eager
politician and office-seeker steps in and
pays the tax in order to secure the vote.
If the course above suggested is ta-
ken only those voters really interested
in good government will pay their taxes
in time to secure the privilege, while
those who are careless and indifferent,
and who care nothing about the charac-
ter of either the government or its Of
ficials cannot, on the day of election be
made the tools of corrupt men, nor bind
Burdens upon the shoulders of others
while they shirk their own share in the
work of contributing to the expenses of
the state.
An individual. evidently connected