Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1886-01-16
BURDENs-NOT PRIVILEGES

BURDEN -NOT PRIVILEGES
Senator ingalls, in commenting upon
the United States resume laws as ap,
piled to the sale Of liquor under excise
taxes, discourses as follows:
1.-The idea that the government sane
tons or licenses traffic by taxing It,
seems to me to be very transp arrlt alb
surdity 1t rests upon an exceed nEiy
imperfect condition Of the meaning of
taxation. Taxes are Burdens, not
privileges. They are endured only be
cause thew are necessary for the exist
ence of government. Sometimes they
have been imposed to such an extent a
TO destroy both the traffic and the rev
euue. IL would be irregular 10 claim,
III such q condition, that the govern
mcnJ licensed the business which 10 de
strOyed, and that it condemned The
traffic upon which it imposed 40 bur
den at all.
am aware that many intelligent and
philanLhropic people believe that the
Government of the United States, Ia
taxing the manufacture and sale OF in
tOXicating spirits and sung its special
lax stamp receipts, Licenses the bu~i
ne,s and thereby becomes a partner
practically in the liquor traffic, and
morally responsible t,r The appalling
evils which result To individuals and
society. 1 hay e heard the government
denounced by mOraiists and diviues a
an accOmplice in the RUIN aud de ola
ton that follows the abuse OF alcuhOi,
because it receives revenue from Ihis
source of taxation.
Were it true that the United States.
in Imposing taxes upon dI>tillcrS, b CIV
ers and liquor dealers, authorized them
TO manufacture and sell, and promI> ed
them protection, this complaint won d
not be uufOUnded. But he truth /.
exactly the opposite, From is enact
ment in 1862 10 this time. the iuterna
revenue law has contained this express
provision, IN terms;
''The payment of any tax imposed b.
the Internal revenue laws for carrying
on any trade or business shall not be
held 10 exempt any person from amy
penalty or punishment provided by the
laws of any state for carrying on the
same within such state, or in any man
ner 10 authorize the commeHcem- mt or
continuance of such trade oT bIsiues
contrary TO the laws Of such sta or in
places prohibited by municipal law. -
Z. s. I5cC. Statutes 1913.
fore, nor any other collector of internal
revenue ever issued any permit On The
part OF the United States To amy person
TO sell liquors in Kau.as or elsewhere.
No dramspller is projected against tn.
penalties prescribed by any sta law.
or municipal ordinance, by reason oi
holding IA receipt for taxes paid To the
United States, and the attorney VIII
should plead rs defense 10 an indjc.-
ment or information under the kuns AZ
prohIbitory statutes, that his clients had
paid an excise lax to Nelson Acers us
internal revenue collector would be re-
gaFdod as n better practitioner at The
bar Of the defendant than the bar of the
court"
Whereupon, the Beloit Courier, after
publishing the Senator's article in full
goes on to say:
The COURIER to-day gives its read
ers an Article from the pen of Senator
jno. j. Ingalls,, which is worth reading.
1t would seem like captiOus eguti>m fuI
rs to 60 barking after the heels Of such
an aStute statesman, yet we e tnnot eN-
ist without asking how the Senator re
comedies two positively opposite state
ments, and make them consistent to-
tic is hunted and GENEROUSLY taxed b,
action OF Congress. and watched "a il
it We're criminal. Next he says thai
Congress has no power To destroy the
criminal business, but may unlimitedly
tax it, At least that is what we gathe
from his argument, Now, Senator, j
taxatiou is Il burden, and not privilege
as yOH state, and Congress has the pow
er 10 taX--tO pile on the burden, VIII
cannot it destroy the criminal business
by taxing it TO deathP"
We think we can SEQ where such
system of monumental taxation, won
effect double results, satisfying tde de
mands of the mOraltstic and Socialist
elements. two distinct facti ons il
our national polity. By imposing
this extreme burden you place
significant discouragem ent before tn
eyes ofthe vendors of the arden t, whic
hints strongly of great financial risks
and the tendenc y " ould be TO lessen tn
number of licenses. Thus the numbe
of sellers woul prOportionally decrea-
IN the ratio OF the amount of tax i'm
posed, and the greater the tax In
stronger the moral suasiOn, Second
extreme taxes would make eXlrem
prices for the spurious commodity, an
the greater the tax the higher the price
until finally it might reach an uttiIud
10 which the nabobs only could aspire
by coufning the entire sales 10 sao
monopolists as tie Goulds, the Wander
bits, the Sages and The -AstOrs, he
would soon succumb to the iueNhaust
bic volley Of tanglefoot, and thus woui
the aggregated wealth of the few be di
barsed among the people, and h
sociaNslic nrobIem Mou.d soon sow