Weekly commercial herald. (Vicksburg, Miss.) 1884-18??, 1886-01-15

furnish such officers with q similar
list of sales Of ChickasaW
School lands. In the absence OF
such information, Il Is impO5-
sible for the assessor to assess lands
to the true owner, and they continue
to appear on the rolls as the property
Ofthe State or United States, as the
case NAV be, and thus year after year
escaDe taxation. 1t will be observed
that "a 567, 500, ct seq, Of the Code,
require the Auditor to furnish such
list in case Of the purchase Of lands
through that Office, and that Section
L, of the Act Of February, ], 1877, re-
qIuires the Secretary of Stateto furnish
such list in case of the purchase OF
swamp lands, but, through an Omis-
sion, the Legislature has failed to
provide for such lists in the two cases
mentioned. though they are o equal
imnortance. Within the last four
wears the United States has disposed
Of 6S2, 900 acres of land, Of the value of
S760.362 50. Doubtless much of this
land still appears on the assessment
rolls as the property of the United
States, and so escapes taxation, be-
cause the assessor and tax collector
are not notified of the change of
ownership.
I direct your attention to the i'm
portance of providing further rene
dies for the faithful collection of
DELINQUENT POLL TAXAs,
the Act of March Is, 1884, having
proved insufficient. No citizen de-
serves to enjoy the blessings Of gov
eminent who fails to contribute to its
support the pittance eXacted in the
shape of the poll tax. The cOnstitu-
ton having prescribed the ~qualifca-
tions of electors, the Legislature could
not, if it were desirable, require the
payment of the poll tax as condition
for the exercise of the elective fran
chise, but the wisdom Of the Legisla-
ture will doubtless suggest other
means of accomplishing the object in
view. The statute declares it a mis-
demeanor for any person summoned
to work OH a road to fail to attend and
perform the service required, and d.
reefs the justice of the peace, on no
tice of the default from the Overseer,
to issue his warrant for the arrest OF
the delinquent and to proceed as in
other cases.
1t is entirely competent for the
Legislature to make it a misdemean-
or to refuse payment of the poll tax,
and to authorize the prosecution of
the delinquent before the justiceof the
peace of the vicinage, onnotice of the
default from the sheriff, (Which it
should be his duty to make to be re-
lieved from liability, as in case of
delinquent road hands, and l recon-
mend this as the best solution Of the
difficulty which a thoughtful consid-
Grafton of the question on my part
has suggested. The effect of enforc-
ing such collections would beto swell
enormously the Legitimate receipts at
no expense, save that arising from
the compulsion of the unwilling to
perform a duty they owe society.
The number of delinquents would
surprise ona who has not investigated
the subject. In many Of the more
populOus counties over three thousand
delinquents are reported to the coun-
ty, while the average in forty-four
counties, from which l have returns,
is nine hundredand f%Orty-eight. This
is a scandalOus abuse of citizenship
which the Legislature should prompt
ly correct. The Observation-Disclosures
out the State would give 70, 214 delin-
quent polls. For assessing these de-
linquent polls the State and counties
pay 5 $4,000 and receive nothing in
return.
The State tax is not burdensome.
The principal burden of taxation is
county and municipal. A large part
of county expense consists Of what is
called 1.-THE judiciary" to which be-
longs, as a principal item, the
FEES OF WITNESSES
in criminal prosecutions.
These are enormously, and l will
add unnecessarily increased by the
fact that numerous misdemeanors
which should be promptly disposed
of by the justice of the peace of the
vicinity of their occurrence are prose
cuted in the circuit court. Ify0u can
pass any measure to remedythis mis-
chief and relieve the circuit courts
from this class OF cases, l earnestly
recommend that you shall do so. or
many grounds it is desirable that the
magistrates provided for every vicin.
age shall promptly exercise theil
Jurisdiction and try all charges over
which they have it. The economy
of this course is of itself enough tC
commend it. Under the constitution
which confers on circuit courts origi-
nal jurisdiction in all criminal cases,
it is not allowable to deprive those
courts Of jurisdiction to entertain
prosecutions for misdemeanors, but
the constitution (sec. 81, art. ~ pro-
Vides that the Legislature, in cases OF
misdemeanOrs, may dispense with
the inquest Of a grand jury, and au-
thOrize prosecutions before Justices OF
the peace or other inferior courts OF
its creation.
1t may be that it would be well to
allow a fee of one-fourth of the
amount now allowed to district attor-
neys on conviction, to- the Justice of
the peace for each conviction.
The objection that it would be a
constant temptation to justices of the
peace to convict for the fee is met by
the provision for an apDeal TO the cir