The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1888-05-25
THE TAX QUESTION.

THE TAX QUESTION
EDITOR fGIs: | am naturally drawn to-
wards your paper, because in the effort | have
been making for more than six years. Il began
in the Senate Feb. oath, 1881 to get justice
done to the common people, like myself of
Maryland, in regard to taxation. it is the only
paper that has shown disposition to give a
hearing to my side of the question and 10 aid the
| people in obtaining their rights.
call the attention of the public to this fact
in order that they may remember it substan-
tally and continuously, for it is quite certain
that when equal taxation is accomplished of
which feel sure, many aud probably all these
newspapers that now either treat the movement
slightingly, or with contempt, will laud the
value of their efforts for tax reform with an
ardor proportional to their fear of being left be-
hind in tie race for public support as a copse-
quence of their failure to maintain the inter
ests OF the people in u contest in which their
wrongs are SO patent and so vital. Your re-
ports are generally correct, but you made one
error in your notice ofwhat said at Bel Air
which desire to correct, which is that said
'if the people in Hartford who owe money
would refuse TO pay on any more than they ac-
tually own, 1t would cut 80 millions, from the
assessment"
said it would cut off three millions from the
assessment, and in saying so, / only referred to
their possible refusal to paw taxes without the
dedution OF mortgage debts, and named three
millions because II is believed that three mi ions
Is about the amount of mortgage on property
in Hartford county. With your consent, pro-
pose 10 write you series of letters on the sub
lect OF taxation, and hoping you will publish
them, proceed to add TO what | have said in
this, something on the subject.
RIGHTS OF THE CITIZEN
Our government is a Democracy, which ia a
government "of the people, by the people and
for the people," and in which, OF course, the
| rights OF all men are equal.
Before we achieved our Independence of the
| British Government we had asserted and main.
| tained In battle, our right 10 be taxed only in
pursuance OF constitutional laws, and when in
| 1915 the people OF Maryland formed a State CON
stitution, they announced in their Bill OF
Rights, as one OF the principles on which they
| founded the State Government, that every man
holcing property in the State should pay taxes
Tor the support of that government in proper.
ZION TO Ills actual worth in real and personal
| property"
1t is needless to say that while we have
| changed the constitution three times since
| by conventions of the people, we have moi
changed that provision, and that therefore the
| right to be taxed only Un what a man is actually
worm III Maryland, is clear, and ! will only
add that If it was not clear, If we are worthy
| descendants of the men who fought to OBJ
tain this right we won d fight until it was
clear.
| HOW THIS RIGHT Is ENJOYED
| The Legislature can make laws only in puI.
|
and 1t has made laws to tax the people to raist
mony TO pay the expenses of the State Govern
ment. This was the duty of ;he Legislature
| but II, in doing so, laws have been made ttal
Impair the right OF the citizen to be taxed only
! on what he is actually worth these laws ouphi
to be resisted first by the refusal OF the citizen
to pay taxes that are rot levied in accordance
with his actual worth secondly, by an Hppea
TO the courts, and if the courts like that il
l43I which decided against John Ilampden, in
| "A - a.
! of the citizen, as defined by the Constitution
then, thirdly, the citizen is IA coward, and uniit
| for liberty, il he does not shoulder the muskrt
| in defence of his rights.
The Legislature in 1876 which made the law
under which taxes are now collected, begun by
excmpting mortgages from taxation.
As this provision made it impossible for every
| citizen to pay his proportion OF taxes in accord
ance with his actual worth, If he held mOrtga
| ges, 1t is void, because it violates the Coustltu
| ton, and therefore the rights OF the citizen.
The Constitution OF he State OF Ilinais con.
| tains the same prOvisiUn-that lis citizens
"shall pay lakes in proportion to their actua
worth in real and personal propcrty"-and the
Supreme Court of that State has decided that
| this provision was manliestIy inserted in the
| fundamental laws for the purpose of insuring
equality in the levy and collection of taxes I,
support the government, whether levied fol
State, county or municipal purposes. The
design was to impose an equal proportion o
| these burthens upon all persons within tn,
limits of the district, or body imposing them
Under this provision the Legislature has NJ
power to exempt or release II person or com
munity of persons from their proportional
share Of these burthens. Not having sucl
power themselves, they are unable to delegate
such power to these inferior bodies"
This is what the Supreme Court of Illinois
has decided, and it accords with the Constitu
ton, with democratic government and there
fore, with the rights of the citizen.
Cooley, one of the first authorities, In h!
work on taxation, I'd edition, page 215 says:
at is difficult to conceive of justltiabie eX
emption law which should select single ind
Viduals, or corporations, or single articles o
property, and taking them out of the class I,
which they belong, make them the subject 0
capriciOus Legislative favor.
"Such faToritism could make no pretense Il
equality, twoud lack the sembIance of legti
mate tax legislation.
1.-THE motives of the exemption or the benefi
clal purposes expected, can make no difference
mo man is Obliged to be more generous thar
the law requires each may stand strictly OF
legal rights, and refuse TO submit to any eSac
ton that purposely is made more burdensom,
to him than the rules of law permit.
| 1.-The Legislature is equally pOwerless if the
constitution has prescribed rule of equality
which forbids exemption"
| From what l have written think the rights
| of the citizen are made plain, as well as the
fact that as eXempting any species OF property
is unconstitutional, because fit is done, the
people will not pay taxes in proportion to their
actual worth in real and personal property, and
that the act of 1876 is void in fact, and ought
to he declared so in law, because the Legislature
exceeded its powers to making such law.
| In conclusion | will state that in your last
| weeks paper you stated that | said at Bel Air
that every taxpayer in Hartford county, who
had no debts to deduct from his assessment paid
half as much more than his proper taxes. The
Times said | stated it to be twice as much,
(which | did not state.) In your next issue,
with your permission, l will show that state
ment to be true. Yours, Respectfully,
May 2lSt, 1888. E. NJ ALLEN
p. s.-Ifany one of all these people who say
l talk nonsense, can show it to be nonsense,
why don't they do it = / challenge the contra
diction of anything state, either of fact or law
f. NJ A.