Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-11-16
BAD GOVERNMENT IN CALIFORNIA.

From the Inauguration of Governor
Stoneman to the present date, California
has seen the worst government of its entire
history. Within the past two years, the
State Government has demanded of the
people of California four million dollars in
excess of the actual necessities Of govern
ment. These four millions represent moth
ing less than venality and corruption; they
represent incompetency as well. But 1t
should be understood from now henceforth
that every person responsible, directly or
indirectly, for the present condition of
things, has no hope of again being trusted
in any position. No member of the last
Legislature should aspire to any public
position, either the Governor, Congress
men, member of the Legislature, or even
county office, unless he can prove clearly
that he is not to be chargeable with the
extravagances which disgraced the last
session.
Commenting on this very condition Of
affairs the Alta says: "For the thirty-nlnth
and fortleth fiscal years, our State taxes
amounted to $9,S39,OOo, or S459l9,50o a
year. For the forty-frst and forty-second
fiscal years the appropriations made by
the last Legislature were $12,534010, or
Sc, 267, GOO per year, being an annual in
crease of 81, 347, sos per year." The paper
quoted then proceeds to show that this is
a tax of S. per capita, and also shows that
Mexico maintains standing army of
10000 soldiers, and administers Govern
ment over ten times the territorial area of
California, and does this with per capita
tax of 50 so.
The Bulletin shows that the last two
years of government in this State has in
creased the taxes by As per cent, and this
without any real necessity. At the same
time it should be remembered that the
real and personal property of California is
valued much higher than that of either
Missouri or Illinois, both of which States
have nearly double our population. As
land values are forever proportioned to the
density of population, and as personal
property augments with the augmentation
of population, it follows that the tax rate
in California, on reasonable valuation, is
nearly double the apparent rate. This
makes taxation in California nearly four
times as heavy as in Illinois or Missouri.
After commenting upon this, the Buile-
tin says: "This thing of taking 100000
out of l ,250,000 of people year, beyond
the average or what was really necessary,
is sure to register its bad effects some
where. Prosperous as California is, it can
not afford to throw away 100000 in the
course of twelve months"
Taxation in California, instead of de-
creasing with the growth of the State, is
continually increasing. Government in
this State has fallen into the hands of pro-
seasonal place-hunters and small-beer poll
ticians, and the very best effort to secure
reinforcement of our industrial popula-
ton here will be neutralized and thwarted
unless the people rise and take the gov
eminent out of the hands of the bosses
and their tools. Let every candidate for
public position this year be made to show
that he is in no way responsible for the
existing state of affairs; otherwise, let the
people defeat him.