Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1890-03-26
sERMoNErrn ON TAXES.
futroduction-The Occasion Outline
Firstly. What to level Secoodiy,
How 70 Lsvei. Thirdly. The Improve
ment Of the Subject.


bf hBs- ". u fALAIh
An article In the Lewiston Journal Of
March 22a. says Of taxr., The people sre
undoubtedly sick Of it - So said the grea'
publishers Of the country concerning the
subject Of Uncle Toms Cabin.
TIE people you'd read another paper on
taxe. IL signed. John sherman. The same
article rays i,s repeets to ministers IN the
following language, If be 10 q minister he
escapes horse and all" IL Is reported that
occasionally there is q minister who paliinl
on the reins and saying go gets OF quite
fast horse and all" But A. there 10 some
nissporshension sbout taxes and ministers
aud as | belong TO that guild L viii speak
IL may be supposed that the minister owns
the church or the church owns the minister
therefore this servant Of humanity pays No
taxes, hut We must discriminate between
church properly and the ministers property
Once each year welcome the assessors an!
Why should not ALI Without the euercent
fruits of taxes any crowded community
would be in conditions positively insuhera-
Bile welcome them, aud then disclose
horse, buggy piano. &c. and never con
eeai the money that let And | pay ~
much taxes on the horse as the rhyscian,
who is in some respects classed with min
tsters unless the doctors horse is more val
uable than nine and he is not likely to be
great While, If the doctor keeps him The
exemption Of church property does not ex-
empt ths minister unless the minister is
church property.
This brings rs to the question, What shall
sc leyei' Oar author save, The minister
gets an educstion,' and the preacher is 4
ample OF many whose mental equipment is
his stock In trade Shall this ou;f. be
taxed brain. be ievpiled' Msnifestiy
brains were never designed TO ne levslled
Sometimes heavy substance falls upon the
skull and the brains are evelled but the
man is nsensibie until the skull is ire
PANIED. The history of the race show,
that every induceme should he offered to
Intelligence In the sunny laad of Virgil
AMI Dante, and Cicero and Cassr. more
than eighty per cent. Of tn. population are
illiterate This suggestive fact indicate,
that the Blair bill or some substitute for Il
is nearer the right line of progress thar
taxing brains II Young physician o,
LAWYER making his ovn w.y. and getting 4
full equipment. shoulI have his prepsra
ton orpamented with a thousand dollar
debt, he would have task enough to build
UP a practice in the midst of sharp compe
iition. II in addition 10 the early trials o.
aspiring people, you tax their brains surely
they would know what ia meant by the sur
vval of the fttest, If they had the fortune
TO survive. IL becomes the State and al
patriotic citizens 10 increase rather thar
diminish the Inducements for producing
full orbed men.
Secondly, how shall We ievels There i
but one vav to level. Our author says o
methods, 1T Is all the same if the correc
proportion IL preserved" But this doe
not reach the b,cklyiug question. Can yo'
preserve the correct proportion by leveiin,
in dferrn. vayss II assessors levelled al
kinds OF property they could level at vii
and preserve proportions. but there Is
very importan, property whose vaIue i
fixed before the assessor 10 fixed, and tn
only alternative left is TO place your leve
on the property with the prehIed value AM
level everything to that The propert
with the prefix 4 value ia money, and on
of the great triumphs OF this country
seen in the fact that its monetary system /
on so solid basis that money when foun
needs only to he counted to BIZ valued
therefore the assessor uho estimates prop
prty at a fractional value, begins GA III
start to thrn. estimated values out of pru
portion, and into jrgon and can succee
in finding no other level than the level 81
sea in storm The ob)eetor may say j
other property ia below money, thar none
does rot pay more than lts par. because .
much s out Of sight. But the money i
sight, and the money out Of sight, and no
found by oversight, is not the property u
the same person, and to double tax the ma
who discloses to make up losses Ia to pu
one tax ou the mans money and snother o
his honesty. and that kind If human nstur
that has been much exposed to the weather
Ike the old timber of the Augusta bridge
and IS struck to the heart with the konku
rot will not bear any such strain.
CrIlicisms have been aimed at the srtic |
by Mr.. Fessenden. II said article assume
that assessors are depressors and by level
ing up is meant to level 10 a cash value
then 1t is evident that the criticisms hav
not been well taken. and every effort to pu
10 route the main line of the General
forces has been unsuccessful.
Again fractional valuation 10 more liabl
to mathe NAUTICAL mistakes. When the who'll
valuation of town is A. stake Instance
have been known when assessors suppose
that one third was 70 be added to their tr,
thirds valuation of the to~n 10 find the ful
amount and when one half of the sum 70
turned is added 20 itself the amount i
Thousands of dollars in excess of what tn,
assessor designed. When work is com
mitted TO hundreds of men, some of vhoo
are untrained, indirect processes for tbs
judgment or for mathematics are not thu
safest With these additional liabilities t,
mistakes attending departures from casl
values and with some values that can't b,
changed. The only way to level is to value
by the cash standard.
Thirdly. the improvement of the subject
Methods are inp,rtal, bu, K it ~ere posi-
Bile to arrive a. the ne Plus ultra there would
.'ill be a trsp door for ways that are dsrl
AM tricks thst are vain" Therefore il Il
the duty Of the pulpit and the press t.
4 fuse intelligence and enighten the con
science, and bring all men 10 see that ,sxei
hold IN important relation to the civilization
OF the nineteenth century.
But n knock is heard at the door. The
assessor is here, and the time to he hone.
is alsays nov.