The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1890-09-27
YOU CAN NOT REACH IT.

sohn De Witt Warner I'm Favor of AboI
fshfng Personal Property Taxes.
Last Thursday evening John De Wit
Warner delivered an interesting address
TO the Manhattan single tax club O,
The liberation of personal propert,
from taxation He promised his re
marks by asserting that every commun
lily should have the right ~ say how i
should raise the money to support itsel
and pay Its dues to the State and gener
al governments. In his opinion direc
taxation was the fairest method, though
there were many people who did no
think 50.
Money must be raised to support gov
ernment said Mr.. Warner, and the
question for us to consider is how it car
best be raised so as to fall equally on all
citizens in proportion to the advantages
they receive from the community. Is
our present method good enough? ]
think not. The system of taxing per-
sonai property is universally conceded
to be failure, opening the door to
fraud, robbery and blackmail. Honest
men pay it; but men who are willing to
in always escape. We can not reach
personal property to tax it. Read the
daily report of bank deposits; you will
see that they amount to more than the
entire sum on which personal property
taxes are paid. A fire in one of our
large down town stores shows, in the
estimate OF loss incurred, how immense
must be the amount of personal
property in goods in this city
subject to tax. but on which no tax
Is collected. A fire in Fifth or Madi-
son avenue mansion shows how great is
the amount in furniture and articles of
house adornment which also failed to be
taxed. And even when assessors do try
to reach pcrsonsal property-when they
go behind the oath of the person liable
to taxation-and find property not in
cluded in the saskatchewan then it is
almost impossible to collect the tax.
Some years ago, despite his oath that
the value OF his personal property
amounted to only some nominal sum.
the assessors, on facts in their possess
sion. assessed the late William II. Van
derbllt on S., 600. 900. He was cornered.
1t Is true; but he said he wouldn't nav
IT. because there were other people. to
his positive knowledge, who were rich
but who did not pay a cent personal
taxes. And in the end the matter was
compromised on basis OF 81, 600, 0O0.
which all will agree was not ten per
cent. of the value of the taxable person
al property held by him. He wasn't al
together wrong in refusing to pay the
tax-nobody pays it If they can help it
The truth about this thing is, eyery-
body knows that the personal property |
AK is humbug. The bureau for the |
collection OF personal taxes is nothing !
more nor less than . bureau authorized !
BY law to levy blackmail on our citizens.
L rarely makes a return to the CITY: and /
ialf dozen times within comparatively |
! few years it has been robbed by the
,fficials conducting it.
New York City is the great CONNER
ial center of this country. Toit all the
apital Of the United States would drift
I there were no bars in the way. But
vhat is the fact? The personal proper
y tax on banks and corporations drives
hem to other States and countries to
rganize--in other words, capital is
riven away.
The proper thing to tax is real estate
is here and must stay here. All the
rogress of civilization, all the increase
I population, benefits real estate and
Increases its value, SO that it should be ,
axed for government support II we
'ould remove all personal taxes there
'ould be wonderful increase in the
olume OF business, end an increased
emand for workers. While | am in
ayor. said Mr.. Warner, of putting all .
lxes on land values, / recognize that !
10 public mind is not yet prepared to
,cept that idea; SO it is wisdom to 60
My as far as the public will go with =
s. Having lifted that tax, we will have !
ade the lifting of other taxes that
UGH easier.
At the close Of his address Mr.. Warner 8
iyited questions y
A Brother Farmer, Des Moines.-How
this for ground value? / wonder If
% farmers can see the difference? =
his clipping is from the Chicago Times
May Is would like to hear from =
mo one-farmer preferred-where
o single tax on land values would 81
IL: r
The lease Of the property bounded by l
sarborn, Jackson and Quincy streets, q
mere the new Northern hotel is to be
ected, has finally been effected and a
IS fled for record yesterday afternoon. p
lgene s. Pike, the owner. leases the I
ock to the Northern Hotel Company D,
I ninety-nine years at. an annual 81
ntal Of s25. 600 tor the first two years II
d $50, 900 per annum for the remainder Il
tho term. The company is composed j,
Messrs. Eden, Hurlburt Chassaing, m
|Sahsu and etAask A least eLoVQ. h