Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1890-11-27

lilc Hldlt WOulu SOOu udft IL lCoc uuiliOCi
of abandoned farms and there would
be less number who would 60 West
to meet with disappointment and fall
ure. One of the principal reasons for
the depressed condition Of agriculture
in this state and the consequent aban-
donment of farms is found in the fact
that the burden of taxation bears more
heavily upon this interest than upon
any other. If have money invested
in bank stock, in merchandise, in any
thing excepting real estate and at the
same time am owing, the law will ex-
empt that property from taxation to
an amount equal to the extent OF my
Indebtedness, but if am the owner of
real estate / must pay taxes upon It's
full value, no matter how heavily it
be mortgaged. We will suppose that
two men come into this town TO invest
in business, one is merchant, the
other farmer. Each has $1,000 TO
invest. The merchant purchases
! $1,000 worth of goods, pays $1,000
down and gives security upon the
! goods for the remainder. The farmer
buys a farm for $1,000, pays $1,000
down and gives mortgage upon the
farm as security for the remaining
Z $1,000. We win suppose when the
listers come around they 90 first to the
merchant, he tells them that he has
-4s2000 worth of goods but that he is
owing $1,000 for them. The listers
say at once ''that is all right, the law
l fixes such cases as yours, it realizes
that it would be unjust to tax you up
: on the full value Of your goods when
/ you are owing $1,000 for them and
5 therefore it viii exempt that amount
. from taxation. The listers next call
upon the farmer. His farm is APP
e praised at its fall value. When he
: tells them that there is mortgage on
5 it for $1,000. they answer 'that
+. makes no difference you must pay
1 taxes upon its full value just the same
as though you owed nothing" But he
$ says, "you granted my neighbor, The
i merchant an offset" "Oh," they
e answer ''his was an entirely different
{ case, his is personal property, yours is
= real estate and the law grants no off
t set on real estate" In this case the
o merchant is taxed upon $1,000, JUS
c the amount that he is really worth
b while the farmer is taxed upon $1,000
i or Just twice the amount that he i.
IS really worth 1t is Just the same a:
n though the state should say to thC
/ merchant who sits behind his counter
e 81 win tax your property 80 cents Of
the dollar" and then should turn 70 th'
a farmer who earns his bread by tn,
e sweat of his brow and say to him 81
: win tax your property 100 cents oil
y the dollar" Is this right! Is it Just
e Is ii not discriminating against th'
J, farmer: Is it not virtually offering /
" prenaium for abandoned farms? 9th
Ie er states have tried TO remove this in
, Justice by legislation. In Mass. rea
e estate that is mortgaged is listed t.
: both mortgagor and mortgage in pro
I. portion to the interest each has in tn,
Is property and tax commissioner ap
% pointed by the last Legislature OF Maine
z advises the adoption Of a similar Law
II for that state. | believe that while
: nader the present circumstances for
y eign immigration to this state is to be
4 desired and should be encouraged, tht
: true source to which the state should
! look for material with which to repeo-
; pie its farms and build up its agricul-
/ tural interests, is to the boys growing
e up within the State and TO the young
men now comino forward upon the
= stage Of action. They will follow that
e OCCUPATION and make their homes in
I those places in which they believe they
= will best succeed. If they think that
: Vt. offers as great inducements to
them as other places they will stay
here in preference to going west to face
the billiards Of Dakota, the cyclones
: OF Kansas or the dronghts of the south
west. No state has grander history
than VT. or names of more noble men
written upon its records. The names
of those stern, bold, resolufe men. the
fathers of the State, of Ethan Allen
who with uplifted hand demanded the
. surrender of the fort at Ticonderoga
''in the name of the great Jehovah
and the Continental Congress, OF Ira
Allen, of Seth Warner and others of
like mould viii be remembered so long
as single Vermonter shall remain
upon the soil of Vermont. If our an
cestors had the har,lihood and courage
to come to this country when it was
new, to subdue the forests and reclaim
the land from the wilderness, to build
the fences and walls that every
where remain as monuments to their
industry, we their descendants should
be able to preserve the heritage that
they have given us.