The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1891-08-27

statesmen have gone the way Of all is
sues and defeat in Ohio this year Will
benefit instead Of injure it, In my opinion
The New York Sun says .it seems
perilous experiment" for the Democratic
party Of Ohio to try to get along without
Hamilton county. The Sun is level
headed, although robustly Democratic.
Income Tax Foolishness In Ohio.
New York Sun, Dem.l
Did the Democrats Of Ohio under
stand what they were doing when they
put side by side in their party platform
for the important campaign now open
ing these two declarations?
/. We are opposed to all class legisla-
tion.
Q. We favor . graded income tax.
An income tax of any kind is class
legislation Of the worst sort. It divides
tho community into two GLASSES, the
honest and the dishonest, and it taxes
the honest for the benefit Of the dis
honest. The odious method of raising
revenue has never been described better
than as tariff on integrity and Q
bounty On perjury.
Only onco IN the history OF this coun-
try has there been an attempt to levy an
income tsx. Then the tax was imposed
- war measure. Never again, except
In the direst necessity or the widest
folly, will the experiment be repeated.
Tho tax survived until 1879. In 1870,
the census year, the population Of the
United States was 80, ,558,371. The In
%nxr hot v,oj1 1~xy0 07R QRf
persons, or one tax payer to 189 Of popu-
lation. The number of male citizens Of
twenty y-oas end upward was 8,425, ,9A In
that year. The income tax was paid by
one adult male In every thirty. Suppos-
ing even chat d was equitably assessed
and fairly collected, this experience
shows to what degree the income tax
law Is class legislation.
But such tax was never assessed and
collected, and never can be, without the
grossest injustice and the most outrage
ous disparity Of burdens. The attempt
to collects . tax on personal property Is
simplicity itself IN comparison. To as
certain In the crudest. way the approx
innate incomes Of the class taxed under
class Legislation Of this kind, it becomes
necessary 10 establish system Of In
QUESTION gad espionage repugnant to
American ideas and abhorrent to the
free citiseA- The eyes Of the govern
ment spy into every mans private ac-
count books, the spies of the govern
ment oversee the housewives axpendi-
lures. The hofest American spirit win
tolerate ths hateful inq1isition only as q
sacrifice fos the sake Of the nations ex-
istence. Dishonesty the income tax will
NEVER reach. Fraud finds thousand
easy vays b evade it. In Its theory 1t
Is unphilosepAical and undemocratic; In
practice Il Is impossible.
The Ohio Democratic platform calls
not merely for an income tax, but for q
graded ~ unequal income tax. We sup
pose We Chic platform means tax
graded Hv-tAAt is to say, with the rate
augmented a. the incomes increase.
The process Ieads straight to actual con-
hscatioA. n the tax, for example, on
e50o insoaaes Is $5, or per cent. and on
81, 600 incomes $15, or 1-2 per cent. and
30 cs, ths TAX on 1900, 900 income be-
eosn0 q, ,O5O, 900. Whatever adjust
neat may ,, made between rate of tax
axd ~ Of income taxed, the graduated
tax sooner or aater reaches point where
II swallows up the entire income. This
4 esaAssatioa. Progressive steps toward
thA ~ progressive steps toward con-
AscaAion. They are steps along tho
diReot noaA 10 communism. The cumu-
iative Income tax, If 1t could be honestly
collected, wouid be the final outrage in
the way Of class legislation. It would
divide We free ana equal citizens of the
United States into various classes; one
class paying nothing, another class pay
ing , per cent. another paying 10 per
cent, another paying into the treasury
half their incomes, and so on up to the
slass which suffers an absolute confsca-
ton sf the earnings Of its skill, intelli-
| gencs, energy, and accumulated savings.
But does any Democratic delegate who
IN the Ohio convention voted for the
graded income tax plank believe that q
graded income tax could be 80 imposed
and collected as TO distribute equitably
among the citizens Of this country the
burdens Of governments? II he does, he
ought to be ashamed Of his ignorance.
II he doss not believe it, but voted for
the resolutions merely as cheap toll bait
for the cranlns Of the Farmers Alliance
and other oranks with hazy notions Of the
practicable and the impraotioable, he
ought to be ashamed Of his duplicity and
disloyalty to Democratic principle.
Kick, kick, hcki
KICK against the Mckinley bill. oh
dnematic kickefs Of the Democratic and
Mugwump contingent, who kick for the
sake of kicking; for election day Is com.
ing, after which kicking will not avail.
/ Kick against American tin; kick hard
and kick now. for American tin is in.
oreasing in the land, and American tin
pipes win be spouting when the autumn
rains are falling, and you won't have q
chance 10 kick then. for you viii need
70 stand from under.
kick against free sugar, for it has
again decreased fraction Of q cent 9