The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1891-10-02
For County Surveyor,
WILLIAM T. CLARK.
Amendments Five and Six.

Amendments Five and Six.
The proposed Amendment No. 5 to the
Constitution of the State, if adopted, would
enable the Board of Public Works, if SO in
structed by the Legislature, to sell the States
interest in all works of internal improve
ment, whether as a stockholder or creditor.
This amendment is salutary one, and 1t
ought to be passed. It seems to be entirely
foreign to good government for the State to
have any pecuniary interest in private enter
prises, for the reason that such interest is
likely to warp and influence legislation in
favor of such corporations, and of course to
corresponding degree against rival enter
prises in which the State has no interest.
This would scarcely seem to be fair treatment
towards citizens who have embarked capital
in any business in which the State has no in
terest. Besides, the States interest in some
of these works of internal improvement.
notably, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, has
been made political football, being used by
designing politicians to further their private
ends. The amendment does not compel the
Board of Public Works to sacrifice the inter-
est of the State in any of these works. 1t
only gives the people power, through the Lee
gislature, to close out the States interest in
these corporations and apply the proceeds to
the payment of the State debt
The sixth and last proposed Amendment
Is one which has been agitating the minds of
fl,a of Tor
First, it provides that personal property shall
be taxed in that city or county where its
owner resides for the greater part of the year,
except such goods and chattels as are perma-
nently located, which shall be taxed where
they are 30 located. Much personal property,
it is said, escapes taxation because of the un-
certainty as to where it ought to be taxed.
A man resides part of his time in the city and
at other times in one county of the State or
another, and designing men doubtless have
taken advantage of this fact and lodged the
tax gatherer. Let all such persons be taxed
somewhere and if an effort is made to tax
them twice on the same property they can
easily produce their tax receipt, so that no
harm will be done them.
The bone of contention, however, in this
Sixth Amendment is the power it would give
the Legislature to tax mortgages, if that body
should see proper to do SO.
Previous to 1870 mortgages were taxed in
Maryland. The rate of interest was then
high and all mortgages specified that the
mortgagor should pay all taxes and public
dues which might be levied on the property
or on the mortgage, besides the interest.
The result of this was that in every case the
borrower, in addition to being compelled to
pay taxes on the assessed valuation of his
farm, had to pay an additional tax on what
he owed upon it. When mortgages were re-
leased from taxation 100000 was deducted
from the assesssble basis of Hartford county,
being the amount represented by mortgages.
The exemption, while it imposed an addi-
tional burden on all taxpayers in providing
for the necessary expenses of our county
government, was felt to be great relief to
the unfortunate persons who had been oblig-
ed to give mortgages upon their property. 1t
is true those who held the mortgages contin-
ued to escape taxation upon them, as they
had escaped when mortgages were taxed.
It might be argued that this is right; that
having parted with his money-the represen.
tative of property man ought only to be
taxed upon the revenue it brings him, the
money itself having gone into other hands
where 1t is taxed as soon as 1t is converted
into taxable property, whether lands, or
houses, or personal property.
This principle would seem to necessitate
an income tax, which, after all, is the only
fair and equitable way of adjusting the bur-
den of taxation; and ifsuch income tax were
graduated 30 that the man with the largest in
come should pay larger per centage of tax
alton than the man whose income only suff1.
ces for the support of his family. the tax
would be still more equitably imposed
On the other hand, 1t is evident that the op-
position to the taxation of mortgages has
been growing. Under the pressure of hard
times and accommodating debts the poor farmer
has seen men of large wealth escaping, as it
appears to him, their share of the public bur-
den, and an irritation has been caused which
can not be easily allayed.
No sane man would desire the taxation of
mortgages if the result would be that the
poor mortgagor was compelled TO pay the
tax in addition to the tax already levied upon
his land. But how to tax the mortgage
without distressing bis debtor is the puzzlng
question. 1t is easy for charlatans and dem
agogues to say the thing can be done, but no
complex system of taxation, which will catch
honest men and permit those with pliable
consciences to go free will meet the require
ments of the case
lift is deemed wise by the Legislature to
tax mortgages probably there never was
period when it would be safer 10 try the ex-
pertinent than now. The rate of interest is
low and there are millions of dollars in the
country seeking investment. When tariff
reform is once fairly inaugurated at Washing
ton farmers will be more prosperous and
these millions would be glad to find invest
ment in mortgages on farms at 6 per cent,
the mortgage paying the mortgage tax.
Our system of taxation is the growth Of
hundreds of years, and excresences may have
grown upon it as they do upon the sturdy
oak, but It would not do, for this reason, to