The Port Gibson reveille. [volume] (Port Gibson, Miss.) 1890-current, 1891-12-02

fsNN~tetD U ~ tfaae aHa ~ tHsOmt a.
How is this for a platform Oh which
to elect speaker OF the democratic
house OF representative In the fifty.
second cOngrcss9
IL. We must have absolntB free trade.
"2. Lovy tax on incomes aud the
wealthy men Of the country"
That Is short. definite, aud cOnprc-
hcnsive. Absolute free trade and nm
income tax Is programme which
men can understand. There Is no
dodging, no compromise, no attempt
at obiuscaiiOn on The part Of the can
didate for speaker who stands upon
sucli platform as this. lIc Is either
a great statesman or n hopeless crank.
Ills place Is either at the head Of his
party in congress or in retreat for
incurablc lunaiics.
The author of the brief and frnnk
declaration OF political sentiments pro-
sented above is the Hon. X. Q. Mills,
Of Texas. We have quoted his own
words. Their mcauing is unmmsiaka-
bic. lie Is for absolute free trade and
an income tax.
If the democratic majority in the
house Is for absolute free trade and
an income tax, it should elect MIR.
Mills rs speaker in this year immedi-
ately preceding presidential election.
~ y. Sun.
Odious as Mr.. Mills platform APP
pears to the San, there are a great
many people in this country ".
see in it nothing very alarming.
Monstrous injustice prevails in the
present method Of leyying taxes.
The poor bear a double, often
qua,lruple share Of the burden,
while the rich, by a system Of eva
sions that they have reduced TO
science, easily clude the tax-gath-
erer's inquisitIon. That the people
who profit by this state OF things
should be unwilling to have II al
tered is readily understood, and any
man who proposes TO make taxes
fall more cquitably naturally seems
to them a lunatic, or an enemy of
society. Unequal taxation is to-
day the greatest political evil that
afiiIcts our country, and the chief
instrument OF this injustice is the
tariff, because it taxes men not ac-
cording to their possessions but ac-
cording to their expenditures.
Here are two men, one a proper
ty-owner and speculator who has
an income Of $4,000 and the
other a clerk on salary Of $1,000.
The latter is compelled to spend
every dollar of his wages in sup
porting his family while the mil
lionaire's household and personal
expenditures are, say, S50,OOO.
Now. with the exception Of food.
the tariff raises the price Of nearly
everything these men buy build
ing material, furniture, books, med
icine, clothing, cutlery, glassware,
and most other articles Of house,
hold use and ornament. But tho
clerks whole salary is subject to
this taxation (Which is none the
less real and oppressive because
concealed in tho form of higli-
or piices), whereas only one
fortieth Of the millIonaire's i'm
come is thus taxed. In proper
Lion TO his means, therefore, tho
tariff collects from the clerk forty
times as much as it collects from
the millionaire. And the other
of his income
Inc millionaire GENERALLY manages
10. hide entirely from taxation.
Nor is this all. A large part of
lie taxes levied by the tarifI.-pcr-
laps the largest part-goes, not in
o the public treasury, but into the
pockets Of protected manufacturers.
In other words, the government,
,y its duties on imports, gives Ia
certain citizens engaged in private
Enterprises, the power 10 tax for
heir private benefit every man,
yoman and child in the United
States. This is the wrong that Mr..
Mills wants congress to put an end
o, and for this the Sun snccrs at
iim as a lunatic and a "crank"
The N. Y. STANDARD, comment
ng on this uttcrance, remarks:
As no one, not even the san, he
ieves that Mr.. Mills is crank,
hopeless or otherwise, the endorse
nent may be regarded rs unquali-
led. A Sun endorsement is n sol
mn thing, but Mr.. Mills is already
% strong that he may be elected
nevertheless.
Editor J. X. Hudson, of the To-
,eka Capital, complains of woman
rs far as it has been adopt
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