The advocate., 1892-01-13

u VOANO AA vAAO AA@1AS@
shall be levied or expended, Is taxation
without representation, therefore robbery
under the form of law. The same Is
true OF the disRranchised minority.
With universal representation there
would not be q disfranchised Anne lean
citizen nor an unrepresented taxpayer.
While we have been lauding liberty and
representative government In theory,
we have been prscticing oppression and
robbery. We have not yet realized all or
nearly aIl the privileges and liberties
which our great charter OF liberty Sc
cured TO US. We are too prone to Dor
row, not only policies, but methods and
practices In the administration Of govern
ment affairs from England and other
monaFchial countries Of Europe, not
considering that these policies and meth
DDS are at varlence with our institutions
and entirely contrary to the spirit and
genius Of our form Of government. We
have yet to learn that the people are,
and Of right ought to be, sovereign; and
to look upon our public officers as our
servants and not even temporarily our
rulers or masters. The theory of
paying large salaries to our public
servants on the pretext Of secur-
ing ability and removing temptation
to peculatlon in Office, or by invldlous
comparisons with the salaries of offices
In monarchial, aristocratic or even des-
potlc governments, Is not only radically
wrong, but Is the fruitful source Of more
corruption than anything else. 1t is not
the offices having comparatively low
salaries that are sought after or secured
by corrupt and venal methods, by un-
scrupulous politicians, but those having
a large enough salary to pay back the
money corruptly expeE ded in securing
the election. Yet we do not find as a
rule as efficient, conscientious service In
these offices as in those having lower
salary. High salaries are characteristic
Of monarchiSl governments. While on
the other hand the republic of Switzer-
land--the oldest living republic on earth
that has lived and maintained heliber-
ties Of It's people through all the Vicissi-
tudes Of over 600 years, pays the lowest
salary to her president and chief officers
of any other civilized country In chris
tendon. Is not this one example worth
more to us than volumes Of theories bor-
rowed from monarchial resources? He
who advocates high salaries for public
officers on the grounds that other coun-
tries pay such salaries, insults the intelli-
gence Of the American people and In
slnuates treason against Republican
forms Of governments. These large
salaries Of public servants and railroad
officials have done much to transfer the
bulk of the wealth Of the country into a
few hands. While nothing has been
done TO equalize the burdens and equit-
ably distribute the wealth created by
labor. How strange It seems that while
every fair minded man will admit that
a we'll graduated income tax is the most
just and equitable method Of taxation
that could possibly be devised yet it has
always been the last method to which
resort Is made In this country, and the
very first to be abandoned. And yet
while 70 per cent Of the wealth Of the
country is held by less than one-half OF
/ per cent. Of our population It only
pays about 25 per cent OF the taxes,