The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1892-12-16
THE TAX QUESTION.
For The .Kgis and Intelligencer.

For me +fglS anu lntelllgencer.
For five years the toiling masses of the peo
pie of this country have fought for lower anC
more equitable taxes, and ut last, under the
leadership of a man of iron nerve and stern
honesty they have won, and glOriOusly.
When the smoke of battle cleared away after
the recent election and the people could SET
the magnitude OF the victory they had won
some were disposed to lay down their arms
thinking the enemy annhilaIed, but other.
said, Don't be too sanguine, they will revive
and come at you again" These latter were
right. Ii has been the experience of men i'm all
ages that the yeomanry of the country must
to pl eserv.' their rights against the rich and
powerful The bread winner and wage earn
er is Ii Z the flying fish. who, seeks brief re.
spite from the prosecutions of the shark in his
native element, only to find himself the victim
of the vultures and harpies OF the air.
The fight just was against exOrbitant
and unjustly levied National taxes and those
who not only sought to escape paying their
proper proportion by forcing the burden upon
the already bowed back of labor, but, by an
Infamous system of class legislation, sought
to fitch the hard-earncd dollars of the poor to
swell their already vast accumulations OF
wealth. Did any one think the fight was over!
Right here in our own State of Maryland we
have the same old fight over again in regard to
State and county taxes.
There is no well founded charge that any of
the money raised here by taxes is wrongfully
appropriated, and no one seriously thinks so.
There may have been errors of Judgment or
useless expenditures growing out of antiquat-
officials can not be questioned, but the trouble
is, that those who possessed of large means
do not pay their proper share of the public eX-
penseS. Indeed, i'll many cases, the man who
is worth II hundred thousand dollars does not
contribute much to the protection of his
wealth and the public convenience AS the man
who Is worth one thousand.
The people are not unaware of their wrongs
and have camored long for relief. Recently
through their Representatives in theiLegisature
they have trumed TWO bills with that end in
view. These two bills were presented to two
Governors, who, unfortunately for the people,
happened to be men of wealth, and promptly
vetoed them. At the last session we had the
Hayes bill, which the majority of the tax pay
ers evidently thought was nearly what was
needed to secure the proper reforms ms could
be framed with ordinary human foresight and
knowledge. The bond-holders and tax dodg-
erS throughout the State raised Il mighty
howl and Il wealthy newspaper, which modestly
admits to being very influential, lent all its
power to defeat the will of the people. The
Governor should be given credit for good in
tentiOn but he Was carried before the storm
like chatf. The bill was vetoed, the Legislature
had nd journed and that was the end of it for
the time being
The Governor has since proposed calling a
cOnVocation to frame another bill, and the
self same newspaper that then helped drown
the popular voice and which is said to have
shown much eXpertneSs in tax lodging itself
has undertaken to boom" the movement.
In its published interviews it shows the
bankers and bond holders of the city, and the
class of people generally, throughout the
state, VINO Dy SItTp Practice ana SnfcWu MALL
agement escape paying their just share of the
public charges, to be heartily i'll favor of the
schcme. Can any reasonable man suppose
that the very Self-samc factorS, the same men
and interests that defeated the Hayes bill are
trying to further legislation that will eqIalize
taxation and make them pay larger and more
just proportions Is it not IL fair, nay M nl-
perative presumption that the result is to be
the same old thing over again, Make the rich
richer and the poor poorer"
If the convention should become n fact,
nj
the same old arguments that have been i'd
vanced against an honest assessment bill used
over again. Here are some of them:
1t won't do to be inquiSitorul: - 1T Is not
proper nor cOnSiderate to ask sensitive bond
holders the extent of their wealth ~ IF you
make personal property pay its share of tn xes it
cannot escape" Indeed, this last idea will
probably be SO harped upon that the bewilder-
ed rustic will expect to see the sky darkened
by the Tapping wings of costly furniture, sta
tues, etc, and find his vision of celestial things
obscured by clouds of bonds and coupons has
tening northward like the black birds in spring,
while he, with his land, is chained to the roc.
The capitalists also goomiiy intimate that
personally dOesn pay well us real estate.
All personality can easily be converted into
money and is really very much the same thing.
Particularly so with bonds and stocks. Money
Is worth six per cent
If bonds do not pay six per cent. on their face
value the price soon falls that whatever
dividend they do pay amounts to six per cent.
on the amount invested. How may farms in
the State of Marylan paid six per cent. on the
amount invested during the past year. dur
ing any one year for the lust ten years. 1t
was said by many OF the tariff reformerS, in the
last campaign, and well said, "If any man in
any branch of business finds he cannot make
living without being protected ut the expense
of Others, let him give up that calling and find
one i'll which he can succeed fairly"
The same rule applies equally well here. If
certificates of wealth do not pay as well as real
estate let the owners of stocks and bonds trade
them for farms and city lots
BE not fooled with the sophistry that money
can not be taxed and that if the rich are made
to pay their share of taxes they will all move
away. 1t there are any who can not endure
to be honest or even to be compelled to be
honest we Gun well afford to do without them.
II is the same old protection humbug that the
small fry though they be, are en-
deavoring to hOodwink the people with.
Class legislation is being sought to be made
popular by impressing the oppressed with the
idea that il is for their benefit.
Cast of the dstortng SpectacleS which the
foes of labor and honesty would endeavor TO
bind over your eyes and if any one gets mud
died or perplexed by their sophiStries let him
turn for guidance to the plain text of the Bill
of Rights which says that every man should
pay his exact proportion of taxes according to
what he is worth i'll real and personal property.