Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1892-05-11
100000 A YEAR!
The Amount Taken OFF the Shout
ders of the Taxpayer
And Placed on the Railroad Corpora
tions-Done Despite Desperate
Opposition.

In no particular Goes Ine WORK OF ING
last Michigan legislature bear more
credjtable inspection than in the rail
road legislation it enacted. The people
Tor years have demanded that the rail-
road corporations should pay taxes COM
mensurate with the great privileges
they enjoy. AT session after session in
the long line of republican legislatures
efforts were made to pass bills increas-
ing the altogether unfair and unequal
share Of taxes paid by them, but all in
vain. The railroad corporations will
remember the year 1901 as the opening
of o new epoch for them.
The necessity and the justice of in
creasing the taxes on the railroads IN
this state needs no demonstration.
While state expenses have been piling
up higher and higher, a large proportion
of the increase being due to these very
same railroads, the hand of legislation
has been caressingly laid upon their in
terests.
The individual taxpayer has had
less attention, except by the assessor
and the collector, who have been very
regular In demanding of the proceeds
VI Ills idDOI uuo NiiS piOpbS VI iiio ptpi-
ness at rate double that paid by the
mightiest corporations. The people
have demanded for years in vain that
laws should be enacted that would
equalize taxation between the corpora
lions and the individual
The election of 1890 showed that they
were determined to try to bring about
change hy changing the administra-
ton, placing a new set of lawma kers IN
the capitol. The change was made, and
the very demands ignored by the repub-
leans Is the first successful legislative
work performed by the democratic
party. In vain.the corporations argued
to be let alone. They were answered
that they did not pay one-half as much
in taxes in proportion to their property
as other interests; that they had been
favored too long and too much; that
they now receive as much for carrying
people in most cases as was allowed by
law when farmers sold wheat for 81
a bushel, wool for fifty cents pork for a
shilling beef for 10 cents, and butter
for 80 cents pound; that now farmers
are selling wheat for 80 cents bushel,
pork for from to cents, wool for 20,
beef from to 8, and butter from S to
20 cents a pound. No power of argu-
ment, no fortune Of circumstance, and
no favor that could be shown or offered
by the railroad attorneys and lobbyists
had any effect on the faithful repre-.
sentatives of the people. The measure
was passed.
BY the authority of act No ia of the
public acts of 1891, the railroads will
pay 5000, 900 more annually into the peo-
pies treasury than they have done
heretofore. After the taxes shall have
been collected from the railroads next
year, when the law will have been a
full year In operation, more money will
be sent into every school district, by
thirty cents for every child between the
age of five and twenty years. This is
the result of electing honest, fearless
Legislators, whose principles and prac-
tice are formulated in the democratic
axiom: Especial privileges to none"
The railroad corporations are going to
pay large sums of money to defray your
school expenses, reader, in your own
school district, by the command of the
law enacted by democratic legislature.
Are you pleased with such legislation?
Then show your pleasure at the ballot
box.
There is good field for more work in
this direction. Many corporations and
professions In the state should be called
upon to pay more of the public expenses,
There are thousands of professional
men who were educated in public insti.
tutions, which are supported by taxes
on the farms and on the property of the
citizens, professionals who enjoy more
privileges, protection and profit than
the common people. These all should
pay their full proportion of the states
expenses. If justice is done the people,
the property Of the individual citizen
need not be taxed farthing for state
purposes. All money needed for the
expenses of an honest administration OF
our state government can by just and
proper legislation be collected from the
corporations.
To return the republicans to power in
this state, In view of their past extrava.
gance and corporation favoritism, and
in the light of the record made by the
democratic party for economy and equal
taxation, would be confession that the
people are willing to be burdened for
the benefit Of corporations.
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