Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1893-06-29

to his affairs % make Efueh moro
money than a farmer would with the
same amount invested.
If taxation is the cause of all this
farm squeeze, how is it going to benefit
us to increase it by removing all tax
from personal property. You may I'M
derstand it and see the cat quite plain
ly, but it seems to me that it is mat
ter which should be handled with great
care For my part, / think everyone
should pay tax according to posses
sions. Il. F. FORD.
Mr.. Ford says he can show us farms
that are paying for themselves every
season. Surely we would like to see
them, but we will be satisfied if he
Will explain to us how it is done, and
also why he and all in that vicinity do
not adopt the same system. Those
farms must be paying nearly as well
as the Bell telephone. We are sur
prised that Mr.. Ford has not adopted
the same system, and himself, as
well as some of his neighbors,
cleared 100 per cent. on the invest
ment. ''If taxation" asks Mr.. Ford,
sis the cause of all this farm squeeze"
thus admitting that there is a squeeze,
show is it going to benefit US to in
crease it by removing all tax from per-
sona1 property?" If Mr.. Ford will
study the question deeply he will see
that it will benefit farmers; that it will
not increase but will lessen their taxes.
He will find some can hide all their
personal property, that some can hide
q part, that some can hide none and are
compelled to pay on all they have.
That if personal property was exempt,
the tax on realty would be higher, but
the farmers taxes would not be as
great as at present: they pay on both
real and personal, and if all real
estate, whether improved or not, was
taxed at an equal per cent of its
value, those who now pay taxes on all
their personal property would find
their taxes materially reduced. That
if personal property was exempt from
taxation in this state a great amount
of capital would flow in and be in
vested in business Mills and factories
would be built, all business would re-
ceive an impetus and thrive to de-
gree before unknown, and each indi-
vidual in the community, would partake
in, and be benefited by, the general
prosperity. That as the exemption of
personal property from taxation would
cause an increase in the tax on real es-
tate none would be held idle Or vacant.
1t would be built upon or used in some
way: capital would be invested in real
estate for the purpose Of using it. That
no capitalist would invest in real estate
Ind let it remain idle; that all capital
would necessarily have to be invested
in industrial enterprises; that no in
dustry can be carried on without using
real estate; that about the same rela-
ton which exists between the amount
of capital invested in one industry, and
the value of the real estate used In
carrying it on, exists in all: that the
personal property owned by capitalists,
and the real estate held or used by
them, corresponds generally to the per-
sonal property owned and the real es-
tate held or used by all classes; that by
exempting personal property from tax
alton and collecting all taxes from real
estate, each would not only pay in ex.
act proportion to the value of real es-
tate he was using, but also about in
proportion to the value of the personal
property he possessed.-ED.