Middletown transcript., 1893-02-25

twenty WOT ThInS udyo uuh"S
August, September and October to the
rural hundreds. What time does this
leave for the collection of texes in this
city. The three months named precede
the election and are therefore that
period of the year when men most think
about paying their taxes because al
that time they think most about V"t-
ing. Is not this provision of the act
preposterous? Is iI the intention OF
this act to collect taxes, or is IL n0t!.
If it is, ought not the Tax Receiver be
allowed or required 10 sit here as well
as in the county hundreds during the
three months namedp Shall the act
not provide for a deputy Receiver OF
taxes and for two seals, one for the
Receiver and the other for the deputy?
Is it not conclusive to your mind
that Wilmington is big enough, has
enough taxables, and yields enough
revenue to have a tax office here open
all the year round, excepting Sundays
and legal holidays? For in addition to
the $4,000 Wilmington taxablts who
have need to visit the lax office, the
law also wisely provides that laxables
from the other hundreds in the county
may pay their taxes here.
-. ,Iao efa bu ho pnrS
that the provision allowing the taxables
of one hundred to pay their taxes to the
Receiver while he is sitting in another
and neigbb0ring hundred is 10 be re-
realed. 1t is to be hoped that this will
not prevail. Why should the law limit
The people in any way to pay their
taxes? Should it moi rather encourage
The payment of taxes by affordfng the
amplest opportunities to do SO? Since
there is but one Tax Receiver for the
county, not man or woman have the
right to pay tax to that Receiver at
any place in the county and upon any
day in The year, excepting such as have
been named above? Is it not the OBJ
iect Of this act to raise money for pub"
lie purposes, and should it not, there
fore, give every possible chance to men
10 contribute that money! If the Tax
Receiver is not sufficiently compensated
for giving a first class service 10 the
public, will it not be economy to pay
him more and get service which
gathers in nearly all the money rather
than to have service which deprives
men Of the opportunity to ay tax2
These views are commended to your
consideration, so that if the question
of amending Chapter 26, Vol. XIX
comes up, you may know what is here
deemed necessary for the honest and
reasonable transaction of this business
of tax collecting in the city of Will
mingtOn.
And yet under the amendments as
proposed the Receiver will receive ad-
ditional compensation with his duties
somewhat lessened. For instance he
will not be allowed to receive taxes
while sitting in one hundred from the
taxables of another hundred; which, of
course, will necessarily lessen his du-
ties. Under this no resident of rural
New Castle will be able to pay his tax
at the Wilmington office, even though
this may be the regular place for re-
ceivihg taxes. To speak mildly this is
outrageous.
Taxes are a debt due the county. and
the county's debtor ought to be allowed
to pay his debt at any place within its
limits. What would you think of mer-
chant in this city to whom resident
Of st. Georges Hundred owed a debt,
who would refuse to receive the money
when the latter was in Wilmington,
but would say to him. will go down to
and collect it there and re-
ceive it in no other place. You would say
he was a fool, and rightly too. Ordin-
arily creditors are very desirous of |
making the way easy for the debtor to
settle with him, hut in the collection |
Of taxes in this State it seems that there
IS no obstacle too great to be thrown in
,he way of a certain class of taxpayers.
| hope that the thinking people of |
,his State will consider the enormity |
which certain ward politicians are try
ng to heap upon the taxpayers of the
and l for one have great con-
idence in certain members of the Leg
stature that they will not permit this
outrageous partisan measure to become
! law. A TAXPAYER.
|