The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1894-04-12
RELIEF rs NEEDED.


The present financial depression has
made the people painfully aware Of the
marked difference with which the tax
payer as creditor treats the county - .
debtor and the treatment received when
the conditions are reversed. The shoe
that is easy on the one foot pinches
frighuully on the other. County gov
ernments issue certificates payable at
some future time. when there Is lack Of
cash on hand. and creditors receive them
cheerfully az . matter Of course, even II
the shortage is due to mismanagement or
perhaps something worse. But when
the people are in financial distress and
the county the creditor it will not accept
its own certificates to apply on the obi
cation even II the failure to do 10 means
ruin TO the debtor. This Is the law Of
the state. In Oregon county certificates,
or warrants, have been received for taxes
and as a result the delinquent list does
not show such large proportions as In
Washington where many Of the taxpav-
ers hold county warrants, but are COM
PEELED to suffer an outrageous penalty for
not being able to secure the cash. One
OF the main reasons given for this Is that
it curtails speculation In county paper al
though there could be little II any moro
OF this done than has been shown 10 the
last few months when county warrants
which were eagerly bought up at par
dropped to S. per cent, and in some in
stances less. While there probably are
reasons for not generally accepting the
warrants for taxes, it certainly seems
reasonable that they should be received
on this account from those to whom
issued.
The taxes are high, altogether too high,
even for times when the farmers produce
is finding remunerative market and the
business man is we'll paid for his invest
ment aud for his services, but, when
these conditions are inverted, and the
taxpayer is unable to respond to the de-
mands made, to add an outrageous PEN
atty besides high rate of interest is lis
bile to bring about distress which the
lawmakers did not forsee. In Walla
Walla county, which is rich 10 material
wealth, the hardships incident to the
times, have induced the formation OF a
retrenchment committee Of fifty, to in
vestigate the various departments Of
county and city governments and public
schools, and see where expenses can be
reduced and savings made, and this CON-
mittee among its other efforts, and in
answer to the request Of hundreds Of prop
erty owners, has petitioned the county
commissioners to remit the penalty and
portion oil the usurious interest charged
against those who failed to pay their
taxes before the first day of April. Al
though unotiicially given out members Of
that board have signifsd their intention
10 comply with the demand and extend
the time for enforced payment to October,
when the crops will be gathered and the
people more likely to be in better condi-
ton to meet their obligations. Section
$50 Of the Code. gives the commissioners,
in the judgment of able lawyers, ample
power to carry out the will OF the people
in this matter. By specific enactment
the commissioners are authorized to COM
pound debts due the county. While they
may not have power to remit taxes, on
the grounds which some attorneys hold
that taxes are not debts, the penalty and
interest for not paying taxes within a GER
tain period is surely debt and can be
RENTED or reduced.
In Yakima we have no committee of
fifty or one hundred. but We have Com
mercial club of active and public spirited
men and this matter OF reduction of ex.
penses Of our municipal and county gov
ernments, and the alienation of the dis
tress caused by the five per cent penalty
and twenty per cent interest for deIin.
quency, should be taken up by this or
ganization for investigation and action.