The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-02-21


lation. All taxes in the nature of them
must be classified. y tax on land is class
legislation. 1t only affects landowners.
tax on horses is class legislation. A
tax on any Rind of property specified
by law is a tax upon those who hold
that kind of property; and so "A tax on
incomes is no more class legislation than
any other kind of a tax" This is sim
No tax can fall with exact equality on
all, and that is the chief objection to "A
single tax OF any kind. From necessity
there must be diversity Of taxation to
reach all classes of people in proportion
to the benefits they receive from the
government. and while each tax is ''class
legislation"-a tax on class-the object
of just legislation is that in the aggre-
gate they may form an equitably dis
tributed burden. Mr.. Cooper then took
up the assertion of one of the New York
members who had declared that he would
never be swayed to the right or to the
left by the financial condition of any per-
son who may be affected by a system of
revenue" and said:
Now. Mr. Chairman. that is not a cor
rect principle. The gentleman is mis-
taken. He would not have said that il
he had stopped to think. in the very
nature of the case We must legislate
upon the conditions as they exist. Let
me give YOU an illustration. On one side
of a street, in a. tenement building
packed from cellar TO garrett it may he
there are 500 people. On the opposite
side Of the street is n mansion occupied
by one man and his family. Must the
500 on the opposite side of the street pay
500 times as much tax Is the man with
the mansion, who occupies it alone with
his family? Or should the property be
taken into ACCOUNT Is il not as eX-
pensive to take care of this one mansion
on the part Of the government as TO take
care of that tenement block? And ought
not the one in that case to pay as much
to support the government as the 500?
This again, is simple truth cogently
stated Government is not for the pro-
lection of the person alone. but also, and
very largely, for the protection Of prop
erty, and our representative proceeded to
show that the protection of the United
States is given chiefly to men of large
incomes. lie said:
Mr.. Chairman the best way to arrive
at Il correct conclusion as to who obtains
most protection from government is TO
consider who would be at the greatest
loss if government should be abandoned.
How would it affect your constituents?
] will tell YOU who my constituents are.
Most of them are the hardy farmers of
central Indiana. feel that I do not
eNaSgerate, Mr. Chairman. when / say
that If you withdraw the protection of
government. if YOU abandon this mag
nificent structure which we have reared
here, the greatest republic that the world
has ever seen. the Indiana farmer, self
supporting. Self-respecting and self
maintaining. will suffer least of all. Gap
plauSe on the democratic Side) There
ne is There is his home nesting on the
hillside. his acres spreading out before
him on the plain down to the brook, or
the rivers brink He is Injured to toll,
and accustomed to self-reliance. Now
withdraw your government What be
comes of him? He is on the ground. He
went there in advance Of your govern
ment He and his ancestors went there
when that was a wild country. inhabited
by wild men, and when wild nature held
her sway. If he maintained himself
then. he can maintain himself now. If
as a pioneer. with no other protection
than his rifle hung over his door and his
faithful dog on guard. he could prosper
then, he can prosper now. You need him
more than he needs you. But, If YOU
abandon your government. the govern
ment OF this republic. what becomes of
your stocks, of your bonds. of your cor
pcratiOns, and all OF these intangible
and incorpOreal rights the Vaccinations
of the mind Of man that are built Up
under the protection of government?
They will disappear like the airy fabric
I
who have incomes. the men who have
property Of this character, are the most
greatly benefited.
The argument is forciblc and just, and
equally so was his specific reference to
the committees of congress on foreign
affairs. on interstate commerce, on man
ufactures. on Pacific railroads, on mines
and mining ard the like. the work OF all
Of which is necessarily largely devoted
to the concerns of the income receiving
classes. and so with the committee on
patents. as to which Mr.. Cooper con-
tinued:
Take away the protection of the gov
eminent and how could the inventor
maintain his right to mis- patent or to
the benefits thereof. and ought he not
therefore, willingly and cheerfully, out
of the magnificent fortune which he has
been able to obtain through the protec-
ton given to him by the government,
contribute for the support of that gov
eminent? In further illustration 1 might
go through the whole of the work. which
we do here in congress. Mr.. Chairman,
the principal work done by the govern
ment of the United States I'm the legis-
lative. the executive and the judicial de-
partments, is work which protects and
maintains the rights of men of great
means OF individuals who have ac-
cumulated fortunes so vast that no mar
row limits can Circumscribe them of
corporations so great that they have
passed beyond the limits of states and
extend from one continents edge to the
other.
Any man can see these things for him
self. We do not mean, and Mr. Cooper
does not mean. that the national govern
ment fails to extend its protection and
its benefits to the lowliest Of its citizens,
but it does much more for the wealthy
simply because they have more to be
protected. The fact that the United
States courts have jurisdiction in mat
tiers concerning national banks, interstate
commerce, patents and in suit between
citizens of different states necessarily re-
suits in their attention being chiefly oc-
cupied by the income receiving class, and
it is as just that this class should bear
a proportional share of the expense of