The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1895-05-23
THE UNCONSTITUTIONALITY OF
THE INCOME TAX.

A newspaper that is governed IN IT'S
editorial conduct by fixed political primer
pies will rarely 60 wrong. The States
man processes to be governed by set
of political principles sustained and advo-
Gated by the Democratic party which are
based upon and spring from certain con
structions Of the constitution and organic
laws Of the country and on than account
It often has occasion to congratulate
itself upon the sOundness of its express
sions of opinions on the current issues
of the day.
When it was first proposed in Decem-
Der, 1898, to pass an income tax law by
congress, The Statesman vehemently OPP
posed it, In the edition of The States
man of December 80, 1893, The States
man said, at is rather surprising that
our otherwise corrcst and able c0tem-
porary, the Brennan Banner, is an advo-
cate of the income tax as n Democratic
doctrine. 1t is purely Republican and was
abandoned by that parity because it was
so thoroughly corruptng and insufficient.
Under it only the honest men paid the
tax and we are sorry to say they
were in microscopical minority" In
the same article The Statesman argued
that it was not only institutional but
inimical to republican institutions on ac-
count of its class legislation and its
espionage into the private affairs of the
citizen.
The Statesman, from time to time, con
tinued to publish editorials opposing the
income tax on the constitutional grounds
that have been so ably set forth in the
decision of the supreme court of the
United States. However when it seemed
absolutely necessary to impose an income
tax to relieve the government of the
heavy burden of debt and obligations in
CURED by the Harrison administration
and the income tax was supported by u
large majority of the Democratic members
of congress The Statesman gave it the
following reluctant assent. On February
ID, 1891, The Statesman said editorially:
Perhaps the hardest thing for the Dem
ocracy of this country to do is to yield to
an eXpediency that makes it necessary
for a Democratic congress to impose
an income tax on the country that palpa-
bly, bears on its face class legislation
We have never known in the
history of this country when the abandon
ment of principle by the Democratic party
proved to be wise and wholesome in poll
cy, but it may be that an income tax
in aid of the reduction of the tariff is
absolutely necessary and we have lately
been disposed to yield to the voice of the
Democratic party" Although when writ
ing this we were so thoroughly convinced
of the unconStitutionality of the tax not
only as principle, but as to its methods
of levying it that we confess that we be-
3 lieved Mr.. Cleveland would veto it, and
we We're surprised that even for the ben
eft of the Wilson tariff Mr.. Cleveland
silently permitted it to become law.
We think we have n right to refer to
the fact that The Statesman anticipated
the late decision of the supreme court
of the United States on the unconstitu-
tionality of this measure two years ago.
The newspaper that seeks the confidence
of the people has a perfect right without
the charge Of vanity or blowing its own
trumpet, to call the attention of its readers
to the fact that it has been sustained in
its expressed opinions by the highest
court of the land, and we mention it
solely to give those who have confidence
in The Statesman reason for the faith
that they have in The Statesman. The
conservatism of The Statesman springs
from the fact that its course is marked
out by well known landmarks of the Dem
ocratic party to which it gives allegiance
discardng the thin mask of independent
journalism boosted of by so many of our
contemporaries, but we claim in that The
Statesman, by reason of its advocating
a set of fixed principles, it is not curtailed
in the least in its independence in the
expression Of its opinions.
When Governor Mckinley. is asked TO