The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1895-07-04

the state for the outlay In its behalf
But the. federal government cannot
undertake this expense 1t remains
for state governments to do So. How
can 1t be done? The most eco
nomical and efficient aid is found, per-
haps, in the crcnlion Of a state high !
way commission. Massachusetts es-4
tablished such a commission in 1852, \
composed of three mcmbers receiving
eacn 81, 900 salary, Their Rrst reports,
issued in 1903, is, q practical and y;llna-3.
BILE document for road builders Ind
students of the road question. and es-
pecially isit useful for local supcrvisr
ors Of Massachusetts. OHIO and Penn
sylyania have also SUGGEST vi ccmflisi;
sions. Indiana has alrci.dy discovered
the great value of permanent. state
commissions in other fields. Our state
board Of charities and corrections has
done more than any Other agency II
improving the administration Of poor
relief in the township, of jails, rcni-#.
tentiaries and asylums, and i'll super
visirg the construction of Jail, and
poorhouses. The state board Of tax
commissioners is the first successful.
agency for reaching the rl'opcrt,T,. OF
wealthy corporations A state high high
way commission, composed of experts,
| giving their entire time to ,their "oi'is,
assisting county and township super
visors, would do more for road improve
mcnt in indiana than any otss.er legal
arrangement g. ~ :, z5z
Next the state should make appro-
priations in aid of county, gravel ard
mecadam roads, like the state cad in
New Jersey. It might not 20 SO fur ;i:',
to contribute one-third. out it shou!l
assist literally 1t has boon estimated
that Indiana spends S3,630,0oo yearly
for roads. One-fourth or one-third Of
! this could bring better results II ex-
pended by the state instead Of counties.
and townships, under the supervision
OF the state highway commission. $s
But how is the state to get the
money? Taxes are already SO high
that no political party can safely afford
to increase them. Yet there is one pro-
IiGc and painless source of state reve-
Tue as yet overlooked by. our law
makers l mean the inheritance tax.
Neighboring states have such tax
Ohio taxes estates, on progressive
scale of per cent. on surplus above
$1,000, and raising to S per cent. on
estates of S1,O0O,OOO and over. New
York gets So, 600, 900 to 1900, 900 a year
from this tax. If Indiana had tax
like the one in Genevu, Switzerland, it
would yield probably $4,000, 900 year.
and tax like the one in Ohio would
yield fully $1,000, 900. The inheritance
| tax is not a tax in the ordinary
sense. 1t does not press upon
industry. 1t does not take from man
what he has earned Only a few pay
the tax 1t comes mainly from the
cities, and from great estates which
| could not have been accumulated and
devised without the fostering core ct
the state government. Such "a tax
should be devo ted to the two great pur-
poses Of free schools and free roads:
These are the two ways in which the
state can best build up its citizens,
especially those in the poorer sections.
| Both expenditures return to the state
compound interest. They make better
citizensNnd better taxpayers. -
| And so, in conclusion, it seems. to me
from comparison with what other
states are doing that the lines of
sharpest attack for the advocates of
road Improvement in Indiana are an
| inheritance tax for state aid to county
| roads, and highway com missioner to
administer it. In this way could the
entire state, without adding to its pres
emit burdens, promote the building Of
the best roads where they are most
needed, and thereby relieve the farmer
in his depressed condition, stimula te
agriculture and create market for it's
manufacturers. merchants and labor
ers.-J. R. Commons, of Indiana uni
! versity, in Good Roads. s5@; '.g