Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1895-07-11

REFORM IN TAXATION.
(From the West Randolph Herald.)

From the West Randolph Herald)
Just why farmers and other real estate
owners should be 40 unjustly oppressed
by the tax laws of Vermont passes COM
prehcnsion. As a rule, they are as good
citizens and contribute as much toward
the welfare of the community as those
who do not own a foot of land Under
present conditions, too, they are not SC
afliuent that the other class need be
unduly jealous of them and compel them
to pay so large a portion of the revenues
Especially is this true of farmers, both
those who own their farms and those
who do not. The steady depreciation in
farm property of the last 20 years gives
no excuse for laying on the heavy burden
OF taxation that such property has to
bear.
Without doubt farm property is over
valued by listers There seems no remedy
for this except to elect listers with brains
enough to know that Vermont farms are
dirt-cheap, and backbone enough to brave
the babel that would come from holders
of personal property when they were COM
PEELED to pay their just proportion. The
law is not responsible for the lack of
judgment or grit of the listing boards
But the law is responsible for other
great iniquities. A man who has Just
paid off farm mortgage of anything
IKE the value of his property in this state
is entitled to rank among the leading
1inanciers of the world. lie has done il
by the hardest of work the closest of
economy and the deprivation of every
comfort of life. The thousands who have
failed to do it, who have gone down in the
struggle have lost no honor. They are
martyrs to a system of oppression that
would be condemned in Russia, but is
silently endured in this land of the
free"
Here iS n ,oupg ,,oo,, ,,ro,,,rl, 49,, 80, 49,
farm and Injured to its toll, who has left
the old homestead and worked OUT
long enough to accumulate a sum of
money, say $500. He wants to settle down
for life and knows no life but the farm.
He knows of a farm that he thinks will
support the family that he intends to
form. 1t ought to, at least. for 1t is
large enough to give him work the year
around. The price of the place is $1,000.
He buys it. paying his $500 down and Civ
ing a mortgage back to the former
owner This mortgage bears t per cent
interest and he loses say per cent inter-
est on the $500 paid in which he could
have got by depositing it in the bank
His interest account then is $40 a year.
He must insure the buildings in favor of
the mortgage, and the insurance
amounts to $40 year.
Then comes the taxes He paid no
taxes on the $500 when II was i'm the
bank. He is really no richer than before.
Yet when the inventory is returned he
finds he must now pay not only on the
$500 he is worth, but on practically all
that he owes. He talks with the mort
gage and finds that the latter also has
to pay taxes on the amount of his mort
gage, so that the mortgaged property is
taxed twice. Perplexed. he talks with
the merchant. The latter tells him that
he himself has $1,000 worth of stock in
trade; that he owes for $500 worth of it,
but that he does not have to pay taxes
on what he owes since his property
is personal estate which is subject to
offset for debts
1t is little wonder that the young farmer
becomes discouraged when he sees himself
SO sharply Disseminated against. He
notes, too, that taxes which the merchant
escapes increase his load just so much.
His taxes at $50 cents On the dollar-aver-
age rate-amount to $50 a year
Interest, insurance and taxes together
then. foot up $50 a year. This must come
in clear cash from the profits of the farm
after all living expenses are paid. These
three items amount to ~ per cent of the
total cost of his farm. 1t represents an
immense quantity of butter at Is cents.
eggs at 13 cents, potatoes at 40 cents or
hay at SO The farmer can only sell
what his family or stock does not con-
sumo, and he has to buy great deal that
he cannot produce. The margin between
is not enough to enable him to pay ~, per
cent on his investment before he can
apply anything on the PRINCIPAL The
amount of money that the farmer handles
is small Anything that increases the
interest, insurance or taxes is a heavy
burden for him. our present tax law
does this by taxing him on what he owes
as well as on what he owns. He has to
nay the same high rate of interest that
the personal property owned does so there
is not even an indirect gain to him.
Either abolish all offsets or apply them
alike to all kinds of property. No dis
elimination against real estate Give us
fair tax law.