Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1895-01-04
A Duty Of the Hour.

The address 81 the committee ap-
pointed a. mc,tin. II prominent
taxpayers. =" 6ol.s some means fnr
rcIi To- the people Of the state. pre-
scented AT Saturday nights meeting.
hv Gen. Hazard stevens. appears in
another part 81 the >rATDALU The
plainnes- # the language j. Justified
ly the exigcucv al the situation. Its
10 time for child- play or the display
Of pride which has done - much
toward, a cvncca!ment OF the tru.
condition OF affairs.
Debt, public or private, Is no dis
grace if honestly incurred, but the
debtor is worse than foolish II lie cx-
poets to evade its consequences by is
norlng its existence.
The movement Of the l-ople to for
mulate laws which may aid in this
matter lie not presumptuous, when We
consider the limited time the Leg-la-
ture remains in session and the labor
before it. Any well-considered sug-
gestions will doubtless be received
with favor by the peoples representa-
tiyes and given their earnest consider
alton. The depth OF feeling all over
the State, is apparent from the meet
ings that have been held, and the
plans that have been suggested for re-
lief. Most of these must, of necessity,
be crude and imperfect, but from the
mass OF suggestions doubtless a con-
census of opinion may be formed
which will aid very materially in crys-
talizing the popular will, which is the
essence of law.
The Seattle Sun, new but exceed
ingly bright and brainy paper, de.
clares the burden in every branch of
the government, State, county and
municipal, to be greater than the peo-
pie can bear. They demand relief
and it must be given quickly. 1t says:
Born during boom, the State was set
going on high-pressure system. Too
many offices and commissions were Gre
ated, and salaries were made too high.
Public institutions We're created in ad-
vance of need. Liberal expenditure was
the order. We tickled our ears with a
welcome acclaim of the greatness of
Washington. We proclaimed it the
most wonderful State in the Union.
{" We are the people; nothing is too good
for us" We shouted; give US the best
there is to be got. and darn the ex-
pense" A jag of that sort may be ex-
hilarating for time, but it comes high,
and the awakening in the morning is
not at all pleasant. The State has
awaked, and is very headachy and re-
morseful. A new year is at hand, and it
10 good time to turn over new leaf.
Tho taxpayers League of Pacific
county asks, among other things, that
the property assessment be made BIZ
ennially, thus avoiding the annual ex-
pense, and it is suggested that a saving
may be accomplished in the several
county departments by combining
some Of the Offices.
Avery general demand is for remis.
sion of penalty and interest on over.
due taxes. The penalty is with singu-
lar unanimity regarded as an outrage
on justice and the interest usurious
and excessive. The Lincoln County
Times alleges that to enforce collec-
ton of the delinquency that has &C.
cumulated on much of the property,
IN that and other counties, would in
nearly all instances greatly cripple the
owners and in many instances do ire
trievable harm. "In most cases." it
alleges, the delinquency has occurred
because of inability to pay, and not
through fault or neglect. The pen.
atty is too high and the interest exor-
bitant. All classes Of people have suf-
fered from the hard times, but the
farmers particularly. the extreme low
price of wheat making it difficult for
them to live" The objection that
such action might possibly come
under the constitutional inhibition, as
an evasion of the requirement of equal
taxation, disappears with a little re.
Election. The obligations imposed
are themselves go flagrantly unjust
that they disturb the first condition
of equality.
Another suggestion is that tax-pay-
ments be made semi-annually, and
this same idea has animated our local
effort, but it is claimed that the sys.
tenn under trial in California, does
not afford any appreciable relief to
the poor taxpayer, the class it was de.
signed to benefit; but rather that it
benefited the rich. Heavy taxpayers
take advantage of the law. 1t is in
their interest and brings them profit,
for they have for six months the free
Use OF large sums of money that
should be in the Treasury. 1t may be
possible, however, to devise some
means for partial payments which
will not be liable to this abuse.
The Hoquiam Washingtonian calls
for the abolition of some of the State
Commissions. An excellent sugges.
ton, but it will require a vigorous
shake of the tree to dislodge them.
Combination OF friends of each form a
trust that is immovable unless the
makeup of the Legislature is vastly
different from what it usually is. The
moment they are assailed. the matter
will be made the subject of barter for
all sorts of legislation. The tax-eater
is ever scheming to keep his hand in
the pocket of the taxpayer. The
number of men anxious to draw a
salary is immense, and it will be q
wonder if the combine does not sue.
coed in creating new commissions, in.
stead of the unpledged members being
able to extirpate those already firmly
grounded.
Nothing succeeds like organization,