The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-02

and happy. True patriotism thrives on eyery
hearthstone that is held in fee simple. Every
effort possible, therefore, should be made by
the state to encourage rebuilding. By
putting less tax upon land and more upon the
vast personal of the state we should have
more prosperous homes and less prisons.
This wholesale exemption of sthe vast personal
from taxation Is deyelopingtta nomadic ten
dency in the state. We have already too
many citizens without homes, mere carpet
baggers, with their personal hid in their
grips, fleeing from one city to another to
escape. just taxation from aagoyernment that
throws eagis of protection over them
Atathird remedy proposed is the establish
ment Of state income -,taxb This it Is al
legged would reach a large class that now
practically escapes all taxes,1and it is cheer
ing fact that the attention of many of our
state legislatures are being called to this sub
ject bills. embodying the 19come tax were
during the past winter, and the time is fast
approaching when no class will escape a just
proportion Of the public burden.
There are three conditions which should reg
ulate the assessment of taxation, viz
Amount of property held protection received,
and the ability to pay. 3tsfso,
Ffrst-Upon the amount OF property pos
sessed. Ali will admit the justice of this
claim notwithstanding So many men of large
wealth and otherwise OF honorable instincts
seek to escape just assessment.
Second-Upon the amount of protection re-
ceived 1t is evident that the citizen of large
personal. wealth receives more protection from
the law than the man. OF small means. Why
then should he not pay for this extra benefit?
Yet, by the working Of our tax laws. he
often does not pay 1.-THE In proportion to
his more humble neighbor.
Third-Taxation should be levied in pro-
portion to a mans responsibility to pay.
Governments through all ages have recognized
this fact, and in times of public stress. have
exacted special tributes from the rich and
men of large incomes. Ability to pay and
amount of protection received have been
the grounds of this exaction. Upon this is
based the New York collateral inheritance
tax; also the corporation tax. The corpora
ton tax of the state Of Pennsylvania pays
all or nearly all the state tax. This is on
the ground of ability to pay. Nearly every
nation in Europe has graded income tax,
applied only to men of large revenue. The in
come tax of England amounts to over $50, 900,
900 annually What relief is this to the over
taxed farmer, who, were 1t not for such a law,
would be doubly burdened with the expense
of government?
That the income tax is inquisitorial is no
valid objection for a government has a right
to know what hidden wealth it is protecting.
All tax laws are more or less inQuisitorial.
The custom house tax is Of this nature; so
also is the tax which government levys on
distilleries and on the manufacture OF tobacco.
The listing system is inquisitorial, and yet
many states have adopted it as the best means
of reaching the untaxed personal. The enact
ment of an income tax law in every state
could be but salutary in its results, not only
as means of lessening the burden of taxa
ton but also in allaying the general feel
ing that the wealthy too often escape their
just proportion of the public burden.
Would it not be we'll, therefore, for this
Farmers National congress to pass resolu-
ton endorsing state income tax, and on our
return to our respective states urge upon our
legislatures the necessity OF the enactment of
such a law, and thereby solve the problem in
measure at least Of equal and just taxation.