The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-29

statistics point to better markets for rood
horses in the future, for farmers are not
raising many horses, and the supply VIII be
snort or the demand IL these conditions con-
tinue. Good beef cattle must command bet-
Ter prices, as will also. mutton and wool
ECONOMIC QUESTIONS.
The farmer in full measure has contrib
uted his part to the development of this
country. He is to-day the great wealth.
producing factor. The statistics showing
the products of the various industries are.
on their face, somewhat misleading. To
illustrate this statement, the output of cot
ton factories. of wooden factories, OF
slaughter houses, of packing and canning
establishments, -four and grist mills and so
on through the large list of manufactures,
to whose credit the value of the output is
given. When these are aggregated it makes
a large showing, large per cent. of which
should be credited to the farm. The farmer
creates more wealth than all the others
combined. From 65 to so per cent of all
our exports come from the farm. In 1892.
when our exports reached the climax. being
in round numbers $1,000 000, 600. the farmer
furnished 1874 100000, or 70 per cent. II is
the excess of exports over imports that
turns the gold back into this country. The
property OF the farmer rarely escapes tax
alton. The real estate cannot be concealed.
His live stock, grain and implements ara
all in view. Nothing escapes. In Indiana
he pays taxes on SAC 95l 1888 of mortgages.
He cannot offset this Indebtedness He
must pay taxes for ali. The total value OF
all property in this State as returned for
taxation is S1,2S6 ,050,5Sl the value OF farms
and improvements, 1886, 0S7. S99 the farm
alone lacking but $lO6 54S, 5o6 OF being half
the aggregate. If you would add to the
value of farms the personal property of the
farmers, their crops, stock implements and
household goods you Will ind they are
taxed on more than one-half of all taxable
General Harrison, in his address before
1,.r nm n
the injustice of the tax laws. In New
York, he said, $4,000 100000 of real estate
was returned, and only one-half billion OF
personal property, when the latter should
have been in excess Money, stocks, bonds
mortgages, notes, deposits, policies, aggre-
eating hundreds of millions OF wealth eS-
cape taxation General Harrison oppor-
timely said to the Farmers National Con-
gress last winter: If you have grievance
These remarks were to the point. Ihero
are many croaking, grumbling. growing,
pessimistic farmers, and those who are
panGering to this element OF dlscontented
men, who are failures In everything they
have attempted in life, these chronic grum-
blers, do much against everybody and
but little good for anybody. These men
present such a tale of woe, much OF II IN
generalization. but little specific, that all
matters, just or otherwise. are apt to be
treated lightly / desire as a farmer, for
as such l speak to you to-day, not to COM
plain, but to commend the faithful efforts
of Indiana's tax board to bring about
fair and equitable adjustment of taxes OF
the State.
by many is condemned as against public
policy They say that, an encourage
ment to save money, we should encourage
the acquiring of such stock by eXempting
it from taxation. am frank to admit that
any policy to help the poor would meet
with favor. But why discriminate? The
poor man. struggling to pay the mortgage
on his home, is paying taxes on both his
indebtedness and what he really owns.
Why discriminate against him? 1t is not
oY,1xr hos Of oil
building and loan stock, but men are in
veSting, as a business transaction, thou
sands of dollars in this manner. Is IL
public policy to exempt investments OF
class of men so long as the State is
forced to tax the Indebtedness of another?
The Supreme Court of Indiana, in the case
of Deniston auditor, VS. Tenny, 141st Ind.
p. CTS, held all property taxable, unless
specially exempted by law that, as this
literary, scientific, religious or charitable
property, it is not of any of the kinds that
may be exempted by law. the :, tax b9 cara
of credits from which Indebtedness may
be taken: Number of paid-up. life lnsur-
ance policies and their value: also number
of nonforfetable and partly paid-up life
insurance policies and their value. 10
this effort on the part of OF the
protest from the press and from thousands
who would be required to pay such taxes.
By some II is argued: If you tax life. why
not tax fire insurance policies? There is
no parallel between the two. The house
or property insured is taxed, and the policy
only restores. in case of loss that upon
which the policy holder is already paying
taxes. The life insurance policy, Of which
the actuary's tables reveal the cash sur
render value to be one two, three, four or
five thousand dollars should pay tax on
that amount There are life insurance
than Sis, 600 To say these policies have
value would betray a lack of business
sense. To say because they have not hith-
erto been taxed they should not now be
taxed would be to deny the right in thu
active, living present to correct the wrongs
of the dead past To say there is no law
is but to misinterpret the law. Section 258
of the tax law provides for adding to the
schedule any other values or species of
all classes of property taxable unless spe-
officially exempted. Men of business sa-
gacity men of wealth in our State, are
holding policies that aggregate, in some in
stances hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Into this investment they are putting their
wealth. AS business men they regard the
investment wise. These policies have recog-
niZed values. The actuarys tables reveal
this value each year They have COM
meTcial value and are used as collaterals
on which to secure loans of money. The
surrender value Of such policies in equity
should be taxed. The agents of life in
surance companies have argued that one
of the reasons for such investments is that
these policies escape taxation. The burden
of taxation in Indiana falls on The real
estate.
~ ne farmers of our State who, as
class, have the least exemption from taxa
ton and who, in fact pay on more than
they possess free from debt, have a right
to demand that all property be put upon
the tax schedule. While it is fact that
the farmers are taxed on more than one
half the taxable property, no one can rea-
sonably conclude that they possess more
wealth than all the cities and towns with
all their stores shops. factories banks de-
posts money, trust companies. telegraph,
telephone and express companies water
and gas plants. street railways. and all the
railroads and other business interests OF
the State; nor can it be shown that their
prOhts are one-third the gain of all these
combined business interests of the State.
Now that the single-taX plan is gaining
supporters 1t is of the utmost Importance
that the farmers of the coming century
familiarize themselves with the question
OF taxation and demand equity instead Of
policy. Their own defense against the
present and the growing inequalities Of
listing taxable property force them into
this investigation. and into court with this
cause of Justice they come and demand a
hearing. In Pennsylvania and New Jersey
farms are not taxed for STATE purposes;
the State taxes being collected largely from
franchise privileges"
The Governor spoke briefly of mail ia
ctittes for the rural districts, intellectual
and social life on farms, and closed with a
prediction of better things for the future
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