The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1897-07-30

CONVENTION.
The Opportunity Of a Life
Time,
TO Relieve Ourselves of MiSgOVerR-
ment, and EXtrayagant Admins.
tratiOn of Public Affairs.
Hon. James NJ. Head of Nashville
Presents the Question in an Able
and Most Entertaining aud
Convincing Manner.

The Hon. James NJ. Head, of
Nashville, addressed the people of
Maury County at the court house
last Saturday afternoon on the con-
stitutional convention question. The
crowd was not large but those pres
ent gave the speaker close attention
and were evidently very profoundly
impressed with the necessity of con-
stitutional revision. The speech was
a very forcible and earnest presenta-
tion of the question: clear, candid
and at times eloquent.
He congratulated himself upon
this opportunity of appearing before
Maury County audience, and ex-
planned why he had not filled his
former appointments at this place.
He dwelt upon the importance
to the people of this election,
that it was the opportunity of
lifetime to be relieved from the
burdens of misgOvernment, to cor
rect abuses in the administration of
public affairs which found their
roots in the fundamental law and to
prepare the way for an economical
government and a more Just and
equal distribution of the burdens of
government. He addressed himself
particularly to the evils of the
present system of taxation which,
owing to the present development of
monopolies and corporations, en-
tailed upon the people an unequal
and an MUST distribution of the
burdens of public taxes. He cited
the provision in the constitution of
1896 on the question of taxation,
which was that all lands should be
taxed equally and uniform so that
no 100 acres of land should be taxed
higher than any other 100 acres, and
that no town lot or freeman should
be taxed higher than 200 acres, and
no slave higher than 200 acres. This
method was evidently satisfactory
ut that day and produced an equal
distribution of public taxes. At
that day there were no railroads, no
steamboats,, no monopOlies, no vast
aggregations of capital which domi-
nate almost all the greater depart
ments of commerce and manufac-
ture, enjoying great and valuable
franchises from the State. But of
course no one would insist upon
such a system of taxation for the
present time with all the vast de-
velopments of modern commercial
life, and even in 1884 the conditions
had so changed that another more
eQuable system of taXtiOn had ia
be devised, and it was provided that
"All property shall be taxed accord
ing to its value; that value to be as
certained in such manner as the Leg
| islature shall direct, so that the same
shall be equal and uniform through
out the state. No one species of prop
erty from which u tax may be collect
ed, shall be taxed higher than any
other species of property OF equal val
ue;" this provision seemed so equa
and fair that it was continued in the
constitution of 1870, but unde" praC-
tical operations and present con.
ditions the distributions of public
burdens under the present law was
as unfair and unequal as it would be
under the constitution of 1896. He
cOntended that corporations shOulC
be taxed according to ditferen
rule from that by which the in
dividual was taxed. The corpora
ton received valuable franchises
from the State, and had con
siderable advantage over the in
dividual, in that the stockholders o
the corporation were exempted by
the State from any individual
liability, while the entire fortune
of the Individual was liable for hit
undertakings, and his persona
liability was cO-eXtensive with hi
contracts. And there were certain
class of quasi-public corporations
such as street-railways, railroads
gas and water companies anC
electric light companies which were
practical monOpOlies and had un
limited power to tax the people t,
the full extent of their endurance
These corporations We're gathering
i'm annually vast sums of money
and were not returning to the Statt
their fair proportion of taxes, simpl.
because under the present cOnstitu
tion a different rule could not be ap
piled in the taxation of corporations
He cited some facts and figure
which he had gathered from per
sonal experience to show tn,
inequality of the present system o
taxation. He showed how much
store-house of his rented for il
Nashville and how much taxes h
paid on it, which was l72a per cent
of the gross earnings of his property
He also took a piece of farming
property in Davidson County whicI
rented for six dollars an acre, an,
the taxes paid on this farm amount
ed to between 2l and 22 per cent o
the gross earnings of this farm.
While the people were payin
about one-fifth of their gross earn
ings in taxes the railroads and othe
monied corporations, according t
the system of taxing all property &C
cording to its value, We're not pay