The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-07-21
Personal TAXES.
Some Instructive Facts and Figures
Concerning Them.
Matthew Marshall. in New YORK Sun.

Matthew Marshall, in new York Sun.
The personal estate of the late Jay Gould
was appraised, tor the purpose of the inher-
itance law tax at about SO 900 600 whereas
MIR. Gould, in his lifetime, paid taxes upon
only about $2,00O000. When this became
known there was Immediately a cry raised
ought to have paid and that the Inheritance
tax law compelled his heirs only partially to
make amends for his shortcomings. A
glance at the inventory of the items COM
posing the $50 COO 600 SHOWS, however that
lew or none of them were properly taxable
Many OF theme were shares in corporations
in other States which paid taxes in those
States and many others were bonds of sim
liar corporations also representing property
lying outside of this State, and, therefore
deriving no benefit from its government
In disregard of this fact the argument for
the increase of the inheritance tax last win
ter consisted mainly of estimates showing
that in a number OF cases, like Mr.. Gould 5,
the value of the personal property OF de-
ceased citizens was found at their deaths to
have been many times over larger than
that upon which they paid taxes during
their lives. The bill was properly vetoed
by the Governor, but that the Legislature
should have passed it shows gross ignor-
ance and disregard of justice on the part
for it.
In fact, the most exaggerated ideas pre-
vail of the value of the personal property
in this country properly liable to taxation,
as compared with that of real estate. 1t
has been repeated over and over again that
the personally of the country equals in
value its realty and that therefore, assess
ments, which, as in this State, make the
realty for tax purposes worth nine times
as much as the personality, are to that eX-
tent unjust. In the first place, the truth,
as shown by the last United States census
is quite otherwise. Out of a total
property returned by that census only
$4,000, OO0,O00 is personal property at
all, and ST. 600, 600 00O of this consists of rail-
roads, telegraphs, telephones and mines
leaving but SIS 600 600, 900 out of the $650U0,
100000 to represent other forms of personal
property The total wealth of the State Of
New York is returned S., 500 900. 900; of
which So SEQ coo is real estate 81 0G0 900 600
railroads, telegraphs, telephones, mines and
other things, mostly belonging to corpora
tons and taxed through them. The total
value of the railroads alone in the country
is about $1,000 O00, 600, of which $4,000, 600 900
Is represented by bonds but as the rail-
roads pay taxes on nearly the whole
So, 000, 100000, as real estate, the lands are
taxed too: Upon the $39, 800 00O,000 of real
census takers, there are mortgages out
standing to the amount of $1,000 COO, 600, all
of which represent an interest in the real
estate they cover, and If they were taxed
separately would pay taxes twice.
1t is probable, therefore that no method
or taxing personally short OF arbitrary con-
t1scation, would increase the revenue from
1t much above the present proportion to
that derived from the taxation of real eS-
tate. Considering that the tax, from it's
very nature. falls more heavily upon citi-
ZenS OF small means than 1t does upon the
wealthy, it has been urged by many wise
statesmen that it had better be abolished
If not altogether then at least 50 far as
relates to private persons, leaving it in
force only as regards corporations. The
immediate effect of such measure would
be TO increase the taxation of realty by
over 10 per cent, but as the Increase would
be paid, in most cases, by people who now
pay personal taxes the ultimate result
would be the same that it is now. The
State would gain by the return Of its citi-
zens who have removed from it to escape
the annoyance and the expense which our
present system entails upon them, and il
would also become the asylum of many
other wealthy people who would take up
their residences here for the sake of the
exemption we should offer them.