Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1898-10-14
A Hoist by Their Own Petard.


papers and orators were little too
previous" in charging that the pro-
posed constitutional amendment re-
lating to taxation was designed to give
vitality to the principle of "single
tax" which has been held up as such
Il bugaboo to farmers and Others own
ing large tracts, which they claim
may be made to bear an unequal bur-
den under the proviso that
1t shall be optional with each mu-
nicipal corporation in the State to fix
and determine by majority vote of the
qualified electors voting thereon, the
class, or classes, of property upon which
taxes for municipal purposes shall be
levied, which tax shall be uniform as to
persons and class"
One of the best points made by Mr..
Jones, in his speech Monday night,
was to show just where this charge OF
"single tax" originated, if is is the lit
tie Joker that is concealed in the
amendment, as Oily and others insist
upon maintaining. He read from the
Senate Journal, which it must be ad-
mitted is tolerably fair authority, TINT
such immaculate Republicans as Deck
ebach, Dorr, Frink, Harper, Lewis,
Megler, Pussy, Range, Warburton and
Wooding, voted for the bill on its
final passage, and likewise from the
House Journal, which shows that
only one Republican-Barlow-vo
against it, in the popular branch of
the legislative assembly.
1t seems to us that two horns of q
very uncomfortable dilemma are pre-
scented for our Republican friends to
straddle. They may assume that
their Senators and Representatives did
not know what they were about when
they allowed the hated Populists to
ring in a very large and very hard
grindstone for them to but at, or that
they are only talking for effect in as
Stunning that dangerous power will be
conferred upon the people by allowing
them to vote on this or any other
proposition, and that it may result in
their own ruin.
Since the origin OF the proposed
amendment has been shown to be
largely of Republican parentage, Oily
and others have endeavored to so
cooper" their statements so as to
maintain shred of consistency.
They now declare that it is plank in
the Ellensburg platform which squints
at single tax results, and quotes it Gin
correctly in support of the assertion.
The only clause that resembles, in the
slightest degree, the section quoted, is
principle enunciated in the joint
platform, as follows:
1--WE are in favor of liberal exemp-
tions from taxation and declare ourselves
in favor of a constitutional amendment
to secure that end.
That the Republican party has hith.
erto been in full accord with this
principle, a casual glance at its history
shows. For the past quarter of CEN
fury an exemption of personal prop
erty, such as household furniture, to
the value of from 500 to $500, has
been persistently maintained by the
sop, and it was only after the Re-
publican Supreme Court "legislated"
it out of existence, and general orders
were received from Mark Hanna's
headquarters to give the screws that
crush the poor man another turn, that
its party leaders unhesitatingly de-
termined to stultify their former
record.
Is it possible for the Great Mogul,
who dominates the White House, to
utter any order so monstrous and cruel
that it will not at once be gulped down
by professional salary seekers?