Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1898-08-18
POLL TAXES STILL STAND.
They Are Assessed, but the UNDERESTIMATE
" That They Arc Not 10 be Collected.


They Are Assessed, but the Understanding
" That They Arc Not 10 be Collected.
Through the failure Of the Leg
ture, at its last session. to abolish the
old poll tax section, and by the action
of the Constitutional Convention in re-
quiring that the poll tax should be
made uniform, and that there should
| be capitation tax levied, the tax
books Of New Castle county show both
a poll assessment and capitation as
ssssmen. upon each of which is levied
tax to which every male person Of
| the age of 81 years and upwards ia
liable. In practice. however, 1T is ex-
pscted to collect only the cspitation
tax. and the poll tax is to 60 by de-
fault. The latter appears on the books
of the collectors, but when they come
to settle ouch taxes are to bs allowed
as errors, like othor uncollectable taxes.
Following is part Of section 10 of
chapter 10 of the Revised Code, which
contains the poll tax provision:
| Every freeman, above the ago of 81
shall be rated, in addition to his as.
easement, poll tax for a capital not
exceeding twenty seven hundred, nor
less than one hundred aud forty dol.
LARA
| Under II, the poll assessment form
erly varied. but the new Constitution, 4
section of article s. requires that "all
taxes shall ne uniform" and conse-
| quently the Levy Court adopted the
uniform assessment of 5000 upon every
| man, whether he be mechanic or mil
lionaire. Under the regular tax rate
o. co cents on the 500 the tax would
be sl.20 But. as already indicsfed,
the collectors are not to collect the
money, and the court has not included
the poll tax in the estimate of probable
revenun for the present fiscal year.
In making the levy. 1t acted under the
advice Of its attorney, John Ii. Rodney,
who held that while the Constitution
| probably intended that there should be
no poll tax and that the caFitation tax
ehould take it's place, yet an matter
OF fact the poll tax was not abolished
and this court bad nothing to do hut
levy it. He tried to have an act passed
ubulishing il but 1t was not done.
The capitation tax provision is az
follows, being section 8 OF article of
the Constitution:
1.-THE General Assembly shall provide
for levying and collecting a cHpitation
tax from every male citizen of the
State of the age OF 81 yesrs or upwards:
but such tax to be collected in any
county shall be uniform throughout
that county, ana ouch capitation tax
shall be used exclusively in the county
in which il is collected.
Under this provision and under tho
legislative enactment in accord there
with. the Levy Court adopted the capt.
tation tax OF so cents, which is not
based on any assaHsment whatever but
stands al as arbitrary figure. In the
tax books of such collectors as are au-
thorized 10 collect this tax, appears the
order of the court to collect capita
ton tax of 30 cents. The order was
placed in some of the hooks issued to
RecBiver of Taxes Rettew, but was
afterwards stricken out, il being held
that in this city the tax must be col
lected by Messrs. Donahoe aud Dickoy,
the napitation tax collectors. Thou.
sands Of dollars were collected last year
by Mr.. Rettew ON the poll tag ASSESS
ment then 10 force, by adding IL 10
the bill Of persons when paying their
property tax. 1t has been held. never
theless, that Mr.. Rettew had no au-
thority to collect tina poll tax. Under
the duplicate for this present year, he
certainly cannot, and on that account
the county will probably fail to receivs
deal of money, for the reason thHt
property holders will not take the
trouble to visit Collectors Dickey and
Donahoe to pay the cnpitation tax Of
80 cents. Those collectors do, however,
seize the opportunity to collect the
capitation tax when nn in, estmsnt
holder appears to pay his tax under the
Adams law. Collector Donahoe said
this morning TINT SO far be had col
lected the capi.ation tax from about a
dozen persons. Il.
To sum up, therefore. there lie both
poll tax and capitation tax in exist
ence, but only the latter is to be col
lected. and for Wilmington Ieople
Messrs. Dickey and Donnhoe are the
collectors.
Some Republicans profess to know
that collectors have required both the
poll tax and oapitation tax from Re-
publican voters and only the so cent
capitation tax from Democrats. II
such has been done, it Is contrary to
the spirit Of the understanding that
only the capitation tax lie to ba de-
manded.
coLoRED SCHOOL TAX.
Attention has also been drawn to the
action of the Levy Court 10 lovying q
tax Of 30 cents on the hundred on col
ored persons for school purposes 10 the
city of Wilmington. How this came
! about is this; Under the now school
!, laws, the caro- OF the colored schools
throughout the rural part OF New
. Castle county is placed with school
commissioners selected 10 each dis.
! trict, who have the power to levy the
necessary tax. But the same law pro-
vides that it shall not operate against
, the right Of the board OF Education in
!. Wilmington, and under that provision,
MIR. Rodney hollis the view that the
, court can levy the tax ia Wilmington.
For thnt reHson the levy was made.
The city of Wilmington itsslf hss no
i authority to collect a tax from colorsd
people for school purposes. colored
man, namsi Jacob +. Bryan has paid
a tax in Wilmington twice. but both
times it has been refunded to him. 1t
y may be that some colored taxable will,
/ after paying the tax levied by the
! county, take the matter into court to
find il the county really has the right
! to collect il from him.
/ Absorption OF Electric Light Companies,
!. Chirapn Ill A no II -.Tiha Tribnno