El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-02-08
An Article That Won the
Fifty Dollar Prize Offered
In Houston.
SOME STRONG POINTS
Brought Out BY the Writer,
Setting Forth How the New
Law Would Burden In
dustry And Capital.

The Houston Manufacturers associ-
alton offered a prize of $50 In cash to
the individual or newspaper writing
and publishing the best article or series
of articles showing wherein the pro-
posed tax law recently submitted by
the Texas tax commission is inimical
to the interest of farmers, merchants,
manufacturers or laborers who depend
upon the successful operation of in
dustrial enterprises as means of OBJ
tanning livelihood.
The conditions of the comp etition
1st. Individuals or newspapers may
compete.
End. The article must be published
by February 1st.
3rd. The article can be published in
any newspaper in Texas, no matter
how email the circulation.
4th. The article must not contain
over 5000 words.
The prize was won by L. S. Fswcett,
a we'll known attorney and editor of
the Houston Times.
The following is the first installment
of the article.
1.-THE power to tax involves the pow
er to Destroy"
The above quotation is from a decis-
ion of the supreme court of the United
States, and is used here, if reason
we're necessary, to show the gravity of
the question at issue.
Property, in the economic sense.
may be defined as product of human
skill and endeavor.
Property, then. is result of en-
deavor. and taxation is burden placed
on endeavor.
EndcavOr, then. comes into the
world with this handicap: it must first
earn and set apart fund for govern
ment and other purposes of the gener-
al welfare, after which it may provi de
for itself.
The question for discussion is this:
Wherein is the proposed tax law, re-
Gently submitted by the Texas tax
commission, inimical t. the interests
of farmers, mechanics, manufacturers,
or laborers, who depend upon the sue
cessful operation of industrial enter
prises as means for obtaining live
lihoOd?
and to provide in accordance with the
fact that the subjects named for tax
alton consist of two grand divisions.
a. Land and those franchises used
in connection Herewith, such as rail-
ways, telephones, telegraphs, water,
gas. lights and the like, on the one
hand.
b. Those subjects which are prop
erly designated. and are the product
of individual skill and labor. iuclud-
ing all improvements made on real es-
tate that are not properly included un-
der division g..
There is on the part of the bill be-
fore US, failure to bring out clearly
the presence and Importance of the
"unearned increment" for taxable pur-
poses, as the came exists in the prop
critics named under division a.
The unearned increment in q prop
erty is that part of the value that &C.
crues from other sources than the la
bor and skill bestowed thereon by it's
reputed owner.
In other words, it ia that portion of
the value of property that accrues by
reason of the presence or proximity and
influence of population with it's various
needs and demands.
This increment, in division a, is not,
in justice and regard for the general
welfare, sufficiently taxed, nor is pro-
vision made therefor.
Those in the second division are un.
duly and unjustly taxed, and thereby
the labor and effort of the individual
are not only not encouraged as they
should be. but suffer a handicap that
tends directly to idleness, shiftlessness
and chespening of the individual In
his own estimation.
Whatever tends to the result named
In either division is most serious
CONTINUED on 9Th page)