The Savannah morning news., 1901-10-24

any appreciable extent the rate of tax
alton, if appropriations such as have
been made in the recent past for schools
and pensions continue to be made. But
for these two drains on the treasury
the state government could be support
ed and ample provision made for the
public debt without levying a dollar of
property tax.
The rental of the state road, the
licenses and specific taxes, and the hire
of convicts, would pay all else and
( there would be a surplus left. l repeat,
therefore. that the only places where
the knife can be applied is to the ap
propria tions for schools and pensions.
Confine pensions to those surviving
Confederate soldiers and the widows OF
those who are dead, who are physically
unable to support themselves by their
labor and who have no other means OF
support, and confine your free schools
to "the elementary branches of an
English education only" as provided
| by the constitution. In this way and
in no other you can materially reduce
your tax rate. For purposes of higher
education let each community impose
local taxes to supplement the states
appropriation. This is the law and this
is equity and justice, and anything be-
yond this is unlawful, unnecessary and
unjust.
The present system of taking out of
the State treasury all the money for
the support of the schools and for our
eXtravagant system of pensions, is un-
just because il forces the whole bur-
then of the support of the state gov
ernment upon few counties, while all
the others contribute nothing. For the
present year Ill counties out of the 1877
draw out of the treasury for schools
and pensions alone more than they pay
in for all purposes in taxes; six are
a bout self-supporting, while the other
twenty not only support their own
schools and pay their own pensioners,
but pay all the expenses of the state
government, including salaries of all
officers, principal and interest of the
public debt, support of all state instit
utions-the Sanitarium, School for the
Deaf, School for the Blind, School of
Technology, the University with all of
it's branches-and all other expenses of
the state of whatever character. The
result of this vicious system is that
taxpayers in the heavily burthened
counties. smarting under the injustice,
dodge the tax gatherer and attempt
by subterfuge to equalize between
themselves and other taxpayers the
burthen which the law fails to equal
ize.
The only objection I have heard TO
the revision of the pension laws as sug-
gested, is that IL will force applicants
TO take 1.-The pauper oath" This is not
a valid objection. Old age is not dis
honorable and honest poverty is no dis
grace. especially when ii is the result
of the devotion of three or four years
of the prime of ones life to the service
of the state as a soldier fighting her
battles. The pension roll will still be
roll of honor.
In opposition TO the proposition TO
divide the burthen Of the support of the
common schools between the state and
the counties, l have heard but two ar
guments. one is that under the con-
stitution Of the state the rate Of taxa
ton is uniform" and that therefore,
there is no injustice done the few coun p
ties which bear all the burdens OF
government. and in addition help other
| counties 20 pay their pensioners and
teachers. II Is true that the state tax
rate IL uniform in all the counties, but
! the county rates are not When the
/ tax-gatherer comes he consolidates the
I two and they become 20 the taxpayer
/ ono tax. Thus IA some counties
all property bears much heavier
| burden than IN others. The object n
! education IL 70 prepare the child for