Saint Mary's beacon., 1901-09-19


ever of merit the amendments OF
1895 contain could not have been
secured without cooperation OF The
Democratic Senate. In the face of
these patent facts IL 10 rashness, II
nothing worse, to claim that the
Republican party conferred the
blessings and benefits ascribed to
the election law.
The "Republicans re-
assessed property and eqaalized the
harden Of taxation.' The reas-
sessment was made under several
statutes passed in 1896, but not
one OF those statutes could have
become laws had not q Democratic
Senate concnrred in their adoption.
For the Republican party to claim
the sole credit for this measure 10
for it to claim that to which il is
manifestly not entitled.
But the "Republicans Sin
case OF laborer and farmer assessed
s60. .0O0, 900 additional stocks and
bonds" Did they? When /? How +?
Was it under the assessment Law OF
1896 /? IL so could that have been
passed without the concurrence of
the Democratic Senate? Certainly
not. Then it is not true to saw
the Republicans brought about this
result. But suppose We are wrong,
aud suppose the Republican party
alone caused the assessment Of $780,.
600. 900 Of stocks and bonds, Was
that in cause of lahorer and farmer?
Bonds are assessed at three dollars
on the thousand for county put
poses. The laborer who owns q
house worth q thousand dollars and
the farmer Who owns a parcel of
land worth thousand dollars. each
pays the full county rate Of taxa
tion, which Ia some counties 10
more than three times as much and
In this county 10 nearly three times
as much az the bond holder paws on
his bond. The holder Of bonds is
Thus favored at the expense OF the
land owner. To make this a little
more clear, take this case A bond.
holder owning ten thousand dol
lars in bonds pays thirty dollars
county taxes on them. A farmer
owning farm assessed at ten thou.
sand dollars pays in some counties
over one hundred and in this coun-
ty sighty:fcs dollars county taxes
on his farm A bond holder in
Baltimore City pays on ten thous-
sand dollars Of bonds thirty dollars
city taxes. whilst the man who is
assessed with ten thousand dollars
worth Of houses pays on that as
sessment one hn 1dreda and <iztg -seUen
dollars, or over five and a half times
as much az the bond holder PAYS on
identicaIly the same amount of
property. Is such q discrimination
"in cause of laborer and farmer ?"
The Republican platform says il 10,
but we donbt whether the toiler
and tiIler of the soil will agree with
that statement.
The "Republicans gave
free school books to our children.
No. The bill providing for free
school books was introduced in the
State Senate on January seventh,
1896, by Hon. John Walter Smith.
then Senator from Worcester Conn.
ty and now Governor of the State.
and was passed by Q Democratic
Senate on March the sixth. and vas
concurred n'iater on bya Rspubli-
can House. Was il truthful to say
that this measure had been adopted
by Republicans aud BY so saving to
create the impression that Repub-
licsns alone had enacted il, when
in point Of fact it was OF Democrat
ic origin and could not have become
q Law in 1896 without the concur
renee of Democrats!
But enough has been said for
to-day. We have exposed some of
the pretensioDs If the Republican
platform. aud We will next week
splinter other plsnks that are quite
as wind-shsken, brssh and unsound
as the ones We have thus far dealt
ith.-Fredsriek Cisissn. August 50.