The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-02-28
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TAX BILL DEFEATED.

The tax bill was defeated in the
house yesterday by q vote Of "a to
sixty. Il was thought when the house
adjourned Friday the bill could have
passed but in the light of yesterday 8
happenings it was merely surmise,
though the enemies of the bill have
been active since that adjournment.
But the fact that several members vot-
ed against the bill, who all along
were supposed to be friendly to it,
show how little was known
by the friends of the measure as TO the
real standing of the bill among the
Legislators.
The defeat of the bill puts the work
of the tax commission, and of the leg
islature for the past three weeks
seemingly at naught. What the pro-
gram will be now is hard to say. 1t
was the intention to have the proposed
constitutional amendments reported
this morning, and take up their con-
sideration. There will be more or
less opposition to them, and it may be
that they will be marked for slaughter
also
Whether the program which some
have looked upon with favor OF pass
ing a bill creating a permanent tax
commission, will be taken up and act
ed upon, or not, remains to be seen.
Certainly the legislature will have to
do something to redeem itself or stand
in disgrace before its constituents.
It's responsibility cannot be shifted.
It has been proposed by some OF the
friends of tax law revision, that in such
an event as has just happened, to press
a bill for the taxation of franchises
of pubic service corporations. But
can it be done2 The corporations
have succeeded in killing the tax bill,
will they now allow such blow to
be aimed at theinP 1t is hardly prob
able. The corporations and tax dodgers
generally, which would have been
obliged under the proposed law to
have paid more nearly their just share
of the burdens of taxation, had the
proposed tax code been adopted, played
a very shrewd game, and succeeded
for the time being in fooling the people
throughout the state. But Lincoln
once most truly said, that you can
"fool all of the people part of the time,
and a part of the people all the time,
but you cannot fool all the people all the
time. =" So in this case. There will
be an awakening of the people OF Min
nesota one of these days, and they
will then have their say in the matter
of equitable taxation. This may hap
pen before the day for holding the
primary election next fall, at which
members of both houses of the legisla-
ture will be nominated by the direct
vote of the people. and it may not, but
when it does come, those who have
stood in the way of tax reform will
have to CO.
When the farmer, the laboring man,
the small taxpayer, fully grasp the
situation, that the interest which the
large firms, corporations and tax
dodgers took in them as to the alleged
burdens the proposed tax code would
have imposed, was simply cloak to
shield themselves and SO longer evade
their Just share of the tax burden, and
keep it upon the farmer, laborer and
small taxpayer there will be an upris-
ing on this question and tax reform
will come and most thoroughly.
AS to the position of Democracy to-
ward tax reform, that party Can
hardly claim much to it's credit. OF
the twenty three Democratic members
of the house, only five voted for tax
reform. In other words majority OF
the Republican membership lined up
for tax reform. while majority of the
Democrats voted against it.
In the mean time Republicans should
keep in mind the list who voted
against the bill, and at the primary
election next fall place themselves
on record for tax reform.