The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1902-08-27

the Denucrats 10 excuse tncr own
wretched short comings on the mat
ter of taxation when they were in
power. Republicans will not be de-
ceived by this trick and suhterfuge
wher they consider the deception, as
exposed by the Philadelphia Press,
which says:
There is no state tax on real es-
tate, as everybody should know by
this time, since it was wiped out cl-
most 40 years ago. There is no state
tax on trades and occupations, or on
horses and cattle or on household fur
niture. all such taxes having been
repealed years ago so far as the state
is concerned. Wherever taxes of this
kind are imposed II is local matter.
The tax on real estate paid by the
farmers and home owners is liked by
| the local authorities and raised only
for local purposes. If It is burden
some 1t is the fault of the county.
borough or city authorities, for the
state has absolutely nothing to do
with it. 1t is not a subject for legis'
lation at Harrisburg. as the Mexican
Democrats want to pretend.
"The state gets the bulk of its
revenues from tax on corporations in
various forms, and though 1t is COM
planned that the corporations are not
taxed enough the state revenues have
been so large for many years as to
support the policy, long since adopted,
of returning large amounts to the
counties as a means of relieving the
local burdens of taxation. This policy
has been greatly enlarged in the past
dozen years. and with the present
overflowing state treasury there Is
very certain to be a clamor before
the next legislature for still more lib
erality in that direction. Without
counting what the state has surren.
dered by the remission OF taxes on
real estate IL is paying to the coun-
ties from sl0,O00,000 to s1S,000,000
annually. This is in the form of re-
turns of threefourths of the personal
property tax, school appropriations,
the payment of judges salaries and
charities, together with some lesser
items.
"Now let us see what kind of a
grievance Mexican county has against
the state The auditor general went
to the trouble in 1897 to prepare some
tables showing the amount paid the
state by each county and that return
ed to each county by the state, These
tables show that there was paid into
the state treasury by McKeln county
in that year $l9,S5S.SS. There was re-
turned to the county on account oi
personal property tax. judges salary
and schvcl7 alone s4s,5S99S to say
nothing OF appropriations 70 {, arties
BY charging the county with its pro
! portion Of state expenses AMI hospl
tai and ch"~'table appr- priations the
auditor general m1l,c7 TIE benefits re
ceivcd hv it amount to S92,44514. as
against S193-S-3 received from the
county. But we have been content
10 tcEe the direct payments. whicf
show that the county received NOR,
than twice what 1t paid.
"Tte figures for Mexican county
are not exceptional They are pro
portiouately the s1-c fcr II the coun
ties. The money is collected from
corporciicns and paid over to the
counties tn relieve the local burden!
of taxation. II the farmers AM hom'
owners in any county are taxed to,
much let them look into their loca
administrator and seek relief there
The state does not impose a penny o
tax on them"