Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1902-11-01
THE LAST WORD.

On the eve of another State election
It is our duty to lay before our read
ers some of the facts which seem to
us to justify our counsel TO them to
vote the Democratic ticket.
That ticket, both state and county.
in its personal makeup is beyond and
above exception. THERE'S not man on
1t who is not abundantly equipped for
the duties of the Office to which he
is nominated, and each Of them is a
gentleman, in the best sense OF the
term, Of character in fact, and of re-
pute in the community.
But infinitely higher than the per-
sonnel involved in this contest, are
the principles at stake, and the party
records to be endorsed or condemned
at the polls.
Grlevous as are the sins, both of
omission and commission, Of which
the Republicans are guilty in ma
tional affairs, we do not now purpose
any discussion of them. There Is
enough in the very recent record OF
their party within State lines to
warrant all the comment we shall
make and to align every voters sense
Of duty with the Democratic ticket
on Tuesday, II he will but take coun-
sci of his political conscience, and at
the same time subserve his interest
by declaring for an honest and eco
nomicnl administration of government
IN which the burdens of taxation shall
be equitably borne and the output Of
industry fairly distributed.
We therefore accuse the Republi-
can party In Ohio for this, to-wit:
1. When an attempt was made to
compel the public-service corporations
of the State, whose owners and stock
holders are largely non-residents, to
pay taxes upon their property on the
same basis as natural persons, such
as the farmer on his farm, the me-
ehanic on his home and the widow
on her cow, that Ia to soy, upon the
value OF such property as 1t sells In
the market, that party, through its
agents the taxing officers of the coun-
fies through which the railroads OF
these corporations ran, and later by
means OF the Republican reviewing
OfficiaIs ut Columbus, interfered and
frustrated the attempt Instead, they
assessed these properties upon less
than 20 per centum OF their earning or
selling value, well knowing that other
property was carried on the tax du-
plicate at 30 per centum Of such
value. Thus there was lost to the
revenues of the State more than four
millions of money, and the rest Of the
community was left to shoulder a
correspondingly heavy burden.
These guilty officials were, for the
: most part, Republican politicians, and
the Republican party of the State has
undertaken to screen them from pun
ishment for their misdeeds, and has
by refusing to amend the laws In thi:
respect, adopted this unjust and par
tial scheme of taxation as it's own
An endorser of n forged note is JUS
as guilty as the maker of It.
2. To make UP for the deficiency
which such an inequitable apportion
ment Of taxation was calculated t.
produce, the Legislature of Ohio pro
ceeded to lay relatively heavy i'm
post upon the small corporations doin,
business here, and which constituted
the great bulk of local companies
whose owners mostly live among lis
and whose stocks are not gamblet
upon in Wall Street, thereby discrim
mating In favor of the powerful Al
against the humble, and In the interes
Of non-residepts AZ against thos,
'homs industries" of which the Re
publican party has always boastet
itself the especial defender.
8. For more than ten years the city
of Cleveland had enjoyed form O
government with which its people
were in all ways satisfied Under 1
they were about TO enjoy the bsnefi
OF 3-cent rate OF fare over it's stree
railroads. Such thing was obnox
ious 10 the personal interests OF NJ
A. Hanna, who is the Republican
party OF Ohio, He debauched the dc
partment of Justice of tho State b,
compelling It's Attorney General /
prostitute his office by beginning
suit, ON n technicality which for 1
years had been known to every on
TO exist, to overturn the city govern
mcpt OF Cleveland, and that OF all tn
other cities went down In the wreck