The independent., 1903-05-07
Money and the Taxing Power
BY w. FL. ASHBY.

to the raising of the public revenues
That such may be the fact, and yet
have remained hidden from the "au-
thorities" upon money, will not be
more strange than the inconteStible
fact that the money" symbol, which
| is to be coined" was never suspected
by those authorities" to have found
it's origin in the necessities arising
out of the process of taxation. And yet
such was beyond question the cause
of its institution; and not any imag-
mary necessity arising out OF the diff
ficulties of exchanging commodities
for each other.
Indeed it is manifestly too flattering
to the authorities to concede even
this; for the real truth is that those
authorities" never suspected the eX-
istence of that which is truly mon
ey," but enormously applied that word
to the material substance upon which
the symbol constituting money had
been stamped.
Let us go again into the public of
fees of present and past ages and fur
ther inquire there into the processes
and mechanism employed in the exer-
else of the taxing power, and see
whether we find there the origin of
'coin" and the true purpose of exer-
cising the power to coin money. If
We carefully investigate in those pub
lie offices, we find that in every ma
tion the tax levy therein expresses the
appraised or estimated quantity of de-
mand for the taxable things included
in the lists; and that appraisal is ths
value of all such taxable wealth
for purposes of taxation, uttered in
the term of money aided by the num-
erals.
Before there were any COINS" and
when the tax was paid in the specific
things taxed, it necessarily would be
the rule to give to the taxpayer, upon
payment OF his taxes, certificate or
token in the nature of receipt, show
ing that he had delivered to the gov
ernment the quantity of value ex-
pressed in the tax levy, as his share
of the public burden. 1t would also
necessarily be the rule that such cer-
tificate would set forth or express
upon it's face, that quantity of value
in the money symbol, aided by the
numerals, identically as expressed in
the tax levy.
No person even now thinks of pay
ing his taxes without demanding and
receiving such certificate that he has
paid the quantity of value therein ex-
pressed, for the year named. The diff
ference is that the governments in our
day compel the taxpayer to give to
the government, not the things which
are taxed AMI which the government
needs to carry on its operations, but
instead thereof "cOin," which has be-
come the means employed by gov-
ernments to procure those things;
and when we now thus pay a tax levy
against us, although the records are
vastly more perfect and accurate than
anciently, yet we carefully take from
the collector a certificate setting forth
the payment of a specific quantity of
value, expressed in the certificate or
tax receipt, as in the tax levy, by thu
use of the money symbol and the
numerals.
1t cannot have been otherwise, than
that IN some form the same character
of certificates of payment must have
been anciently given when the tax
payer delivered to the collector the
specific articles which the king need
ed to maintain his state. and in which
all taxes were at that time paid. II
an attempt should be made by the
taxing authorities to collect the tax
for the same year a second time, the
taxpayer would present his certificate
or tax receipt, which would be con-
elusive proof that he had already paid
that tax levy by delivering to the
government the quantity of value as
sessed against him.
Now, history informs us that it has
+ been the almost uniform and invaria-
BILE rule with all governments, ancient
s1d modern, to cause, or at least to
permit, what is now called a "de-
ficit'' in the revenues. By this term is
meant that governmental expenses
have exceeded the revenues. There
has been employed to remedy this, in
all ages, and in nearly all cases a
process called anticipating the rev.
enues."
(COntinued in Two WeakS