Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-09-04

taxation to take private property and give
vats corporation Is unconstitutional. 1T Is
not q law he declared. TT confers no
rights 1t affords no protection. IT Is, in
legal contemplation. as imperative as II 1t
had never passed Congress has power to
raise revenue by taxation only for a public
purpose, and whenever revenue is raised
for purpose not inseparably connected
with the public interest 1t is no longer
taxation, though SO denominated. 1t Is
nothing more or less than a coercive contri-
button. and raises a question involving no
less than the tenure by which every man
holds his property.
Prohibited by Constitution.
But this is not all. 1 maintain that this
legislation is not only ultra wires, but ex-
pressly prohibited. 1t assumes to lay direct
taxes. Now. what is the language OF the
Constitution respecting such taxes? Rep
resentatives and direct taxes shall be APP
portioned among the several states which
may be included within this Union accord
ing to their respective numbers And in
order to ascertain these numbers, as the
basis alike OF representation and direct
taxation, 1t is provided that the actual
enumeration shall be made within three
years after the first meeting Of the Con-
gress Of the United States and within
every subsequent term of ten years These
provisions show how direct taxation may
be laid and there is in the ninth section
of the same article another provision, which
declares that they shall not be laid in any
other way: No capitaton or other direct
tax shall be laid. unless in proportion to
the census or enumeration herein before
directed to be taken
From every point OF view the taxes i'm
posed by the union station act are spurious
taxes-coercive contributions-and are null
and void. They constitute an insidious and
diabolical attack upon the institution OF
bia.
Il should be glad to have my neighbors
who are similarly interested in this mat
ter to join me in the struggle"
Mr.. Louis P. Shoemaker president of
brentwood Citizens Association was the
next speaker.
Mr.. Shoemaker's Address.
Mr. Shoemaker referred to the fact that
question has been raised as to the con-
stitutionality of the act which takes from
the District land owners "a vast sum of
money and gives 1t to a quasi-public cor
poration, because people have to travel.
The question has also been raised, he said,
as to whether the government has not an
equal right to levy tax and turn over
the proceeds to great brewery. to a great
abattolr or great bakery. upon the theory
that SO many of us want to drink beer eat
meat and bread. We have more than one
railroad, Just as we have more than one
brewery one abattoir and one bakery, but
we ma no pubic governmental assistance
rendered them.
What assistance do the electric railroads
receiver" he inquired. None that I am
aware of. They may have in Washington
the free right to use our streets, but there
Is burden Of taxation imposed upon them
based upon the business they command,
while in many cities they are charged,
and heavily charged for their franchise.
Our tax rate has been greatly increased,
Notwithstanding the fact that our best and
most prominent citizens and the admirable
press of our community did everything pos
sible to convince Congress of the fact that
the necessity for increased taxation did not
exist. while at the same time Congress de-
MED our request for permission to nego-
tate loan and thereby raise a sufficient
sum of money to make the muoh-needed,
which are to be found in every large city
in the country and which have been Sc
cured through the medium Of a loan or a
bond issue.
Compact Of 1873.
Congress has not only thought proper to
deny this advantage which the land owners
of other cities en1oy-that is, a loan or a
bond issue-and thereby obviate the neces-
sity of increased taxation, while the burden
to an equitable extent would be thus placed
upon the future generation, but 1t has per-
sisted in the violation Of the compact of
1873 and 1t Is removing, annually, large
quantities of land from the tax books for
District of Columbia purposes. national ne
cessities and the use Of Quasi-public cor
porations. such as railroads. educational as
well as eleemosynary institutions, new
streets and avenues Of great width corre-
spending with the federal street extension
plan.
While Congress is continually legislating
and demanding that Washington shall very
properly be all that we of the District Of
Columbia, and. in fact, the people of the
country. generally. admit 1t ought to be, as
the capital of this great nation, the Ques-
ton very naturally arises how long the
District taxpayers can stand a financial
strain and burden thus imposed for the
benefit of seventy millions of people.
Removed From Assessors Books.
Rock Creek and the Zoo parks took long
ago over 1900 acres Of land. while the bu-
reau Of standards, the observatory, the
congressional Office building. the hall Of REQ
ords. schools, churches, charitable institu-
tons and hospitals, and now the railroads,
have taken a great quantity of revenue
producing property from the assessment
books. When Congress passed an act es-
tabiishing a great park In the District of
Columbia for the people of the United
States 1t declared it to be a pleasure ground
for the benefit Of the people Of tho United
States, and took the title to the land in the
name of the United States. but 1t required
the people of the District to pay half the
cost Of acquisition and Improvement Does
Congress make national improvements for
the benefit of the people of the United
States elsewhere in this country in any
such manner? II an improvement is ma
tional in character. as Congress has de-
clared this park to be, the exp ense thereby
should undoubtedly fall upon the nation
Nowhere can be found such a street ex-
tension plan as has been dictated here for
Washington by Congress- yet the whole
burden of acquiring the land necessary to
execute it is imposed on District taxpay-
ers."