Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1904-02-18
A LITTLE MORE ABOUT TAXA
TON.

Mr.. EDITOR AS the subject of tax
alton seems to be uppermost just now
it seems proper to take the advice o
the st. Adams Messenger and ''study
the matter in all its bearings"
Such a study, with an encyclopedias
for reference, shows us that the genera
trend of public opinion on this ques
ton from the start has been toward
equal taxation on individual wealth
has steadily progressed and will never
stop until it reaches that end. 1t also
shows us that the bedimmed and be-
clouded idea that real estate is the
basis of taxation and no deduction al
lowed for debt or mortgage is an ORR
entail idea, and that their custom OF
assessing a rent on land instead OF a
tax on wealth has been perpetuated in
those countries, but it is no sign that we
should do the same here.
To show how this originated, let us
start with the history of land, which
begins with the division OF men into
tribes, when all mankind lived on
wild fruit and the products of the
"chase," as pictured to us in the hab-
its OF the North American Indians.
The Revised Encyclopedia Britain
MICA on page 3777 says, "ln these con-
ditions an immense tract of land was
needed to support a small population,
and each tribe had its chief or magis-
tra;e, who jealousy guarded his own
territory, and all members had equal
rights of use of their own hunting
grounds" but as population increased
the tribes divided up into communities
or families and the hunting grounds
thereby would be made smaller, and
food became scarce, until they began
the cultivation of plants.
At what period in human history
this was, the encyclopedia does not
say, further than to say "The words
field, pillow and grain have a com
mon root in the Greek and Latin dia-
lect, but not in the Sanskrit.n With
us, now, il matters but little when
that was but at this stage "the mag
Iistrates or chiefs would assign by lot
to each family part Of this common
land in such spots as they thought
suitable, every year, and the rent was
paid in produce and applied to the
common benefit, and part devoted to
merry making and each family the
next year had to move to another allot-
ment.n
Many reasons for this custom of
moving are given. A hundred years
later they ceased to change their dwell
ings every year, and the right of sue
cession by children was recognized
but no right TO bequeath land was CIV
en-, as all land belonged to the chief or
magistrate. After this time contem-
porary observers first describe the ten
ure OF land.
On page 3779 OF the encyclopedia it
saws, I'm Switzerland there has sur
vived a custom only slightly altered
from the original and land is portioned
out by lot, and the rent is applied for
the common benefit On page 37S5 it |
says. ''In Great Britain no such thing |
as private ownership of land is recog- |
nized, the absolute and ultimate owner
OF all land is the Crown, and the high |
est interest a subject can hold therein |
is tenancy land that he must pay |
tribute.n
Now. Mr.. Editor, | ask the gentle |
man from STAFFORD, who is opposed to /
any change in our listing law, to bear
in mind that we are not tenants here /
in Vermont, living on land that be-
longs to the Crown, nor that we must |
pay a tribute to the sovereign; but |
that our land is capable OF private |
ownership; that we can buy it and sell |
il (if we can find buyer) and be-
- h. narCnna1
erly, and that it does not revert back /
to the Crown again If we die and leave |
no son; and that il constitutes wealth, |
and in this country it is wealth that
pays the taxes and that land is not
rented by the state, but is taxed, and |
taxed according to its value the same
as personal property, and should be al |
lowed the same right of offset for debts /
owing, and for every reason why it is
not done, two better reasons can be |
given why it should be.
Mr.. Editor, concerning my pro- /
posed amendment TO our tax law,
which appeared in your issue of Dec |
3rd, | wish to say a few words in |
no doubt that others think, that the
California method of taxing real es-
tate is preferable to mine. | win
admit that my proposed amendments
would reduce the grand list where
the mortgagor and mortgage live in
different towns more than the Cali. !
fornia method would, but where they
both live in the same towns it would 1
be Just the same. My method would 4
tax all the wealth in all the towns and 4
place ii in each town where it be- /
longed, while the California method /