Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-03-22

1 III.
I find that PCS towns have money at
J interest: I find about IFS do not have
money at interest. In the little town of
Corinth they have hunted up 3d. 900 of
money at interest. How long do YOU
suppose it would be there if you pass
this bill? Multiply that by 2e5 and
you would see. the result. 1t seems to
me that this is the most pernicious bill
that mas come to my attention. If there
ever was A bill which was enacted to
bless the rich and cause the poor to
beg It is this bill now under discussion.
Now. if my position is correct how
much will we lose by April 1. 1906,
how much taxable property? The as
SCISSORS report says there Is
now assessed 11,50S.949. The
State tax upon that alone is $31,649.
The State won't get that. 1t has got
to come from somewhere. 1t is COM
ing from YOU, gentlemen. who reside in
the back towns and in the small VIII
lagos. Between three and four mil
lions of collateral security wonld dis
appear also and get into this tax which
is secured by mortgages on real es-
tate. And let me say here. why is 1t II
it is going to help the mortgage that
you don't release personal property
from taxation as we'll as real estate?
But the rich man does not have those
personal property mortgages to very
great extent. Now. one of two things
| will occur if you pass this law. You
| are either releasing from taxation all
the property in the State Of Maine or
else You are discriminating between
the poor person who has put his little
| sum into bank, the poor man or boy
| who has deposited a dollar at a time,
you are discriminating against them
| three-eights of one per cent, or else
| YOU are releasing the entire money
| in the savings banks. Let me say that
| lawyers differ in regard to this Some
say that it will be simply discrimina-
ton against them to the extent OF
three Fights of a cent, and others
| think that they will escape. This is a
| very broad law. 1t says that any loan
secured by mortgage on real estate
this law will be passed subsequent to
the franchise law of the savings banks
| How that may be | know not, but |
think that the savings bank escapes
| the tax. But if it discriminateS
against that class of people in our saw
ings banks it is not a proper law, and
if it releases all the tax on mortgages
on real estate.-ind there are $9119.-
100 in our savings banks secured by
mort cages on real estate,-If it releases
them then the State loses $S4197.
| When l find a piece of legislation that
is going to discriminate between the
poor depositors in the savings banks
and the rich man who has got his
| thousands and hundreds of thousands.
when l find that you propose to enact
| a piece of legislation here that will
| cause those poor women and those
| poor girls who have made those small
! depOsits.-that will charge them with
Ithree-eigths of one per cent. For that
is the tax upon mortgages upon real
| estate) and release the rich man, l
protest against it. l want to be put on
| record against it when | come to vote.
/ submit, gentlemen. if the friends of
| this bill take that horn of the dilemma,
| they are welcome to all they can make
out of it. If they take the other horn
then let me say that it is too much to
axe away from our State tax.
| Now. that is not all that will go out
Eow. You get tax on certain bonds
This law says any loan secured by
mortgage on real estate. What is the
trouble with having bonds secured by
| mortgage on real estate? Not only
| that, but loans made to municipal
| tiles. We find there is quite a large
amount of that. That would go where
| there would be no chance to tax it. l
| have not discussed what effect this
would have upon your county tax. 1t
| would have the same effect as upon
| the State tax. it would increase it; it
would increase both your county and
your State tax. Now. l have got no
| more interest in this matter than you
| have. If it is d good thing then it
| must be good thing for me- but | say
to YOU gentlemen, that l believe it
| to be the worst piece of legisa-
ton that has ever been present.
ed to an intelligent body of men.
1t was argued that because we did
not get all the money to tax.
because man was not taxed so much
as he ought to pay that we would re-
lease him on what we had found. That
is not a reason. If you tax man $780, 600
| w no ought " pay Oile HtnUTeu lHOuS-
| and, will you let go of the fifty thous-
and? There are over 10000 polls in the
| State of Maine. There are II, 900 that
don't pay any tax. Shall we release the
| others because the II 200 don't pay any
/ tax? Shall we release these men from
| taxation because we have not got all
they ought to pay? They say we want
to assist the poor man: with this bill
framed as it is they say that this is
| going to help the man who has to Dor
row money. They all admit that it
| would not help the man any who has
| got his money already borrowed and
placed perhaps for long term of years.
it does not help him any. But it helps
| the rich man where the money is al
| ready borrowed. He is released from
paying a tax. They say that he has
| loaned this money at high rate Of i'll
| terest because he was going to be tax
| ed What about the money that a man
| is going to borrow? Will this bill help
him? Suppose this bill passes and
| man wants to buy farm for $780, He
| goes then to a money lender and Dor
| rows a Thousand dollars for ten wears