The French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1896-1912, 1905-01-12
INTRODUCTIoN.

III NoAL 6OC(AOA0 are SkN0u DGlOW. FL
INTRODUCTION.
The Honorable, the General Assembly:
| congratulate you as you enter upon
the discharge Of your duties that you
md In the State an excellent condi-
ton. Her citizens of all callingS are
prosperous and the n Of the
State are adequate for all the needs
that you will be called upon to supply.
At the close OF the last fiscal year on
the Goth of November there was in the
State Treasury for general purposes
the sum of 1888, $3.50 The revnue and
machinery acts passed by the last Gen
eral Assembly have worked admirably
and have brought into the State Treas
nfy sufficient sums for all purposes of
government economically administer
ed. You will therefore enter upon the
discharge Of your duties unhampered
by a deficit and interrupted by any large
surplus to make -extravagant a%ppropri-
ationS.
Certain taxes levied by the last Gen
eral Assembly have been declared by
the courts unconstitutional. THESE
are adverted to in the report of
the State Treasurer and l concur in
his recommendations concerning them.
Such changes ought to be made in law
as will enable the collection of these
taxes for the future and likewise for
the past two years. The taxes so levied
were proper, but of course they must
be levied in a constitutional manner.
With the few changes suggested, tho
machinery and revenue acts are per-
hapS as good as we can make them un-
der our constitution.
The whole subject of taxation is one
we'll worthy your profuoundest consid-
Grafton. The burdens OF government,
always onerous are made more SO by
a wrong distribution OF them. The AK
alton in many of our towns and cities
when combined with the State, county
and special taxes, is found to be very
burdensome and results in great loss
of revenue by reason of the refusal of
the taxpayer to fully list his property
when the tax rate is so high as to
amount to something like .eonfscation.
[ commend to your most careful con-
SideratiOn the able discussion Of this
matter by the State Tax Commission.
This commission has given much and
profound study to the question Of tax
alton and its opinion is worthy Of the
most serious consideration.
The assessment of railroad property
for taxation in 1898 was $50, 619 $50: in
1908 this assessment was made $70,-
628, 523, thus more than doubling the
assessment in a period of five years.
This increased assessment of railroad
property at first glance might appear
to be unjust, but when it is considered
that within the time named the gross
earnings of the railroads Of this State
nave increased from a11 SAB ,566 to $18,-
Sit ,815, the appearance of injustice
passes away and leaves one in doubt
whether the railroads are even now as
sessed at anything like their true value.
The Corporation Commission has man
aged the assessment of railroad prop
erty and the collection of taxes out OF
the railroads with great wisdom and
without creating any serious friction
between these great corporations and
the State.
EDUCATION.
l commend to the earnest considera-
ton of your honorable body the re-
port of the Superintendent of Public
Instruction and recommend the adop-
ton of the suggestion contained there
in. This State is extremely fortunate
in having as Superintendent 81 Public
Instruction a broad-minded, cultured
and able man, who is pushing her e0E-
cational interests forward at a pace
which commands the admiration of
our sister State. He has given much
study to the subject upon which his
report is based and / cannot do better
than to declare that l concur in his
reasoning and his conclusions. l great
ly deprecate any attempt to raise the
race issue on the question Of educa-
ton. There is absolutely no justl1ca-
tion for stirring up our people On THIS
subject. The small sum which the
4@n4rthr1% = Or fn tho
support of the negro schools cannot
for one moment justify the continued
agitation of the question OF dividing
the school fund according TO the sum
paid by each race. Having Invested
the negro of power it is manifestly- our
duty to make of him the best citizen OF
which he is capable n this we can
certainly never do by leaving him to
his own devices, nor by Withdrawing
from him the small amount OF taxes
which we devote to his education.
There are three courses open with re-
ference to the negro. The first is to let
him 60 without any training and inev-
itably drop back into savagery. When
we make up our minds to do this the
second plan will at once be put into
effect and that is for philanthropic peo-
pie throughout the world to take
charge of his education and train him
I'D out Of harmony and in enmity to
the people among whom he lives. The
third plan is for US to train him our