The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1906-06-16
Roosevelt Va. jefferson.
low TO CONFIsCATE THE PROPERTY
OF THE WEALTHY.


sensation. A tax is a sum of money
levied and assessed at q certain rate
OIL the persons or property of citizens
by the government for public uses
The President didn't propose to lev ,
a sum OF money at a certain rate
but to provide that no person should
take by devise or descent more than
a certain amount, and that the ex.
cess OF any fortune over that partic.
ular amount should be taken by the
government. Such taking OF pri.
vate property would not, however,
be taxation. but confscation. Con.
gross could not, In the exercise of the
taxing power. limit the extent of q
mans possessions. Itcannot deprive
any man OF the natural right to &C.
quire and dispose of property. 1t
cannot tax a man for the purpose of
limiting the size of his estate, or the
amount he shall will or bequeath to
this person or that.
The President said that he favored
IN progressive tax on all fortunes
(nst on all incomes) beyond certain
amount. either given In life or be-
queathed upon death, to any individ-
ual (saying nothing of corporations)
tax 40 framed as to put 1t out OF
the power ri the ownes OF those enor-
nous fortunes to hand over more
than n certain amount to any one
individual"
A man who didn't know what a
tax IL, might think that the presi-
dent really meant to tax great for
tunes and exempt small ones. But
the whole proposition is a mischiev-
ons fallacy. A progressive tax which
takes all over a certain amount be-
comes cOnfiscation as to all above
that amount. The Presidents prop
osition. then. Is to fix limit to pri-
vate fortunes, and to confiscate, not
to tax, all of such fortunes above
that limit. Now, II the Federal gov
eminent, which he WINS representing
when he made the proposition. could
do what he suggested, then there
would he no need for taxation at all.
1t could fix the limit ut, say, one mill
Ion dollars, for the time being, and
strip Carnegie. Rockefeller. Morgan,
Schih. the vanderbilts, the Goulds.
and the Astors, as preliminary
measure. That would enable It to
tariff and internal revenue
taxes. postage, etc., and as soon as |
the administration had spent the |
proceeds of the first general confisca-
ton, the limit of private fortunes
might he reduced to one hundred |
thousand dollars; then to ten thous-
and dollars; to FIVE thousand; to one
thousand, and finally to thirty cents.
This, we insist. is the Presidents
theory.
Jefferson. the founder OF the Demo-
cratic party. expressed the view that
arge fortunes are dangerous to the
in which they exist. but
he never dreamed OF confiscation.
His idea was to abolish all laws
which tended to create monopolies
and perpetuities, to annul privileges
We can get his idea more clearly by
quoting his own words. He said:
Il proposed to abolish the law of
- 1 also OBJ
aimed leave to bring In a bill declar-
ng nts In tall to hold their lands
n fee simple. The transmits
'ion OF vast properties from genera
Ion to generation. I'm the same name
lad raised up a distinct set of fami-
les. who being privileged by law in
he perpetuation of their wealth,
we're thus formed into patrician or
Ter. To annul this privilege,
md instead Of an aristocracy of
wealth, OF more harm than benefit to
ociety; to make an opening for an
lristocracy OF virtue and talent.
which nature has wisely provided for
he direction OF the interests of So
lefty. was deemed essential to a well
'rdered republic. To effect 1t, no VI
'lence was necessary, no deprivation
4 natural right, but rather an en-
argement OF 1t, by a repeal of the
aw." (Jefferson's Works, Vol. /, I
!. 36.) II
The laws OF entail and primogeni-
ure was abolished at the revolution :
D accordance with this view. But
Ich men are now reaching the same |
psults produced by those laws, and
vading the statutes which repealed !
hem, by means of putting their prop :
rty in trust for long periods for the
sc OF particular persons. or by means 7
wills. The Federal government I
annot reach the situation. except by ,
nposing n graduated income tax. r
Men have a natural right. superior !
, any legal right, to all the property
hey can honestly acquire; and no
overnment can destroy that right
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