The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1907-05-23
TAX SYSTEM OECRIEO
Business Men of the State Want
Radical Changes.
Tax Commission Of Ohio Asked to
Recommend a Constitu-
tional Amendment.

One Of the most successful meet
ings held by the Tax Commission OF
Ohio was that of May 6, which was de-
voted to the mercantile and manufac-
turing interests Of the state. Repre-
sentatives from score OF business
organizations in Ohio were present.
Almost to man the delegates told
the members of the commission that
only constitutional amendment
would give tax payers relief. Those
who discussed the subject OF Tax
alton" were: Chas. U. Shryock of the
GAINESVILLE Chamber Of Commerce.;
VIM. o. Mathews, representing the
Cleveland Chamber Of Commerce and
the Ohio Tax League; w. III.
Burtner of the Cincinnati Busi'
ness Mems Club; Edward l.. Buck
walter of the Springfield Commercial
Club; Nelson w. Evans Of the Ports
mouth Board of Trade: Geo. T. Spahr
of the Columbus Board Of Trade; G.
A. Malone of the Chillicothe Board OF
Trade X. l.. Coburn of the Business
Association of Salem; Il. b. Willard
of the Ironton Board of Trade; Il. M.
Thresher of the Dayton Chamber of
Commerce. and G. w. Gilgen, F. A.
Hardenstein and Judge James B. Ken
nedy of the Youngstown Chamber OF
Commerce. Peter Witt, city clerk of
Cleveland, also made an address.
Herewith briefs of some Of the ad-
dresses are given and from time to
time extracts from all Of the papers
will be carried in these columns.
From a paper by r. M. Thresher of
the Dayton Chamber of Commrce:
There is just and widespread dlssat-
isfaction with the system Of taxation In
force under the present constitution, as
being inadequate and inefficient.
However well II may have been adapt
ed to existing conditions when II was
adopted. II has utterly failed to meet the
changing conditions which time has
brought and 1t has become thoroughly
discredited.
An attempt to patch II up by any
other than radical changes will be only
to invite failure and retard the wheels
OF progress
No person well informed as to existing
conditions will claim that the invest
ments I'm real estate owned by the citi-
zens of Ohio are taxed by a uniform rule
at their full value In money.
AS for their Investments In personal
property. they are, for the most part, not
taxed at ALL because they are not pro-
duced, and when taxed at all, II Ia by
very different rule from that which OBJ
Il. ss.NA FH,lH
together. they fail to secure the returns
which they ought TO yield, and tend to
oppress the honest man who tries to obey
the law, while granting immunity to the
dishonest man who tries TO evado II.
Moreover, the stately an indirect use
OF the taxing power--under the form of
fees and licenses Is raising large sums of
money In n way not contemplated when
the constitution was adopted The ten
dency of which Is TO bring the constitu-
tion itself into d.scred!t,
The essence Of the difficulty seems to
lie In the attempt TO make the constitu-
tion deal with details rather than with
principles.
The proper remedy, In my judgment,
is only to be found IN an amendment OF
the constitution which shall give to the
general assembly power to classify all
proper subjects for taxation In such a
manner that
No subject shall escape its proper
share Of the burden.
No subject OF the same class shall
be taxed more than once.
The tax shall In all cases be uni
form to subjects OF the same class
and just to the subject taxed.
In my humble judgment II is only in
some such way as this that the present
inequalities and injustice OF our present
system OF taxation can find proper
remedy and order be restored out of the
existing chaos.
From the address of e. B. Willard
of the Ironton Board OF Trade:
"The principal ground of complaint
that hear is the taxation of corpora
tions under the Willis law.
Another serious complaint is
against the tax on the interests In
foreign corporations"
From the address of Geo. T. Spahr
of the Columbus Board of Trade:
can not presume. although sent as a
representative OF the Board OF Trade, to
represent the Views OF that entire body; I;
for we found, at a taxation meeting we
held, that we looked at the subject OF
taxation from all points of the compass
For myself, think our only safety is
In shaping matters so that We may have
subjects classified for taxation. My ideal
is, / think the ideal OF most every one
that studies the subject long. a land tax
In the end that land and privileges should
bear all our taxes That no taxes or no
penalties should be placed on the product
OF Industry or the interest OF capital;
but that all taxes should be placed upon
the things that man does not create.
think the appeal (for constitutional
amendmenD must come from the people.
think we need the campaign OF educa-
tion that the State Board OF Commerce
is now carrying on through the state.
The farmers are at last waking up to
| the fact that theirs II the only interest
| that Is paying their full personal tax,
they and tho widows and orphans in the
| probate court
IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.