The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1909-10-29
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 80, 1909.
Circulation Double That Of Any
Other South Mississippi Paper
THE POOR MANS CHANCE.


Don't be grouchy. Don't sympathize
with yourself too much. Human SYM
patty for others warns the heart,
quickens the pulse, awakens and in
spires the best there is in a man; but
self-sympathy is most miserable feel
ing, and nothing tends more to despon-
dency. Look on the bright side Of
things Life is somewhat of burden
but laughter lightens the load. more
than crying does. Taxes is just ont
of the little loads, and aside from the
bad name that the tax gatherers of
old gave to the office, taxes are not
so awfully bad after all.
Just suppose a case: Suppose Hat
tiesburg had no taxes at all. Well,
Hattiesburg would have no paved
streets, no handsome sidewalks, no pub
lie schools, no sewers. no water plant.
Hattiesburg would have nothing.
We take it there is not citizen of
Hattiesburg who had not rather pay
his taxes, than to do without these
conveniences, improvements and COM
forts. If there is one, ne can easily be
accommodated. If he wants to live
where there are no free schools, no
paved streets, no pavements, no lights.
about all he has to do is to offer his
property at the price it is assessed for
taxation, sell it and move out into the
country. But to those who do appre-
ciate what they have. we submit these
figures:
The proposed raise is all that is to
be voted on. You are not being called
on to vote for or against IA mill tax
Twelve mills of that you cannot es-
cape The difference is what you are
to vote for or against And of tina;
two mills, we have heard no serious
objection to any part except the three
fourths of one mill to be devoted to
Park purposes. So when it is all SIM
mered down. you are going to say at
the ballot box whether or not you are
willing to have your taxes raised rs
cents on the thousand dollars, far Park
purposes.
Lets make it just as plain as we can.
Say you are one of the very poor we
have heard SO much talk about and
seen SO little of in Hattiesburg. Say
you own a little home valued at $500.
The proposition so far as the Park
part of it is concerned, means a raise
not for all time but for one year, Or
until the next apportionment Is made
of 81 IL cents. You had no idea il
was that small, did you? From tbs
amount of weeping and wailing thai
has been done over you and the terri
BILE tax burden that was about to BE-
heaped upon you, you thought II
amounted to something, didn't you?
Well, it amounts to just 81 IL cents
Or if your place is taxed at $1,000, the
raise for Park purposes will cost you
the enormous sum of rs cents year.
for one year.
Is 1t not a ridiculously small thing
to make so much fuss about in thu
name OF the poor man? If course if
man is worth $4,000, his taxes would
be increased considerably; and If h
wants to kick at public Improvement
Of this character he would have some
thing worth kicking about.
Going back from the rich to the POO
again, there are large. number Of
people in this town, voters. who do
not pay any taxes at all; they have
nothing 10 pay taxes on. But they are
good citizens just the same; they carr
their living by the sweat of Their
faces; they are the Drawn and mrsclf
Of Hattiesburg; they are as es-
1ential to the life, prosperity and
growth of this city, as the men who
own It are. Now then: Some large
corporations build parks for their L.