Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1910-12-24
Sources Of Revenue.

I
head of family, of two hundred dol
lars.
Sources of Revenue.
We have in this article a provision
for excise, inheritance, income and
specific taxes, which do not touch
the poor man. For instance, the
wealthy heirs of deceased persons
must contribute to the support Of the
state out Of their Inheritance, on the
theory that their riches cost them
nothing and they owe something to
the state for protection while the
wealth was acquired. Prosperous per
sons and corporations which accumul.
ate large incomes will be required to
pay a perectage, to be fixed by law,
on these incomes. Mining corpora
tions will be required to pay spect
fic tax on the output of their mines
The inheritance tax should amount to
many thousand dollars per annum. So
should the income tax; and the mines
Will be a greater revenue producer
still. For the year just passed the
coal mines of the Territory produced
over three million tons of coal. An
other year will probably raise the out
put to four million tons. The low sps-
cific tax of five cents a ton on this
product VIII yield the state a 5000,
! 10000 annual revenue, to say nothing
of the output of the gold, silver and
copper The output Of coal alone, on
the basis of yield of four million
tons, will give up revenue twice thu
sum required to pay the annual sal
airy of every Judge and state officer
| in the new state, and encourages us
with the hope that there viii, in q
few years, be absolutely no necessity
fol ievying a common tax on the prop
erty of the people to support the
state.
A strenuous objection is Offered
by few of those who oppose the con
stitution to that clause relating tC
public lands. 1t is provided that pub
lie school lands not contiguous tt
other state lands shall not be sold fol
ten years, unless we can get at leas
ten dollars an acre for them. Some
discussion is here required, in ordel
to properly appreciate this subject
There are 122,5S0 square miles, o.
about 100000 acres in New Mexico
Within this area there are 3,400 town
ships. In every townThip there arr
thirty-six sections, or G3,040 acres. II
each township the common schools
get four sections or their equivalent
if we become a state. This amount
to 1850 acres to the township, or tn
grand total of over 10000 squar
miles. or over 100000 acres, an
over ten per cent Of the total are
of the state, which at five dollars pc
acre, the minimum price fixed by tn
general government for q portion @
it. gives valuation of $10,000,000,
The Schools.
We have in this territory 56,152 er
rolled school children. We can writ
opposite each child's name 140 acre
or an asset of $4,000 for commo
school purposes. Shall we reject tn
title to these lands from the genera
government or shall we accept it?
we accept it by ratifying this const
tuition, whot shall be done with them
There are two, schools of thought o
this question in this territory. On
school believes that lands should nc
be sold for at least many years, bu
leased simply. The other school is
the opinion that they should be bot
} sold and leased within reasonabl
bounds, and this idea has been wri
: ten into the constitution. Let us i
lustrate these two ideas. Take, fo
e instance, a unit of 100000 acres an
r lease it. We could not expect t
5 lease it for more than five cents a