Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1911-01-13
TAX INVENTORIES

lister TO ask leading questions ana cross
examine aud find out just whether or
not a man is getting more than his
honest offset. We have been apt TO
criticise the listers for not doing their
whole duty but they have not been
wholly at fault They have asked the
questions as provided by law and have
taken the answers without further ques-
tioning. If the present bill should
pass the Senate and become law 1t
will become the duty of lister to see
to it that tax payer gets nothing but
an honest offset. The bill passed the
House by big majority.
sl50,000 FOR HIGHWAYS
The Senate has finally passed the
Rabbit Highway bill appropriating
$4,000 for Highways. This bill was
ready for passage before The holiday ad-
journment and would have been passed
then but for possibility that some one
might claim the bill had been rail-
roaded through. 1t was held up for a
few days last week pending some trade
whereby votes might be secured for
other measures but Mr.. Gates stood pat
on this one measure and won out. Thus
has the Mead Administration accom-
plished something in the way of real
constructive Legislation
DIRECT PRIMARIES
In public importance and political in
terest the fight on the Direct Primary
bill has overshadowed anything thus
far before the Legislature. The ques-
ton before the House is in effect "Shall
the people rule'2 Several Direct
Primary bills had been introduced and
the one before the House was intro
duced by the Committee on Internal
Affairs as substitute for all and is
supposed to contain the best features of
the several bills. AS soon as the bill
came up for passage on Thursday MIR.
Burbank of Cabot sailed in and attacked
the bill in general and in particular aud
when he resumed his seat it seemed pos
sible that he had succeeded in killing
the bill. His argument was that it was
revolutionary in character and would re-
suit in the complete destruction of all
the political strength of the small towns.
A true explanation of the bill however
by Speaker Howe showed that all Mr.
Burbank's objections were imaginary
ones and that he was laboring under a
mistaken idea of the facts. The bill in
short provides that instead of going to
the caucuses in June to vote for dele
gates to 60 to Montpelier to vote for
a republican nominee for Governor, we
can 60 to our voting place aud vote d.
rectly for that nominee who most nearly
conforms to what we think a state off.
Ger should be. That is, We, as humble
voters and tax payers, can have our say
as to who shall serve US as candidate
for state and county Office. Under the
Direct Primary system our vote will
count. The only opposition to the bill
seems to be mistaken and imaginary
fear that the small towns will lose the
balance of power. The facts however
as proven from the official figures taken
from the office of the Secretary of State
are that under direct primary system
the political power of the state will re-
pose absolutely in the small towns. The
towns of less than 5000 inhabitants out.
voted the towns of more than 5000 by
about 10000 votes in the last election.
The small towns of every county in the
state can outvote the largest town in
that county by vote of 2 to /. The
bill passed the House by safe majority
but fight is now on for reconsidera-
ton of the vote with the result in donbt.
The bill was killed Tuesday after
noon by vote of 1l9 to 90.-ED.7
A STATE TAX
You might just as we'll begin to ad-
just yourself to coming conditions. You
must pay state tax and it must come
with this preaent session of the Legisla-
ture. That will create storm of pro-
test from those who speak before they
think. Please do not condemn this
Legislature for imposing a state tax
until you are convinced that it is unwise.
Brighter men than we believe that the
state should raise greater proportion
OF its revenues by direct tax rather
than by so large a tax on deposits in
Savings Banks. The tax upon deposits
is just tax in name only. In effect il
is direct tax upon the poor man who
is borrowing capital to run his business
or borrowing money to pay for his farm
1t is tax not upon wealth, but upon
the lack of wealth. The farmer who
owes $4,000 on his farm is today paying
the State direct tax of $l4 per year
His neighbor who owns a $4,000 farm is
not paying the state cent. No less a
, parsonage than Hon. j. A. DeBoer re-
Gently stated publicly that the policy Of
this at ate shnnld ha to annnlu ;tnolf mil