Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1914-09-23
TAX ON COTTON
ACREAGE TO
REDUCE
PRODUCTION.
w. B. Gruber Lawyer and Farmer, Suggests Law that He
Believes Will Stand Test Of Courts and Permanently
Solve Cotton Prob1em-Give Revenue to Schools.

that, under the constitution OF 1868.
the General Assembly may either it
self impose a license tax, Estate vs..
Hayne, 1 S. c., 4O3,) or may en-
power municipal corporation to i'm
! pose such a taX-State VS. Columbia,
| 60 S. c., l; Charleston vs.. oliver,
16 S. c., 81; Information VS.. jaeger,
20 S. c., ABS. Nor, as we understand
1t, is it denied that such a power may
be exercised under the present con-
stitution."
l do not deem it necessary, how
ever, to enter into any argument or
to cite other authority in support of
! this proposition, as the authority Of
the General Assembly of the different
States to enact such legislation will
be readily conceded by all well-in-
formed lawyers.
The General Assembly Of the Diff
ferent States possessing the author
ity to impose such business or oc-
cupation tax upon the growers Of cot
ton furnishes certain and definite
means Of solving permanently and
satisfactorily the trouble which has
so beset and impaired the business
interests Of the South for the past 20
years. If each Of the States would
| impose such tax upon each acre Of
cotton planted, making it very small
on the first eight acres planted per
| plow, and very excessive on all acre
age planted in excess Of that quauti-
ty, the result would be that no one
or certainly very few, would be fool
| ism enough to plant in excess Of the
acreage on which the small tax was
imposed. The tax imposed per acre
up to the given acreage ought to be
light, not exceeding rs cents per
acre, and the tax imposed on the ex-
cess acreage ought to be so great as
to render it Improbable to plant it.
The amount of the tax to be i'm
posed upon the excess acreage could
be so fixed as to protect, automati-
! Gally, the consumer as we'll as the
! cotton Sfower. To Illus trate: if a
US 20 per acre were imposed on
7 aaen SHrc planted in excess OF eight
acres per pIOw II would moi 10 profit
able for any farmer to plant an ex-
cess acreage and pay this tax, if cot
ton were bringing cnly a fair and
reasonable price; but if under the
influence Of this legislation produc-
ton were cut down to such point
| that cotton brought an excessive
price, say 5 or &c cents per pound.
then it would become profitable to
plant an excess acreage, and an eX
cess acreage would be planted and
the price Of cotton thus reduced.
If the various cotton States will
pass an act Of this character it
would, | am sure, finally solve the
most grievous problem with which
| the business interests cf the South
have had to contend for the past 20
or 25 years. BY limiting the acre
age we should not be embarrassed in
| the future by over-production, and
hence would be assured at all times
of fair and reasonable price for our
cotton crop. OF the prosperity and
| progress of the South under such an
assured condition | need not speak.
In the discussion Of this subject J
have had in mind only the idea of
limiting the cotton crop by the i'm
| position Of this taX-without regard
| to the revenue it would produce. If
| the Legislature shall see fit to do it.
| 1t might follow the course adopted IN
| the passage OF the act of 1872, i'm
| posing such tax on everybody en-
gagged in the other vocations and pro-
| fessions OF life. A reasonable tax
| so imposed, not burdensome to any
| one, would result in the raising of a
very large fund, which is sorely
needed for the support Of our COM
| mon schools and the building of our
| public highways. But | shall not
dwell upon this branch Of the sub
| ject.
Under the call issued by Governor
Blease for an extra session Of the
General Assembly, which convenes at
an early date, | deemed it my duty,
as well as my privilege, to suggest
this solution in your columns to the
end that the same might be carefully
considered by the members Of the
| General Assembly.
w. b. Gruber
WaltarhOro Q n Co,4 a tnti