The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, 1914-07-09

cipal in Dear Old America the ma
jority must rule, so your State Tax
Commissioners command is final,
and your county tax assessors must
adjust the digest accordingly" So
mote it be. Their compensation
shall be $500 per day and cents
per mile from and back to their
homes, and one-half to be paid by
the disputed county and one-half by
the State.
Now the salary of your State Tax
Commissioner is to be $4,000 per
annum, and all expenses when
travelling over the State, with ST.
500 and $1,000 for clerk and ste
nographer, respectively Now my
fellow Georgians, the expenses of
this one law will cost the several
counties of Georgia 100000, or 60
five mills tax on $20,000,00O worth
Of property, which really turns out
to be the most cruel piece of legis-
latfon that has been enacted since
the Reconstruction days, following
Bulloch's administration. Your pres
ent Governor is largely responsible
for this legislation, and if he is not
he should sue the Atlanta papers for
libel, as they said that he was very
much pleased with it's passage.
1t is a great financial drag net,
and to show you how sure they were
OF their success in raising all the
money they wanted, Immediately af-
ter the passage of this Ubiquitous gag
law, they Immediately reconsidered
and put back $281,00O appropria-
ton that had been dropped by the
General Assembly in session. You
must also remember that your Gov
ernor appointed your State Tax Com
missioner a very few hours there
after.
Of course, they knew with the ma
chinery of the ~law they could just
tax you to their hearts content You
see your State Tax Commissioners
Office is adjoining the comptrollers
office and of course your Governors
office also is near by, and your Gov
ernor can file with the State Tax
Commissioner the deficit after all
appropriations are made, and your
Commissioner with his wonderful
machinery can do the rest. 1t will
be done, my fellow Georgians, and
don't you ever despair The $751;
OG0 appropriations dropped and put
back Immediately was the milk in
the cOcanut and showed that they
had nothing to fear. They knew at
the same time as you all know that
Georgia had existing a floating debt
at that very moment of approximate
ly 81 100000, but they can use their
drag net and hold you up for this
and any other amount, until your
homes are confiscated, Your tax
re t0
your three county tax assessors oath
is worthless, your individual oath is
like moss hanging from a tree. It
must all be discredited and over
ruled by your State Tax Commits
sioner, who has lived from the pub
lie crib all his life and likes a fat
treasury
You know in the first place that
he does not know any more about
your values than you know yourself.
The man who has toiled with his
might and his muscle for a piece OF
property, or dollar, knows it's value
better than the man in the shade,
and under oath [ would believe him
in preference to the politician.
Mr.. Hart in his various speeches
points out the idea to the man with a
$1,000 estate, what an investment
it would be to him to pay full taxa
ton on the same to get the protec-
ton of his home and his liberty
from the State, and send perhaps
six children to school five to eight