The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1914-09-25

not endorsing all the work of tha
session. and taking exceptions
some of It's omissions, said editor
10y.
We owe TO the Legislature an ex
cellent public utilities law, a pena
farm law, an Inheritance tax law,
loan shark law, blue sky law, a
anti-cocaine law, a vocational educa
tional law, q housing law and fir
marshal law. That Is a record o
positive achievements end the Demo
cratic party is entitled - much credi
for it" =
The News is now -1ing for tn
defeat of the party that made th
record ! have lust quoted, and if yo'
viii take the time t0 read the editor
ial from which | have quoted yo'
viii see that the News gave Taggar
credit for much of the good work tn
Legislature did and criticised him. a
least by Implication, for not interfer
ing with is deliberations more. thai
he did: for II said, "The Legislator
took q re rri~ on it~e'f. and Il mad
q fair,v a er no-~auch bette
than wa : 1T nos ii6lc after Nh
Taggart = H.. drawn his hand"
TIE Deao~raiic party should be I
feated, as is c-..ties saw. because +
requires too " !, ncrCy t. r"1 t.
State under - rerty h~ ~-e
% the peC2,e c. o-e oG 4
very best utilitie . the CO.
t,y; and a'though $f1U,cC0 h2s e
cropriated h, eddit;on to certain f
e. carry on its ycrk, the best iI4fc
nation now is that it will not co
&c State this vc1r over C,000-
~.ving of $50, geo or $4,000.
It is hard to estimate the value o
the services OF this commission to t.
pf'blic. Those <capahie e OF Judging say
{. at in the gas merger case of In
6ianapolis alone, ii saved consumer
OF gas in the first year at least S1O0
coo, end this saving Will recessaril
increase as the years 60 By Mass
chusetts appropriated to car on t.
work of q similar commis-;81 @.
year $177,145 and Wisconsin, t
State which reforners arge Us
initiate, appropriated $151,Ge9 fc
one year. The News also said eaitos
ially, on March 10, 1913: THE pu5..
utilities law will probably cost tv
or three hundred thousand dollars
wear"
The last session C the Le-is'atur
y, tie State S160,060, few tnop
y I'd more than any former seSsio
st. How does this compare with IL
.ost of legislatures in other states
The session of the Legislature
Wisconsin In 1913 ecrt that St2t
G244.GeT.23, inclU l;rg SO coo paid 1
newspapers for prh'ictirv the law
The last session OF t-a L ~islst
Massachusetts cost that STATE $t45
071.44
state Finances.
Ihe {, t,-ostion Of Stat finances is
issue il every State campaign,
leassN is talked about IL every Stat
campaign. This campaign is no ex
ception 70 the rule. The people al
waysv and very properly, scrutinize
iea'ously the exercise Of tse taxinc
power. BY tais power the citizen ha
his property taken from him and az
piled to public purpose; and he
anxious to know why his earning
have thus been demanded. and If Z
fiOPOA etPPt'C@11Oi CilcteSt u DSii4'
made. The good citizen, however
wants his State to meet her legiti-
mate obligations, and ne understands
that every additional function per
formed by the State in the govern
ment Of the people calls for more
money, ana that tempo~i1iag schemes
won't pay it. Therefor, t-e p aeticai
man stands ready 10 g. 0~ee a ra-
tional exercise Of the power
of his government.
In dealing with the this
State there has been to- nic-h COW
ardice manifested by political parCies
and political leaders in the past. II
has long been known to those who
have given any attention to the sub
ject, that the tax levy for State pur
poses was not high enough to meet
the obligations of the State. For
years the sinking fund, that wa.
created as a debt paying fund, wa.
used by Republicans in meeting the
current expenses of the State. l.
three years they used $1,650,0 900 o
that fund for this purpose, instead Q
applying it 10 the payment of the
bonded debt of the State.
Republicans not only used the sink
ing fund for the purposes and to the
amount | have indicated, but from
1895 to 1910 they called for advance
tax payments from the counties t,
the general fund to the amount Q
$15,408, 8,841.02 to meet the current e.
penses, rather than assume the re
sponsibility of doing the uty b..
raising the tax levy.
One of the best informeu men il
the affairs Of this State IS Hon
Joseph NJ. Cravens of jefferson
county. He took an active and prom
inent part in securing the passage o.
the tax law of 1913; and in address
ing that body for the enactment o.
this law, he said:
"This proposition of increasing tn
tax le& has been showed OF b.
political parties for the last tel
years, and the State has been living
from hand to mouth, with nothing IL
the treasury; calling continually or
county treasurers for advance pay.
fnents; holding up bills for want OF
funds; practically insolvent for tho
greater part Of the time. The in
crease in the tax levy this time is
absolutely necessary. True, the
Legislature will make unusually large
appropriations, but this is the result
of tha e-ar.prol trend of fro fir-,aS