Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1915-12-23
TAXATION PROBLEMS
DISCUSSED IN DE TAIL
Proposed Legislation for the County
---Retrenchment in Road Ex-
penditures---Compulsory School
Attendance---Living Salaries for
Teachers---Opposition to Annex
atiOn---Progress and Economy
Should Go Hand-in-Hand.
OTHER SUGGESTIONS.

the Meeting of Taxpayers Held at
the Court House On Tuesday Last,
and On Taking the Chair Addressed
the Meeting As Follows:
Fellow Citizens. Ladies and Gentlemen:
When I saw by the newspapers that
our Senator-eleet proposed this meet
| ing, to discuss needs in the way of
local legislation, 1 intended to come
here. and, if opportunity offered. to
! make some sugge estions and to express
some views from the floor. Our rep
resentatives are entitled to our ideas
as to the part Anne Arundel should
take in legislation for the whole State,
and particularly our wishes as to leg
islation that should be enacted for
the county.
Capable Representatives.
We have elected five men to the Leg
is1ature who will have the support of
! the taxpayers of the county. If they
| had not been worthy and capable and
qualified to represent the people. it is
not likely that they would have had a
| majority of the votes in the election.
Having been elected, they have the
right to expect the backing and aid of
the people. They are no longer sim
ply representatives of one political
body, but Of every man, woman and
child of the community, each of whom
has the same claim upon their services
and the same interest in whether they
perform those services for the good Of
the county.
We believe that Mr.. Duvall, Mr. Hop
kins Mr. Atwell Mr. Linthicum and Mr..
Solley will protect and guard our in
| terests in the Legislature We look to
| them to be vigilant and active; we
! think they are actuated by proper mo-
| fives and have a proper conception of
! their duties and responsibilities to the
people. Let us not be backward
therefore. in holding up their hands
| when we think they are right, in Civ
| ing them the benefit of our thought
and experience on the subjects with
| which they will have TO deal. and in
cooperation with them in every pos
| sihle way.
Waste Must BE Stopped.
These gentlemen now have had
! very clear idea or they will very soon
! have a clear idea that the problem Of
| of the State is the problem of the
| county, namely. taxation. ] give Mr.
| Munroe. who opposed Mr.. Duvall IN the
| late election credit for good intentions
! but his declaration that eve must
| either find a way to reduce taxes OF
! make one is to be thoroughly consid-
! ir,I, TO ,,,
! Arundel county is more heartily in ia
| vor of reducing taxes than | am All
! sources of waste and extravaganza in
! county and State government should
! b e,and are going to be, cut off The
pruning knife in county and State must
| be applied and applied vigorously But
| when that is done, what will be the
! real situation to be faced and from
| which it is impossible to escape
! County Commissioners Lack Authority.
/ Our county raises by taxation and
! licenses approximately three hundred
! thousand dollars year, and out of this
| the County Commissioners must pay
/ fer expenses of county government. and
for public purposes, over which no con-
! trol is vested in them, items fixed by
/ law. schools roads, public salaries of
! officials created by statute. the admin
istration of the courts, elections and
many others, approximately two hun
Z dred and sixty thousand dollars. They
/ have more or less discretion in expend-
ing only about thirty to forty thousand
dollars, and out of this they must4neet
a great number of demands connected
with the public welfare and / believe
our present Board has the confidence
of the people as whole in admins
tering this trust.
We are not alone in facing this con-
dition. We know what the State treas
( ury is now up against. After the Leg
islature does all the pairing and saving
that it can do. it must either raise the
State tax rate or find new sources OF
/ revenue, and in either event il must
authorize a bond issue and fund the
debt that now confronts the State. Our
sister county, Prince George. has a
board of County Commissioners that is
frank enough 10 say that reduction
in its tax rate is not TO be expected in
the immediate future. The rate of that
county yields approximately s16S. 900
of public funds, and of this amount all
but $4,000 went last year to items OF
expense which the statutes say the
board shall pay From the S24. 600 the
board provided many necessary things
among other new school houses at a
cost of $4,000. And it says that the
whole $4,000 could have been profit
ably spentf for the public schools in that
county. in response to the urgent and
absolute necessary demand for new
equipment
False Economy And True Economy.
We pay the bills. Why should we
not take sensible view of county ex-