The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-09-05
(By Associated Press.)

public, and which have been made ne
cessary by war, are by no means inno-
vations. They are based absolutely
| upon the articles Of the constitution of
the United States land SO perfect is
the basis thus provided that one might
think the founders of the republic had
been endowed with the gift of looking
! far into the future that every emer-
gercy might be met without deviation
fro mtheir original plan. ct Is well
known, however, that the constitution
| was in reality a document of compro-
mise and that 1t was drawn up in its
| present form only after bitter disputes
on the part of the delegates represent
| ing various parts of the country, each
of whom sought to gain some advant-
age for his constituency
1t was with difficulty that the advo-
Gates of a more centralized govern
ment secured for Congress the right
"to lay and collect taxes, duties, i'm
posts and excises," and as safeguard
to state rights, the opposition insisted
that clause be inserted in which it
was decreed that 'all bills for raising
revenue shall originate in the House
of Representatives
A schedule of import duties was
adopted January 4, 1889, providing for
an advalorem rate on about thirty ar
ticles, and this was assessed in such
way as to give protection to the
young manufacturing industries which
We're beginning to spring up In the
new country, particularly in New Eng
land
AS soon as this measure had been
I'D hN IT.
tatives began to consider the estab-
lishment of a Treasury department
and again the question arose as to
whether single individual should be
entrusted with the financial RESPONSE
bility of the nation or whether that
responsibility should be placed in the
hands of committee.
Hamilton's Measures.
Alexander Hamilton was appointed
to the post, however. in September
1889, and although he was only thirty
five years old, he was probably better
fitted than any other man in the Unit
ed tates for the position. While con-
fidential secretary to General Wash
ington, during the early years of the
Revolution, he had devoted much time
to the subjects of finance and trade.
In 1881 he communicated to Robert
Morris an elaborate plan for a bank,
and in 1882 he was receiver of CONT
mental taxes in New York. To these
special interests he added an expert
ence as congressional delegate, lawyer
and pamphleteer and had been es-
pecially insistent in demanding ma
tional regulation for the collection of
revenue.
From the very first Hamilton dis
played great initiative and Immediate
ly formulated a plan for funding the
public debt which by that time had
grown to immense proportions. Ham
ilton estimated that the foreign obi
cations of the country amounted to
$11,710,000 while the domestic obliga-
tions were about $27,3S3,O00 in princi-
pal and S13,030,0o0 in accrued interest
to which might be added 100000 for
unliquidated debt
There as violent opposition to Ham
ilton's plan. but it finally prevailed
as did his demand that the state debts
be assumed by the federal government.
The funding act was passed August 4,
1890, and by it the president was au-
thorized to borrow S12000,000, while
loan to the full amount of the do
nestle debt was also authorized, sub
scriptions to be received in any of the
certificates of indebtedness which the
government had previously issued dur
ing the Revolutionary War and the
Confederation.
1t was due to Hamilton that the
first national bank was established in
1871 and that the coinage system was
put upon solid basis. Both of these
were regarded with suspision by many
people, but it was not until Congress
adopted the recommendations of Ham
ilton and embraced them in the tariff
bill of 1871, that the unpopularity of
the secretary of the Treasury assumed
its full proportions. Following the
assumption of the state debts, the
need of further revenue became i'm
perative and Hamilton recommended
that tax be placed upon distilled
spirits. This aroused intense antag-
onism, since the consumption of spir-
its was so common that many people |
contended that it's special taxation !
was a discriminating burden upon one |
OF the necessities of life.
Beginning Successful.
So marked was the opposition on |
the frontier, where it was found con-
venient to reduce corn to the form of |
spirits in order to overcome the diff !
culties of transportation, that in south
western Pennsylvania an armed band |
what is known as the |
Rebellion, which was not put |
down until the troops had been called |
into the field. The whiskey tax was |
not profitable, however, and a tax was !
levied then upon wider range of |
commodities including carriages. GER
tain spirits, snuff. sugar and the In. |
comes from auction sales.
Direct taxation was proposed in
l794 and four years later the first |
direct tax was imposed upon all dwell
Ing houses aud lands and upon slaves
h0tWGPn the auac Of fu,olro and 6ftx,