The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1919-06-23
LETTING DOWN THE BARS

will take a toll from every new line
of effort and will thereby nip new
| enterprise in the bud.
When capital ventures into bust
, ness, real capital that succeeds be-
cause good men are behind it, it goes
| slowly and with caution. The new
taxation proposed for Georgia will
prove a great bugaboo in this state
! and it will become the scarecrow OF
all new investment. Whether it be
dangerous or not, it can be made so
under the proposed amendment to the
constitution, and large investments
are not going to be made in Georgia
while this wild latitude of taxing
possibilities is permitted.
| The safe constitution, moreover
provides that the taxes levied shall
be spent for certain things. This is
a safeguard that should never be over
/ thrown. Waste of public funds has
been the genderal rule for long
time. Legislature after Legislature has
been disposed to spend much more
than the states normal income and
with each new season this thing be-
comes more manifest The legislature
is asked and urged to spend money
for all sorts usually they want to
make friends,-they are ambitious to
hold larger office.
In the proposed tax changes Geor-
gia is meddling with fire. Tax equali-
cation is no easy thing. 1t requires
depth of thought and experience
and then it requires men of unflinch-
| ing courage to write into a tax mea-
sure the justice and equality to all
industry, to all interests, that is due.
| The aim is to secure more taxes.
| This is wrong in the new measure
fearfully wrong assumption, and
unsafe basis from which to work.
Such a viewpoint will end in great
| est discord and revolution in the
/ end which will throw the taxing sys-
| TEN into a much worse state when
the bitterness has spent it's full
force We need no new taxation. And
here let use sound this note of warm
/ ing. Georgia is not going to accept
the new taxation proposed. The great
, est objection will be the wasteful
| disposition that such a system will
tend to develop in the lawmaking
body where the public money is
spent
What the people do want is an
i equalization of the taxes. They Will
support any plan to place the burden
| on all interests, on all people alike
They will lend support to any effort
to bring the tax dodgers from behind
the fences. out of their places of hid
| ing All in the world Georgia needs
is means of collecting its just taxes
No one out of hundred men who
know will dispute with you on thai
point. And those who understand tht
present law will tell you that We
have ample provision. The nerve we
/ need should manifest itself in the
public officials who have it in theil
hands to enforce the laws. Thai
nerve and love of unwerving duty
must be developed. Georgia is in
creasing in wealth at wonderful
pace. Tax values keep pace with al
our public needs. An astounding in
crease in public revenue will come
the day that everybody is made tC
paay his just taxes. Georgia toda!
needs nothing more than the pay
: ment of taxes on fair valuation. lie
us look to that.
Property holders ought to rea,
and study everything that is offare,
on taxation. There is a new mea
sure TO be presented to the Georgii
+, legislature this year proposing vita
; changes in the system of taxation
Former Governor John NJ. Slaton ha
!, presented to the people of the stat
a studied article which is WORT