The Neshoba Democrat., 1921-03-10
HIGH TAXATION IN MISSISSIPPI
LAMAR RAY DISCUSSES POLITICS AND 4
REMEDY.

Inc man on Tue DiedclleTS Cdh oi-
ways see the game from different
angle to the player In the fielU and
these few lines are coming from the
bleachers. We do not expect all the
readers of this article to agree with
us and some will disagree very much.
To those who may disagree, we will
say the distance is long way up
here and we feel reasonably safe.
] am going to divert extremely
from my usual run Of stories from
here and discuss the Southern coun-
try instead of the Oregon country,
Mississippi in particular. While /
have been away from there over
year / have kept reasonably well
posted on what is going on In Mis-
sissippi. realize the south and es.
pecially Mississippi is hard hit by
prevailing conditions. You, the peo-
pie of the South are to blame to g.
great extent for that condition. The
old saying "all your eggs In one
basket" is all right some times but
year in and year out it will not
. work. Note the present condition OF
the Delta to day, even compared to
Z the hill section, which is far too bad.
So long as your money crops are less
than your importations, just that
long you are as whole getting
poorer. SO long as you do not ex-
pand in diversification and lesson
those imporfations OF thing you can
produce as well as any other section,
Just that long you are receding In
stead of progressing in material
way.
Mississippi is now staggering un-
der heavy load OF debt and no
: small part OF this load Is taxation.
The people OF the state are RESPONSE
BILE for this condition. For the past
fifteen or twenty years politics has
run rampants everything has been
done with an eyesingle to the polite
4 al machine. The Tamany tiger has
nothing on Mississippi when itcomes
/. to machine politics. Everything is
done and every move made with the
single purpose of perpetuating the
life of the machine, no matter which
n machine is in power.
The average southerner takes to
Spolitics as the Latin does to the
cockfight. To win is the paramount
issue, regardless of the results that
may follow. You have been sowing
the wind and are reaping a whirl-
wind OF taxes and inefficient govern
ment. 1t does not run back one ad-
ministration. Go back to the Noel
!. administration you have at one full
swoop rs county attorneys created,
! and we venture the assertion there
are not over a half dozen In the state
earning half their salary. This is no
reflection on the attorneys but con-
ditions have changed. Under exist
Ing laws you have county treasurers
paid salaries for their signature
alone, while the several repositories
Hi Ull6 OniCc' Aoul hOdlOA OhSOAoS
county and state must have the
I, stamp OF the faction in power before
they are fit. The heads of your
4 state institutions ofall kinds, schools,
asylums, farms, reformatories etc
are so entertwined with politics un-
til service is lost at the, expense OF
servility. New places are created to
asreward political henchmen. Your
sstate tax commission system was
born as a panacea for all taxing ills.
big headlines were run that taxes
6 would be equallzed, adjusted, lower
Ned and peace and happiness would
Eeign supreme. The first move was
(the doubling OF the assessment valu-
Z alton, then came the sounding OF the
kpolitical trumpet for the legislature
sto meet and cut the levy half. A
!. .small reduction was made for one
'Yyear and the rate has been increas-
King ever since, this increase being
kmade on the swollen assessments OF
4 the Tax Commission, Small wonder
3there are massmeetings being called
Rin nearly all the counties OF the state
bcrying out for relief. You remember
hlistening for hours on those hot
summer days at the political spielef
telling you OF your Ills and how to
cure them, smong Others was a
board. Result, You have
j pardoning board, a few more po-
.flitical friends rewarded and a par
kdoning record that is a stencil to the
law abiding citizens offhe state.
The caldron OF machine politics
(has been seething for so many years
te people are drinking deep OF the
dregs OF a system that Is blighting
khe prosperity and happiness OF a
khole commonwealth. Why all this