Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1922-06-16
TOO MUCH TAXES.
Correspondent. Thinks There Should
Be Material Reduction.

Be Material Reduction.
Editor Yorkville Enquirer:
That taxes are too high, consider
ing the condition of state and county
goes without saying; and IT is equally
true that taxes can never be reduced
until the expense budget for the state
and county is trimmed down..
Recently The Yorkville Enquirer
made the statement THAT there were
but five days more to pay taxes and
then executions would be issued, yet
there were more than $S0,0O0OO ,oi
1921 taxes unpaid" And lady who
lives here and who has been to see
her niece in the middle or lower part
of this state says that Whole col
urans of county papers are taken up
down there advertising homes for
sale for taxes of once we'll, to do peo-
ple."
The cause of this can be laid ~ de-
flation in the price of the staple crops
which we raised after being told to
plant large crops and fertilize heavily
in 1920. high taxes and boil wecvil.
York county is right in the raidst of
the boil weevil pest this year too, just
as surely as are those people men
toned above. A reliable party below
our town states to a reliable witness
that he has already picked about $50
boil weevils off of about three or four
acres of cotton. The same party who
reported this, said he was watching a
patch every two or three days and
that he gets weevils every time, he
looks it. Then too, there is not more
than q half crop of corn planted here
in York county, although It's now the
middle of June. The people became
alarmed at conditions in the fall of
1920 (surely they should be alarmed
now), and sent delegation to Column
bin to try to get relief through the
general assembly; but were told to go
back home and attend to their own
business. Another session of this
same body has met, deliberated and
adjourned without doing scarcely any
thing except to shift the burden of
taxes. The appropriations for this
year were nearly as large as they
were last year and the result is as
has already been stated, homes are
up for sale to maintain these extraV-
agant appropriations, causing one
class to live in luxury and ease who
DO not produce, and another class to
live in poverty and degradation who
do produce the crops upon which we
live; and although they have had to
live in poverty, their homes must now
be sold to pay taxes that are rlst due
because crops have failed and prices
cut In half. Both are matters for
which they are not responsible and
neither could they control them.
After careful consideration, | have
come to the conclusion that the peo-
pie cannot expect relief from our law
makers of this state. ItJ has been
tried and the trial was failure. Be
cause of this, the people are going 10
have to take this matter in hands
themselves at the polls if they are to
get relief. In order TO do this it will
be necessary for them to decide how
much reduction they must have
through county delegations at Colum-
bia as to the state and through pre-
cinct delegations sent to the county
seats as to the counties. When they
have determined on the percentage OF
reduction, they should call the voters
together at each precinct, pass res
olution demanding that each candi-
date agree to said reduction of salary
for the office he seeks. In ca. none
of the candidates for any single office
will agree TO said reduction, the peo-
pic should select one not now in the
race for that particular office who will
accept the office at the decreased price
and elect him. This decrease should
include every office, institution and