The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1922-05-12
OCALA, FLORIDA FRIDAY, MAY II, 1922
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GOVERNMENT AND TAXATION

interests of Florida in some other
forms of taxation | will say:
First. Federal taxation: The tax
on railroad and sleeping car tickets
and on railroad freight traffic was
operating very much to the interest
of Florida, for obvious reasons: (a)
California is our greatest competitor
for. tourists and in the production of
| fruits, and she is 1900 miles further
| from our centers of population than
we are: therefore, these taxes, while
in force, actually proved to us all
that they did operate in our favor; OBJ
Nearly all of our phosphate, lumber
and naval stores finds water transpcr-
tation within $50 miles of where pro-
duced, and most of it within rs miles.
Now, my friends, look at your map
of these United States and see how
far many states who lead in produc-
ton must ship their surplus products
to reach seaboard; andsI think you
must be convinced that, if taxes are
to be raised, Florida should prefer
to see restored the tax on rail traffic.
as we must of necessity pay a less pro-
portion of such.
Seeing that all taxes must come
ultimately out of production, the main
questions left open to discussion about
permanent methods of taxation are:
(a) Where can the nation extract the
cash at once with less bad effect on
business, our national life; OBJ the
cost of collecting it: (c) the chance
for large numbers to evade it.
With these facts in mind the stamp
taxes on checks, notes, deeds and
other documents must recommend
themselves as being among the first
in the order of preference, and in my
view, some extensions of the sales tax
on many lines besides automobiles
should be made, but not to include
petty retail trade.
These general principles may be
applied, to some extent, to state tax
alton; and, as the tax on gasoline is
now subject of interest, l will say
that such tax would seem to afford
an easy means of forcing our tourists
to pay a fair share of the cost of our
roads; but our very extensive coasts
and inland waterways probably car
ry, on per capita basis, four times
more motor boat traffic than any 9TH
er state, and this traffic will naturally
complain.
modestly suggest that press utt
terances about the greed of corpora
tions and the avarice of the rich lose
some force if the principles herein
stated are true;s and were it even
profitable to us to permit tax laws to
reflect such sentiments, we all know
too, that many owners of corporations
are quite as good and charitable as
are we ourselves; many of such are
our neighbors sand friends.
Penalties for crimes should be en-
forced after proper trial and convic-
ton and not by the fiat of tax laws.
which will condemn the good and the
bad to ignominous and indiscriminate
slaughter. At least. some of the rich.
In point of morality and good citizen
ship. are not surpassed by ourselves.
The power to tax is the power to
destroy, and, if its exercise is to car.
ny just sentence of destruction. those
whose duty it may be to enforce that
harsh sentence should be left remote
from any well grounded charge of the
sin and evil of hatred.
Even the wisest and most benign
lawmakers may not hope to draft
any tax law, which in its application
TO large masses of people, will not
work great oppression, or injustice
upon some. and good citizenship does
not forbid protest in such cases.
while no American citizen, in any
walk of life, be he rich, or poor. should
be asked to respect policies adopted
with the avov-ad purpose of punish
ing him, or his clacs, without trial be-
fore law. Such man, by acquies-
cence, might forfeit his self respect
and any just claim to that fortitude
and independence of spirit which is
the boast of the Anglo-Sax race.
One among the wisest of the an
clients truly said Those whom the
Gods wished to destroy they first
make mad" Our states and nation
tread perilous paths when their law
makers inflamed by a sensational
press march into power under ban
ners proclaimings reprisals upon any
class of our citizens.
Reforms are ever in order for pub
lie discussion, and to arouse our peo-
pie to action against powerful forces
enrrenched behind the bulwarks of
government uolicioc mbatbar 1