Year: 1872

L


Gentlemen Of the Senate and House of Rep.
IuiuHi Iea r. resenfdfiues: sr


From official conferences with
the chairman of the committee of
Ways and Means Of the House of
Representatives, and of the com,
mittee on Finance OF the Senate,
respectively, l have learned that
the General Assembly is about to
enter upon that department ofleg.
islation which is specially connect
ed with the levy and collection of
taxes, in order to raise moneys
which may be deemed necessary
to meet the expenses Of the past
fiscal year, and to provide for
such DEFICIENCIES rs now are, or
may hereafter be, demanding ear
ly settlement.


Believing it my duty, as the
Executive of the State, to place
before your honorable bodies
and, through them, before the
public-all the information in my
possession which may have a bear.
ing OH this important subject, l
hasten, at the earliest practical
moment, to transmit such official
date as | have been able to collect
during the short period which has
elapsed since my induction into
office.


To the end that the people of
the State may understand the ma
ture Of the necessities whicr will
govern us in the collection and
disbursements Of the taxes which
they will be called upon to pay
into the Treasury, let us, in the TO.
ginning, understand each other,
and let not the attempt be made
to cover up from their view any
of the financial difficulties which
are pressing upon US as their rep.
resentntives.


Our dealings between ourselves
and those whom we represent
should he of that candid and man.
| ly character that will carry con
viction home to the minds of our
constituents, and persuade them
that for the future we can safely
trust one another.


Each and every taxpayer of
our Stale has the undonbted right
to know the true condition of the
Treasury, and to understand the
nature of all the claims against it,
and the manner in which it is pro.
posed that those claims shall be
met. Nowhere else can he better
derise this knowledge and UNDER
standing than iu the frank and
open conduct of the Legislature.


In our present situation prompt
and firm action is, above all
things necessary &; and we should
waste no time in unavailing re.
grets for the past, or vain expec-
tations of the future, but at once
proceed to an earnest guardian
ship of the public interests. But
have care that that guardianship
shall be at once so vigilant and 80
tender, that the chaine which you
may rivet around the treasurers
OF the State may not enter into
the hearts of the people.
| There is no money in the Treas.
ury with which to meet either the
current expenses of the State gov
ernment, or its large and outstan1.
ing liabilities. The necessities Of
the several charitable, educational
and penal institutions, which have
been 80 extremely urgent for
many months past, still remain
unsatisfed, while the collection of
the taxes, which was relied on as
the sole source of relief, has been
suspended by judicial process.


The collection of all taxes lev>
led, or to be levied, under the au-
thority of the Joint Resolution of
March IL, 1872, was temporarily
enjoined on the 10Th ulttmo, by
his Honor the Judge of the Fifth
Circuit, on the application of tho
present State Treasurer, then
Treasurer elect.


That injunction was made abso.
lutte on the 23d nltimo-his Hon.
or holding that the Joint Rosolu-
tion in question is vIolative of
Section 8, Article TX, of the State
Constitution, which provides


"Seetion 8. The General As.
sembly shall provide for an annu.
al tax sufficient to defray the esti.
mated expenses Of the State for
each year and whenever it shall
happen that such ordinary expen
ses Of the State, for any year, shall
exceed the income of the State for
such year, the General Assembly