Year: 1870

Congress - Tho Franking Privilege - Tho


Hawaiian Treaty and the Income Tax.


The Senate consumed most of the time yester-
day in considering the bill to change the judi
cial circuits, which was finally passed. Dur
ing the discussion the bill to abolish the frank
ing privilege came up as special order, but,
on motion of Mr.. Trumbull, it was laid aside,
and the Funding bill was given preference
over 1t. The Senate evidently intend to kill
the bill to abolish the franking privilege,
either by amending 1t out of shape or post
poning it indefinitely. What we object to
especially is the unseemly way in which they
go about it. They parade it too much
before the public, with the apparent
intention of leading the people to believe that
they would like to pass it, when the public is
already fully convinced, beyond all cavil, that
there is nothing further from the intention Of
the Senate. This unnecessary parade Of
condemned victim is therefore an insult to
the intelligence of the people. It would be in
better taste to smother the bill quietly
in committee, and then the people might for
get all about it. An executive session was
held in the afternoon, at which the proposed
reciprocity treaty with the Sandwich Islands
was rejected In view Of the increasing I'M
portance of our commercial relations with
the islands of the Pacific, and the
probable early establishment of tele-
graphic communication with Hawaii, 1t Is
to be regretted that the reciprocity treaty
was defeated. There is one thing developed
by the discussion upon it, however, which
should give us grain Of comfort. Mr.. Sum-
ner who, as Chairman Of the Committee ON
Foreign Relations, and by reason Of his 'rhe-
torical ponderosity" is the big gun on treaties,
expended all his eloquence in favor of it in
vain, and we may therefore hope that he'elo-
quence he proposes to expend in opposition
to the ratification of the treaty with st. Do
mingo will be as Intellectual.


In the House the bill to reduce the internal
taxes was further considered. In the course
of the discussion Mr.. Schenck said it was the
intention of the committee to do away with
the whole system Of spies and informers, and
Mr.. Sargent stated that a reduction in the
present customs duties of ten per cent and on
the present internal taxes of fifteen per cent
would yield a surplus outside Of all expenses
of twenty-tw millions four hundred thousand
dollars year, even with the income tax and
all special taxes abolished. A long and inte-
resting debate ensued on the propo-
sition to continue the income tax, and
it will be further discussed to-day. The
tenor of the speeches from the most able
members so far is against continuing the tax,
and it is probable that it will be rejected.
Outside Of the considerations of its injustice
and oppressiveness it is the species of tax
most obnoxious to free people and most di-
rectly opposed to the spirit of free institutions,
and Mr.. Schenck, who stated that his COM
mittee intended to wipe out the whole system
of spies and informers, would show himself
consistent with that spirit if be would also
aim to wipe out a system such as the income
tax, which is almost exclusively based y. the
information cleaned from espionage.