Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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. =^=i=== f WHY PAY THE OTHER FELLOW'S TAXES By Senator Niels Christensen. An address delivered by Senator Christ ensen at the Reconstruction Conference held in Columbia recently. It is presumed here that all make proper tax returns. A ?reat many - i*. n v do not. They are "tne otner xeiiows. You rind your tax rates for schools, city, county and state purposes mounting at an extraordinary pace. Sunday you read the news of an increase of 33 1-3 per cent for state activities, and extra tax on all of (us for road and bridge bonds put on by the counties, each carrying local levies averaging, perhaps, five mills, in addition to state, school district and county increases. Does not that jar you? It ought to. If it does not just th:nk what is coming to you next year if this thing keeps on. Is it not time to find cut if you and the other iellow are on the same footing? Is anyone putting anything over on yon? Complaints about high taxes have heretofore come principally from those who pay little or nothing to the tax gatherer, men stirred by demagogues with charges of extravagant appropriations. Before the taxes did not bother the enterprising. Today the demagogue is being joined in his complaint by the heavy taxpayerThere may be some money wasted by those who are spending it for the state. Such waste should be looked after and stooped. We have come to a point where extension of the field for public service should find a temporary limit. But the principal prob lem of our public finances has to ao with outrageous methods of getting taxes, and not with our reasonably decent tax expenditures. We will not get far by criticizing appropriations; unjust, unscientific, slipshod tax raising lies at the back of our high levies and the just complaint of unfairness. ; Complaints come and go leaving us officials high and low pledged to cut appropriations, but the taxes steadily increase under irressistible pressure from the needs of a fast developing commonwealth. We need a campaign for re-writing the laws for getting our taxes. The 1 1 - ? /vwAvofa on/1 laws we now nave uo nut vycm.,*. our assessments of the property of individuals are for the most part their voluntary contributions. Men pay what they choose. The result is chaos. Buildings of equal value, standing side by side in our towns, adjoining farms of equal value along ou^ country roads, are down on the tax books for amounts that have no relation to their relative values. There is a big lumber plant returned at less than ten per cent of its worth - i and a nearby country bank returned for forty-two per cent. There are sandy farms worth less than ten dollars per acre and ?rich farms in the same township that could not be I bought for two hundred dollars per ' acre, returned for eight dollars per acre. This is the result of our assessing system formed generations ago for conditions long since passed. Under our system much property is escaping taxation that is supposed to return. Sources of revenue used by other states are not used by us at all. It is estimated, after careful inquiry, that a considerable percentage " ' * - c--.ii- n of tne real estate in ouuui uinunua not on the tax books. In some sections the percentage has been esti "mated as high as twenty-five per cent. A survey of the state showing all property lines would cure this situation and is a feasible project. Its cost could be paid out of the taxes on the recovered lands during the next five years. Millions of intangible properties entirely escape taxation. We are required, under our constitution, to return these properties at the same rate as all other property and as this is thoroughly impracticable it is not done. To tax casn in oanKs on me same basis as real estate and merchandise would drive cash out of the state. It would mean taking twentyfour per cent of the earning power of mortgages and forty per cent of the earnings of monies in savings banks. We must have the authority to segregate property, taxing it on the basis of the income it brings in. There is, perhaps, no other state that attempts to put on ad valorem tax on such intangible property. By a dif' l-l- i T lerent ana reasonauie system, nuwever, other states secure large revenues from these properties. In 1905 a commission was appointed by the legislature to propose new sources of revenue. As a result the corporation tax law was adopted. , This brings us in approximately two hundred thousand dollars per year, but it is the only step we have taken in these fifteen years to relieve the burdens from real estate and c*e7*tain classes of personal property, which are now bearing1 the whole burden. It is generally recognized tha't an income tax is the fa:rest means oi raising revenue, but we failed in oiu Tort *o ope; Ve 4>:?t system through our un\v;':V^i-rSi to appropriate I enough to enforce it. Rather than pay a feu* salaries we let the law come into disrepute and finally wiped il off the statute books. An inheritsr.?t tax has been proposed from time tc rime in the legislature and would be he means of bri^irin;: us in consderable money. Kentucky received fivt million dollars the first year it was nut in operation there. North Carolina secured seven hundred thousanc 1 i Jollars the first year it was operates under state control. Utah complete*:: a magnificent >tatehouse out of its inheritance tax receipts for one year The other day a wealthy man died ir New York, who would have paic South Carolina several hundrec thousand dollars under a reasonable inheritance tax law, and in one of oui up-country cities the estate of a wealthy citizen would be paying: uj eighty thousand dollars this year ii this statute had been put on the ta> books in 1919. We should have an occupational tax to secure revenues from manj who are now paying little or no taxes Virginia collects SI,600.000 annuallj from this source. Let me ask merchants of this state whose assessments on merchandise were raised twenty million dollars last year, why let these "other felI lows go scot-free?" Why should the> pay the taxes of these other fellows who are their competitors? There is a brokerage firm in the state doing a business of five millior dollars that pays taxes on one hun dred and twenty dollars worth of of fice furniture; there is another doing a business of six hundred thousanc dollars that pays on four hundred dol lars worth of office furniture. Whj do you merchants stand for this situ ation? Under the law nothing can be done about it. Will you not see tc it that the next legislature changes the law and reaches these other fel lows through an occupation tax? How can we get action by the l^o-iclatnro'' Fmir vears a?o Gover nor Manning, the State Treasurer Comptroller General, the Tax Com J mission, and Representatives of the | Ways and Means committee aftei several consultations drew up a group of four jor five bills designed t< remedy our tax defects. Not one o1 them has been passed by the legisla ture. It has been practically impos sible to secure any serious considera tion of them. The cause of this indifference is ; the lack of any demand by the people I f4-r\4n -fo rnmoell' Wo eVlftlllr U1 11 AC 1U1 Ci i. s, w.V not expect, and we certainly are nol going to get, any response on a mat ter so near to every citizen until then shall be worked up a strong popula: demand for change. Once let the people know what th< conditions are, and what remedies an needed, and they will see that th< remedies are applied. As we see it/this situation afford: opportunity for service to the Soutl Carolina Development Board and its affiliated organizations. Here we ar< at the threshold of a campaign year a year in which partisan and factiona policies will play a small part unless I -11 -e~n -T>U? i v>o, | Hll IIS Xilll. ? IIC icgisiatuic iia, I provided for an investigation and in vited all interested to cooperate an< has thus afforded the opportunity t< present this matter to the voters o: he state before the primary campaign meeting has been held, so that the? will have the information upon whicl i to instruct their representatives. { Here is a field for the Americai 'Legion, and we urge upon members o: Jits executive committee, who are pres I ent here today, to assist us in getting ; the active support of its membershi] ! in this non-partisan, non-factional patriotic move to remedy a fund&men j tal defect in our public affairs. Agitate, agitate, agitate this ques j tion until the people are aroused an< i the legislature acts. i ! MOTOR BUS LINES j FOR TROLLEY EXTENSION* i So quickly has the idea of substitu | ting motor bus lines for trolley ex ! | tensions spread throughout the coun 'try, that the Motorbus Bureau re i /lo-nt-lir oct ti K! 1 cli K\r Thti Tire & Rubber company has beei flooded with requests from tractioi companies in all parts of the Unite< . States for information concerning their operation. Created for this purpose, th< bureau, supervised by R. W. Bald win, manager of the motorbus divisio] i of the company's truck tire depart ment, is supplying free, data 01 methods of collecting fares, types o: busses, ventilation, heating, schedules methods of cleaning and operatioi costs. Convinced by its own pioneer worj ' i in motor bus transportation that th< i fpay-as-you-enter bus will.be a grea 1 factor in solving the problem of th< j inadequate trolley service existing 'throughout the country, the compan; | decided to give anyone interested th< benefit of the data compiled fron ' the operation of its own bus lines, n a praise-worthy attempt to hel] ' municipalities solve pressing trans ij portation problems. I Xew bus lines are being esiablishei ^ : Popular Leader o i ^Us? ?% mB^HF ;>m::* ' r^ 11 i ' V'-" ' s W:** v 'Y- w-- ' i |w||^Hn|H r TM^\^yjfflWn|ISi^^ ! ' M1S8 EVANGEI . - Commander of the Salvatta I17ITH the $14,000,000 fund generousJ ** ly contributed by the country tfl ) the Salvation Array last May all bul 5 exhausted through the Army's un paralleled year of activities and serv | ice throughout the country, Command I er Miss Booth is now marshaling hei i i forces for the organization's secont - j nation-wide Home Service Appeal t< , | he held May 10 to 20. "It make: . j me extremely happy to report, ever ' cjtoticti/'c Ctf the TPil r'< 1 IICHUC HIC lull CWII^kXU vi. ??, . work are in hand," the Commande: stated in New York recently, "tha } i never before in the history o: * the organization in this country hai ^ the Salvation Array been able to ac - Salvation Army S I j *w#j 1 j ^T^E ' i i ^i&WJm 11w m v ' ' " N :&^<3s|j& >'. fflCra^vft: -..- ?;?ffWflCTnwWWHMWff 1 1 y ^-?vl'..v- ^>5-.*.*>; vv//.v. . ' (' ' 4^M'*ux^^.V^/...-.n'.-I'?V?S ji*i'*'i*wiAi'*v>'>\i ^ AT the corner, under.the arc light ?I ** ?.ome music started. A crowd o -1 passers by collected. It was not tlx | toe-tantalizing Jazz; it was a soul-stir _! ring hymn. 2 "Pretty soft," drawled the yount< man whose shoulders propped up th< brick store front of a pool hall. "Som< people seem to get by with it, eh? D( a little singsong on a soap-box even y night?and call it a day's work. Prob' bly the life of Reillv when you're f buck private In the Salvation Army No K. P. potato peeling. Pret-ty soft!' And so Colonel Alexander M. Damon field secretary of the Salvation Army was asked about it. He is^in cliarg< r of recruiting Salvationists at the Na 1 tional Headquarters, No. 122 Wes 1 Fourteenth street. New York city, i "Say. that's good!'' boomed the Col * oriel. "A soft job in the Salvatioi Army? I never heard of It. Listen ^ my friend: "In the United States right now th< elvation Army needs 500 men ant 1 tmen. It is the hardest work I know * pay is the lowest; the hours, why i re aren't any! A Salvation Arm: f er is on call night and day. Sick ! in the tenements, starving kids i hungry poor In winter, bereave* * J in many sections of the country. ?. j Street car companies are trying out tjthe motor bus as a substitute for e (trolley extensions that are unprofit_r; able and are establishing line? into v j new suburban territory that needs - | service but previously could only be j reached by trolley extensions that "> | would call for heavy investments for ?'franchises and equipment. Many in -Iquiries are being received by tne |bureau from cities tiiat are too small i to have a street car system, but must -? ?: ?1 ?f Pe? re', m e Army* -INC C. BOOTH, I 3-AlimL_LrLlhe United States compllsh bo much for the poor, the > distressed, the sick, the unfortunate t and the erring. "All this is because of the mag nlfleent way America has supported - our efforts. We are deeply thankful r to God and country for the opportunl1 ties of Christian and humanitarian > service that have been afforded us s during the last few months. Very 1 shortly, now, we shall give an account3 ing of our trusteeship, and soon therer after we plan to go to the country t again for the encouragement and f funds with which to maintain our s1 many vital activities throughout an j other twelvemonth." eeks Many Recruits ;, families, convicts and their families, f unmarried young women with babies? j we aid them all. Strangers and friends, . all religions, alt races are just human beings to us, you see. r "Do you know the prospective Salva? tion Army officer works a year without ? pay? It takes two years of 24-hQur-a) day service to God and to man before C he. or she, is commissioned a Ileuten ant. And what do you think the pay i Is? Exactly $14 a week! Our remuneration comes from serving others. ? So we are well paid. , "Salvationists must visit the jails , and prisons. Penniless families of ? convicts are helped out. Thousand of - missing relations are found and ret turned to their families every year by the Salvation Army officers." Then the visitor remembered those 1 two Salvation Army lassies, bustling , in the greasy, yellow mud of that Flanders dugout, baking pies and serv2 ing doughnuts and.hot chocolate to I some weary, half starved infantrymen. ; Day after day, and nights, too. Anfl , during the whole of that maddening "* * * - ? "* - ? ? 4.Ir/mf Art Y August anve mose iassitrs juai mvy>. *?? , - smiling ind handing out food. KJ i, "Pretty soft,'' muied the visitor; I "pret-ty soft P* have means of transportation. The 60-passenger, double-deck bus, with upper deck encased in glass is the latest type, to appear in Chicagi,! indicating great progress in the de-i velcpment of an industry that is still i i in its infancy. Auto manufacturers J ! have been quick to realize the grow- J i ing need of busses and are rapidly j i makinr standard tvpes. ] ! The civilian population of France j has decreased 750,000 in f-mr years, j ^ lasts-and the | electrically| sealed p package ^ brings 1 WRIGLE $ to you with alt 4 goodness perfe ? i |y preserved. & Sealed m Tight- , WELE Do not throw broken ma< away. Let me weld them foi and time. We handle all ] your entire satisfaction. I i repairing at prices to please ing and it will be promptly d Corresponden Jas.E.5 T iHIa Mnnni I JUAWAV ATAVMAft . < Low Toll Ra Long distance TO STATIC the evening b WgJ night, are app< rate* 4:30 A. ]VI. ' FOURTH th At these L prepared to talk to whoeve SOUTHERN BELL TE AND TELEGRAPH < 1mmmmmm?mm?mmmmamamm?m?mmmmmmmmmm?mmmi OH MY STOMACH J "I had stomach trouble so badly that nothing I ate would digest as it should/' said Sadie ?. .Hamilton, Portland, Me., as she began a re! markable story of the relief she has secured from Argo-Phosphate, the i C ! new reconstructive, stomach tonic i and system purifier. "Everything I ate would lie in my i stomach like a lump," she explained, j | "Gas would form and I would suffer distress all the time. I got so I could hardly keep anything down. Trying t to get relief, I had my stomach pump- ii ed out, but even this did not help me ti as I continued just as bad. tl "I kept hearing so much about b Argo-Phosphate that I thought maybe it might help me and I decided to o try it. I have taken two bottles and H to my surprise I am already feeling L - JT ! ? fine. I can eat anyimng ana i am i ; not troubled at all. | i "I am completely rid of my old j i stomach trouble that I had for three J m years. I have not felt so well for I| | years and I am certainly glad to en-11 j dorse Argo-Phosphate because I; fi [want others to be helped by this J | wonderful medicine." ; | "The spirit of wanting- to help j I others is what makes suffering men j ^ ; and women give these splendid public j endorsements of Argo-Phosphate,"! ^ said a local druggist. 1 - i t> tt" ? Dispensed &v unuer cc ? I A-5 I j Here's wt to teeth, m appetite, |l ! i digestion! ? \ & 1 J V m M L ~ a 1 CMEWING GUM | Ij ^^IGLEYS^l i if A'?.'i*mjtMW. w.r.igjr _ __ # )ING chinery and auto parts : you and save you money kinds of welding jobs to ilso do all kinds of auto you. Ship me your weldone and returned.ce Solicited Shealv tain, S. C. I . * tes at Night j s calls on a STATION I ! IN basis, .when made in j etween 8:30 and mid- j aximately ONE-HAL^ I Between midnight and j ; they are about ONE- ,\ \ e day rate. i 1 ' ' 0 W rates you must be ;i ' j * ;r answers the telephone. J 1LEPHONE j , UUM-fAJN I ^5^^ !> IAR1ING. PIERCING SCIATIC PAINS I iive way before the penetrating effects of SIoan'& Liniment So do those rheumatic twinges and i U~ ?~i i i .1 iic iuui-<iiiics ui lumua^o, uie nerve- ? nflammation of neuritis, the wry neck> , he joint wrench, the ligament sprain,, i he muscle strain, and the throbbing, j ruise. The ease of applying, the quickness, f relief, the positive results, the cleanness, and the economy of Sloan'*. ') iniment make it universally preferred^ 5c, 70c, $1.40. 666 quickly relieves Colds and aGrippe, Constipation, Biliousness, oss of Appetite and Headaches. -13-1 Ot Subscribe to The Herald and News, I