198 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



corresponding proportion for taxation was three and three fourths 

 per cent. 



Similar illustrations drawn from the recent tax experiences of 

 nearly every State in the Union might be indefinitely multiplied, 

 and in the most western States of the Union, where the communities 

 are mainly agricultural, the opinion of officials is also to the effect 

 that personal property, as a rule, exceeds realty, and to a great 

 extent escapes assessment and taxation. 



Another curious and interesting feature of the situation is that 

 in all those States where the most minute and thorough system of 

 questioning with respect to the ownership of personal property pre- 

 vails, investigation shows that, notwithstanding the acknowledged 

 great increase in wealth in the form of personal property in re- 

 cent years, the skill of its owners in concealing it has grown more 

 rapidly; or, in other words, in every State in which a vigorous 

 attempt has been made to reach and assess all the personal prop- 

 erty of its citizens, a smaller percentage of such property is taxed 

 to-day than was effected under operation of laws a quarter of a 

 century ago. 



Results of Recent Administrative Experiences. — A notice 

 of some comparatively recent administrative experiences in attempt- 

 ing to successfully enforce taxation of personal property is especially 

 pertinent at this point. 



In 1879 California proposed a new Constitution. It was drafted 

 in accordance with what was supposed to be the interest of the agri- 

 cultural voters of the State, and was by them ratified, the merchants, 

 commercial and financial interests being almost unanimously arrayed 

 in opposition and voting against it. Under this Constitution and the 

 laws made in pursuance of it, the results have been thus summarized : 

 " Not only were bonds, money, and credits taxable, without any de- 

 duction on account of debts, except from credits, and then only such 

 debts as were due to residents of the State of California, but holders of 

 stock in corporations were avowedly and intentionally subjected to 

 double taxation; first, upon the corporate property, and again upon 

 the capital stock, which is merely their evidence of title to that 

 property. It was supposed, alike by the friends and enemies of the 

 new Constitution, that under its operation personal property of every 

 description would be thoroughly reached, and at any rate that what- 

 ever was by any chance overlooked would be more than made up 

 by double taxation upon that which was found. The actual result 

 has been to falsify all the predictions of both the friends and enemies 

 of the Constitution — for it has done no good, and very little harm, 

 except, in promoting fraud — for the reason that the capacity of the 

 patriotic taxpayer to commit perjury and the susceptibility of assess- 



