200 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



But the assessors of San Francisco found less of merchandise to tax 

 in 18S6 in that city than they did in 1880; and less in 1894 than 

 they did in 18S0, while the value of bonds returned by its citizens 

 declined from $2,311,000 in 1880 to $449,000 in 1S86. The total 

 increase in the valuation of merchandise for bonds and credits for 

 taxation in the fourteen years from 1875 to 1889 was less than one 

 per cent. 



The most recent, important, and incontrovertible record, how- 

 ever, of administrative experiences on this subject is to be found 

 in the report of a tax commission authorized by the Legislature of 

 Ohio, composed of four eminently qualified citizens — two Repub- 

 licans and two Democrats — and presented to the Governor of that 

 State in December, 1893. It is no exaggeration to say that, since 

 the days of the French monarchy under Louis XVI, no report has 

 been or could be made more discreditable to the people of any coun- 

 try claiming to be civilized, honest, and law-abiding. 



The report first shows that Ohio has " the most efficient and 

 minute scheme " of listing in duplicate " all classes of property " — 

 dogs specially included — " which has been devised in any State." 

 " Every citizen is bound under oath to make a complete return of 

 his property," embracing all forms of personalty. " If he declines 

 to make the oath required by law, a penalty of fifty per cent is 

 added." This listing system in Ohio is characterized by the com- 

 mission as like "the assessment list used in Germany in mediaeval 

 times (1531)," which it further asserts "has been abandoned every- 

 where inEurope." The statute provides that a designated official 

 " may through the probate court call before him the citizen and 

 examine him if he suspects that the return is not a complete one " ; 

 and in addition to all this the law empowers each county to contract 

 with such persons — " tax inquisitors " — who may give information 

 as to any personal property that has been " improperly withheld 

 from the returns " ; and who shall be " rewarded " to the extent of 

 twenty per cent of the amount of tax " recovered through their 

 efforts." 



From a large amount of evidence collected by the commissioners 

 and officially published by the State, the following selections illus- 

 trate the efficacy and workings of this system and its statutes: 



For the year 1891 the gross amount of revenue collected in the 

 whole State of Ohio through the operation of the tax inquisitorial 

 law was about $750,000, or about two per cent of the entire taxes 

 of the State. For the nine years from 1885 to 1893 inclusive, dur- 

 ing which time this act was operative in Hamilton County, which is 

 mainly the great and rich city of Cincinnati, the whole amount of 

 taxes paid by its citizens was about $50,000,000, of which less than 



