(US 



TAXIDERMY. 



__nmulation of a surplus in the twenty yean that fol- 

 lowed it, although the tariff for many yean) was full of 

 duties for revenue as well as prole, live taxes, ami the 

 syntem of excise taxes was revived with a thorough- 

 ness never known before. Hut the refunding operations 

 uf the treasury having put a large pan of the debt out 

 of re.ich for redemption at par. by l>^7 it was found 

 that in spite of the re|>eal of most of the taxes imposed 

 for a war revenue, and repeated rediietmns of the tariff 

 and the repeal of all merely revenue duties it contained, 

 that the income uf the government was becoming much 

 -s of its legitimate outlays. This at once mad- 

 the surplus a question of national politii-s. The tree 

 trade party proposed to retain the excise taxes on 

 alcoholic liquors and tobacco (the only survivors of the 

 gem-nil rv|>eal). and to effect a reduction of the revenue 



nxing the free list of the tariff and by a very 

 general reduction of duties on imports. The protec- 

 tionists favored a reduction of duties only so far as it 

 would not impair the protective character of the 

 tariff, and proposed the repeal of the excise 

 taxes on tobacco and on alcohol used in the arts, 

 and even, if necessary, the entire abolition of ex- 



ts in 18U1. A third proposal is to return to the 

 policy of 183f>, leaving the issue between free trade 

 and protection to be decided on its own merits, but 

 giving to the States the surplus of revenue from such 



is the national government believes it can collect 

 without unduly burdening the people, whether these 

 come from a revenue tariff or a tariff for protection to 

 home industry, or from either of these, together with a 

 system of excise taxes on articles whose use it is d< sir 

 able to discourage. The advocates of this plan would 

 connect with this distribution of the surplus conditions 

 s to its expenditure, sn -h as have accompanied grants 

 of money ami lands to the Suites for the promotion of 

 education or the construction of railroads. They would 

 require its use (I) for the promotion of education and 

 the aU)lition of illiteracy; (:>) the payment of State 



.Mth accumulated interest, without regard to acts 

 fit repudiation passed by any State; (3) to the relief of 

 the burdens of local and State taxation. 



The problem devolved upon the Suites and their 

 subordinate governments of collecting sufficient revenue 

 for the ens[ ut t lie multifarious duties they have to dis- 

 charge has been solved in as many ways almost as 

 there are States. An excellent summary of their 

 methods will lie. found in Prof. Richard T. Ely's work 

 in Aiiiri-ii-nH Stuiix ninl ( 'if ift (New York, 



It has liecn a favorite idea with our legislators 

 that ii.tiiir.il equity demanded the equal taxation of 

 every kin 1 nl property, without reganl to the likelihood 

 of injuring the eommiinily by driving indu.-iries to 

 localities more favored by the tax laws, and also with- 

 out regard lo the enjoyment o*' .nneh greater favors 

 from the community by some industries than by others. 

 Equally indifferent have been the laws of many States to 

 the practicability of collecting certain taxes; and bonds 

 of foreign cor|N>rctions held within the State and other 

 equally intangible forms of personal property have l>ccn 

 tax<-d on u par with real estate, thus offerings premium 

 on (he easy evasion of (lie laws. In this respect the 

 tax syMcm of I'ennsylvania has generally been regarded 

 a> superior to that of the Slates generally, which is due 

 to the fact that in no State nave the principles of 

 <-<iniomii; and fiscal science had so many keen and 

 praclieal -Indents. 



While it is in the highest degree desirable that the 

 incidence of taxation should approximate to equality 

 throughout the Union a point mo.-i carefully guarded 

 by the Constitution as regards the national taxes this 

 in the respect in which the differences have been most 

 striking and harmful. Of course in the newer and 

 )toor .ion the rale of taxation per 



fn/iilii must be much lower than in the older and 

 wealthier commonwealth* Hut we find that even 

 among thc*e older States there are differences out of all 

 proportion to the differing wealth of their people. , 



Thus in 1880 the tax-rate in Massachusetts wag lln.'JO 

 a head, but less than $'J in I'ennsylvania. for both 

 the expenses of the State and those of its local mid 

 subordinate governments. The chief reason of this is 

 found in the difficulty of raisin:.' an adequate revenue 

 by direct taxation, which lead* State and local govern- 

 ments lo skimp the work of government, to IK: content 

 with inadequate schools and wretched roads, and to 

 regard "economy " as the one virtue in fiscal manage- 

 ment. To this policy the New England States gener- 

 ally liavu been honorable exceptions, and Massachusetts. 

 especially so. but at serious cost to themsi Ivi s. Many 

 of the smaller industries, and thos.. not especially 

 favored I iy local circumstances, have been driven to the 

 Middle States, where the tax -rate is lower because the 

 State governments take a less exacting view of their 

 duty to their people. 



Taking the country as a whole, however, we find that 

 the direct taxation upon all kinds of property and 

 incomes is higher than in any country of Europe, ex- 

 cept one, ami an analysis of local tax-lists seems to 

 show that nearly three fourths of this burden is bornu 

 by people whose estates amount to less than $.~>MHicach, 

 this class constituting ninety-seven percent, of the tax- 

 payers. The aggregate of property taxes levied by the 

 State and local governments in ISSt) was 0818,760,000, 

 being $6.23 a head of the population, and $18.50 per 

 11000 of its property. 



Hi-medics for the weight of this great burden have 

 been sought in (I) the monopoly of monopolies like the 

 gas supply and street -railways by municipal govern- 

 ments; (2) and in the heavier taxation nl'siieh monop- 

 olies as railroad corporal ions by the States, so as to seen re 

 from them some equivalent for the valuable franchises 

 bestowed upon them by the community. Hut even 

 these are only alleviations of an evil, which must l>e. 

 corrected in a more radical way, either by the transfer 

 of costly government duties like education and police to 

 the national government, or by the transfer of its sur- 

 plus of revenue from the national government to the 

 States. 



The former proposal is that which commends itself to 

 those who wish to see the general government strength- 

 ened at the expense of the States, as has lieen the ten- 

 dency throughout our history, with lew interruption*. 

 The latter should commend itself to those who value 

 the State governments as a counterpoise to the central- 

 izing tendency. As such it was advocated by Mr. Cal- 

 honn in IS3C>, and accepted by the Suites' [lights party 

 of that day. The difficult') 1 of securing a two-thirds 

 vote in Congress and the vote of three-fourths of the 

 State Legislatures for an amendment to the Constitu- 

 tion makes the former plan very difficult of application. 

 It is safe to say that nothing but the prolonged failure 

 to return to Mr. Calhoun's plan can give it a chance of 

 adoption. It is that which may bring the country to 

 such an urgent sense of the need of a fiscal reconstruc- 

 tion as may force the adoption of the most drastic rem- 

 edy at hand. At present the proposal to aid the Suites 

 in educating their illiterate population, and that for 

 refunding the amount of the direct tax levied in isr. 1 

 as a war measure by the. general government, both in- 

 dicate a growing disposition to treat the national revenue 

 as not to be isolated from the needs of the State and 

 local governments. (a. E. T.) 



TAXIDERMY (derived from the Greek rrifif, ar- 

 rangement, and HP/MI hide or skin) is the art of 

 .ing the outward forms of birds and animals. 

 The stuffing of birds and other animals is of ancient date, 

 but the first to adopt the art as a business were the 

 Verreanx Freres. of Paris, early in the present century. 

 Examples of their work may be seen in the American 

 Museum in Central Park, New York. _ Before their 

 h museum was obliged to collect its own si- i- 

 mens and have them stuffed as they could. At tha 

 present dav many individuals and firms, both in 

 Europe MM America, make a special busino< of the 

 art. The naturalists of former centuries n ..de no 



