1891.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 4. 231 



successful unless you farmers will come before the com- 

 mittee and plead your own case. We had committee hear- 

 ings day after day for months, and no farmers came there to 

 advocate their own cause. The assessors were there, and, 

 as I said, forty out of forty-two were in favor of putting 

 this penalty upon assessors if they did not do their duty. 

 Why were they in favor of it ? Because it would take the 

 odium off from them, and put it on the law. It is very easy, 

 if there is a penalty attached to the neglect of this duty, to 

 put the law in force. Now, if we can get a law on the 

 statute book that will take twenty-five dollars from an 

 assessor every time he omits to put a man under oath, we 

 shall be able to reach all this personal property. The 

 gentleman (Mr. Hale) says that a man who will lie will take 

 a false oath. It is not so. I tell you that when a man 

 comes up and takes an oath before Almighty God he feels the 

 responsibility. It is only the most abandoned liars who will 

 take a false oath. Very few men who will evade taxation, 

 who will prevaricate and equivocate in making their returns, 

 will take a false oath. Now, if the farmers will only come 

 up this winter when we have this matter before the com- 

 mittee, or send their delegations there and give us some 

 encouragement, I think we can get the bill through. 



Mr. Bill of Paxton. I have taken a great deal of interest 

 in the tax question, and I believe you have got to proceed 

 in some radical way. I think the plan suggested by the 

 gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Hale) would meet the 

 case. I believe that the farmers are paying a larger share 

 of the taxes of this State than they ought to. You have 

 heard a good deal about abandoned farms. If this thing 

 goes on much longer, more farms will be abandoned 

 and there will be more abandoned farming. Farmers are 

 leaving the State already, and farm lands are cheaper in 

 Massachusetts, leaving out those within a certain radius of 

 our cities, than they are anywhere on the face of the conti- 

 nent. The western railroad companies are holding largo 

 tracts of land higher than they can be bought for in 

 Worcester County. Farms with their buildings can be 

 bought for five or ten dollars an acre in this county to-day, 

 and it is so all over the Commonwealth. Now, I say if 



