292 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XIX. No. 47'! 



society, bringing students in touch with the 

 same, and thus improving these conditions. 

 Politicians and business men have always 

 pointed to the economist as a speculative 

 dreamer, and we must admit that in the 

 past there have been sufficient grounds for 

 such accusation. But he is rapidly emer- 

 ging into a clear-headed thinker on prac- 

 tical affairs. And just in proportion as he 

 demonstrates this ability he is recognized 

 by the business and political world. 



Piiblic Purposes for ivhich Taxation is 

 Justifiable* : Allen Ripley Foote, State 

 Chamber of Commerce, Columbus, Ohio. 

 Taxation for absolutely necessary pur- 

 poses includes legislation, administration 

 and the judicial activities of government. 

 The limitations of legislative powers appear 

 in making provision for educational, sani- 

 tary, charitable and police functions. 



Both custom and law have settled in 

 quite a definite way what are necessary 

 public purposes in behalf of these func- 

 tions. But by the arts of sophistry there 

 has appeared the claim that an authoriza- 

 tion to perform a function implies an 

 authorization to do whatever may be neces- 

 sary to the proper performance of the 

 function. Take the function of education 

 to illustrate. To teach children teachers 

 must be employed. They must have houses 

 in which to teach. They must have books 

 and blackboards. Materials of many kinds 

 must be used to construct the houses. 

 Other materials must be used to furnish 

 them, keep them clean and warm. Does it 

 follow that since all of these things are 

 necessary for the proper performance of 

 the educational function that it is justifi- 

 able for the government to raise money by 

 taxation for the purpose of making brick, 

 cutting lumber, making glass, making hard- 



* Title of paper read by Mr. Frederick N. 

 Judson (no copy available) and discussed by Mr. 

 Foote. 



ware, operating coal mines, equipping and 

 operating printing and book-binding estab- 

 lishments, etc.? We think not. In all the 

 government does there is a fundamental 

 principle that needs affirming with em- 

 phatic distinctness, the application of 

 which will correctly determine the limita- 

 tion that should be placed upon legislative 

 power in declaring what is a necessary pub- 

 lie purjjose for which taxation is justifiable. 

 Every function that is commercial should 

 be performed by private enterprise. 



Everything the government may require 

 for the performance of its functions, that 

 is in character identical with a service that 

 is being performed by the people for each 

 other in their industrial vocations, should 

 be obtained by the government by contract 

 with private persons, firms and corpora- 

 tions engaged in supplying each service for 

 private use. This will prevent the govern- 

 ment from monopolizing any private in- 

 dustry, or from withdrawing the public de- 

 mand from the general market. Under the 

 eoi-rect application of this principle the 

 government will continue to construct its 

 buildings by contract, to buy books, sup- 

 plies and coal. It will continue to con- 

 tract for the transportation of mails, the 

 lighting of streets and the transmission of 

 intelligence. A correct application of this 

 principle will prevent the encroachment of 

 governments upon the domain of private 

 enterprise, industry and commerce. Every 

 such encroachment is a perversion of gov- 

 ei'nment from the fundamental purpose for 

 which it is instituted, the promotion of the 

 general welfare. The need of an emphatic 

 declaration of this principle is clearly ap- 

 parent when account is taken of the efforts 

 being made in this country, mostly for pur- 

 poses of political patronage and prestige, 

 to embark municipalities in undertakings 

 that hitherto have been conducted by pri- 

 vate enterprise. The need of constitutional 

 limitations on legislative power is shown 



