America 0 Agriculturist, March 29,1924 
Farmers Wrote This Page 
What They Really Think About the Tax Problem 
--S 
I WISH to congratulate you on the good work 
you are doing. Keep it up. Farmers are 
good hands to grumble among themselves, 
but when it comes to doing anything that 
counts, there must be some one to lead them. 
I think the taxes of Franklin County are heavier 
through the rural districts than in any other 
county in the State. Our State and county tax 
was from 2 to 3 per cent. That means that a 
farmer whose farm is assessed for $10,000 paid 
from $700 to $800 taxes this last year. 
I understand there are towns in the county 
whose rate for State and local tax were as high 
as 7 per cent., school to be added to that. 
I sent you a list of over one hundred names 
about a week ago. I am sending fifty more to-day. 
I will send more later.—W. J. S., New York. 
* * * 
Farm Bureau Joins In , 
AT our executive committee meeting of the 
Rensselaer County Farm Bureau last Sat¬ 
urday it was moved that this farm bureau enlist 
in the campaign for reduction of taxation on 
farm lands. J. Hardenburgh, president of our 
farm bureau, stated that he had been correspond¬ 
ing with you in regard to this matter and pro¬ 
cured and presented a petition gotten up by you. 
In order that this work may line up with your 
efforts and in order that it may be uniform, I am 
writing to inquire if you can furnish us with 150 
copies that we may place a petition in the hands 
of each one of our farm bureau committeemen. 
We would then ask each of our com¬ 
mitteemen to canvas his respective 
district and get the signatures of all 
taxpayers living therein. When these 
petitions are returned to this office, 
they would all be bound under the 
one petition heading and returned to 
you as ammunition in your campaign 
to have the taxes on farm lands in 
this State reduced. 
Trusting that we are not asking 
something impossible of you and 
awaiting your early reply, I remain,— 
J. D. K., New York. 
* * * 
Politicians to Blame 
HAVE read with interest the letters 
in your paper on taxes and the 
limit to my patience was passed when 
I read the letter from Hon. L. G. 
Kirkland. I wish to go along with 
this line of thought of who is to blame 
for high taxes. The greatest tax we 
have to-day is the highway tax. My 
individual tax here on 286 acre farm 
is $180.20, general tax $70.66 and 
highway $109.54. 
We have a State road being built 
by here which has been built of mac¬ 
adam until this year’s contract- for 
about 3*4 miles which the State high¬ 
way commission ordered in of con¬ 
crete at an increase of about $14,000 
per mile over macadam. This was 
objected to by our supervisors here in 
Cortland County, but they got no¬ 
where. Who is to blame for this 
situation? The men on Capitol Hill 
and no one else. They are the men 
who have the authority to look into 
the so-called cement company who is 
forcing out of business or buying out 
and closing up every independent ce¬ 
ment factory in the country. 
This is well known to these men at 
Albany. While in Albany this past 
month, the minority leader in the 
Senate told me of evidence of this 
combine which was laid before the 
legislative bodies. Then why have 
our laws been so framed that the say 
By A. A. READERS 
of what material our roads are built rests with 
a few men who care nothing for taxes. On this 
same road are bridges, costing up to $30,000, 
each built by towns with less than $225,000 
assessed valuation. These bridges must carry 
a meeting load of two 20-ton trucks. All these 
towns require is a structure to carry their road 
machinery a 15-ton roller. Verily we farmers are 
forcing our law makers to increase taxes. What 
benefit do we as taxpayers derive from these 
bridges put up to carry enormous trucks from the 
cities. 
We have just seen a sample of our law-makers’ 
sympathy for the average taxpayer, a rax reduc¬ 
tion in the New York income tax estimated at 
nearly $9,000,000 annually and less than 1,000 
taxpayers absorb it all. The remaining few get 
no benefit at all. 
There is only one state in the Union where 
taxes are being reduced. North Dakota. The 
taxes on our 640 acres in 1923 amounted to $294.- 
24. The payment just made on the same farm 
was $216.88. This should give the gentlemen in 
Albany, who put in their time playing politics, 
some food for thought. There have been created 
524 new places on State payrolls in past year. 
There are 51 Senators in this State with 102 so- 
called officers of the Senate. In the House we 
have 150 members with 111 officers. Surely the 
duties of these men must be heavy and exacting 
in the extreme to need these officers to assist them 
in their laborious duties. It is truly a shame that 
some more of the blame for high taxes and ills 
of the countrv can not be laid at the door of the 
farmer.—C. W. W., New York. 
* * * 
Wanted—Sane Leaders 
WAS very much impressed with Mr. L. G. 
Kirkland’s article, “Who is to blame for high 
taxes,’’ appearing in the American Agricultur¬ 
ist of March 15. 
Mr. Kirkland has undoubtedly given the tax 
question a great deal of thought and his thought¬ 
ful reasoning has developed ideas that ought to 
sink deeply into the hearts and minds of the 
masses, who are so many of them, ever howling 
about high taxes. And yet, Mr. Kirkland has 
not said all that might be said about high taxes, 
and their causes. 
He said nothing about the enormous appropria¬ 
tions the government officials are making almost 
daily for bills introduced by some politician, who 
is the cat’s paw for some scheming syndicate. 
One of these appropriations was in the interest 
of the Air-Mail Service. 
The majority of the American taxpayers are 
wondering why the country can not get along 
with the very satisfactory mail service in use prior 
to the introduction of air transportation and 
there are many who are questioning the right of 
our government officials to use the public funds 
for a few of the country’s business concerns, while 
the tax burden falls upon those receiving no benefit 
therefrom. 
Another cause for high taxes is the 
crookedness (no other word will ex¬ 
press it) of many of the government 
officials, who are constantly diverting 
the public funds from their legitimate 
use, into private channels, to meet the 
demands of graft and selfish interests 
as evidenced in the uncovering of the 
gigantic schemes and plots that are 
being brought to light at Washington 
at the present time. 
No wonder the foreign nations call 
Americans “money grabbers.” And 
no wonder taxes are high, and no one 
can reasonably expect them to be 
lower until our government offices are 
filled with sane, honest men.—C. R. H. 
* * * 
Local Taxes Worst 
E farmers are in a measure to 
blame for high taxes. It is the 
local audit that runs up the tax rate, 
and in the final analysis the local 
audit is directly in our hands. 
Stimulated, no doubt, by the success 
of our city cousins, we farmers are 
prone to take advantage of the hour’s 
work and day’s pay when acting in our 
town official capacity. 
Farmers who are prone to hustle 
when engaged in their own work have 
a wonderful change of rate when in 
the employ of the town. 
Just now we are having an epidemic 
of “good road meetings” so called. 
The writer attended one out of per¬ 
sonal curiosity at the Steuben County 
Court House at Bath. The talk 
sounded more like a political-get- 
together than anything else and cost 
the taxpayers of Steuben County thou¬ 
sands of dollars. Our county, Steuben, 
was recently bonded for an uncom¬ 
pleted county road program. When a 
man rates a bond issue he enslaves his 
children’s children. I believe in good 
roads, but I detest the graft that goes 
with them. It would almost seem 
that every official stands with one 
(Continued on page 322) 
If you believe in tax reduction sign the petition below . get your neighbor 
to sign it, and send it IMMEDIATELY to American Agriculturist, 
461 Fourth Avenue, Neiv York City. 
v 
y 
TO THE GOVERNOR, THE LEGISLATURE*AND TO EVERY 
OTHER PUBLIC OFFICIAL IN STATE, COUNTY AND TOWN 
GOVERNMENT IN NEW YORK, PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW 
JERSEY. 
WHEREAS, first, taxation Has Increased in this nation more than four times 
since 1913, and in our State and local governments more than three and a half 
times, and 
WHEREAS, second, this burden of taxation, particularly for State and local 
governments, falls heaviest and directly on farmers and farm property, amounting 
to 16.6% of the farmer’s income in 1922, stopping agricultural prosperity and 
fast becoming absolutely insupportable, and 
WHEREAS, third, the general basis of taxation is INCOME and not PROPERTY, 
and 
WHEREAS, fourth, our national. State and local governments have made little 
real progress in cutting out unnecessary officers, government departments and 
appropriation bills since the end of the World War, therefore be it hereby 
RESOLVED: First, that we, the undersigned, are unalterably OPPOSED TO 
THE EXTENSION AT PRESENT OF ALL NATIONAL, STATE AND LOCAL GOV¬ 
ERNMENT ACTIVITIES. 
Second, that all of our national and local officers should give immediate at¬ 
tention to THE GRAVE NECESSITY OF LARGE REDUCTIONS IN ALL GOV¬ 
ERNMENT EXPENDITURES, to the reduction of government personnel, to com¬ 
bining and simplifying government departments and activities, to the need of 
short legislative sessions, to smaller expense accounts for public officials, to 
passing fewer laws, and in short, to the necessity for practicing the same economy 
in public affairs that farmers are constantly obliged to practice in the production 
of the necessities of life. 
Third, that we as farmers are not interested in credit or any other unsound 
farm relief legislation, BUT IN TAX REDUCTION. 
Fourth, that taxation, both State and national, be maintained on all luxuries, 
as for example, chewing gum, tobacco, motion pictures, etc. 
Fifth, that tax reduction be made TO ABOLISH DIRECT PROPERTY TAX. 
A REDUCTION OF INCOME TAXES IS NOT SATISFACTORY. The farmer’s 
income is from his property holdings and therefore his assessed valuation, par¬ 
ticularly on paper, is high. The reduction of income taxes, while government 
expenditures are still so high, will inevitably result in greater taxes on property, 
ohiefly FARM REAL ESTATE. Signed eventually by 100,000 farmers. 
Name (write plainly)... 
Address... 
(Paste blank paper to this petition for additional names.) 
