Show SIGNING PETITIONS many people are prone to sign anything and everything that is presented to them in the guise of a petition especially if it is brought to them by a friend or neighbor in whom they have confidence fi very often they do not take the trouble to read the paper which they sign but merely take a sort of scanty explanation of the bearer of this petition as sufficient guarantee that it la Is all right they wish to be good fellows and do not wish to question the motive of their friends this attitude is a serious mistake and might result in great harm most of you no doubt are arc familiar with the incident which happened back in ohio where a petition was presented to the students of a large high school as a sort of test case to prove the theory of the principal that the signers si agn would not read it some 70 per cent of the students signed this petition and were astounded a few days later when the principal aal read it at a general assembly and the signers found that they had petitioned to have their right arms cut off above the elbow there is a petition being cincu in this community at the present time which deserves to be read carefully if any one ever did this petition embodies a copy of the resolutions adopted early this year by the sevier county taxpayers league which includes one paragraph that savors strongly of anarchy it reads as follows that we demand the reduction of the present property tax by at least 50 per cent and that failing in result we collectively REFUSE TO PAY ANY TAX AT ALL until such adjustment is made provided that taxpayers of the other counties of the state join us in this movement undoubtedly the public is heavily burdened with taxes which load seems almost unbearable to us all and it is all right to make certain demands for adjustment but when it comes to sigi signing iino a paper to the effect that you will refuse to pay taxes at all unless your demands are granted then you are opening yourself to a charge of radicalism that verges on anarchy we feel that many persons persona signed this petition without fully realizing its importance and who would not go so far as to refuse the payment of taxes imposed upon them by rightful authority no matter what action was taken upon the petition there are too many law abiding citizens in in this county to ju justify the reflection that may come upon us for leading off with a petition of this sort we urge any who have not yet signed this petition to reflect carefully before doing so to see if they are willing to ijo go as ap far as the petition requires it is perfectly all right to make demands and to work for a more equable distribution and lowering of taxation but the language in which this resolution is couched is entirely too strong in InI our opinion |