life insurance, goods and chattels, and all other parts of my real and personal estate and effects whatsoever and wheresoever, unto my wife, Sophia Goss, her heirs, administrators and assigns, to and for her and their absolute use and benefit, according to the nature and quality thereof respectively, subject only to the payment of my just debts, funeral and testamentary expenses, and the charge of proving and registering this my will.

And I appoint my said wife executrix of this my will, and thereby revoke all other wills.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I hereunto set my hand and seal, the day and year above mentioned.

Signed, sealed published and acknowledged by the said DAVID Goss, as and for his last will and testament, in the presence, of us, and at his request, and in the presence of each other, have subscribed our names hereunto as witnesses thereof.

JOHN J. JONES,

Hamilton, Ohio.

WM. F. JOHNSON,

Hamilton, Ohio.

TAXES

Every government, whether of town, State or nation, is under the necessity and has the right to raise the necessary funds to carry on all the functions of the government.

Definition.-Tax is the sum of money which the government demands from the individual or from his property to pay for the benefit he receives from the government.

The government protects him in his rights, protects his property and often advances the value of the same by public improvement. It therefore has a right to levy a tax upon him and his property.

Kinds of Taxes.-Taxes are either direct or indirect.

Direct Taxes are those which are levied directly upon persons, property, incomes, etc.

Indirect Taxes are such as are assessed on manufactures, imports, etc., as the customs tariff and most of the excise or internal revenue taxes.

Taxation in the United States ranges itself under the three heads of federal, State, and municipal.

Federal Taxation is laid almost wholly in the form of duties upon manufactured goods imported from foreign countries, and

excise or internal revenue taxes laid on the manufacture and sale of liquors, cigars, etc., and collected in great part by means of stamps. In 1861 a tax was imposed on incomes over $800, and during its ten years' continuance realized for the government $365,000,000. An income tax was again imposed in 1894, but was declared to be unconstitutional by the U. S. Supreme Court. A special tax was imposed on corporations in July, 1909. State Taxation is laid upon property by a periodical valuation. In some States this is supplemented by taxes on occupations or "privileges," on franchises of corporations, on legacies, etc.

Municipal or local taxation is commonly very much heavier than State taxation. It embraces: (1) all taxes laid for the general purposes of counties, cities, boroughs, towns and villages; and (2) those local taxes which are usually called assessments, and which are laid in special districts supposed to be peculiarly benefited by the construction of some public work, and by some rule of apportionment which proposes to charge each item of property within the district in proportion to the benefit it will receive.

Poll Tax.-Some States levy tax upon all male citizens over twenty-one years of age, others upon all voters. This is called poll tax.

Property Tax.-Tax levied upon property, real or personal, is called property tax.

Valuation of Property.-The assessor of the town or city estimates the true value of every piece of taxable property, which is usually lower than the market value. It makes little difference whether the property's valuation is high or low, because the amount of tax to be raised is rated according to the valuation, but it is of importance to any individual taxpayer that the valuation of his property shall be neither higher nor lower than that of others.

In many States when county taxes are levied, there is a county board of assessors who receive the tax lists from the assessors of the several towns and cities within the county, and if necessary, in their judgment, they make such changes as justice seems to demand. To them an individual who believes himself overtaxed can within a certain time appeal for correction.

For the State tax, there is in many States a State Board of Equalization. This board receives the lists from all the counties

and makes the necessary equitable adjustment of taxes throughout the State.

Levying Taxes.-The rate of taxation is determined as follows: Having placed the valuation upon all the property, there is fixed the amount of money to be raised by the town; from this sum the poll tax (where there is any) is subtracted. If this sum is divided by the total valuation of the property of the town the quotient is the rate of taxation; that is, the sum to be raised on each dollar of property.

The amount varies all the way from two mills on the dollar, or perhaps less, to twenty cents on each hundred dollars or two dollars on each thousand dollars of property. In large cities the rate of taxes is sometimes as much as 2 per cent or twenty dollars on a thousand, or even more.

Collection of Taxes. -In many States the town collector collects all the taxes for the town, county and State; in others the county collector collects of all the towns.

Penalties. The law fixes the time of payment of taxes. If one neglects to make payment within the specified time a fine or penalty is added. If the person is still delinquent after a further specified time the property is sold at auction. The government then collects enough money to pay the taxes and expenses and gives a tax title to the purchaser of the property. The former owner has a specified time in which to redeem his property by payment of the tax and all the cost.

The Treasurer and Auditor. -The collector pays the money collected to the treasurer, whether town or county, and takes a receipt. The treasurer is required to give bond.

The auditor audits every bill presented for payment before the treasurer is permitted by law to pay it. The treasurer's account must, therefore, correspond with the final account rendered by the auditor.

Exemptions. Many States exempt the following property, viz.: Certain portions of one's personal property, such as tools and utensils of laborers, institutions of learning and charitable institutions, also churches and parsonages.

Real and Personal Property.-A very large part of the taxes must be collected from real estate. The tax from personal property includes all tax except that on lands, lots and buildings. The State tax in our country is usually much less than the town, city or county tax.

TELEGRAPHS

The business of telegraphy is carried on by corporations and consists of the making and performing of a system of contracts.

Parties to the Contract.-There are two parties to the contract, (1) the sender of the message, and (2) the telegraph company. Each party agrees to do certain things and each must keep his (or its) agreement. If the company fails to do what it agreed, the sender can compel it to pay for all loss resulting.

There is ordinarily no contract between the company and the one to whom the message is sent and it is therefore not responsible for any loss he may suffer.

The Contract.-The ordinary telegraph blank usually constitutes the contract. The sender requests the company to send a message (called a dispatch), and such a request is in effect an offer to pay for the service if rendered. The company by taking the message agrees to send it, i. e., accepts the offer. The request and compliance, or the offer and acceptance, make the contract.

The Terms.-The principal parts of this contract are (1) the sender agrees to pay for the message at the regular rate and the company may refuse to take it unless he pays in advance; (2) the company agrees to send the message by telegraph with promptness, deliver it to the person addressed and not reveal its contents to any one else.

Accuracy.-The message must be sent as it is given. Hence the operator cannot correct evident mistakes, such as mistakes of grammar, nor add, nor omit anything, nor make any change in it.

The l'ability of the company for mistakes is often limited by its blanks, the blank being drawn in such a way that it is a contract.

Promptness.-The message must be sent as soon as possible and different messages must be sent in the order in which they are received.

Secrecy. A telegraph company is a confidential messenger. It has no right to reveal the message to any one, except the one to whom it is addressed.

Submarine Telegraphy.-Although the system of transmitting messages by means of electric cables laid on the bottom of the sea has come into use since 1851, it is now in operation in almost

every part of the world. The total length of the submarine cables of the world to-day is over 180,000 nautical miles.

Wireless Telegraphy.-In 1897 Marconi announced a system of wireless telegraphy, operated by means of electrical vibrations set up in one apparatus and transmitted through space to a distant receiving apparatus without the aid of an intervening wire. On December 21, 1902, he established wireless telegraphic communication between Cape Breton, Canada, and Cornwall, England, a distance of 2,300 miles. Messages are now sent regularly by this system for considerable distances, and it is contended that so far as reliability goes, wireless telegraphy is far superior to the ordinary wire lines..

An ocean steainship, with a wireless telegraph equipment on board, is in constant communication with land and with other vessels similarly equipped throughout its trip, and the safety as well as comfort of an oceanic voyage is immeasurably increased by its use.

Wireless telegraphy has been most successfully used in oceanic signaling. The Japanese are in a great measure indebted to it for the success of their navy over that of Russia at Port Arthur, their principal warships being equipped with the necessary wireless transmitting and receiving apparatus.

Old

Time

Wireless

Telegraphy

The passengers and crew of the White Star Line Steamer REPUBLIC were saved by means of its wireless equipment when the ship was rammed in a fog by the Italian steamer FLORIDA off Nantucket Lightship, Jan. 23, 1909.