Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1870-06-17

duce taxes, is that the. House bill |
preserves considerable number of
the special taxes. The House bill
proposes to retain the tax on banks
and bankers, billiard rooms. bowl
ing alleys, brokers, claim agents,
and q vast number of others. The
Finance Committe, however, were
of opinion that it was better to
strike out the whole list of special
taxes, excepting the taxes on whis
ky and tobacco, Tie result of this
will be a reduction of revenue of
about ten million dollars, but it
gives vast relief to every branch of
industry. There is no tax SO un-
equal, with perhaps the exception
of the tax on sales, as this tax call
ed the special or license tax. 1t
levies the same rate on the poor law
yer who travels twenty miles for a
fee of ten dollars, as it does on the
lawyer of the Highest rank in the
profession, like Mr.. Evarts. or any
one whose income is thirty or forty
thousand dollars year. It is i'm
possible to continue this sys system
of taxation without continuing
gross inequality. The Finance
Committee, therefore. propose to
repeal the whole mass of these tax
es. The result will be to throw out
of employment, in our judgement,
nearly two thirds of all the assist
ant assessors and deputy collectors
in the United States, diminishing
largely the machinery for the col
lection of taxes, and abolishing at
one stroke nearly all the taxes that
come home to the people of the
United States. We propose, also,
to modify the income tax, which /
will explain more fully hereafter.
EFFECT OF THE BILL.
This reduction, according to the
plan proposed by the Committee on
Finance, is, upon the basis of last
years returns, 43,597,774 dollars;
but upon the basis of the actual re-
ceipts for the current year would
be 46, 100000 dollars. My own i'm
preston is that to this there ought
to be added the repeal of the tax on
gax, which yielded 100000, and
the repeal Of the stamp tax on re-
ceipts and various forms of minor
stamps, amounting to about two
million dollars more, making an
aggregate reduction of about fifty
million dollars. This would then
sweep out of existence all the taxes
levied by the internal revenue SER
vice upon everything except spirits,
tobacco, fermented liquors, larger
stamps, and a small income tax,
leaving unrepealed taxes to the
amount Of 116,441, 900.
The tax on spirits yields us about fit
/ ty million dollars year; and in my
! Judgment it ought to be made to yield
/ $60,000,010, and gradually increased as
frauds are cut off and consumption
I goes on. The tax on tobacco is con-
stantly increasing in its yield. 1t is
now $50 900. And these two taxes on
spirits and tobacco, together with the
tax on fermented liquors, over six mil
lion dollars, are paid without complaint
in every part of the United States. |
have no doubt the system of collecting g
| these taxes can be simplifed. NV own
judgement, after careful examination
of the whole subject, is that while the
rate Of taxation ought not to be in
creased, the manner of taxing can be
simplified and chang ed very much in
/ deed. But at airy rate the committee
4 do not propose to interfere with any
tax no levied on whisky. tobacco, OF
beer, leaving them to stand on the
present system of taxation until we
can have time to make a careful and
full revision of the whole system.
The tax on spirits is now levied in
four different forms: first, a tax of fifty
cents gallon; next. tax OF four dol
lars barrel; next, a special tax or
sales; and again, on liquor dealers
yielding on the average about seventy
cents Il gallon. 1t may be that, after d
short experience, it may be found bet
ter to combine all these taxes and levy
them at once. We do not propose to in
tertere either with the amount, or the
mode and manner of collecting these
J taxes.
The bill of the Committee on Finance
strips the revenue service of the vas
machinery, which in the nature o
things interferes with the daily busi-
ness of life, and disbands or removes
from sight the army of revenue officers
Liz tdASS oH SUlIlGS anu OOUdCcO VIII
pc collected at tie distlleries and man
ufactories-the stamp tax collects itsel
- and the income tax is an annual as
sessment, similar to the annual tax or
property levied by the States. The ap
pearance of the tax collector will only
be necessary in the few special subject
, of taxation still retained. The incom,
7 tax will be acqulesced in as the tribut,
of property for the services and sacrifi
ces of the brave men who saved tn,
country.
THE INCOME TAX-ITs HISTORY IN GREA'
7 BRITAIN.
There has been great clamor agains
the income tax. 1t is the same clamo
that induced the Parliament of Eng
land in 1916 and 1917 to repeal the in
come tax. When a little colloquy oc
Cured here the other day between tn,
3 honorable Senator from California Mr.
: Casserly] and myself on that subject,
f told him that when the proper tim
came would show that this tax wa
sustained by principle, by writer
5 on political economy, by the experience
!, of Great Britain, and that it is just ant
t the most just and equitable tax, that i
now levied by the United States o
. America, without an exception. l pro
3 pose to make good that promise
t Mr.. President, what is the basis 0
taxation? AS laid down by the grea
: author of political economy, Adam
= Smith, it is that a man ought to pay ex
t actly according to his income. Tha
: axiom was laid down before the incom
: tax was devised by William Pitt. Ev
cry man ought to pay according to hi
;, income. All the distinctions that ar
i endeavored to be made now were thel
: pointed out. The first time the incom
tax was levied in England was in 1877
Sir William Pitt, when driven by tn