The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-02-07
THE INCOME TAX,


SECRETARY boutwell, has entered his protest
against the abolition of the income tax, his
argument being that it will probably only
cost about $500, 600 to collect, whereas it will
yield about $12 1000, 900. The Secretary is
delightfully."- indefinite as to the cost of collec-
ton, and says that it cannot be positively
ascertained. The Commissioner of Internal
Revenue, as our readers are aware, differs with
the Secretary materially on this point, and is
very strongly of the opinion that it costs as
much to collect the tax as it is worth. The
Secretary urges as an additional reason why
the tax should not be discontinued, that the
appropriations are based upon the estimates
of the revenue to be obtained under the
present system of taxation, and that
to cut off any source of supply
would be to create danger of a deficiency.
If Mr.. Boutwell, finds his funds running low,
he can very easily cease reducing the public
debt at the rate he has been doing, and there
will be very few to find fault with him. There
is no reason whatever that the present gene
ration should be obliged to sustain the whole
burden of the liquidation of the war debt or
that it should submit to an oppressive and
Mr.. Boutwell, to carry out his pet scheme.
Looking at the matter from the standpoint of
the Secretary of the Treasury, the fact remains
that if Congress had at the last session intro
duced such reforms in our system of internal
revezue taxation as sound policy and common
sense demanded, there would have been not
even the shadow of a pretext for
the continuance of the income tax;
and it will not be easy to convincs any but
certain Western farmers and Southern
planters who have no cash incomes, that the
tax was continued for any real reason other
than to give employment to horde of unne-
cessary office-holders. How the expenses of
the Government are kept up very much above
what is absolutely necessary we demonstrated
a few days ago, when referring to the con-
solidation of the revenue districts of this city.
1t was at first determined to consolidate the
four districts of Philadelphia into two, but
this did not suit the purposes of the assessors
and collectors and their attaches, and the
Second and Fourth districts were accordingly
net consolidated, although together they do
much less business than the consolidated
First district. Now if the President were
to reduce the revenue districts throughout
the country to one-half their present num-
ber by consolidation, the cost of collecting
the revenue would be reduced one-half. Let
Mr.. Boutwell, figure out what would be saved
to the treasury in this manner, and then
compare the amount with that which would
be lost by the abolition of the income tax,
and see what the deficiency in the treasury
will be. 1t is useless for the Secretary of the
| Treasury to plead for the continuance of a
tax that is now, as it always has been, an un-
mitigated nuisance to all classes of citizens,
when there is a positive refusal on the part
of the administration to carry out
in good faith the policy of economy
authorized by Congress when it passed the
law empowering the President to consolidate
revenue districts. How far Mr.. Boutwell, is
to blame in this matter we do not undertake
to say, but he represents the administration,
and it is certainly not creditable for the ad-
ministration to bring all its influence to bear
to procure the continuance of an unpopular
and, under proper management, unnecessary
tax, when it fails to reduce the expenses Of
the Government when it could do so with
propriety and advantage.
Since writing the above a despatch has
been received announcing that the Ways and
Means Committee of the House has deter
mined to report the bill for the repeal of the
income tax. We hope sincerely that the
House will pass the bill Immediately, and that
the Senate will concur without further con
troversy, and thus put an end finally and for
ever to an unmitigated nuisance.
Mr.. SMITH Yesterday introduced s