The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-02-02
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1871.
THE NEW REVENUE DISTRICTS


AT the last session of Congress q law was
passed authorizing the President to consoli-
date contiguous revenue districts at his dis
oretion, as it might appear expedient. This
was q measure of reform, and its purpose was
to cut down the immense foroe of revenue Off
GERS who are now living on the public treasury,
and thus effect material reduction in the
expenses of the Government. 1t is scarcely
necessary to state that the execution of this
law has been strongly resisted by the vast
army of collectors and assessors who are under
the direction of the Internal Revenue Bureau,
and all sorts of gerrymandering has been re-
sorted for the purpose of retaining certain
individuals in Office who would otherwise be
obliged to earn their bread and butter in
some other fashion. 1t is not too much to
say that the income tax has been continued
mainly for the benefit of the internal revenue
officers, and that the same influences that
have been exerted to burden the people with
an unnecessary and inquisitorial tax have
prevented in many instances the law autho-
rizipg the consolidation of the internal reve-
nue. districts from being carried into effect as
it should have been. The manner in which
the consolidation of the districts in this city
has been managed is an example in point, and
is highly suggestive of the influences, the
reverse of economical that control in many
important particulars the actions of the ad-
ministration.
1t was at first proposed to consolidate the
First and Third and the Second and Fourth
districts. By this arrangement one-half of
the revenue officers in this city would have
been retired to private life, perhaps to their
immediate disadvantage, but certainly not to
that of the public. Under date of January
81, Commissioner Pleasanton wrote to Mr..
w. s. Stokley, Assessor of the old Second
district, informing him of this arrangement,
and notifying him that the exigences of
the situation required his retirement from
the internal revenue service General Plea
santon bore testimony to Mr.. Stokley's faith
fulness and efficiency as an officer, and re-
gretted the necessity that existed for his exit
from Office. Mr.. Stokley, for his part, ap-
pears not to have admired the arrangement
in the least, and he has succeeded
in pleading his case with such effect at
Washington that we are now informed that
the President, having reconsidered his first
arrangement, has concluded to consolidate
the First and Third districts and to permit
the Second and Fourth to remain as they are.
The impropriety of this arrangement will be
apparent from an inspection of the following
facts and figures: the year 1870 the
internal revenue from the First district
amounted to $2,916, ,30547, and from the
Third, 1918, ,O03'75, which would make the
amount for the new First district SO, 734,-
3O9'22. In the Second district the amount
collected was ST., ia, ,690'6O, and in the Fourth
81, ,4O1, 737'O6. The total of tho two amounted
to $3, 116, ,427'6G, or considerably less than
that belonging to the consolidated First dis
trict. The tax on gross receipts has been
abolished, and the income tax is likely to be,
SO if we deduct what they realized last
year, under the presumption that the
internal revenue for the current year
will be about the same as it was
in 1870, the great improperly of the action of
the President will be more than ever appa.
rent. In the First and Third districts last
year the tax on gross receipts and incomes
amounted to 1869, 900, which leaves So, TO-
3O9'22 as the receipts from other sources
In the Second district the tax on gross re-
ceipts and incomes realized $911, ZOO, which
leaves the sum of $S03, 800 as the receipts
from other sources. In the Fourth district
the tax on gross receipts and incomes
amounted to $673, 900, which leaves $726, ,737
as the receipts from other sources. The in
ternal revenue taxes in the Second and Fourth
districts less those on gross receipts and in
comes, amounted to 81, 532, 1927, or only little
more than one-half of what was collected in
the consolidated First district.
That this arrangement is great wrong to
the overburdened taxpayers is apparent at a
glance, as is also its why and wherefore. Mr..
w. s. Stokley desired to retain his position
as Assessor of the Second Revenue district
and he had sufficient influence at Washington
to induce the President not to carry out his
original plan of consolidation. In other
words, the Second and Fourth districts, with
all their officers are to remain as they are,
although if united they would only do about
half the business of the new First district, in
order that Mr. Stokley may be able to draw a
good salary from the United States Trea-
sury President Grant commenced his admin
istration with many promises of economy, and
his reputation as President rests pretty much
on what he has done in that direction, but if
he does not do better with the other revenue
districts of the country than he has with those
of this city, the people will begin to lose
faith even in his economical principles We
have no doubt but that the President had a
vague idea that by retaining Mr.. Stokley in
Office he would in some manner benefit the
Republican party in Pennsylvania, but