Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1895-04-04
THE INCOME TAX.
Causes That Have Placed 1t on the Stat
ute Books.

by the national government are prone /
70 object to it because of the lack OF |
any necessity for such an impost- |
They attribute it to the democratic |
party, and they blame that party for a |
gratuitous levying of taxation which |
might have been spared those who are |
TO pay it. It is true that the demo |
cratic party is responsible for the law. |
but it is not at all so plain either that |
it is unnecessary, or that this party is |
responsible for the state of facts that |
led up to it. That state of facts may
be concisely said to be increased ex-
penditures OF the government and
diminished sources of revenue. Con-
sciously or unconsciously, those who
have controlled public affairs for the
last twenty-five years have been so
conducting them as to make an income
tax logical, if not an inevitable, out
come of their action To charge the
responsibility for the levying of the in
come tax upon those who have been
the immediate agents in bringing it
into law is to take but a superficial
view of the situation. We must go
further back to account for its appear
ance. It must be traced in the policy
Of the government for long period.
There are those now living who can
remember when the expenditures of
the American government amounted
to but S13 200, 900 per annum- This was
the annual outlay during John Quincy
Adams administration, and one of the
charges made against his administra-
ton was that it was extravagant. In
less than twenty years this sum had
trebled in amount. 1t steadily rose
thereafter till the days of the war of
the rebellion. The expenditures of
that period and the war debt that re-
suited gave it enormous additional pro-
portions. The country had increased
greatly at the same time in area, and
more in wealth. We had imposed
heavy taxation which enabled to
pay off much of the debt, and brought
a surplus into the treasury. a surplus
did, what a surplus always does, it in
duced habits of extravaganza. There
was period under it when it seemed
as if our legislators sought to devise
means for spending money. This habit
had its inevitable effect. 1t sent the
national expenditures constantly high
er, until they reached the enormous
amount of $500. 600, 900 a year. We had
begun with $4,000. 900; we ended with
$500, 900, 900.
Our national legislators, If they had
stopped to reflect, would have realized
that no nation in the world had e yer
spent any thing like the sum of $780,
BOO, 900 per year without resorting to an
income tax to meet the outlay. But it
may be said, and with some truth, that
our nation is not like most other ma
tions of the world in the extent of it's
To- n
this, and the fact still remained that it
was necessary to prudently employ the
resources for taxation aside from in
comes, if income taxation was to be
avoided. This is exactly what we
failed to do. We had tremendous
mint to draw upon in our customs du-
ties, and, if we had used this in bust
ness spirit for purposes of revenue, it
might have been that we could have
postponed, if not have avoided, the
levy of an income tax. But we entered
upon the policy of fixing our rate of
duties primarily with view to what
was called protection rather than for
revenue. Long ago this was begun by
repeal of the duties on tea and cof-
fee, which cut off many millions from
our national income. The friends OF
protection, on the one hand, thought
that the repeal would give paoee room
for protective duties on other articles,
and others who were not in agreement
with them feared the charge that they
were taxing the poor mans breakfast
table. So these duties were abolished
This was followed later by the taking
of duties from sugar. In this way
800, 0OO, 900, if not more, was removed
from our revenue. It is not diffcult
to find the genesis of the income ta1
right there
Take the two together-the unthink
ing and INSCRIPTIONS increase of gov
eminent expenditures and the failurs
to adopt ordinary prudent methods To-
the raising of revenue-and we &c
count fully for the income tax. It wa
inevitable if that policy was to be pur
sued. 1t must come sooner or later
The republicans, when they went t.
the extent of running up the expendi
lures of the government to $500, coo, 90
q year and at the same time took 500.
OOO, 900 from the revenue by the repea
of the sugar duties, besides paying GU
SIC, 600, 900 Of bounty to sugar pro
ducerS, fastened the time of its appear
ance. They were more responsible TO
it than were the democrats, who wer
the immediate agents to place it on tn
statute book. The former created tn
necessity for revenue to meet deficien
cies, and this, coming just at the tim
when the populist feeling of the couu
try was aroused against the possession