The times., 1898-06-17

The machinery for putting into effect
every provision of the war revenue bill
with all its multitudinous taxes, adhesive
stamps. etc, has been ready to go into
operation for some days. When these in
ternal taxes go into effect on the first
day Of July every collector viii be sup
piled with the requisite amount of stamps
to suit the needs of his district ana VIII
be thoroughly posted as to his duties
through regulations which are now in the
hands of internal revenue officials
throughout the country
The dies for all the revenue stamps
provided for in the bill were ready long
before the bill became a law. The fact
that the conference committee might
change the designation of some of them,
as il subsequently did alone prevented
the Treasury Department from having
stock on hand when the bill received the
approval of the President. There was not
that absolute certainty as to the out
come that was found when the stamp tax
was put on playing cards. Then, the
leading members of the committees guar
anteed that this tax would stand and
advised the department to be prepared
for il. With this assurance the bureau OF
engraving and printing supplied the nee
essary stamps and the very day the bill
became a law collectors We're ready to
supply the stamps to manufacturers and
dealers in playing cards
However, with all the uncertainty sur
rounding the report of the war revenue
bill on the evening of the day before the
President signed the bill. ,he department
received proofs of the stamps for which
the dies had been prepared. and from
these selected the different denominations
TO be used. The one for which there will
be the most popular demand viii be the
one and two-cent stamp the latter es-
pecially being the denomination provided
for most IN the taxes assessed in the bill.
The delivery of these stamps will be made
to the Internal Revenue Office the last of
this week, and full supply of all de-
nomina ions will be in the hands of col
lectors long before the adhesive stamp
provisions of the law become operative.
There is one difference between the
present system Of stamps and those that
ob aimed during the civil war. and this
difference simplifies matters wonderfully
/ All the Stamps are interchangeable
! Wherever a tax of two cents is called
for in The bill. the two-cenr internal
revenue stamp can be used, whether it
be on a bottle of patent medicine or a
bank check. Under the former system
each stamp was distinctive in character
: ana GOLlQ DC uSeQ LOT no Quiet pun DOSt
than that for which its face value called
for. An enormous number of dies were
required. and the keeping of accounts be
came burdensome problem Under the
present law. any stamp can be used for
| any purpose so long as the required num-
Der are affixed TO the article to be taxed
The department has as yet given no
| consideration TO the subject of private
dies authorized by the law. The general
I f.a Grs-s m
abundance of the general issue has bs n
/ circulated, then the printing Of private
! stamps viii be commenced. The regu-
/ lations concerning these have not been
prepared. The only thing required under
4 the law is that these stamps must be af-
1 fixed TO proprietary articles in such a
/ way that when the package Is opened the
| stamp will be destroyed. The proprietary
medicine men are urging the department.
| TO permit them 10 have the stamp made
a part of the label. This may be done
but ii is a matter of detail that has not
| been taken up at the department.
Arrangements will be made for i'm
| printing the tax Paid stamps on bank
| check books at agencies located in con.
| venient parts of the country for the ac-
! commodation OF banks These agencies
/ viii be at New York. Chicago. St Lou
! is, Atlanta and San Francisco. Banks
! viii be required TO deposit the money
for the amount of stamps desired with
the nearest collector Upon the pre-
sentation of the blank checks to the
| agent in charge of the stamp press ac
companied by the collectors receipt tha
the money has been paid the check book.
viii be imprinted. 1t VIII probably be Z
| couple of months, however before thi.
| can be done, and meanwhile, after July
| 1st each bank will be required to take
one of the ordinary 2-cent stamps.
In the case Of tobacco and beer. tn.
new law went into effect the day follow
ing the approval of the bill by the Presi
dent, and the change in the rate of taxa
ton and the issuance of stamps wa.
accomplished without a single complain
or mistake. Every collector was notifie,
TO advise manufacturers of tobacco an,
brewers of beer TO turn in for redemp
ton on the morning the law went int
effect all stamps on hand.
| The collectors were then directed to pro
cure rubber stamps With the legend. 'Is
sued under authority of the act of 1896
tax --- according 10 whether il was
beer or tobacco that was being dealt with
| These stamps thus altered were re-issuet
and viii be used until the Bureau OF
Engraving and Printing is prepared e
supply the demand for the stamps under
the increased rate. These new stamp.
are expected to be ready next week
In this way the department has me
every demand made upon It without ;
blunder charged against il. Deputy Com
missioner George w. Wilson has beel
giving this matter his almost undivide,
attention for weeks and the copIetenes
with which the whole scheme has beel
carried out shows how accurately an
| Systematically the work of that depart
ment is conducted.
To enforce the provisions of the wa
revenue bill will require the services o
between five and six hundred deputie
in the field, TO say nothing of the in
creased clerical force in the Office 1t
estimated that it will cost in the neigh
oorhood of 100000 to collect the 500, 600,
900 of taxes which the bill is supposed t
carry, which shows a very handsom
porfit TO the Government