The herald., 1898-05-29
TAX ON CORPORATIONS
CAREFULLY AND DECISIvELY
LAID ON THE TABLE
W0LC0TT FAvoRS BOND ISSUE
The Ohio Legislatures Charge of
Bribery Against Hanna Is Refer
red to q Committee
Associated Press Special Wire

Associated Press Special Wire
WASHINGTON, May 2s.-After discus
sion which has lasted almost two weeks
the senate this afternoon reached the tirsl
decisive vote on any feature OF the pend
ing war revenue measure. The bill has
been under consideration four hours and a
half today when Aldrich of Rhode Island
one of the Republican members of the I'M
ance committee, entered a motion to lay
the corporation tax amendment proposed
by the Democratic majority of the COM
mittee on the table. 1t was realized that
this was the first test of the strength of
the opposing elements in the senate. and
the roll call was followed with deep inter-
est. The result was, that the amendment
was laid on the table-41 to Y. German
then proposed his substitute providing for
Z tax on corporations, but vote on that
was not reached. Early in the session to-
day the senate discussed in a desultory
way the corporation tax proposition with
view to getting vote upon it. Subsequent
ly Daniel (Dem.) of Virginia delivered an
extended speech in which he took strong
issue with those who had contended that
the tax on corporations was unconstitu-
tional.
Wolcott of Colorado followed in a nota-
BILE speech supporting the propositions of
the Republican minority of the finance
committee.
BY a vote of 80 to 81 the senate decided
to adjourn until Tuesday.
After the transaction of some routine
ha 70 cd do n n
Of the war revenue bill. The Sergeant-at-
Arms had to request the attendance of alb
sent Senators, and it required twenty-five
minutes to secure quorum. Mr.. Allison
said he hoped vote could now be secured
on the corporation tax proposition. The
question was on the amendment offered by
Mr.. German Of Maryland, which provides
for a special excise tax upon all corpora
tions whose gross receipts are more than
$3.50 900 per annum of one-half of one per
cent.
Mr.. Faulkner of West Virginia suggested
to Mr.. German that he accept an amend
ment making the tax one-quarter of one
per cent.
Mr.. Turpie OF Indiana, while not especi-
ally objecting to the proposed amendment
of Mr.. Faulkner, said Mr.. Germans amend
ment ought to provide for proper penalty.
He maintained that q mere fine would be
of no avail in the circumstances, as the cor
porations would simply pay the fine in cases
where it was less than the tax. He strongly
urged that the penalty ought to include not
only a fine, but Imprisonment for not less
than six months.
Mr. Faulkner urged the acceptance Of his
amendment, as the Finance Committee had
carefully considered the question and had
decided that one-quarter of one per cent
was a reasonable and proper tax. He
pointed out that the tax of one-quarter of
one per cent upon the gross receipts was
quite as high as that of per cent upon net
receipts as provided for in the law of "a.
German presented an argument in favor
of his amendment
Lindsay of Kentucky suggested that, as
q proposition of law, 1t might be well for
German entirely to exempt from taxation
$3.50, 900 Of the receipts of railway corpora
tions. If the receipts did not reach $780,
900 they would not be taxed. German had
no particular objection to the suggestion
offered by Lindsay. In repl yo the sug-
gestion that the rate of tax proposed should
be reduced, German declared that the cor
poratons and their friends were making a
great mistake, in his judgment, in endeav-
oring to escape from the proposed tax and
to evade their just and equitable share OF
the burdens of war.
Daniel of Virginia said that while he had
no desire unduly to delay the passage of
the pending bill, he thought full discus
sion of its important provisions ought to
he hod 70 ha tov ba
earnings of corporations and expressed his
regret that objections to it on the ground
of it's suspected unconstitutionality had
been made. These objections he desired to
answer by citations of authorities. He
made an elaborate presentation of his views
on the respective state and federal powers
of taxation as put in question by the pend
ing bill. contending that the taxation upon
corporations was warranted fully by law
as existing and interpreted by the courts.
In the course of Daniels speech the vice.
president laid before the senate commu-
nication from the Ohio legislature announc-
ing the report of the committee of the SEN
ate in the investigation of charges of bri-
berry against the junior Ohio senator, Mr.,
Hanna. The communication was referred
to the committee on privileges.
Daniel presented an argument in favor
of an income tax.
Wolcott of Colorado, member Of the
finance committee, spoke in advocacy of
the position taken by the Republican min
ority Of the committee. He said it was a
source of great qualification to him that
no political turn had been given either to
the bill itself or to the debate thus far. Un-
til the Hawaiian annexation amendment
had been offered to the bill not one feature
had been suggested that was not perfectly
relevant to 1t. He rejoiced that the amend
ment had not been offered by a western
senator, who certainly would have been
charged In doing so with an effort to OBJ
struct the bonding measure. Whatever
might be the individual opinions of sen.
tors upon the Hawaiian question, itSis. tc
him perfectly clear that it ought not tc
have been taken on as rider to the reve.
nue. bill.
Wolcott, In referring to the desirability
OF placing the government in excellent
financial condition at this time, said tina,
he was astisfied that, with the exception Of
Great Britain, no European country could
conduct war with the United States which
would be so expensive as the war with
Spain. No other foreign country, except
Great Britain, had colonies which in time
Of war 1t would be necessary for the United
States to occupy. No man could say thai
the war would come to speedy conclusion