The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-05-25
An Infair Tax.

The finance committee OF the Senate,
judging from the very obnoxious amend
ments which it has made to the House
bill to provide money for carrying on the
war, doesn't understand the character Of
the business interests OF the country suf-
ficiently to tax. those interests justly, or.
else it entertains the idea that It will be
popular to tax business of every kind
which is carried on in the shape of a cor
porauon.
What justice is there in levying a tax Of
oue-quarter of / per cent. on the gross
receipts of every corporation. when there
are thousands of corporations which are
carrying on identically the same kinds of
business which are being conducted by in
dividuais and partners? Is it just TO COM
pei the corporation TO pay a heavy tax and
not to require the Individual, or the firm
composed of two or more members, to pay
the tax? In this city there are dozens Of
corporations whose business is exactly
like that of individuals or partners. Those
who put their business in the shape of a
corporation did so for some special ad-
vantage which a corporation affords. One
advantage is that the stock of a corpora
lion can be used as collateral in borrow
ing money. But because a business is con-
Quoted as a corporation it doesn't follow
that there is more reason for taxing it
than if it were conducted by an individual
or a partnership.
According to these wise men of the
finance committee, if an individual who
owns the whole Of his business chooses 10
conduct it without a charter he ought not
TO pay any tax on his gross receipts, but
if he changes it into a corporation he
ought to pay one-quarter of l per cent
on his gross receipts, even though he owns
every share of the stock.
There are in this city businesses which
are owned and managed by partners and
there are other businesses of exactly the
same character which are owned and con-
Quoted by corporations. Under the taxing
scheme of the finance committee the part
ners would not pay any of the proposed
war tax, while the corporations would
have to pay the tax, Can the members of
the finance committee offer any good rea-
son for the unjust discrimination which
they make?
And is it a wise system of taxation
which compels a corporation to pay the
same tax when it loses money as when
it makes money? A business which yields
a net profit of $4,000 or $4,000 in one year
may show an actual loss another year,
although there may be very little differ
ence in the gross receipts of the two years
We are inclined to think that the mem
bers of the finance committee thought that
by putting a heavy tax on corporations
they would hit the rich men of the North
AS matter of fact, their taxing scheme
falls heavily upon men of comparatively
small means, who are interested in cor
porations. The South, especially, is full
of small corporations whose stock is held
by men of small means
1t is a pity chat partisan politics is be-
ing made to play a conspicuous part in the
pending measure for raising money for
carrying on the war If senators and rep
resentatives would cease maneuvering for
partisan advantages and devote their time
and talents to caring for the interests of
the whole country, the peop,e would have
a much higher regard for them. 1t looks
now, however, as If politics would compel
the adoption of a mischief making, com
promise measured measure that viii not
be satisfactory to anybody and viii be the
subject of a great deal of political conten-
ton as well as an obstruction to the bust
ness of the country