The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1899-07-07
THE
Wisconsin Tobacco Reporter, !,
Edgeton, Wisconsin.
NOTE BOOK SKETCHES.

Ten or fifteen years ago, before the ma
chine transplanters came into general
use. Then the growers prepared their
fields and waited for timely rams to
transplant the crop. An absence of rains
forced a watering out or continued
drouth delayed the work often for weeks
and sometimes curtailed the crop I'M
mensely and dragging the planting sea-
son long into July. With the machine
all this is changed. Now when
the plants are ready for the fields the
transplanters are put into immediate
use and the crop goes out with but little
DELAY. The result has been that more
acres are planted with less expense and
at an earlier date than heretofore. A
better stand is secured in the fields with
but little variation between the early
and late settings. The introduction OF
machinery therefore has been of as great
advantage to the tobacco growing IN
dustry as any other branch of farming.
So general has the transplanters come
into use that fully 95 per cent OF all the
tobaccos grown in the state is now ma
chine planted and the old back-achlng
method of manipulating relegated to the
times of the hand sickle and cradle.
***
A nice question is now pending before
the Treasury Department which will be
of interest to those engaged in the leaf
tobacco industry. A prominent New
York house owns Or leases many ware
houses in the various leaf-growing dis
tricts of the country. They are storages,
pure and simple, all the business of the
house being transacted at it's office in
New York
A deputy collector of internal revenue
of district where one of these ware
houses is situated, after studying the act
of 1893 and the preceding statutes on the
subject, imposed the special S24 tax up
on the firm, on the ground that the ware
house was place of business. The firm
has appealed to the Department..
A careful examination of the act and
the rulings of the Treasury fail to show
justification for the collectors action.
If his contention be just, the special tax
should be levied upon any and all stor-
ages where tobocco is kept for protection
against the elements and spoliatjon.
This would include the railway and
steamship sheds, houses and other struc-
lures where the leaf is stored while in
transit. It is clear that this would be
absurd. 1t is, of course, an extreme view,
but the principle is the same as in the
case at issue.
When dealer buys and stores leaf to-
bacco. what difference does it make
whether he stores it at one place or a
dozen? What difference is there between
his tobacco resting in transit, or going
direct from the grower to his home office?
In every instance it is an Individual mer-
chant doing business at single office,
and not transacting trade at many places.
The State laws take cognlzance OF this
principle in respect to civil liability, tax
alton and State examination. Is there
any reason why internal revenue law
should be based upon another theory or
method? No one asserts that storage,
when used as a saleroOm or a place OF
business, should be exempt from the
special tax. A storage so employed
should be taxed without hesitation. But
where it is used as mere abiding place
for goods, it's character is altogether
different.
The burden of taxation should be so
distributed as to benefit trade and not to
weigh it down. The easiest system for
leaf dealer is to have single warehouse
at or near his office When he has many
scattered about the country, it means
additional labor, bookkeeping and ex-
pense. These are offset by the advan-
trges secured in the better handling of
of the leaf and the saving of time IN de-
livering goods. To tax man for spend
inc money to benefit traffic already
we'll taxed is certainly poor way of as
sisting commerce.-N. Y. Leaf.
***
The time being close at hand for to-
bacco dealers and manufacturers to pay
special taxes for the ensuing year, col
lectors have been advised that the liza
bility to special tax must be computed
on the basis of the annual sales for the
entire preceding year and not Oh basis
of the sales for a fractional part of the
wear. Where manufacturer or dealer
has not been in business for a whole
wear, or where he commenced business
in July, he is required to make return on
Form IL, and pay at least the minimum
rate of tax, i. e., Sc. Should the aggre-
gate monthly sales during the year ex-
ceed the limit fixed for the lower rate, he
will be required to make a new return
and pay special tax at the higher rate,
the special tax stamp first issued to be
returned for redemption. The manu-
facturer has the option of paying the
highest rate, s24, in July; and if at the
close of the fiscal year it should be ascer-
tanned that he had paid an amount in
excess of his actual liability, the amount
so paid in excess would be refunded.
Xxx
Cuba's fine tobacco lands as we'll as
the leaf industry are to be merged into
one huge corporation or trust. The Ha-
vana Commercial Co. has bought the
interests of an English syndicate and
,,-;1I 70 1ya optiro control about ,lulV l