The Forrest City times. [volume] (Forrest City, Ark.) 1871-1919, 1899-04-07
orvENuE FROM WAR TAX.
rre Pay the Piper While the
usnna Syndicate" Dance Their
Imperial jig.

IT.. treasury bureau of statistics re-
,ba. the receipts from the war
Psnue act from June 13, 1898, to the
Ia az the year. or for little more
..ar 6I months, amounted to S54,362,-
.n VS. 10 This is exclusive of S763, 1896
i,ss,;o,al taxes collected on articles
,Ns1o,ino to tobacco manufactured,
,.nnor,ed and removed from factory or
sms,om house. act of June IL, 1898, and
"a additional collections on fermented
,,auors stored in warehouse amount
~ N si6i .524.60. Ii is also exclusive
~ the duty on tea imposed by the war
sssenue act. which probably produced
No, far from 81 100000.
About s59.000.ooo may be stated as
,be total yield properly due to the law
tor the period named. This is at the
ate of $4,000. 900 per month. or sl0s.-
600 600 a year. in round figures. This
e eoodly sum, yet Mr.. Cannon has
earned his party associates that IL will
not suffice aud he has given the figures
which go to show that in spite OF this
,.rge increase Of revenue there will be
defeit of fully 500, O0o, COO during the
fiscal year beginning with next July,
and that as soon as the proceeds of the
var loan are exhausted ID will be neces-
sary either to borrow money or to in
crease the taxes again TO cover the de-
6cit This is what the Chronicle pre-
dicted before congress met last De-
Gambler and when people were taking
for granted that taxes were going to
he reduced and telling their represent
atives what taxes they would prefer
to have abolished first.
Documentary and proprietary stamps
are the principal source of revenue I'M
der the act of June 10, 1898. the receipts
from this source having been about
So. $50, coo during the 6h months.
The extra barrel tax on beer comes
next as a revenue yielder, having pro-
duced about SIS, COO. From these
two sources came $40,45O, 900 of the in
crease $54, 800. 900 from internal taxes,
or over "a per cent. of the whole. The
additional taxes on tobacco in its vari-
Gus forms came next as revenue pro-
ducers. having yielded nearly $1,000
COO Special taxes follow, with a yield
of s4,500,O00.
The tax on legacies was hardly worth
collecting, having produced only si34.-
s99.63. The only tax that yielded less
was that on mixed fiour-S5, 1895.
But that tax was not intended to pro-
duee revenue. 1t was intended to pro-
tect the American stomach by prevent
ing the adulteration of -four. To Judge
from some of the developments in the
beef inquiry il would seem that the
American stomach needs protection.
and better protection than is afforded
by existing inspection laws.
Such of the figures as relate strictly
TO revenue taxes teach the same old les
son, that the masses of the people sup
ply the money with which to paw the
big bills for war, for conquest, for the
enrichment of a few syndicates at
home or in lot of conquered prov
inces. The stamp taxes are paid by the
great business public and the beer, to-
bacco and Special taxes and the tea
duty are paid by the still broader pub
hc-the great mass of the people. in
GLIDING almost every man who works
for wages. And the taxes which in
some special manner fall upon wealth
The taxes on gross receipts and leg
aeles-amount to no more than S415,-
1878, or much less than one per cent.
OF the total. The returns show who
pays the piper while the Hanna syndi-
Gates dance their imperial jig and the
generals and admirals engage in
scramble for glory and promotion
winch is anything but a pleasing spec
tacle to set before the nations of the
earth.-Chicago Chronicle.