Evening star., 1900-12-08
WAR REVENUE REDUCTION
THE BILL WILL PROBABLY BE CALL
ED UP TUESDAY.
Believed by the Committee That g
Cut Of SO. eco 600 in the Take.
Can Be Safely Made.

Mr.. Payne, chairman Of the ways and
means committee, reported the war revenue
reduction bill yesterday afternoon. He gave
notice that he would call up the bill after
the disposition of the legislative appropria-
ton bill. probably Tuesday. On account of
the centennial exercises in the House We'd
nesday it was agreed that the session on
that day should be gin al 3:15, and at 800
the House adjourned.
The report says in part: While the war
for which these additional taxes were lev
led is ended, the train of extraordinary eX-
penditures has not terminated with the
close of actual hCstilites. We find ii still
necessary to maintain army of Il hun
dred thousand men until law and order is
fully restored in all possessions. We
find it also necessary to provide troops to
man the fortiiicationS which We have been
building the past few years, and also to
provide a sufficient force in the navy to
man the vessels we have recently added
The increasing navy. too, brings new neces-
sites, all of which call for Il greater drain
upon our resources.
According to the report Of the Secretary
of the Treasury the receipts from all
sources for the fiscal year ended June 60
penditures were $3.50 OGS.311, showing sur
plus of $19 ,527 ,0tN. He also estimates the
receipts for the fiscal year ending June 80,
1901 upon the basis of existing laws at
S6S7. IL, ,253, and the expenditures at s607,
1928, which would leave an estimated sur
p.us of eighty millions of dollars. For the
fiscal year ending June 80 1902, the Secre-
tary OF the Treasury estimates the revenues
at ,042, and the expenditures at
$G90374, ,So4, leaving an estimated surplus of
only $26, 25s, :37. rs. 1t will be seen that for
1902 there is an estimated increase in the
revenue of twenty-nine millions of dollars
over the previous year. and an increase OF
expenditures of nearly eighty-three millions
of dollars. The committee are inclined to
take a more conservative view or the
amount OF expenditures necessary for the
year ending June 80, 1902; at the same time
they are anxious TO avoid any deficiency IN
the future. They deem ii safe to make
reduction of about forty millions of dollars.
while the Secretary of the Treasury, in his
report, suggests q reduction of only thirty
millions of dollars in the revenues.
I'm making the reductions in the bill re-
ported, the committee have sought to re-
move the more annoying taxes in the war
revenue act by the entire abolition of those
which were most veXatious and by re-
duction of those which seemed to have
proved great burden upon the several
branches of trade to which they are Gp-
piled. On beer a war tax of 50 cents
barrel was added to the tax of 81 a barrel
previously imposed.
The Tax on Beer.
Complaint has been made that this tax
has borne heavily upon the brewing inter-
ests, and it was stated before the commit
tee last spring that it had resulted in de-
creased consumption of beer. AS evidence
of this it was claimed that the output of
beer was nearly million barrels less in
1899 than it was in 1898 before the war
revenue tax took effect But it will appear
that this falling off in the consumption has
occurred in a number of other years in the
last decade, and that the increase in con-
sumption in the year 1900 of 2.75o0oo bar
rels is nearly the greatest Of any one year
of the last ten"
The report then proceeds:
$50 that neither the falling off in the
sale of beer in 1899 nor the increased con-
sumption in 1900 caused by the in
creased tax. But the committee recognizes
that the manufacturers of beer have some
claim in the general reduction of the war
revenue and they believe that the amend
ment proposed in section 1 of the bill max
ing net reduction of % cents per barrel
gives them all the relief to which they are
entitled in view Of the reduction caused by
the bill.
I'm the war revenue act the tax upon
cigars averaging more than three pounds
in weight to the thousand was made s.. Co
This 60 cents per thousand very
onerous to the manufacturers, especially
those engaged in a small way and making
the cheaper grade of cigar. 1t has been
impossible to distribute any of this 60
cents in making a price to the consumer
and the factories have had to bear the en-
committee has therefore reported an amend
ment reducing this tax at the rate of 60
cents per thousand"
Reductions In Detail.
The report then gives the changes in de-
tail, with estimated amount of reduction
which has heretofore appeared. 1t con-
tinues
THE two-cent stamps on bank checks,
certificates of deposit, drafts. postal money
orders. etc, are very annoying to large
class OF people, and much complaint has
been made to the committee, especially
from the smaller towns and from farmers
Another source Of annoyance has been
the tax OF cent on press receipts and tee-
graph messages. There is no doubt that
this taxation has caused more widespread
annoyance and trouble than anything else
In the act. The committee therefore have
stricken these taxes from the law. The tax
upon deeds and conveyances has been quite
burdensome in numerous instances, as well
as the tax upon insurance and leases. The
tax upon promissory notes and mortgages
has been very onerous upon the debtor
class. 1t has seemed to them that it was
enough to pay interest without paying a
tribute to the government upon every
transaction of this kind. These are the
principal items In amount that are stricken,
from the schedule while the other taxes
of like character are small in amount and
present an obvious reason for their re-
peal
Repeal of Schedule b.
THE committee have repealed all of
schedule B excepting the tax upon wines
This includes the tax upon proprietary
medicines and articles of a similar nature
There has been greater protest against the
enforcement of this tax than any other In
the whole law. 1t would appear that the
tax was much greater in severity than Con-
gress anticipated when the law was en-
acted While the per cent of taxation is
small upon the retail price of the article
sold, it has fallen upon the manufacturer
to large degree and has been in the ag-
gregate large percentage of taxation
upon the wholesale price
The committee recognized that wines
were entitled to as much reduction as beer
but there did not seem to be any conven-
lent way to divide the tax of cent upon
pint bottle, and therefore have left it the
same as in the original act"
After giving the reductions in detail az
gregating $4O,OOO346, the report says:
I'm making the foregoing reductions your
committee believes that the bill goes as
g., a. IT,, 81