The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-09-14


of Tax Rate.
A wagon load of revenue stamps was
received from Washington during the
week by Collector Fred Won Baum
bach at the internal revenue office in
the federal building. The value of
these stamps is 100000, and they
range in value from one-fourth of a
cent up to a dollar. This supply will
last the st. Paul Office less than sixty
days.
Deputy Collector John w. Vars yes
terday made the receipt of this ship
ment of stamps text for an interest
ing account of Minnesotas contribu-
ton to the revenues of the federal gov
eminent.
"These stamps are for cigars beer
and renovated butter he said. while
the amount seems large, as a fact it
was no extraordinary thing, year or
two ago, before the repeal of the war
taxes, for us to receive million dol
lars worth of beer stamps alone at one
time But the tax on beer has been
cut down one-half and other taxes
abolished altogether, thus greatly re-
ducing the sale of stamps"
Headquarters for State.
The st. Paul internal revenue Office
is in charge of the collections for the
entire state of Minnesota, and the dep
uty collectors throughout the state re-
port the results of their work to Col
1ector Won Baumbach. The effect of
the war taxes upon the government
revenues is we'll Illustrated, according
to Mr.. Vars, by the figures for the
Minnesota collections during the last
i've years.
1.-THE last year previous to the out
break of the Spanish war
and the enactment of the special war
taxes was the twelvemonth ending
June 80, $685." he said "The collec-
tons of the Minnesota internal reve-
nue. district for that year were $780,
1874. The war taxes went into effect
in July, 1898, and the receipts for the
fiscal year of 1899 therefore tell the
story of increased taxation. They were
$2,567, 68S.2S, or more than double those
Of the year before. The next year
showed that in spite of heavy taxes
Minnesota business interests were
prosperous, for they indicated a gain
of about 10 per cent, the total being
$3,S14,113
''These were the two years in which
the war taxes were in full effect. These
taxes. 1t will be remembered, were i'm
posed, not only on beer and tobacco,
but upon legal documents, proprietary
medicines, express and telegraph serv-
Ices and other unusual subjects of tax
alton.
Relief Begins in 1891.
1.-THE fiscal year Of 1901 brought the
first considerable reduction in the war
taxes, but the amount which we COL
iected was about as large as before,
reaching the figures $2,667, 966.12. Last
year still greater relief was afforded
infarasfS a f0 Inv
the abolition Of other taxes, and these
interests responded remarkably In their
growth, and returned q total of $2,161,-
062.84l in internal revenue to the gov
eminent.
"Thus in a period Of five years, not
withstanding the pressure Of heavy
taxation, the industry and commerce
OF Minnesota have grown so rapidly
that the governments revenue suffers
but little reduction by the abolition of
the war taxes, and this year will prob
ably give the largest total in the his
tory of the state.
II have before me the figures for an
other war period, and it Is interesting
TO compare them with totals 1 have
Just now quoted. In 1853, the first of
the war taxes resulting from the Re-
bellion had gone into operation, yet Sc
insignificant were the commercial and
manufacturing interests of the state
that this office collected only $59,561.27.
Three years later the growth of popu-
lation and the increase of taxation re-
turned from Minnesota the sum of
$3S1,911.
Eight-fold in Twenty five Years.
when the war closed the reduction
OF its tax burdens was so rapid that
even in 1872, notwithstanding Mime
sofas phenomenal growth, the state
yielded only $248,979, and in 1878 this
had increased but to $275,0O2. A quar-
ter century has increased the states
contribution to the national revenues
nearly eight-fold.
"The largest amount which Mime
sofa has ever paid into the treasury
was for 1890, when this office collected
$3,096,097.15, but as $2,5O0,OO0 of this
was derived from the tax on distilled
spirits paid by the st. Paul Distillery
Company of South st. Paul, it is evil
dent that the business of the state has
grown vastly in the last twelve years
so much for totals. When we turn
to the collections from particular
classes of taxable commodities, we dis
cover the sources of the great sum
which our state now gives towards the
maintenance of the general govern
ment
''The collections from beer stamps is
OF course, the principal item. These
yielded during the year ending June
30, 1901, the sum of $1,365,901 repre-
senting 73S,S24 barrels of beer taxed
at $1.S5 net per barrel. For the follow
ing year. the rate was only $3.50, but
the tax was collected on S46,25O bar
rels, and amounted to $1,354,00 Thus
in single twelvemonth we find an in
crease of 107,925 barrels in the con-
sumption, and in spite of the reduced
tax a falling off in the total of only
$11,901.
Is Drink Habit Increasing?
These figures raise the interesting
question, Is Minnesota beer becoming
more popular or is the drink habit on
the increase? Here is a good topic fol-
the temperance debating societies. But
1t should not be forgotten that this COL
lection is made only upon manufac-
lures, and has no relation to the
amount of beer drunk within the state
for many thousands of barrels are an
nually shipped into the state, which
have paid the revenue tax in other dis
tricts.
"The revenue collected from the
manufacturers of cigars furnishes the
next largest total. This was, in 1901
$235,477, and represents 65,410,00C
cigars, taxed at the rate of $3.50 pei
thousand. Last year the tax was re-
duced to So. and the 69,9O7,666 cigars
made in the state paid $2O9,723 Into
Uncle Sans Golfers.
'"The number of beer stamps sold in
Minnesota last year was 1,912,059
weighing not less than a ton, while we
sold during the same period approx
mately 100000 cigar stamps, weigh
ing about one and one-half tons. Many
other stamps are sold in large guam
titles. including a variety of denomi-
nations of tobacco, snuff and cigarette
stamps, documentary and proprietary
stamps, stamps for gaugers and
wholesale liquor dealers, and the like
The entire time of one clerk is giver
Il. .a4 IL.