Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1906-12-13

bination. good or bad. Is noxious where
/ IL is not Ineffective. Combination OF
| capital like combination of labor. is a
| necessary element OF our present indus
| trial system. IL Is not possible completely
| to prevent 1t. and III IL were possible,
such complete prevention Mould do dam,
| is not vainly to prevent all combination,
| but to secure such rigorous and adequate
control and supervision s NO, OF t , combine ma
| public or existing in such form as inev-
| itably to threaten inJury-for the mere
| fact that combination has secured
| practically complete control OF neces-
| sary of life would under any circum-
| stances show that such combination was
| to be presumed to be adverse to the pub
| lie interest 1t Is unfortunate that our
present laws should forbid all combina-
lions. instead of sharply discriminating
between those combinations which do
evil. Rebates, for instance, are as often
due to the pressure OF big shippers las
was shown In the investigation of the
shown since by the investigation OF the
tobacco and sugar trusts as to the initi-
atiye Of big railroads; often railroads
preventing a big shipper from maintain
ing improper advantages at the expense
Of small shippers and do, Of The , genera pub,
| forbidden by law, should be favored. In
| other words. 1t should be permitted 10
these agreements were sanctioned by the
Interstate commerce commission and
were published. With these two condi-
see what harm such a combination could
| do to the public at large. IT is a public
| evil to have on the statute books law
| both Judges and juries realize that its
| full enforcement would destroy the bust
ness of the country; for the result Is to
| the law against their will, and to put a
premium on the behavior OF the wilful
| wrongdoers Such a result In turn tends
| to throw the decent man and the wilful
wrongdoer into close association. and in
| the end TO drag down the former to the
latter's level: for the man who becomes
a lawbreaker in one way unhappily tends
| to lose all respect for law and TO be
| willing to break II In many ways. No
more scathing condemnation could be
| visited upon law than is contained In
| the words of the Interstate commerce
| commission when, In commenting upon
the fact that the numerous Joint traffic
| law. they say: THE decision OF the
| United States supreme court In the
l'Trafiic association case has produced no
practical effect upon the railway opera
| tons of the country. Such associa tons.
| these decisions, and with the same gem
eral effect. In justice to all parties, we
| ought probably to add that II is difficult
| to see how our interstate railways could
| be operated with due regard to the inter-
est of the shipper and the railway
without concerted action of the kind af-
forded thru these associations"
This means that the law as construed
| by the supreme court Is such that the
| business of the country cannot be con-
Quoted without breaking II. recommend
| that you give careful and early consider
| alton to this subject, and IL you find the
opinion of the interstate commerce com
mission justified, that you amend the
law SO as to obviate the evil disclosed.
Inheritance and Income Tax.
1t was expected that the president
would refer In some way to his belief
nous fortunes. and he has done so by
! recommending legislation for both In
come and an Inheritance tax. He be-
lieves the government should impose n
graduated Inheritance tax, and, II posi-
BILE, graduated income tax. He says;
II am we'll aware that such subject
as this needs long and careful study in
order that the people may become famil-
lar with what is proposed to be done,
may clearly see the necessity OF proceed
ing with wisdom and self-restraint, and
may make up their minds just how far
they are willing to go in the matter;
while only trained legislators can work
out the project In necessary detail But
feel that in the near future our nation
al legislators should enact law provid-
| ing for graduated inheritance tax by
which steadily increasing rate or duty
| should be put upon all moneys or other
valuables coming by gift, bequest, or
devise to any individual or corporation.
| in proportion as the individual benefited
| Is remote OF kin. In any event, In my
| judgment the pro rata of the tax should
| increase very heavily with the increase
| of the amount left to any one Individual
| after a certain point has been reached.
| 1t Is most desirable to encourage thrift
thrift and ambition is the desire on the
| part OF the breadwinner to leave his chill
| dren well off: This object can be attained
! by making the tax very small on moder-
| ate amounts of property left; because
the prime object should be to put con-
stantly increasing burden on the inner
| II Is certainly of no benefit to this coun-
| try to perpetuate.
There can be no question or the eth
| ical propriety of the government thus de-
termining the conditions upon which any
| gift or Inheritance should be received.
Exactly how far the ham nne tbe erect of
| limiting the transmission by devise or
gift of the enormous fortunes In question
II is wise that progress in this direction
should be gradual. At FIRST a permanent
national inheritance taS. while 1t might
|. be more substantial than any such tax
| has hitherto been, need not approximate,
either in amount or in the extent OF the
increase by graduation. to what such
tax should ultimately be.
inheritance Tax Constitutional.
This species of tax has again and again
| been imposed, altho only temporarily, by
| the national government. 1t was first
imposed by the act OF July 9, 1881, when
| alive and at the head of affairs. It was
| a graduated tax; tho small In amount,
| the rate was increased with the amount
left to any individual. exceptions being
| made In the case of certain close kin. A
| similar tax was again Imposed by the
| act of July !, 1862; minimum sum or
| 81, 900 In personal property being excepted
| from taxation, the tax then becoming
| progressive according to the remeteness
of kin. The war-revenue act or June IL,
a aIYy sum exceeding the value Of $4,000,
| the rate of tax increasing both In accord
! ance with the amounts left and In ac-
| cordance with the legatees remoteness
| of kin. The supreme court has held that
! the succession tax imposed at the time
| of the civil war was not direct tax but
| an impose of excise which was both con-
| stitutional and valid. More recently the
| court in an opinion delivered by Mr..
| Justice White, which contained an ex-
| ceedingly able and elaborate discussion
| of the powers of the congress to impose
| death duties, sustained the constitution
atty of the Inheritance tax feature OF the
war-revenue act or 1875
Is Income Tax CONSTITUTIONAL?
"In its incidents, and apart from the
main purpose Of raising revenue, =, an
ent footing from an inheritance tax, be-
| cause 1t involves no question OF the per-
petuation of fortunes swollen to an un-
| essence a question of the proper adjust
| ment of burdens to Dement'S: AS the
| law now stands II is undoubtedly diff
| cult to devise national income tax
| which shall be constitutional. But
| whether it is absolutely impossible Is an
| other question: and II possible 1t Is most
| come tax law was past by the congress
| in 1861 but the most important law deal
| ing with the subject was tnat OF 1874