River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1906-12-06

bination. good or bad. is noxious where
Is not t eeombination Of labor Is o.
necessary element of our present indus
| trial system 1t Is not possible completely
70 pr eonnlete prevention would do dam
age to the body polite. What we need
is not vainly to prevent all computation,
control and supervision of the combina-
tions as to prevent their injuring the
public or tbIsatsn form t6 as mere
Fact that q combination has secured
practically complete control of neces-
Stances show that such combination was
| to be presumed to be adverse to the pub
lie interest 1t Is unfortunate that our
lions. instead of sharply discriminating
between those combinations which do
evil. Rebates, for instance, are as often
due to the pressure of big shippers Gas
was shown in the investigation of the
Standard Oil company and as has been
shown since by the er 1ntvesugatlon OF the
alive of big railroads. Often railroads
would like to combine for the purpose of
nc IMPROPER advantages at the expense
Of small shippers and or the general pub
lie. Such a combination, instead of being
forbidden by law, should be favored. In
| other words it should be permitted to
railroads to make agreements, provided
| these agreements were sanctioned by the
were published with these two condf-
! tons Complied with it is impossible to
do tn the public at large. 1t is public
evil to have on the statute books a law
incapable of full enforcement because
both judges and Juries realize that its
| full enforcement would destroy the BUSH
ness of the country; for the result is to
make decent rallTo o;1 men violators OF
nremium on the behavior of the wiful
wrongdoers. Such result in turn tends
| 10 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
| to lose all respect for law and to be
| willing to break it in many ways. No
more scathing condemnation could be
| the words of the interstate commerce
| commission when, in commenting upon
the fact that the Joint tra inc
| law, they say: 1.-THE decision of the
| United States supreme court in the
case has saH o mt
| practical effect upon the railway opera
| tions of the country. Such associations,
r. fac and With te gen
ought probably to add that it 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 az
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 it. I 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 obyiate the evil disclosed.
inheritance and income Tax.
1t was expected that the president
IN mo the necessity for the CURLING of enor-
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 a
| graduated inheritance tax, and, If posi-
| bic, a graduated income tax. He says:
II am well aware that such subject
| as this needs long and careful study In
| order that the people may become famll-
| 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 wiling to 60 70 IN the matter .,,,,;
| out the project in necessary detail. But
| l feel that in the near future our nation
| al legislators should enact law provid-
| ing for a graduated Inheritance tax by
which steadily increasing rate OF duty
| should be put upon all moneys or other
devise to any Individual or corporation.
| 1t may be well to make the tax heavy
| in proportion as the individual benefited
| judgment the pro rata of the. tax should
| increase very heavily with the increase
| of the amount left to any one individual
| after certain point has been reached.
| 1t is most desirable to encourage thrift
and ambition, and a potent source OF
thrift and ambition is the desire on tn 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-
ae pr@e obect soad be put
Stantly increasing burden on the inner
| itance of those swollen fortunes which
| it is certainly of no benefit to this coun-
There can be no question OF 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 inheritance tax
| would, as an incident, have the erect or
| limiting the transmission by devise or
| gift of the enormous fortunes In question
| It is not necessary at present to discuss.
| 1t is wise that progress in this directlon
| national inheritance tax, while 1t might
| be more substantial than any such tax
has hitherto been reed not an}enf ~ the
increase by graduation, to what such
| tax should ultimately be.
Inheritance Tax Constitutional.
/ "This species of tax has again and again
the national government It was first
/ imposed by the act of July 6, 1877, 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 l, 1862; minimum sum OF
/ 81 900 in personal property being excepted
/ from Taxation the tax then becoming
/ progressive according to the remoteness
4 of kin The War-reVenue act or June IL,
/ 1893 provided for an inheritance tax on
i any 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 legatee's remoteness
/ of kin. The supreme court has held that
! the succession tax imposed at the time
] az the civil war was not direct tax but
| an irnDose of excise which was both con-
| stitutional and valid. More recently the
/ court, in an opinion delivered by Mr..
| T11stice White which contained an ex-
/ ceedingly able and elaborate discussion
| of the powers of the congress to impose
| death duties sustained the constitutions
/ aIity of the inheritance tax feature of the
i war-revenue act of 1893.
Is income Tax Constitutional?
..In its incidents. and apart from the
main nurpose of raising revenue, an
/ income fax stands on an entirely differ
4 emf footing from an Inheritance tax, be-
/ cause it involves no question OF the per-
i heaIthv xize The question is in its
i essence a question Of the proper adjust
i ment of burdens to benefits. AS the
i law now stands it is undoubtedly diff
| cult to devise nat1onai income tax
| which shall be constitutional But
whether It is absolutely impossible is an
| other Question: and If possible it is most
/ oarfa;riv 1esirable The first purely in