The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1906-12-04

On the one hand, It is desirable that
he should assume his. full and proper
share Of the burden Of taxation; on the
other hand, it is quite as necessary
that in this kind Of taxation, where
the men who vote the tax pay but little
of it, there should be clear recognition
Of the. danger Of inaugurating any such
system save in spirit Of entire JUS
tice and moderation.
Whenever we, as a people, undertake
to remodel our taxation system along
the lines suggested: we must make it
clear beyond peradventure that our
| aim is to distribute the burden Of sup
porting the government more equitabiy
than at present; that we intend to
treat rich men and poor on basis of
absolute equality.
!. It may be we'll to make the tax
heavy, in proportion as the individual
benefited is remote Of kin. In any
event, in my Judgment the pro rata
of the ax~should> increase very heavily
with the increase of the amount left to
any one Individual after certain
point has been reached.
This object can be attained by max
ing the tax very small on moderate
amounts of property left; because the
prime object should be to put con-
stantly increasing burden ON the in
heritance of those swollen fortunes
which it is certainly Of no benefit to
this country to perpetuate.
Not an Unknown Plan.
This species Of tax has again and
again been imposed, altho only tempo
rarily, by the national government. It
! was first imposed by the act of July
6, 1897, when the makers of the consti-
tuition were alive and at the head of
affairs: 1t was a graduated tax; tho
, small in amount, the rate was increased
with the amount left to any individual,
certain close kin. A similar tax was
again imposed by the act Of July 1,
1862; a minimum sum of $1,000 in per-
sonal property being excepted from
taxation, the tax then becoming pro-
gressive according to the remoteness
of kin. The War-revenue act of June
IS, 1898, provided for an Inheritance
tax on any. sum exceeding the value
of $4,000, the rate Of the. tax lnereas-
amounts left and in accordance with
the legatee s remoteness of kin. The
supreme court has held that the sue
cession tax imposed at the time Of the
civil war was not a direct tax but an
impost or excise which was both con
stitutional and valid. More recently
the court, in an opinio delivered by
-
ceedingly able and elaborate discus
sion of the powers of the congress to
! impose death duties, sustained the
constitutionality Of the inheritance tax
feature Of the war-revenue act OF 1898.
The Income. Tax.
In it's incidents, and apart from the
main purpose of raising revenue, an in
come tax stands on an entirely differ
ent footing from an inheritance tax;
because it involves no question of the
perpetuation Of fortunes swollen to an
i unhealthy size. The question is in its
essence question Of the proper adj
justment of burdens to benefits. AS
the law now stands it is undoubtedly
difficult to devise national income
tax which shall be constitutional. But
whether it is absolutely impossible is
another question; and if possible it is
most certainly desirable. -, The first
purely income-tax law was passed by the
congress in 1861, but the most import
ant law dealing with the subject was
that Of 1894. This the court held to
etbe unconstitutional. =, II. ~
i The difficulty Of amending the con-
stitution is so great that only real
necessity can justify a resort thereto.
Every effort should be made in dealing
with this subject, as with the subject
of the proper control by the national
! government over the use of corporate
wealth in interstate business, to devise
legislation which without such action
shall attain the desired end; but if this
fails, there will ultimately be no alter
native to constitutional amendment.