The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1906-12-05

was first imposed by the act of July 6
1897, when the makers of the Constitu-
ton We're alive and at the head of af-
falrs- 1t was a graduated tax; the
! small in amount, the rate was in
creased with the amount left to any in
| diyidual, exceptions being made in the
/ case of certain close kin. A similar tax
was again imposed by the act of July
. /, 1852 a minimum sum of one thou
I sand dollars in personal property being
exempted from taxation, the tax then
becoming progressive according to the
remoteness of kin. The Warrevenue
, act of June Is, 1898, provided for an in
heritance tax on any sum exceeding
the value of ten thousand dollars, the
rate of the tax increasing both in ac-
cordance with the amounts left and in
accordance with the legatees remote
; ness Of kin. The supreme court has
held that the succession tax imposed at
the time of the civil war was not a di-
rect tax, but an impost or excise which
was both constitutional and valid.
More recently the court, in an opinion
delivered by Mr.. Justice White, which
, contained an exceedingly able and cit
borate discussion of the powers of the
/ congress to impose death duties, sus-
tanned the constitutionality of the in
j heritance-tax feature of the war-reve-
nue. act OF 1895
In its 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 ma question of the
perpetuation of fortunes swollen to an
unhealthy size. The question is in its
essence a question of the proper ad-
justment of burdens to benefits As
the law now stands 1t is undoubtedly
difficult to devise a national income tax
which shall be constitutional. But
4 whether it is absolutely impossible is
/, another question; and if possible it Is
most certainly desirable. The first
purely income-tax law dealing with the
subject was that of 1894. This the
court held to be unconstitutional
The question is undoubtedly very in
tricate, delicate and troublesome. The
decision of the court was only reached
by one majority. 1t is the law Of the
/, land, and Of course is accepted as such
and Loyalty obeyed by all good.ctizens
Nevertheless, the hesitation evidently
felt by the court as a whole in coming
to a conclusion, when considered to-
gether with the previous decisions on
the subject, may perhaps indicate the
possibility Of deyislng constitutional
income-tax law which shall substan-
TALLY accomplish the results aimed at
The difficulty of amending the Consti-
tuition Is so great that only real neces-
sity can justify a resort thereto. Eve
ry effort should be made in dealing
with the subject, as with the subject
/, Of the proper control by the national
i 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,
Technical and Industrial Training.
1t would be impossible to overstate
(tho 1t is Of course difficult quantita-
lively to measure) the effect upon a
nations growth to greatness Of what
may be called organized patriotism
which necessarily includes the substi-
tuition Of national feeling for mere To-
cal pride; with as a resultant a high
ambition for the whole country No
country can develop its full strength 50
long as the parts which make up the
whole each put feeling of oyalty to
the part above the feeling of loyalty to
the whole This Is true of sections and
1t Is just as true Of classes. The indus
trial and agricultural classes must
work together capitalists ana wage
workers must work together, If the
best work Of which the country is ca
pable is to be done 1t is probable that
a thoroly efficient system of education
comes next to the influence of patrio-
tism in bringing about national success
Of this kind. Our federal form of gov
eminent, so fruitful of advantage to
our people in certain ways, in other
ways undoubtedly limits our national
effectiveness 1t is not possible, for in
stance, for the national government to
take the lead in technical industrial ed
ucation, to see that the public school
system of this country develops on all
its technical, industrial scientific and
commercial sides. This must be left
primarily to the several states. New
ertheless the national government has
control of the schools of the District Of
Columbia, and it should see that these
p schools promote and encourage the
fullest development of the scholars in
both commercial and industrial train
! ing. The commercial training should
in one of It's branches deal with foreign
. trade The Industrial training is even
more important. 1t should be one Of
our prime objects as a Nation, so far
$ as feasible constantly to work toward
l putting the mechanic, the wageiworker
= who works with his hands, on higher
: plane of efficiency and reward, so as to
r increase his effectiveness in the eco
nomic world, and the dignity, the re-
enumeration and the power of his posi-
: ton in the social world. Unfortunate
ly, at present the effect of some of the
work In the public schools is in the eX-
actly opposite direction, If boys and
girls are trained merely in literary ac-
= complishments, to the total exclusion
Of industrial, manual and technical
training, the tendency is to unfit them
( for industrial work and to make them
reluctant to go into it, or untitled to do
well if they do go into it. This is
tendency which should be strenuously
combated. Our industrial development