The National tribune., 1907-10-17
Total. Observation-Disclosures. 17S,66s,s49.OS

IhuS II VIII be seen that theSe SIX
States paid more than three-fourths of
the entire amount. OF course, this
makes an undue showing in favor of
those States. since the consumption of
over the country repaid their share in
pretty nearly their exact proportion per
capita. This is not true of the South.
where the consumption of liquors is
much less than in the North, and the
CITIES of the North. with the great min
much the larger portion of the tax i'm
posed upon beer and whisky.
Tho other great source of revenue is
that from customs receipts. from which
the Government last year obtained
s300,657.413. 1t is safe to assert that
not one dollar of this was really i'm
posed for the purpose of taxation. Every
tax was primarily levied for the pur-
pose of protection. and was so levied in
accordance with the will Of the people.
repeatedly expressed in elections, where
the issue was brought squarely before
=
country shares equally in this protec-
ton. In every State. unless possibly
Mississippi and Arkansas. the class
which wants protection and demands il
is the dominant influence in the State.
Maine wants protection on her potatos
and hay; Florida on oranges. lemons,
pineapples and tebacco: Texas on wool.
.iriee and. semi7tEapical fruits; the Paci-
fic Coast on raisins. lemons. oranges, al
monds, lumber and wood pulp, and SO
on thru the entire country. Attempts
to lower the tariff and diminish this
revenue would meet with the liveliest
opposition from powerful agricultural
and manufacturing interests from the
Atlantic to the Pacific and from the
Lakes to the Gulf They all demand
that the Government shall collect every
dollar which it is now collecting. What
it shall do with the money is, as stated
in the matter of internal-revenue re-
ceipts. a matter Of much Indifference to
them.
The only other sources of revenue are
items of quite minor Importance, some
$500, 900 from the sales of public lands
and s37.607,O0O from miscellaneous
sources. This feature of the revenue is
so largely involved with the reclamation
and other projects as to be out of con-
sideration.
Therefore, anyone can see at once
that the payment Of pensions or any
other feature of Government expenses
IS not really a burden to the people, but
it is merely distribution to the people
of the money which the Government has
raised for ulterior purposes. and which
nave the highest approval of the great
majority of the States.
OF all the ways by which the Govern
ment returns this money to the people
the distribution by means of pensions is
the fairest and the most equitable II
distributes the money in small sums i'm
partially and evenly all over the entire
country. There is not a little town
village or crossroads in the East, the
| great Interior and the far West which
does not receive its per capita of the
benefits, and there are few places ever
| in the South which do not regularly re.
ceive some of the pension money. The
veterans of the civil war and theil
widows are distributed with remarkable
evenness all over the Nation. They form
about the same ratio to the population
everywhere, except in the great cities
which have been filled up with foreign
ers, and in the South. Consequent,
the payment of pensions comes nearer
being a fair per capita return to tn.
people of the Governments revenue
than any other form of expenditure.
Probably any close analysis woulC
show that even the South receives mucl
more in the shape of pensions than
pays to the Government in duties upo,
imported articles. The South consume
much less per capita of imported arti
cles and of liquors than the North. Ow
ing to the rapid advance of RESTRICTIVE
legislation there must be millions O
negros and poor whites in the Soutl
who have the rarest opportunities TO ge
hold of and drink whisky and beer
Their consumption OF imported article
is very small, and consequently they cal
pay but minimum fraction of the Ma
'tional revenues. On the other hand