The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1907-12-03

| experience has conclusively shown that
| at such a time 1t is impossible to get
men to treat it from the standpoint of
the public good In my judgment the
wise time to deal with the matter is
Immediately after such election
Income Tax and lnheritance Tax.
When our tax laws are revised the
question of an income tax n an in
heritance tax should receive the care
full attention of our legislators. In
my Judgment, both of these taxes
should be part of our system of fed
eral taxation. | speak d~iffidently about
the income tax because one scheme for
an income tax was declared unconSti-
tutional by the supreme court, while in
addition it is a difficult tax to admin
lister in its practical working, and great
care would have to be exercised to see
thai it was o evaded by the very
men whom it was most desirable to
have taxed. Nevertheless a graduated
income tax of the proper type would
be a desirable feature of federal taxa
ton, and it is to be hoped that II
may be devised which the supreme
court will declare constitutional.
The Inheritance tax, however, is
a far better method of taxation The
government nas the absolute right to
decide as to the terms upon which Il
man shall receive a bequest from an
other, and this point in the devolution
of property is especially appropriate
for the imposition of IA tax. Laws i'm
posing such taxes lave repeatedly been
placed upon the national statute books
and as repeatedly declared constitu-
tional by the courts. and these laws
contained the progressive principle
that is. after a certain amount is reach
ed the bequest or gift in life or death
is increasingly burdened and the rate
of taxation is increased in proportion
to the remoteness of blood of the man
receiving the bequest. These principle;
are recognized already in the leading
civilized nations of the world.
Germany's inheritance Tax.
The German law is especially inter
esting TO us because it makes the in
heritance tax an imperial measure
while alloting to the Individual states
of he empire a portion of the pro
ceeds and permitting them to impose
taxes in addition to those imposed ~
the imperial government. Small inEer-
itances are exempt, but the tax i so
sharply progressive that when tie in
heritance is still not very large. pro
vided 1t is not an agricultural or Il for
est land. it is taxed at the rae of -
per cent if it goes to distant relatives.
There is no reason why in the United
States the national government should
not impose inheritance taxes In addi-
ton to those imposed by the states.
and when we last had an inheritance
tax abo one-half of the states levied
such taxes concurrently with the ma
tional government. making a combined
maximum rate in some cases as high
as % per cent
To Tax Nonresidents Higher.
The tax should if possible be made
to bear more heavily upon those resid-
ing without the country than within it.
A heavy progressive tax upon a very
large fortune is in no way such a tax
upon thrift or industry as a like tax
would be on a small fortune. No adj
vantage comes either to the country
as a whole or to the individuals inner
fting the money by permitting the
transmission in their entirety of the
enormous fortunes which woul be af
fected by such n tax, and as an Incl
dent to its function of revenue raising
| such a tax would help to preserve a
measurable equality of opportunity for
the people of the generations growing
to manhood.
We have not the slightest sympathy
with hat sociaIistic idea which would
try to put laziness, thriftlessness and
inefficiency on a par with industry.
xI,-.E@ ~1 ~4z,.io-1r --I{aI u-O.,I1
strive to break up not merely private
property, but, what is far more impor-
tant, the home, the chief prop upon
which our whole civilization stands.
Such a theory if ever adopted would
mean the ruin of the entire country.
but proposals for legislation such as
this herein advocated are directly OPP
posed to this class of socialistic the
cries.
Enforcement of the Law.
A few years ago there was LOUD COM
plant that the law could not be in
voked against wealthy offenders. There
Is no such complaint now. The course
of the department of justice during the
last few years has been such as to
make it evident that no man stands
above the law, that no corporation is
so wealthy that it annot be held to ac-
count. Everything hat can be done
under the existing law and with the
existing state of public opinion. which
so profoundly influences both the courts
and juries. has been lone, but the laws
themselves need strengthening. They
should be made more definite, so that
no honest man can be led unwittingly
to break them and so that the real
wrongdoer can be readily punished.
Moreover, there must be the public
opinion back of the laws or the laws
themselves will be of no avail Tn