Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1907-06-19

vast natural resources of the water
ways of the United States. Clearly it
IL Impossible for the waterways COM
mission to accomplish it's great task
without considering the relation of
streams to the conservation and use OF
all other natural resources. and have
asked that it do so. Here, then for the
first time, the orderly development and
planned conservative use of all our
natural resources is presented as q
single problem. One by one the indi-
vidual tasks in this great problem have
already been undertaken One by one
in practical fashion the methods Of
dealing with them were worked out.
National irrigation has proved itself
a success by it's actual working. Again,
actual experience has shown that the
national forests will fulfill the larger
purpose for which they were created
All who have thoughtfully studied the
subject have come to see that the solu-
ton of the public lands question hes
with the home maker, with the settler
who lives on his land and that gov
eminent control of the mineral fuels
and the public grazing lands is neces-
sary and inevitable. Each of these
conclusions represented movement
of vast Importance which would confer
which stood by itself. They are con-
nected together into one great funda-
mental problem-that of the con-
servation of all our natural resources.
Upon the wise solution of this, much
OF our future obviously depends. Even
such questions as the regulation OF
railway rates and the control of cor
porations are in reality subsidiary to
the primal problem of the preservation
in the interests of the whole people OF
the resources that nature has given US.
If we fail to solve this problem, no
skill in solving the others will in the
end avail us very greatly.
Now as to the matter of taxation.
Most great civilized countries have an
income tax and an inheritance tax.
In my judgment both should be part
of our system of federal taxation. I
speak difhdently about the income tax
because one scheme for an income tax
was declared unconstitutional by the
supreme court by a five to four vote;
and in addition it is a difficult tax to
administer in it's practical workings,
and great care would have to be exer-
cised to see that it was not evaded
by the very man whom it is most de-
sirable to have taxed, for if SO evaded
it would of course be worse than no
tax at all, as the least desirable of all
taxes is the tax which bears heavily
upon the honest as compared with the
dishonest man. Nevertheless. a gradu-
ated income tax of the proper type
would be a desirable permanent fea-
ture of federal taxation. and 1 still
hope that one may be devised which the
supreme court will declare constitu-
tional.
Inheritance Tax.
In my judgment, however, the in
heritance tax is both a far better meth
Cd of taxation, and far more important
for the purpose I have in vieW-the
purpose of having the swollen fortunes
of the country bear in proportion to
their size a constantly increasing bur
den of taxation. These fortunes exist
solely because Of the protection given
the owners by the public. They are
constant source of care and anxiety
to the public and it is eminently just
that they should be forced to pay heav-
lily for the protection given them. 1t
is, of course, elementary that the ma
ton has the absolute right to decide as
to the terms upon which any man
shall receive bequest or devise from
another. We have repeatedly placed
such laws on our own statute books,
and they have repeatedly been declared
constitutional by the courts. I believe
that the tax should contain the pro-
gressive principle. Whatever any in
| dividual receives, whether by gift, be-
quest, or devise, in life or in death,
should, after certain amount is
reached. be increasingly burdened; and
| the rate of taxation should be in
creased in proportion to the remote
ness of blood Of the man receiving
| from the man giving or devising. The
| principle of this progressive taxation
of inheritance has not only been au-
thoriatively recognized by the legisla-
ton of congress, but it is now I'M
equivocally adopted in the leading civ
ilized nations of the world-n, for in
stance, Great Britain, France and Ger
many. Switzerland led off with the
| imposition of high progressive rates.
Great Britain was the first of the great
| nations to follow suit. and within the
last few years both France and Ger
army have adopted the principle. In
Great Britain all estates worth $1,000
or less are practically exempt from
death duties, while the increase is
such that when an estate exceeds
$5,000.0O0 in value and passes to a dis
tant kinsman or stranger in blood the
government receives nearly 18 per
cent. In France, under the progressive
system, SO much of an inheritance as
exceeds s10,OOO,000 pays over 20 per
cent. to the state if it passes to a dis
tant relative, and five per cent. if it
passes to direct heir. In Germany
very small inheritance are exempt, but
the tax is SO sharply progressive that
an inheritance not in agricultural or
forest lands which exceeds $250,OOO,
if it goes to distant relatives is
taxed at the rate of about rs per cent.
The German law is of special interest,
because it makes the inheritance tax
an imperial measure. while allotting
to the individual states of the empire
a portion of the proceeds and permit
ting them to impose taxes in addition
to those imposed by the imperial gov
eminent. In the United States the ma
tional government has more than once
imposed inheritance taxes in addition
to those imposed by the states, and
in the last instance about one-half of
the states levied such taxes concur
rently with the national government,
making a combined maximum rate in
some cases as high as 25 per cent;
and, as matter Of fact, several states
adopted inheritance tax laws for the
first time while the national law was
still in force and unrepealed. The
French law has one feature which is to
be heartily commended. The progress
sive principle is SO applied that each
higher rate is imposed only on the ex-
cess above the amount subject to
the next lower rate. This plain Is
peculiarly adapted to the working out
of the theory of using the inherit
ance tax for the purpose of limiting
the size of Unbeatable fortunes, since
the progressive increase in the rates,
according to this mode, may be car
ried to it's logical conclusion in
maximum rate of nearly 100 per
cent for the amount in excess OF
specified sum, without being con-
fscatory as to the rest of the inherit
ance; for each increase in rate would
rniv nn1v to 70
tain maximum.