Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-11
EFFECT OF PROHIBITION
MANY INTERNAL REVENUE
DISTRICTS IN SOUTH
To Be Abolished or Consolidated Be
cause of the Falling Off in
Collections.

Capt. John G. Capers, commissioner of
internal revenue, has returned from a
trip TO the south, and coincident with the
return is q well-def1ned rumor that he
contemplates aboishing a number of the
collection districts there and consolidat-
| ing them so as to effect a saving of ex-
penses to the government. This move
| has been brought about by the spread of
prohibition in that section of the country,
the certain loss of revenue to the govern
ment, and the lack of business for col
lectors Of internal revenue and their force
of employees.
According to the report, Georgia and
South Carolina are to be consolidated in
one collection district, and all the work
placed under Micah Jenkins, the collector
at Columbia, s. c.. with offices in that
city the Georgia offices being abolished
and the collector there put out Of office.
After January l Georgia will be dry, SO
far as liquors are concerned, while half
of the South Carolina counties still sell
whisky under the dspensary law. The
business in the latter state would ex-
coed that from Georgia. 1t is practically
admitted that after January / next there
will be little need of collector in Geor-
gia- In the fiscal year 1906 the total col
lect!ons of revenue in Georgia were $3.50,
0S5, of which $372,3S came from distilled
spirits d$1S4.O15 from fermented drinks,
leaving almost nothing from tobacco and
the few other sources. With these reve-
nues gone the total collections from GeOr-
gia would probably amount to less than
$4,000 year.
Alabama and Florida.
The commissioner is also said to have
In mind the same consolidation for Ala
bama and Florida both of which, owing
to local option, have practically gone into.
the prohibition column, although Florida
Is still wetter than Alabama, some recent
elections having defeated the prohibition
lists In that case the headquarters would
be in Florida. Nearly all the revenue col
lected in Alabama in past years has been
from whisky and beer. while the principal
collections in Florida are from tobacco,
and this will remain so.
Inst how far prohibition will effect the
revenues OF the government the commits
sioner Of internal revenue has no idea
at this time. 1t is thought that the
amount will not be large so long as pro-
hibition is confined to the south, where
the distilleries and breweries have been of
small value compared to the gigantic con-
Germs in western and northern states pay
ing to the government millions of dollars
year Should, however. the sweep of
prohibition reach into territory where mil
lions of dollars are collected each year
pinch and be compelled to devise ways
and means for taxation On other commod-
lilies to make up the difference.
Up TO the present time prohibition has
not dwindied the receipts of the govern
ment in the least. The consumption of
whisky and beer has largely increased
each fiscal year, until the receipts from
these two items in the last fiscal year,
closed June 80 last, amounted to $21590l,-
119 out of a total revenue of 1868 coo 600
about one-third of the income of the gov
ernmant.
The only thing against carrying out
program OF consolidation of southern
states into new districts for the next year
or SO lies in the fact that to do so would
be to abolish much of the political ma
chlnery by which the administration ex-
poets to control the southern vote in the
next national convention. AS Capt. Ca
pers is one of the administration leaders
in southern politics he might hesitate at
too early action of a consolidating ma
ture. Georgia must be brought into line
in the next convention, and the collector
of internal revenue of that state and his
force of men have heretofore been i'm
pOTtant factors in selecting delegates