The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1909-04-22
SPECIAL TAXES
ARE OFF BILL
EXCISE A ND CORPORA
TON TAX FAVORED IN
ORDER NAMED.
Taft Will Sign Tariff Measure if
it Will Produce the Needed
Revenue.

N(NCildC.
Washington, April 21.-There
will be neither inheritance, cor
poration nor income tax in the
tariff bill which finally receives
President Taft's signature-pro-
vided that it be shown clearly on
argument that the bill will pro
duCe sufficient revenue to meet
the expenses of the government
Amid all of the conflicting
statements as to the presidents
attitude toward the Payne bill
and the Aldrich substitute, it car
be said on authority that Mr.
TaftS chief desire is to secure
first a tariff bill that will contain
maximum of reductions in the
interests OF the people. Coequa
with this desire, is, of course
that OF having a bill which will
produce the needed revenue.
Only after this, and when il
has been demonstrated clearly
that a bill in the interests of the
people cannot be drawn which
will at the same time produce the
needed revenue, will recourse be
had to special tax, and then tn,
various propositions will be CON
sidered in this order; an inheri,
lance tax, along the lines of the
Payne bill; an excise tax on the
net profits of corporations, and
finally, but only as last resort
an income tax.
Open to Argument.
This is the frame of mind o.
the president just now. Without
having changed his mind as tc
the merit of an inheritance tax
no arguments having acted to
destroy his faith in it, as the
wisest proposition that has beer
made along the lines of specia
taxation-the president is oper
to argument.
The president believes that ar
gument and cooperation wit
treasury experts careful calcula
tions and thorough threshins
over OF all the schedules will en-
able congress pretty closely tt
approximate the total amount o
revenue that will be PRODUCED b,
a bill. After that, when it come
time for him to append his sig
nature to the measure, he will b,
guided largely by the face valu,
Of the schedules; but this i'm
portant consideration will alst
have weight with him; namely
that If tariff bill becomes a Law
by June 30 there will be ampl,
time before congress again as
sembles in December to observ,
the practical workings OF the new
tariff. Then, if it be found thai
calculations went astray, an,
that the bill. with the practice O
a wise economy, does not pro
duce the needed revenues, Their
viii be time to enact a law tina
will embody one of the specia
tax features that he has in mind
No Treasury Deficit.
lin the meantime, government
experts agree with the presiden
that there is no danger of tn
treasury running SO far behind d
to exhaust the reserve. On tn
question OF economy the presi
dent is absolutely at one with tn
attitude taken by Senator AID
rich in the senate debate on Mon
day. The president is hard a
work now with his cabinet mem
bers devising ways and means @
cutting down expenses. Their
will be no slap dash economic.
| But out of his experience a
secretary of war, the president
convinced that, without cuttin
down the army or in any wa
imparing its efficiency, the wa
| department can economize TO tn
extent of $5.00O,0OO each yeal
Similarly, the president is know
to believe that a like saving ca
be affected in the navy depart
ment without any abandonment
of the present policy of keepin
the navy up to the highest poin
of efficiency. Navy officers, i
fact, are quoted as saying tina
the new plan of reorganizatio
OF the department. will save tn
government $5,00),000 annually
| In other departments of tn
government, 5the president BIZ
| lives similar economies can b
practiced. He has informed cal
ers recently that no persons ca
be spared, and no pastimes wi
be allowed to interfere with thi
widespread policy. AT the sam
time the president is not sar
guine that any enormous savin
can be made. This country
growing all the time and it
natural that expenditures shout
, increase.
Middleton Will Pitch.