Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-02-15
70 renew O[EO FIGHT
Great Battle in Prospect Over
Removal of Tax on Imita-
tion Butter
NEED OF REVENUE A FACTOR
Butter Manufacturers Will Vigorously
Oppose Efforts to Have 10 Cent Tax
Removed-cattIe Raisers and Pack
ers Want oleomarsarine to Stand
Alone on Its Merits.

Washington. Feb. 13.--Wllat prom
Uses to be the lveliest fight of the long
session of congress beginning next De-
cember will be over the efforts of Ger
tain interests to have the present oleo-
margarine law repealed. A bid for that
purpose has already been presented in
the house of representatives by Mr..
Burleson of Texas, who represents a
constituency interested in the cotton
seed oil and cattle industries.
The views Of the friends of the pres
ent law, and some of the dairymen
and the state pure food commissioners,
are represented in the bill introduced
by Senator Penrose of Pennsylvania,
providing for a strengthening of the
law in several particulars.
While these bills have been intro
duced at this time there is no DISPOSE
ton on the part of the repeal advo-
Gates to push matters during the pres
ent session. MIR, Burleson has won
what he considers substantial VIC
tory for his side by the reference Of
his bill to the ways and means COM
mittee. When the present law was en-
acted in 1902 it was sent to and re-
ported from the committee on agrcul-
ture, largely thru the manuvering of
Representative Tawney of Minnesota.
leader of the dairy forces in the
house.
New Alignment in Fight.
/ Parliamentary experts have insisted
since that time that the reference Of
the oleomargarine bill to the commits
tee on agriculture was wrong because
1t was measure for raising revenues
by taxing imitation butter at the rate
OF 10 cents pound when colored in
initiation of butter and quarter
of cent u pound when uncolored. The
point Of its being a revenue bill was
insisted upon when Burleson intro
duced his bill and finally Speaker
Cannon, upon consulting Asher c..
Kinds, the parliamentary adviser of the
/ house, referred the Burleson bill to the
committee on ways and means, which
has exclusive charge of measures re-
lating 20 the revenues.
! The reference of the bill to this COM
mittee will cause some surprise To
dairymen turnout the country and will
cause a new alignment in their fight
against oleomargarine. The dairymen
have been under the impression all
along that If any repeal measure was
introduced 1t would go to the commit
tee on agriculture, as former bills have
gone. and they have, apparently. been
satisfied that their friends among the
membership We're in the majority. Now
they have to take up the consideration
Of the matter with an entirely new
set Of men.
Viewed From Revenue Standpoint.
In the committee on agriculture all
the discussion of oleomargarine legis-
/ aeon, in 1902 and since, has been
along the lire of its effect upon the
dairy Industry. The revenue phase
, of the legislation did not appeal to
them at all, or so slightly as to be OF
no consequence.
! In tine ways and means committee,
i however, the proposed legislation Will
be looked at from a revenue staad-
point, with it's effect upon one industry
or the other as being of minor impor-
lance AS a revenue producer the law
of 1902 hasn't amounted to much, COM
paratively speaking.
/ In the first year of it's operation
very little money went into the public
| treasury - less than half a million
year In the last few years, however,
the production of oleomargarine has
increased, and now the annual revenue
from oleomargarne, together with the
special taxes paid by dealers, is IN tne
neighborhood of $1,OOO.000. In the
fiscal year 1865 the total amount coly
I lected was Ss70,O37. In 1907 it was
sss7,641, AMI in 1908 it had increased
to s954,3O4, and in the first half OF the
present fiscal year collections reached
a total of $447,215. The collections
; this year would indicate Slight 1all-
ing off from the total for the entire
year if the present rate is maintained.
1 The ways and means committee is
| looking for new sources of revenue,
and the advocates of repeal will urge
their measure, or the reduction of the
present 1O-cent tax to, probably, =
cents on the ground that an Increased
revenue would be raised from that
source. They will make this argument
no matter what their real reasons may
he for wanting change of the present
law. The congressman from the dls-
tricts in which there are packing
houses will be among the advocates OF
repeal, as they were opposed to the law
of 1902. Southern democrats, Whose
constituents are interested in the cot
ton seed oil industry probably VIII
support a bill for repeal, or modlhca-
ton. on the ground that If any tax IS
imposed it should be for revenue only
The members from the cattle produc-
ing states will also stand, as they did
seven wears ago, in opposition to taxing
| imitation butter.
To overcome this revenue argument
the dairvmen and farmers generally
will have to bring the strongest
pressure to bear on their representa-
tives. 1t is generally conceded here
that the present olemargarine law is
the only legislation that has been en- e,
acted in recent years directly in the
interest of the farmers
The fight of seven years ago was