New-York tribune., 1909-06-15
WAIVE TINE LIMIT
ON CORPORATION TAX
SENATE LEADERS MAKE
CONCESSIONS.
One to President and One to AdUo-
Gates of Income Tar-C0nstitu-
tiOHaI amendment Proposed.
From M Trfbuns Burss1-1

from Tribune Bureau
Washington. June 1.-THE Senate leaders
have made another concession to the President.
| and have agreed to waive the time limit they
had determined to attach to Mr. Taft's PROPOSE
ton to impose per cent tax on the net earn
/ ingS of corporations As a concession to the
advocates of the income tax they viii also en-
body in their amendment provision for a con-
stitutional amendment authorizing Congress to
| impose tax individual incomes. Such an
| amendment viii require the approval Of three
fourths of the states before it can become enec-
tive OF course the Republican leaders fncIud-
| ing the President, do not believe that such ap-
provaI will be given by so large a majority OF
the states
| Early in the day Mr.. Aldrich undertook a
personal canvass to ascertain the prospect Of
| obtaining a majority vote for the corporation
tax which IL is pUrpOsed to report from the
Finance Committee He found that if the co..
| lection of such tax limited to two years
and the amendment failed to make provision
| for the proposed constitutional amendment. II
would be impossible 10 obtain its adoption in
| preference 10 the income tax amendment OF
| Messrs- Cummins and Bailey. After further
| consultation with the President he determined
to waive the two-year limitation and he also
| finally decided to add the constitutional amend
ment provision TO the Finance COMMITTEES
amendment Having reached this decision he
| repeated his canvass and satisfied himself that
| such an amendment would be adopted in pref
| erence to the Cummins- Bailey proposition II
| is now estimated that instead of being three
votes short. the leaders will have at least three
more than majority
| THOUGHT OF SPECIAL MESSAGE.
The President, at the suggestion OF the Re-
| publican leaders. is urging the adoption Of his
/ proposition on individual members Of the Sem
1 nd has of y-arra f9
/ plan which. because of the federal supervision
4 Of corporate transactions it entails appeals
| strongly to many Of the men who have been
| known as insurgents The President stands
! ready should there be any change Of sentiment.
| to send special message to Congress urging
! the adoption Of the tax on the net earnings OF
| the corporations. but the friends of the plan
now predict that no such step will be necessary
It is learned that the President had purpOsed
| 10 include in his annual message earnest rec
| ommendatfon for a system OF federal super
visior Of the transactions of corporations. uota-
| bly, their issues Of stocks and bonds. together
with a small revenue tax their profits; and.
! furthermore, that he had purposed TO urge Sen
ator AIdrich either to embody these provisions
in the financial bill TO be reported from the
Monetary Commission next winter. at least
| to press the two measures as coordinate lesis-
| lation. to stand or fall together. The situation
|
come tax movement. therefore. impressed him
/ as the psychological moment to urge that fed
I eraI supervision OF the transactions Of the cor
! porations which he deems essential and also to
| do so by imposing excise tax on their net
i earnings
| The leaders now speak with the utmost con-
| fdence of their ability to add the Taft PROPOSE
| ton 10 the tariff bill While heretofore they
have expressed the belief that they would be
I --gs
| so with the apparent conviction which now
| charaCterizes their predictions They also ex-
/ press the conviction that result of the in
| fuence of the President they will encounter
! difficulty in inducing the Conferrees OF the
House to recede from their tax on inheritances
| and TO adopt the tax the net earnings of
| corporations in lieu thereof Even those Repu5-
| ncan wheel horses Of the organization who have
| been seriously opposed to the Taft proposition
| give indications of willingness to support It
| when Mr. AIdrich tells them it is a case Of
taking the Taft proposition or getting tax
| individual incomes
/ MIR TAFTS SKILFUL TACTICS.
| Some OF the members Of the Senate are frank
| TO say that they are beginning TO appreciats
/ that they have in the White House a politician
| of more than ordinary ability. possibly of no
\ less determination and skill than Mr. Rooss-
| velt They say that Mr.. Taft has handled this
| subject with mastery a6lHJys tnaC Wiiie ne HdS
given no encoura cement to the insurgents he
| has nut no obstacle in their way; that he has
| avoided mourning any criticism OF the press
that he was exceeding his constitutional preroS-
atfves while his attitude has encouraged the
/ press to critfcise the Senate tariff bill PRO-
ducing too little revenue. Biding his time. the
| President has waited until the Senate leaders
we're Obliged to go to him for assistance TO de-
feat the income tax. and he has adroitly guided
them into a position where their only recourse
/ is to enact a substitute which is only in a de-
gree less Objectionable to many Of them than
| the Cumrnins- Bailey proposition
Altogether many Senators say that Mr. Taft
| has demonstrated skill IN the game Of eco
nouic politics which has raised him to a COM
manding position in their opinion Some OF
them are now wondering how far he will play
an equally sxilfuI game in obtaining the enact
uent of other measures for which he is under
| stood to stand and several predict that ths
| present President of the United States VII
prove as successful in obtaining legislation from
| Congress as was his predecessor-possioly eysn
more so.