Lower coast gazette., 1910-03-19
The Rockefeller Foundation.

The long arms of the Standard Oil octopus
are reaching out and apparently endeavoring to
capture the whole United States right at it's
center. The little District of Columbia, OF the
Federal District, some ten miles square, is under
the direct control of congress and, if we relnem-
Der correctly, it has been largely exempt from
direct taxation and only paid it's indirect taxes
on the spirits and tobacco it consumed and
through the excise taxes on these commodities
and through any other federal excise taxes. 1t
is now proposed by John d. Rockefeller and his
associates to organize the Rockefeller Founda-
talon in Washington, to take over some I'M
stated amount of his wealth, to be held by a
self perpetuating board in trust for benevolent
and scientific purposes, with the understanding
that this wealth shall be free of all taxation.
In this way there is apparently indicated an
effort to escape taxation by Incorporating di-
rectly in the Federal District.
AS We understand / it, the citizens Of the Fed
eral District have no voice in the administration
OF their own government, that function being
assumed by congress, other methods having al
ready failed. On the other hand the citizens OF
the District of Columbia are citizens of the United
States and would have all the rights of the citi-
zens of the United States in any of the indi-
vidual states that they might visit. The pro-
posed great corporation, the Rockefeller Foun-
dation, Would in that sense have all the rights
in any of the states of the Union that the citi-
zens Of the District Of Columbia would have in
the various states.
If this proposed corporation have one or two
hundred millions OF dollars in its hands, in order
to carry on its work it will be necessary to have
these immense sums invested. With the invest
ment of any money there comes always a cor
responding degree of influence in the commune
ty in which the investors are domiciled. The
Bank OF England has an immense amount of in
fuence in England and yet it's total capital
would hardly equal the Rockefeller estate. This
will give an idea of how insidiously the attempt
is making to escape taxation and to preserve
practically ~inviolate the enormous estate got to-
gether by the predatory measures of Rockefel-
icy anG his associates.
1t is suggested even now that some haste is
being manifested in getting the necessary bill
through congress to effect the proposed incor-
p%oration and that it is done for the purpose of
avoiding the death taxes that would attach in
New York and elsewhere in the event of the
death of Mr.. Rockefeller, all of which taxation
it is proposed to avoid if possible. The high
moral purpose indicated in the words ''beneyo-
lent and scientific without any explanation
thus far whatever, would seem likely to conceal
an attempt on a large scale to avoid taxation
that others have quietly submitted to.
1t is now proposed in New York to merge
the two great banks, the Bank Of Commerce,
behind Which for years has stood Thomas F.
Ryan, the man who owns the Equitable Life In
Co., ard the City Bank, which is as
to be the Rockefeller bank. These two
establishments, with fifty millions Of dollars at
the New York end of the lire, cooperating with
the benevolent and scientific hundred or more
millions located in Washington and free of tax
alton, would present to us a financial situation
without precedent in ancient or modern times,
and we shall hope that our congress will handle
with. extreme care this whole problem and en-
leavor to solve some of it's concealed mysteries
before taking any final action.