The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1912-03-26
WASHINGTON LETTER.
BY c. H. Tavenner.

wealthy? Are the people suffi-
GENTLY in cinlrol to accomplish
this end?
These questions are being
asked everywhere. The Status
of the situation is this:
The Democratic House, in
keeping with it's promise to re
duce the cost of living, wi ii at
this session pass a bill repeating
the $53, 600, 900 annual tax on
sugar, reducing the price of this
commodity to the consumer near
ly 2 cents pound. Then anoth-
er bill will be passed taxing in
comes in excess of SIS, 900.
The bills will go to a Republi-
can senate. If the progressive
republicans vote with the Demo-
Gratis, both bills will pass tie
upper body.
The fate of the two measures
will then rest with the President.
If Mr.. Taft accepts the advice of
those about him, who were de-
scribed by the late Senator Doll
yer as being "men who know ex-
actly what they want" he will
veto the bills.
Protectionists oppose an IT,
come tax for two reasons: l.
They are rich as a class and like
other humans have no desire to
pay more taxes than necessary.
2. Protectionists know that if
this country gets into the habit
of raising revenue by taxing
wealth instead Of tie things the
people must have in order to live,
the tariff will be reduced on
those commodities in which they
now have monopolies. If the
tariff trusts, such as the steel
trust, the sugar trust and the
wco!en trust, are not allowed to
dictate what the people must pay
for their products, the enormous
dividends they are now draw ing
down on stock that is watcred
until it is soggy, will be inter-
fered with. Therefore protec-
tionists fear an income tax as
they would a plague.
BREAKING AWAY FROM TRADITION.
The great Importance of the
democratic program providing
for the substitute Of a tax or in
comes above $4,000 for the tax
on sugar, is that it breaks away
from the tradition that the gov
ernment's expenses must be paid
wholly with funds derived from
a tax on the things the people
eat, wear or use, to be collected
through customs houses and in
ternal revenue Offices. This ira
dition is responsible for wealth
not bearing its just proportion of
the burden Of federal taxation in
this country. 1t is the same ira
dition which has been response
bic for so many tariff outrages
through so many years. Re-
gardless Ct whether the BIZ is
vetoed by President Taft, there
is little question that the Demo
Gratis have opened the way for
its enactment when some other
man is President of the United
States.
HERE IS REAL HUMoR.
Those millionaire wooden trust
magnates at Lawrence, Mass,
are nothing if not humorous.
AS evidence Of their humor
witness pay envelope No. 1907,
issued to Lawrence mill work
err. On the back of this envel-
ope, solemnly put there by the
Broadway Savings Bank, a wool
en- trust institution, was this adj
wise:
DO NOT sPENDALL YOUR INCOME.
Now for the wooden trust joke!
Just opposite this fatherly advice
were the figures $6.05. This was
the workers full weeks pa.
buy A HoMEl" was the adj
vice TO another employee, on the
edge Of whose pay envelope was
written$2. After you have
paid the grocery bill for your
family of five or six" suggests
the tatherly wooden trusts to its
employees, and bought some
coal, and paid the landlord his