The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1913-09-11
ABUSE OF THE INCOME TAX.

Stltutlonal amendment had been ratl-
| fed which allows of the unlimited i'm
| position of tax upon incomes. The
| argument for that amendment was that
the needs of the United States in some
great emergency might positively re-
quire the imposition Of an income tax
There was never even a hint during
the whole Of the campaign for the In
| come tax that that form of taxation
was to be made an ordinary means Of
| revenue; but always it was consid-
cred as reserve for emergency needs,
and always it was argued that the
government might find relief in such
straits, in some great crisis; or by reason
of its inability to impose an income
tax, that its arm might be paralyzed
and the country seriously imperiled by
reason Of its inability to impose such
tax; especially as that sort Of tax is
among the best approved methods Of
raising extraordinary revenues in Eu-
| ropean states. But the European states
are all in constant extremities for reve-
nue.. The United States is not sup.
posed ordinarily to be in extremity at
all; but to be able to pay its current
expenses without much trouble and
without any extraordinary or harsh call
| upon the people Therefore; the income
tax was to be latent resource, negli-
gible in ordinary times, but to be i'm
posed when great need existed.
But there is no such need at the
present time. The excuse for the i'm
position Of this tax is merely one Of
partisan politics and partisan political
methods. An artificial deficit is to
be created for partisan ends. through
the removal Of custom duties and the
I-enormous extension Of the free list.
This extension is commonly expected
to be injurious to the sugar industries
Of this country, to wool growing, and
/ to other forms OF industry 1t Will
undoubtedly depress the price Of wool I;
in fact, it Has already done so. The
oretically, it will also depress the price
| Of sugar, but in our opinion it will
not be actually. so because Of the com
mercial combines which control the
markets and which are pretty certain
to keep up the price of sugar to the
ultimate consumer on about the same
basis as heretofore But the govern
| ment will lose the money. Some S70,-
100000 will be pocl1eted by the sugar
combine that has heretofore gone yearly
into the public treasury. And so we
do not see any opposition on the part
Of the great sugar manufacturers
on the Eastern coast and those
in control of the sugar combines against
| putting sugar on the free list Tt is
only the producers Of sugar who make
the complaint against this raid against
the sugar industries in this country.
Those in control Of the markets will
| get enormous profits out Of the political
| deal
But since the emergency in the name
Of which the sugar tariff is to be re-
moved is entirely artificial, the reasons
for tho imposition Of the income tax
are also artificial and partisan, The
methods Of imposing the tax are also
Illogical and unreasonable. The argu-
ments IN favor OF the different fca-
| lures OF the measure as it stands are
also unreasouing and unfair. The propo-
sition to increase the rate Of tax levied
upon incomes of high order is that
thereby the interest in the government
of the persons thus taxed will grow
according to the amount of tax they
pay It is quite conceivable, however,
that the reverse will be the case; il
will not be. interest in the government
that will increase, hut hatred OF the
law. Tho same plea was urged BY Sen
ator Lodge OF Massachusetts in favor
OF reducing the limit of exemption of
tax TO $1,000 year. That is, he would
tax the income OF every ono whose re-
ceipts wero above $1,000 year. This
also, he urged, was TO increase the
interest of such persons in the govern
ment. His argument was that interest
in the government follows the lines Of
taxation; that the person who pays no
taxes at all has no interest in the
government; those who pay but little
taxes, have little interest, while those
! ingly great interest in governmental af.
| fairs. But IT is certain that the aver
age man would prefer to be in the list
with those who take the least interest
in governmental affairs and correspond
lingly escape taxation by reason Of that
smallness of interest Taxpayers arc
disposed very gladly.to conccde TO thco-
rists that they don't take much interest
in the government. If by that conces-
sion they can make their taxation light.
The trouble with them, as rule, is.
however, that this concession does not
tighten taxation, though they arc
obliged, even against their consent, to
be supposed TO take larger interest
in the government, br reason of the
larger taxes they pay.
The Tribune gave yesterday morning