The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-21
WHITE EOPPOSEDTO
 TAX ON FREIGHT Alabama Senator Points Out Inequality of Tax and
 Hardships on South

Washington, September 20.-(Specal.) )-ln anticipation of a fight in the Senate against the war tax measure. and in prep aration for any amendments which may be suggested, Senator White has fortified himself to combat any proposition for a tax on freight. From the first suggestion of this tax when the bill was under con sideration by the ways and means com mittee, Senator White has been strongly opposed to 1t, and this antagonism has in creased time has rolled on.
 Moreover it is understood that the pro- ject is not dead yet. but that efforts will be made in the Senate to galvanize 1t into very live issue. The very word lobby being taboo in Washington, it may be said that very strong influences have been at work to avoid a tax on gasoline and to reduce the proposed tax on beer. and some of these Influences" advocate strongly the tax on freight as originally proposed.
 Speaking on this subject today. Senator White said to the correspondent of The Age-Herald
 Tn fixing freight rates more considera- tion is given to the weight and size of , articles than to their value. In other words very much greater rate is inn posed on weighty and bulky articles in proportion to value than is imposed on smaller and higher-priced articles. In this way, great inequality results between the producers and consumers of different kinds of articles. Those producing or consuming the heavier and more bulky articles al To al proportion of the public burden.
 ''As the people of the south are pro- ducers and consumers of the heavier and more bulky articles. practically all of which have to be shipped they would be dfscriminated against if this tax were im- posed.
 ITO illustrate: The farmers of Alabama have to ship their entire cotton crop, in- cluding seed; they also have to ship their fertilizers. The coal producers ship their coal; the iron producers their coal lime rock and iron ore to their furnaces and many have to ship the coke as well; and in addition have to ship their pig iron to market. The producers and consumers of lumber and other building material would have to ship all that they produced and consumed The people of Alabama are large consumers of grain. foodstuffs and heavy clothing, large quantities of which would have to be shipped. Upon all these shipments our people would have had to pay this tax. For instance, on the cotton goods. fertilizers and products of iron consumed, they would have to pay the tax on shipping these articles to the manufacturer, we'll as the tax on the manufactured product returned to them for consumption, and thereby be made to pay tax twice on the same article
 ITO show the inequality have just men, tioned. the freight on carload of hats worth s24,000 from Boston to Birmingham would be s25o.. Seventy-fve bales of cot ton from Birmingham to Boston, worth only S2500, would pay the same amount of freight.
 "A greater discrepancy is shown when the freight on hats and other high priced and lightweight articles are compared with pig iron and coal. The freight charge on carload of pig iron from Birming- ham to Boston, worth approximately $400 would be equal to about one-half of the freight charge on $24000 worth of hats or similar articles; and still a greater dis CT epancy than this would appear when the comparison is made between coal and lumber and these finer articles.
 This tax would not only be discrimina- tory against the south and west but there would be worse discrimination as between the poor and rich of the country, in that Ire heavier and weightier articles furnish the prime. necessities of life, which the poor are compelled to consume, as they cannot freeze or starve; whereas. the rich could postpone purchasing their luxuries until the war tax was repealed. For these req sons, with many others. this tax would be very unpopular and would cause such a revolution in public sentiment as t1 drive the country back to a prohibitive, protective tariff. from which the present Congress has relieved the people. "The taxation of freight at this time would be inopportune. owing to the general depression in business. It's tendency would be to discourage investments to check enterprise and in this way retard the development of the country, especially in Alabama.
 "For these reasons, as well as others not necessarily mentioned, am op- posed to this feature of the bill and have stated that I would oppose it's passa ge in the Senate if it ever reaches that