Grand Forks daily herald., 1914-12-10
FINANCIAL CALAMITY
NARROWLY AVfRTfD
.(Continued from Page H.

-, .{Continued from Page 1.)
lfeved to have had a beneficial effect
! upon the situation"
Mr.. McAdoo's report is devoted
largely to u review of the activities OF
his department for the fiscal year
ending on June 80. before the war be-
gam but he included. detailed state.
ments of the treasury's participation
III various postwar problems.
Extend Revenue Tax.
The secretary makes several recon-
,nendations. He suggests to congress
that the war revenue tax law should
not expire December 81. 1915, but
that its operation should be extended
until the end of the European war
by proclamation of the president.
Discussing the income tax law the
secretary advocates change in the
law so that persons having gross in
come of $4,000 be, required to make
return instead Of those persons with
a net income of that amount or over
Such an amendment he says
would simplify the administration of
the law, assure more complete re-
turns and materially increase the in
come tax revenue, and save an i'm
mense amount of expense to which
the government is now subjected in
/
spectors and investigators to hunt out
the people who have failed to make
returns" He recommends also the
repeal of the provision by which tax
es do not accrue until ten days after
the close of the fiscal year and would
make them accrue July / each year.
Income Tax.
Although the law did not produce
the. revenue expected, the secretary
says, it has proved satisfactory and
explains the administration of law
of that charact has many obstacles
to overcome at the outset and that
folk are unaccustomed and must be
educated to it.
Taking the tables of returns Mr..
McAdoo infers that there must be
many who failed to pay the tax.
Thousands Fail.
ut is clear" says he, that there
were thousands of persons who failed
altogether to make a return as re-
quired by law. The remedy for this,
Of course. is to have the collectors OF
internal revenue in each district make
an assessment upon those, who. in the
opinion of the collector are liable to
the tax, and in addition, to make such
investigations as may be necessary to
determine who in each district have
failed to make proper returns. The
experience Of the department shows
that many erroneous and faulty re
turns have been made" The work of
discovering such cases, he adds, is be.
ing pushed forward with all possible
rapidity.
The collection of revenue for the
fiscal year ended June 80, 1914" says
Mr.. McAdoo. SHOW the success Of the
tariff act of Oct. 8. 1913. as a revenue
measure He goes on to show that
this act was estimated as the producer
Of 3270,000,oo0 in it's first year ana
that there was actually collected
$292.320,0 0,014. That, however, includ-
ed nine months under the new law and
three months under the Payne-Aldrich
law. He shows that the total raised
under the new law with its corpora
ton and income tax features was
$363.7O1.2s9 or s9,803,593 in excess
Of the previous years receipts under
the preceding revenue measure.
Revenues Affected.
THE European war" said the Sec
retary. seriously affected tthe rev.
enues Of the government from I'M
ports. The revenue from customs for
October 1914. was $16,271.s29 and for
October, 1913, it was $3O,13S,O49, a
decrease Of $13.866.220. The reduc-
ton. is solely due to the falling of in
importations. The estimate made by
the department indicated a yearly de-
crease Of between $4,000. 900 and
$100, 100000. It Il. obvious that these
estimates cannot be accurate. as no
one can forecast the course Oft events
while the titanic struggle in Europe is
In progress. To keep the treasury in
strong condition in these abnormal
times was obviously the first duty of
the hour. Upon 1t largely depended
the safety of business and finance In
this country" 4 e. t.s,s. y
Consolidate Service.
Mr.. McAdoo again recommends TO