The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1915-02-20

in the present deficiency?
Nov, this is statement of
facts, and the war tax measure is
soon to expire. so that the fifty-four
millions yield for 1915 will shortly
disappear, and the eighty millions de.
f1elt must, consequently, be increased
by that sum in the near future.
"On the LIST of May, 1916, unless
my resolution shall become law,
practically S52,000,0O0 more now de-
rived from the sugar duty must be
also added to the present deficiency.
ITO summarize, should the same
deficiency occur in 1916 as is pend
ing now, there will be added to the
eightymillion deficiency the further
deficiencies due to the expiration of
the war-tax law, yielding fifty-four
millions, and a still further deficiency
after May, 1916, of fifty-two more
millions derived from the sugar duty
This situation is appalling 1t
can not be shirked; it must be met.
And the question is how are we to
1fe&t it? There are several ways IA
which it can be done The simplest,
but probably the most obnoxious,
would be to issue bonds; another
would be to re-enact the War-tax act
in times of profound peace, when
possibly Europe itself will be at
peace, and increase that tax; anoth-
er still would be to readjust the, in
come S by decreasing thasoaemp-
tion and Increasing the rate; or,
again, to revert back to the old
practice of collecting money from a
duty On sugar.
and why should not the last
named course be followed? The re-
finers told congress, and congress be-
lIeved the refiners, that If the duty
on sugar was reduced, the consumer
would receive the advantage of the
reduction On March /, 1914, con-
gress reduced the then existing duty
by 25 per cent; and for not a sim
gle moment from that day to this
has the consumer paid as little
money for his sugar as he paid be-
fore the reduction. He is now pay
ing practically twice as much as he
did before the reduction.
'sThe American consumer and the
United States treasury beth have
suffered from the reduction; and the
only beneficiary has been the refin-
er, commonly known as the sugar
trust, which has absorbed the entire
reduction and multiplied the price
of sugar to the consumer.
Under the old rate, which went
out On the 1st of March by virtue
of the Underwood BILL the treasury
Of the United States would have
collected to date more than fifty
eight millions in duty instead of
forty-three millions. SO that the su-
gar trust has absorbed in the ten
months since the reduction was made
nearly lh,000. .0o0. At this rate, by
the end of II months, as the result
of this 25 per cent reduction, fully
eighteen millions viii have been abb
sorbed by the trust and will have
been lost to the treasury. ~
"All understand that the sugar
trust is again engaged in it's old
practice of deceiVing the public,
and, in this instance, it asserts that
the high price of sugar is due to the
European war That is not true. 1t
is merely subterfuge resorted to
by the trust to deceive the Amer
lean public while it is engaged in alb
sorbing the tariff reduction, which it
had promised the American consum-
er should receive.
II make this statement for the rea-
son that at this very hour the refin-
ers of the country are engaged, on
the American market, in selling su-
gar to Europeans for consumption in
Europe at a lower price than the
same sugar is being sold by them, on
the same market, to the American
consumer
s'The war could not lift the price
of sugar in the United States, at
peace with all the world, when sold
to an American consumer, and not
raise it equally to an European, en-
gagged in this same war. Yet this
war, far from our shores, is invoked
as a reason to lift sugar prices to
American consumers beyond the
price charged Europeans.
'.To puteane question squasass1y to
congress- and the American people,
I ask: Shall we indefinitely suss
pend all expenditures for the i'm
provement of our rivers and harbors
and the construction of necessary
public buildings? And shall We re-
enact the war tax and increase its
burdens? And shall we reduce the
exemption clause of the income tag
andefncrease the tax itself to meet
this deficiency? Or shall we issue
bonds in preference to all this? Or
shall we, as | suggest, return to
the time-honored system Of collect
ing taxes on articles that can bear
the duty, particularly when the re-
mission of the duty does not cheaper
their price to the consumer, as is
the case with sugar?
Congress must soon answer these
questions.
w. S. Parkerson Commits Suicide.
w. S. Parkerson, one of the best
known and most prominent lawyers
in New Orleans, tried to commit sui
eide by cutting his throat with
pocketknife in a fishing clubhouse
at North Shore, st. Tammany par
ish, the morning of Feb. 10. While
the attempt was not Immediately sue
cessful, it resulted in Mr.. Patterson s
death last Sunday morning at the
Touro Tnfirmary in New Orleans, an
oedema of the lungs having develop
ed as a direct consequence of the
seif-inflicted wound The act is
attributed to melancholia resulting
from the death Of his only daugh-
ter, Miss Mary s. Parkerson, who
was accidentally asphyxiated in the
bathroom of the family residence
last October Mr.. Parkerson was