The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1915-03-14

| When the rector of the richest church in
America declares that divorce is the shameful
luxury of the rich and well-to-do" we are all in.
clined to accept the statement as true. DR.. Man
ming may have personal knowledge bearing on the
question in New York, but Federal statistics from
two important sources show some curious discrcp-
ancies between riches and divorce if the rector's
position is correct. One purpose behind the Fed
eral income tax was to locate the wealth of the
people, to find out the truth regarding the tabled
incomes of the rich. The friend of the Door man
was disappointed in the amount OF the income tax.
but not as to the geographical distribution OF the
wealth which produced incomes Nearly onc-half
of it was in the Empire State of New York and
the bulk of that one-half in Greater New York.
Nearly two-thirds OF the total income tax was
collected in New York. Massachusetts, Rhode Is
land, Connecticut, New Jersey and PENNSYLVANIA,
and that bears out the theory that there are more
rich people with big incomes in that section than
in the rest OF the country While the people of
New York paid $I2, 100000 tax on their incomes.
the people of Kansas paid $4,000 those of Arkan-
sas $4,000, those OF North Dakota $4,000 those
OF Arizona $4,000, those of Maine $4,000 those of
Nebraska $4,000 those OF Oklahoma $4,000 and
those OF Iowa $I4Iyooo The income tax paid in
New lork amounted to SI.4o per capita for the
whole population; that paid in the District OF
Columbia amounted to IS cents per capita and that
paid IN Kansas to and one-half cents per capita
of population. II all the people with taxable in
comes made correct returns, the rich and the we'll
TODD people live in the East and not in the West
or South where they virtuous if not happy
Here is where the discrepancy appears The
census statistics marriage and divorce show
that wicked New York and New Jersey have an
average OF 90 divorces for 100000 married popu-
,I,o Il
Oregon 1903. Oklahoma $40 Idaho S4z Arizona ria
Arkansas 800. Kansas 80, Maine 81, Indiana S55
Iowa 40, Mississippi rs, North Dakota 10 Utah
-. OF the States where the rich and well-to-d
people live Rhode Island Ohio and Illinois are the
only States which show as high divorce rate as
do the rural States which made small returns for
the income tax. Rhode Island had rate OF ISL
Ohio 23I, and Illinois 267. Pennsylvania had o.
Connecticut I3o Maryland ia and the District OF
Columbia I6c.
Ii the census figures correct the poor
people OF Colorado INDUCED in the shameful
luxury OF divorce nearly seven times often as
did the rich and well-to-do people OF New York.
and the superatively good people OF Kansas, Ne
braska, Arkansas, and Oklahoma enjoyed that
luxury from Jour to six times Is often. Even
Utah, with its Mormon population beat New York
more than Jour to in the divorce record
" cked and rich California had little than
half the divorce OF Washington and Oregon
and even Nevada. supposed to be the head center
of divorce courts, fell below the rate OF those two
great States where reforms blossom a. do the
roses
1t DR.. Manning demonstrate that divorce
is the luxury OF the rich and well-to do the Treas
ury experts should begin an investigation to find
out why lot OF rich people in the rural West
have made no returns their incomes. 1t is pos
slblc however, that Dr. Manning docs not know
the poor people as we'll as he does his rich parish
toner's, or that the luxury OF divorce" is no longer
a luxury 1t appears to have become staple pro-
duct, mores the pity.