Evening star., 1916-12-12
INTANGIBLE PROPERTY
TELAW CONDEMNED
Members of Northeast Washington
Citizens Association Suggest
Amendments to the Act.
Suggestion Made That Minimum
$. Amount of Bank Account Liable
3 Be $4,000 Instead of $500.

tax upon intangible personal property
twas heard at a largely attended meet
ing of the Northeast Washington Citi-
:. zens' Association held last night at
Northeast Temple. Most members of
1.-THE association favored a motion to
{; ask the repeal of the entire law, but
Evan H. Tucker, president: w. S. Bran
som and others expressed the belief
that such a thing would be impossible
1T was suggested that the minimum
amount of bank account to be taxed
should be fixed at $1,000 instead of
$500.
:; Under the provisions of the new law.
said President Tucker, all real estate
;mortgages will be taxed. The eXecu-
tive committee, he stated, discussed
the question and took the position that
the imposition of such tax would mean
double taxation and it all falls upon
f, the borrower. The law not only re-
'quires him to pay taxes, ne adoed. put
makes him pay on the the money nom ;hnoss ne o~es
double taxation" said Mr.. Tucker, but
1t is class legislation. 1t excludes the
rich and places the burden upon the
poor"
Its merely an offset to the proposed
increase of pay the clerks expect to
get" was w. ]. Lang's comment
Proposes Request for Repeal.
W. S Bransom presented a motion
asking Congress to remove the law
: from the statute books. He said the
tax. especially as it applies to mort
cages and deeds of trust on real es-
tate, will impose a great burden of
= hardship and grave injustice upon a
!. great number of heads of families who
are trying to acquire homes on the
monthly payment plan.
whats the necessity for this double
.taxation?" asked DR.. L. d. Walter.
Has not the District a surplus in the
treasury
President Tucker explained that the
:. law was passed because many persons
had come here from other states to es-
i.cape being taxed Leon Shore sug-
Rested that the imposition of the tax
. will drive some of the financial busi-
mess of the District to nearby states.
x" 1T already has driven me to Mary
land said Mr.. Branson.
Roscoe Jenkins suggested that the
measure was intended to drive some
taxpayers back to their respective
states. He hoped the hearts of the
Legislators would be touched to the ex-
tent of removing the $500 minimum
: amount to be taxed in order to remove
THE burden from so many poor people.
-. Prof. Percival Hall. Burton 7. Doyle.
Hugh A Kane and others discussed
:, the resolution and il was adopted with
raoul q OiSSSNtluS VOTE
Wants Small Salaries Raised First.
-, James NJ. Wood presented a resolu-
tion protesting against the increase of
thigh salaries until the small salaried
.semployes of the government are given
"a living wage. He said he had been
ssunable to find in the estimates or ap-
measures any suggestion
mi an increase for the persons who are
and who are receiving what
g.he termed starvation wages.
'..,''1t is time for the association to op-
pose increases for the fairly well paid
employees until the starvation wages
--are increased" he said. His resolution
prevailed.
e Burton 7. Doyle paid a high tribute
n,t0 the teaching force of the public
schools and presented a resolution rec
a0mmending an increase in their pay
He said:
- - NO other class of public servants
lis more deserving of a substantial in
grease of salaries than these are. Es-
specially is this true of our public
school teachers. They are not only
isGhockingly underpaid, but they are the
ASery public servants who come closest
10 the homes of our own citizens. They
a.have to live under the same condf-
MONS and to deal in the same high
markets which have aroused the con-
S'cern of our people in behalf of the
,:sIkoStrHneNt Clerks, ana they surely
are entitled to, and deserving of, at
least as much consideration at the
Hands of Congress"
The resolution was adopted
~
x Case of Police Telephone Operators.
-. -, DR.. L. D. Walter presented a resolu-
.tion asking for an increase in the pay
=ef six telephone operators who labor
at police headquarters. They are in
charge Of what is known as the CEN
tral bureau, he said. and their work
lis a par with that of fifteen-hun-
&dred- dollar clerks in the District build
ing.
-. 1T is not merely matter of send
Ling and receiving telephone message %
t1he said. but these men, most of them
-1nen of families, are required to han
ole much of the important business OF
the department. and il can only be
handled by men of intelligence. They
work all hours of the day and night
and it frequently is due to their in
-st<lligent work that people are given
prompt assistance in times or emer-
gency"
q. DIR. Walter said all he was asking
was for an Increase to sum that will
enable the operators to live His mo-
.tion was given d unanimous indorse-
ment. DR.. Walter also entered a Wig