The Washington herald., 1916-01-15
District as a Revenue Producer.

Has the District rights which Congress will
Irespeeti Money sounts even with a Democratic
Congress when there is deficit in the Treasury
and Senators and Representatives are looking for
more revenues without laying new taxes which
will bring shower of bricks from their constitu-
ents. Statesmen from the South and West have
long worried as to how they can make the Dis
trict pay more taxes than under the old half-and-
half plan. But il they will consult the report of
the Commissioner of Internal Revenue they will
discover that the District, aside from paying taxes
to maintain its own local government, has done
better in contributing to the support OF the Fed
eral government than many of the States For
instance, there were twenty-one great sovereign
States with their Senators and Representatives
in Congress, of which paid as much internal
revenue did the District of Columbia last year.
These States Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona,
Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Maine, Missis-
Isippi, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New
Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma. Oregon, South
Carolina. South Dakota, Utah. Vermont and Wy
oming. These States have great leaders in both
Houses of Congress who are just now considering
revenue problems, and, be it remembered, that
last year two-thirds of the total revenues of the
Revenue Bureau; but no one of the twenty-onc
States named contributed as much toward the sup
port of the national government as did the Dis
trct of Columbia.
There iu the sunny Southland, where they are
asking for appropriation of 100000 from Con-
gress to destroy the citrous canker are the three
great States of Alabama, Mississippi and South
Carolina, which together paid SI,33s,57S internal
revenue, while the little District of Columbia with
less than one-tenth of their population, paid
SI,438,o2S 100000 more than that great triun-
yirate whose statesmen are so conspicuous in Con-
gress. -
Then there are Georgia and Arkansas-and
who does not know the statesmen of those two
great Southern States-but their 100000 people
last year paid sI435,ss5 5000 less than those
of the District.
- North and South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming,
also have great leaders in Congress to represent
the 100000 people out there in the Northwest
but those four States paid only SI,33I,3oo, or
5000 less than the District.
We should not overlook those great and pros
porous States of the Southwest, where statesmen
develop rapidly their fields of alfalfa and
knows about Oklahoma, Arizona, New Mexico and
Nevada were 100000 people paid SI25I,So3 or
nearly 100000 less than the District to support
the Federal government and enable it to irrigate
arid lands, kill grasshoppers and chnch bugs and
conserve oil lands for future generations
But should not overlook Kansas, which has
been bleeding and boasting for these past three
score years, and Idaho where they have springs
which spout both hot and cold water at the same
time, and where they grow apples in gold dust
as well as breed statesmen who can toss apples
of gold and silver in speech to intoxicate even
the sober Senate with their eloquence Well
Kansas and Idaho together paid SI,3oo872 internal
revenue or $4,000 less than the District
These FIVE groups of States are represented in
Congress by men of more profound knowledge
as to taxes and revenue, imbued with the spirit
of just equality to all mankind who know lust
how to appropriate public money for the benefit
of the whole people-in their sections-than any
other statesmen the country has produced They
are looking for more revenue and, begging their
pardon, We present to them Uncle Sans Little
Orphant Annie who has had no representative in
either House of Congress but continues to paw
a bigger share of their bill than they pay them
selves.