The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1916-05-29
BY Basil M. Manly

dictionary New York papers, the
World for example, are greatly
exercised over my charges regard
ing the enormous size of the in
come tax frauds. They admit
that there are great frauds, but
they simply can't believe that
their plutocratic friends are as
successful tax dodgers as my in
lvestigation shows.
They are apparently particu-
larly annoyed by my proof that
the aggregate income of the peo-
pie of the United States in 1914
was SAC, 100000 and that
about $21,000,000,0 900 goes to the
propert owners.
No evidence Is offered that my
figures are wrong. They simply
state that they are not correct,
and, of course, that ends it.
Countries Compared.
III One of the surest ways to test
such figures, which are necessar-
lily only approximate, is by COM
parison with other countries.
Let us take Great Britain, for
example. Sir George Paish. one
of the conservative economic au-
thorities of England, has esti-
mated the national income of
Great Britain just before the war
at $12,0O0,O0O,O00.
The income of the United States
according to my calculations for
the same period is therefore lit
tie less than four times as large
as that of Great Britain.
This is startling contrast un-
til we remember that the popula-
ton of the United States is more
than twice that of Great Britain
, and that the AVERAGE income
of American citizens. from top t.
bottom, Is nearly twice as great
Fortunes Smaller.
American workmen's wages II
TERMS OF MONEY are abou
twice as high as the wages o
British workers, and American
employers and property owners
incomes are proportionately great
Even In the realms of great for
tunes, our American millionaire
incomes overtop the British plu
tocracy by an even greater mar
Igin.
This can he demonstrated
by a comparison of the estates
appraised at death in New
York and Great Britain.
| will show this in a later
article as soon as l obtain
certain information from the
British authorities.
The general situation is,
however, sufficiently indicate
cd by the fact that i'm the four
years ending with 1914 there
was no British estate half as
great as the estates left by
either l.. Y. Hardness OF &.
W. Hardness, both of whom
are comparatively unknown.
and both of whom have died
within the past ~ months.
No British fortune that has
ever been prObated is ONE
ROURTH AS GREAT AS
THE KNOWN HOLDINGS
OF JOHN ID. ROCKEFEL-
d LER IN STANDARD OIL
e ALONE.
Il The statement that the wage
of American workmen IN TERM
: OF MONEY are nearly twice a
l. high as those of British workme
does not mean that America
workmen are twice as comforta
BILE, twice as prosperous as tn
British; but simply that TIL
amount of coin that passe
l. through their hands in the form
of wages has twice the actua
monetary value.
On Inflated Prices.
But we Americans, even befor
the war. were living on an artifi
cial level of inflated prices, s.
that $3.50 In America would bu
only as much as 81 would buy II
England. In actual ability to bu
food, clothing, and the things tina
make life worth living, therefore
American workers were onl
ONE-THIRD better off than TIL
British.
This comparison applies only T.
the COMMON PEOPLE of the tw
countries. This inflated level o
prices did not affect our pluto
cracy, except for their limited eS
penditure at home. In pleasur
purchase before the war, an Amer
lean dollar in Paris bought jus
as much as four English shilling
and the American millionaire
had twice as much money as tn
British millionaires.
Where Danger Lies.
The same was true in foreign
trade and. in the purchase of tn
securities of all countries, wher
our American capitalists met TIL
British.
| Tho hioh nrina level which bal