The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-08-08
}. O., "WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 8, 1917.
FAv0RS WELL-TO-DO.
kITCHNN DECLARES SENATE COM.
MITTEE HAS WRITTEN INTOL-
ERABLE INEQUALITIES IN
THE BILL.
He Says Burden Has Been Shifted
From Big Concerns to Small Men.

Washington, Aug. 3.-Chairman
Kitchin, of the house ways and means
committee, declared in a statement
tonight that intolerable inequalities in
favor of the more prosperous have
been written into the war tax bill by
the senate finance committee.
In rewriting the ways and means
committees measure, said Mr.. Kitchin,
the senators have taken an enormous
load of taxation from the big busi-
ness concerns and placed it upon the
business man and others having mod
est incomes; have stricken out by
wholesale the house proposals for
taxes on luxuries, submitting levies
ON necessities; have eliminated income
tax schedules that would have taken
needed millions from the incomes of
the rich; and have added a grossly
inequitable excess profits section
which is impossible Of administration.
The statement of the house leader
generally was accepted as a warning
that should the finance committee
amendments prevail in the senate,
they will encounter a stubborn resist
ance once the measure gets to con-
ference.
Among Mr.. Kitchin's criticism are
that the finance committee struck out
the Lenroot amendment increasing
surtaxes on incomes Of $4,000 to
81 100000. thus relieving large in
comes Of taxation totalling $66, 900, 900
annually; repealed the munition man.
ufacturers' tax, relieving munitions
makers Of more than $25,0OO,OOO a
year; exempted all corporations from
taxation dividends received from 9TH
er corporations. relieving the big cor
porations of more than $4,000. 900
taxes year. and eliminated the ad-
ditional house tax on the transfer of
estates, relieving big estates and in
heritances of $6,0OO,OOO the first
year and $3s, 1000. 900 or more yearly
thereafter.
1.-THE finance committee struck out
entirely. said Mr.. Kitchin, many mil
lions of dollars Of taxes which the
house had imposed on the manufac-
ture and sale of automobiles, tires,
cigars, musical instruments and nu-
merous other luxuries. and shifted
over $1Oo.OOO.000 to the owners Of
automobiles and to necessities like su-
gar. coffee, tea and cocoa
The finance committee reduced
taxes on cigarettes, chewing and smok-
ing tobacco and snuff about $15,OOO,-
600. he pointed out, and put that
amount on coffee. tea and cocoa.
The senate plan to tax war excess
profits on the basis of the increase
shown in any corporations profits
over the average Of a pre-war period
of three years-the years 1911, 1915
and 1913-is declared by Mr.. Kitchin
to be manifestly unjust, making an un-
due discrimination in favor of the for
tunate persons or corporations who
were highly prosperous during the
pre-war period.
On that basis, he said, a corpora
ton of $10.o0O,OOO capital making
S1.5OO.0O0 during the pre-war years
and the same now would pay no ex-
cess profits tax. while farmer worth
$4,000. making $1,000 during the
pre-war years and now making $6,-
600. will pay over $500 taxes.
There are hundreds of corpora
tions whose annual profits each reach
into the hundreds Of thousands and
Millions Said Mr.. Kitchin, that will
pay not cent Of excess profits under
the finance committees amendments
because being highly prosperous dur
ing the pre-war years they are max
ing the same profits now and there
fore have no excess. Under the fin
ance committee amendments as to
excess profits and incomes, the Unit
ed States Steel Corporation, with a
billion and a-half capital. making
$270,000,0O0 annual profits, will not
pay cent OF tax either on incomes
or excess profits. while the little farm
er worth less than $4,000. making a
profit of $4,000 will pay $2,071."
Mr.. Kitchin cited senate committee
amendments which he said would i'm
pose excess profits taxes on farmers,
merchants. butchers and blacksmiths.
but would exempt lawyers, doctors
and others including employees and
agents, receiving fixed amounts for
their services. The classification "em-