The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1917-05-31

Every man, woman or child in the
United States will be obliged to do
his Bit. or more properly pay his
Bit when the Kitchin war tax bill
goes into effect unless it Is radically
amended by the senate, and even with
probable senate amendments, the law
will be one that few can escape en-
tirely II the bill was designed to
reach out and tax every inhabitant of
the United States, rich and poor, it
probably will accomplish its purpose,
for If anything has escaped taxation
under the bill--other than the sacred
cotton of the south and the prime pro-
duct of the Standard Oil company
1t has been through oversight on the
part of those who drafted the Kitchin
bill.
1t has been said, and not without
truth, that man will bump into this
war tax from the time he arises in the
morning until he erawls into bed at
night An examination of the bill
shows that to be literally so.
His First Reminder.
Following. Mr., Man through an av-
erage day, it can be seen where and
how often the tax will overtake him.
On arising, he brushes his teeth with
tooth paste that pays a per cent
tax. He shaves. and his shaving
soap pays a tax of per cent. His
bathsoap pays the same, and If he
INDUCES in the luxury of other toilet
articles, again the per cent hits him.
II, perchance, he happens to be wear
ing any imported article of clothing,
he pays war tariff, and when he
dons his shoes he pays ! per cent
import duty on hides-and die will
pay this whether his shoes are made
of domestic or imported leather
As he breakfasts, he is reminded of
the war tax when he sips his coffee,
and If his mail is brought him at the
table, he again sees evidence of the
war tax in the three-ce stamps on
his letters. in place of the customary
twos, and he finds two-cent postcards
III place of ones. Mayhap he will
read an out of-town newspaper at the
breakfast table; If so, he pays an
other tax, for the mail rate on news
papers is advanced, and will be re-
Elected in the price, And again he
pays a tax when he lights his after
breakfast cigar and starts for the Of
flee in new automobile that has paid
a per cent tax.
Arriving at his office on the first
of the. month, Mr. Man finds a stack
of mail. all bearing the Scent stamps.
He finds he is charged a per cent
tax on his telephone bill and his cleo
tric light bill. His income tax, If he
paid one, has been more than doubled,
and If he paid none heretofore, he
probably will pay one under the new
law; comparatively few will escape
the income tax during the remainder
of the war, Mailing out the checks
in payment of these bills, Mr. Man
pays 3 cents on each envelope where |
formerly he paid 2. He has packages
to send by express; on each he pays
tax equivalent to 10 per cent of
the express charges. and If he ships |
by freight, he pays 8 per cent of the I
carriage charges.
Tax on Messages.
Mr. Man sends a telegram; he paws |
a tax of 5 cents on that, and If he re- |
ceives a collect message, that costs |
him cents over and above the tele- !
graph companys charges. All tele-
grams will pay tax of cents, the
person paying for the message paying
the tax There is a long distance 4
phone call to be made: that carries
a scent tax also. The insurance
agent calls. but Mr.. Man is discour-
aged when he finds that in addition
to the regular premium he must pay
a war tax of cents on each 500 for
which he is insured, and fire insur-
ance, like health or accident insur- !
anee, carries tax of 4 cent on each
dollar of premium.
Mr.. Business Man is called out of
town. He buys his ticket. and paws '
Uncle Sam 10 per cent of the price I
Of his ticket; he buys Pullman chair l
Oh a berth, and pays another 10 per I
cent tax. and he can not escape the I
tax by travelling by water, for the L
tax is there just the same. And as t
he rolls along on the train he grimly b
smiles as he looks at the billboards,
md sees where some other fellow '
Tor the time being-pays per cent a
AK for advertising which he and 9TH t
ars ultimately must pay Z
Toll on His Dinner. S
At the close of busy day Mr.. Man o
goes home; if he has wines, or beer i
II cordials with his dinner, he pays X
| war tax, and he does not escape,
~ substituting grape juice or mineral Il
water, All pay their war taxes under 3
he new bill After dinner another
'igar-and taX-then a bit of phono-
graph music. and with it tax, for
wen the records pay per cent tax
10 he does not escape If he bought g
lis machine some time ago. &
The family may want a bit of ir
Mr.. Man takes them to 8
he movies, and there he finds the et