The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1917-06-26
CONGRESS AND THE PRESS.

There seems to be particular animus
against newspapers among a certain
type of legislators and officials at
Washington over dozen different
newspaper taxes have recently been
introduced into congress, not to speak
of other burdens and impediments in
tended apparently to punish as we'll
as to hamper American journalism.
Among the burdens proposed or i'm
posed are double postage rates. zone
postage. an increase of Il cent per
pound on second class matter. a tax
on advertising, 10 per cent duty on
paper. a tax on paper freights, a tax
ON papers sent by express, a tax on
telegraph and telephone messages,
tax on excess profits. stamp taxes.
free government publicity, etc; all
these in addition to federal, state and
municipal taxes and various state liza
bility and insurance laws
1t is doubtful, says the New York
Journal of Commerce, if there is any
other field of industry, unless it be
the railroads, which has been threat
ened with such an accumulation of
nalism.
1t is not necessary to affront the in
telligence of the common reader by
explaining to him the value of his
daily periodical. 1t is the prerogative
of every reader to abuse his daily pa
per, and this prerogative he unfailins-
ly exercises, to the benefit of the
newspaper craft which gladly profits
by his habitual criticism. The reader,
however often forgets or does not
| even know that he is a constant bene-
ficiary of the newspaper; not merely
by the public movements which it
helps and the problems which it aids
in solving on his behalf, but also by
the fact that he pays much less for his
daily paper than it actually costs.
Very often he does not pay one-half or
even one-third its cost, and in many
| instances not even that of the white
paper on which it is printed.
In no other industry the world over
year far below the cost of production.
And yet this is the industry, already
yielding great public service, that our
| brilliant congressman select to tax
more severely than any other; to tax
to the point of destruction; to tax until
the legitimate channels of information
and public opinion are dried up, and
until free speech is throttIed more eff
fectually than by any possible degree
| of censorship.
| Newspapers are only TOO eager to do
| kI,o 1,;t 20,
] Today they are energerically doing
their full share by solidifying the ma
ton and stimulating the people in this
great war crisis. American newspa-
| pers have shown a splendid spirit of
patriotism at no material advantage to
themselves, notably in the liberty loan
and Red Cross campaigns whose ex-
traordinary success would have been
impossible without energetic and ca
pable newspaper support. And yet our
legislators persist in doing their ut
most to cripple institutions which are
absolutely necessary, not only for the
distribution of sound public opinion.
but for preservation of the nation and
successful prosecution of this law.
without their support, it would I'M
questionably prove a failure.
The newspapers are also perfectly
willing, in fact only too ready, to pay
their full share of taxes. Neverthe-
less, they strenuously object to being
singled out for unjust discrimination
The newspaper industry is not univer-
sally prosperous, it is so only in spots,
and these are not numerous. The
war. it is true, stimulated newspaper
circulation, and at the same time in
creased losses from this growth. In
addition. the newspapers have been
obliged to meet tremendous increases
in cost of production; costs which are
likely to rise to still higher levels. and
which are making heavy inroads into
advertising gains. Not a few news
papers would have been taxed COM
pletely out of existence had the pro-
posed regulations and taxes of ignor-
! ant legislators been put into effect.