Arizona republican., 1917-08-23
The Burden of the War


 The speech of Senator La Toilette in favor of tax ing excessive wealth for the war may be supposed be permeated with the senator's well known oppo- stion the war though that appear the surface and should therefore be disregarded The speech itself as well as that of the by Senator Hiram Johnson the day before, should be given the most earnest attention.
 The estimates of expenditures in the the first year mount to $17OOO OOOOO the second year to s3O,OCO,OOO,OOO. These incomprehensble We grasp them but will certainly feel the smaller of them. No will escape the pinch part of the mnoey will be raised by bond issues and part by taxation direct incomes and excessive profits and part indirect taxation much of which will be levied equally upon the rich and the poor. That equality Is the evil of any indirect It Is chiefly the bad thing about protective tariff where it becomes unavoidable evil
 MT. La Toilette hestates to declare what any American would hesitate declare, that the is an unpopular But he says that S5 per cent of the people protesting against it These protest consist of many classes, a heterogeneous mass There the enemies of the country, comparatively few: the peace element. comparatively large those who against the war mainly because those whose names are associated with great wealth have been conspicuous advocates of 20 arc
 The draft proceedings developed another ele- ment of protestants though not loud decarants against The number of these and their friends who are trying to evade military service on one pre- another is astonishingly large It s perhaps the aggregation of all these that constitute the S5 per those who if against the not enthusiastic for
 Something must therefore be done to make the if popular, least less unpopular and that be done by placing little possible of the
 
 sible upon the poor upon those who barely wel-to do. That in the opinion of the senator, would increase the unpopuarity of the and would pro- duce upheaval in the midst of it. revolution protest by force political upheaval which would change the attitude of the government toward the war which would change a governmental policy just governmental policies have often been changed before
 MT La Toilette points out just Senator Johnson did the day before, that the great majority of the people of this country already grooming under the weight of high prices in consequence of the war Those of great wealth do yet feel their share of When the taxes imposed by the bill felt, the inconvenience of the majority will become a hardship which the rich cannot share.
 The most grievous excess profits and income proposed much lighter than now levied in Great Britain, whose proportion of expenses
 
 posed raise by taxation large proportion of expenses should be raised
 The senator makes this telling hit:
 Wealth has yet sacrificed itself the altar of patriotism in any On the contrary. it has shown eager to advanta ge mis- fortunes which always brings to the masses of the people That has been true of every have had and it is certainly of the present war
 We have unmistakable proof that wealth is doing only it can in congress to evade as much possible of the burden of but is also throwing obstacles in the way measures to prevent it's mak- ing the of increasing itself.
 While the people sacrificing everything, their young manhood battle fields and suffering such privations they known before they will naturally regard with greater disfavor a conflict whose proper share is borne by wealth which at the time is seized upon by wealth golden opportunity.
 We have patience with those who have excited opposition the by the declaration that it is rich mans and that the government was dragged into it to save private investments with the allies That is disloyal doctrine. We believe that the patriotism of the rich and those who are not rich is proportonate. very large majority of the people know that the forced upon this country and distaseful as the task is will it through the same time believe that the Wisconsin senator states condition of the popular mind and which if not allayed by congress and the administration may be succeeded by another mental condition which the people may imagine that their hated enemes those who oppress them at home.
 Cutting Down Exemptions
 In passing upon claims exemption on agricul-