The states-graphic. (Brownsville, Tenn.) 1???-1984, 1918-08-09
10 per CENT TAX ON
lUxURIEs SUGGESTED
Furs, Silk Underwear, Jewelry, Cut
Glass, included: Retailer to Collect
This Tax.


Washington, August GA 10 per
cent tax on retail sales of wide va
riety of commonly classified Injuries,
from jewelry to merschaum pipes and
from smoking jackets to silk hosiery,
will be recommended to the full house
ways and means committee Monday
as the result of today's deliberations
of the subcommittee on luxuries.
The semi-luxuries-goods which are
in the class where it is difficult to dis
tinguish between the real necessity
and the real luxury, such as clothing,
will be left to more searching in
quiry.
A general revision of the whole S.
100000, 1000 bill, being drafted by the
committee, will begin Monday to de-
termine where increases may be made
to make up the presnt deficiency of a
billion and more in the estimated rev.
enue from excess profits and income so
far tentatively agreed upon. Also
some doubt is entertained whether the
luxury schedule can be made to pro-
duce all of the $2,O00,0O0,0O0 allotted
to it.
eve have been considering the So
called luxury schedule" said Chair
man Hull of the ways and means sub
committee on Injuries, after today's
sessions. "This concerns variety OF
ouestionsa nd articles. The English
and French Luxury Tax is based on
two schedules of articles: first, arti-
cles that are luxuries by reason of
their nature, such as jewelry, precious
stones, goods mounted with precious
metals, and so on; and, second, articles
deemed Injuries by reason of the price
paid for them, as, for instance, $50
paid for suit of clothes, instead of
$40, where the tax would rest on the
excess over $40. This plan would ex-
tend through wearing apparel gener-
ally on different bases worked out ac-
cording to trade conditions"
The subcommittee today in its search
for taxable Injuries, considered all
forms of jewelry, silk underwear, GU
rios and antiques, liveries, art, except
where sold by the artists themselves;
tapestry, hunting garments, ladies',
driving habits, license tax on riding
academies. cut glass, opera glasses,
meerschaum and amber pipes, cigar
holders and humidors, smoking jack
cts and lounging robes, furs, but not
those merely an Incidental part Of 9TH
er clothing; Ornamental lamps, umbrel-
las, parasols and canes when mounted
in precious metals and stones. While
the action is not final, 3 10 per cent tax
on practically all Of these was agreed
upon for ratification by the full COM
mittee. The tax will be put on the
retailer selling to the consumer, the
retailer being expected to charge to
cover the tax.
The committee, in its investigation
of taxable luxuries today is understood
to have considered also prices on hotel
rooms and meals, and hotel price
lists were scrutinized and efforts made
to establish definitions separating the
expensive from the necessary.
War profits tax additional to the ex-
cessive profits and corporation income
taxes, and the alternative plan to APP
ply either the excess profits or a war
Profits plan according to which would
yield the most revenue from each con-
Germ will be again before the full COM
mittee next week. President Wilson
let it be known informally today that
he favored war profits tax in the
pending bill, but members of the COM
mittee say tn president has not COM
municated with them on the subject.
Representative Moore, one Of the
ranking republicans on the committee
expressed this view tonight:
'sThe higher and larger incomes
and probably the excess profits could
stand little more than is now con-
templated in the pending bill"