Charlevoix county herald. (East Jordan, Mich.) 189?-1953, 1918-03-15

5000 10 per cent IN D. Q.
10000 20 Der cent. sM .. O.
1900 Is per cent. 6 p Q.
or we add the 20 called "occupa-
donal" tax our total taxation on In
comes Of $4,000 Is 6x per cent and
on incomes Of $4,000 OK per cent?
In other words, our Income taxation
10 more democratic than that Of any
other country In that the largest In.
comes are taxed much more heavily
and the small and moderate Incomes
much more lightly than anywhere else
and Incomes UP to $1,000 for married
, men not taxed at all.
(8.) 1t 10 true, on the other hand,
that on very large incomes-as distin-
guished from the largest incomes--our
income tax Is somewhat lower than
the English tax, but the difference by
which our tax IL lower than the Eng.
lish tax IL incomparably more pro-
nounced in the case Of small and mod
crate incomes than Of large incomes.
The Excess Profits" Tax Here and
Abroad.
Moreover, II we add to our income
tax our so called excess profit tax"
which II merely an additional income
tax on earnings derived from bust
ness. we shall find that the total tax
to which rich men are subject 10 in
the great majority Of cases heavier
here than In England or anywhere
else.
(4.) 1t IL likewise true nat the Eng
lish war excess profit tax is 80 per
cent. Qess various offsets and allow
ances), whilst our 20 called excess
profit tax ranges from 20 per cent. to
80 per cent. ".
But 1t Is entirely misleading to base
conclusion as to the relative heavi-
ness of the American and British tax
! merely on a comparison Of the rates.
because the English tax Is assessed
on wholly different basis from the
American tax.
caiIed) taxes all profits derived from
r business over and above a certain
moderate percentage, regardless of
whether or not such profits are the
result of war conditions The Ameri-
can tax is a general tax on income de
rived from business In addition TO
the regular income tax. The Eng.
lIsh tax applies only to excess war
profits-that Is, only to the sum
by which profits In the war years
exceed the profits In the three years
preceding the war, which In England
were years Of great prosperity. In
other words the English tax Is nomi-
nally higher than ours, but II applies
only to war profits. The normal prof
Its Of business. e., the profits which
business used to make In peace time
are exempted In England. There, only
the excess over peace profits 10 taxed.
Our tax, on the contrary, applies to all
profits over and above a very moder-
ate rate on the money invested in
business.
We Tax Normal Profits, They Tax Only
War Profits.
In short, our lawmakers have de-
creed that normal business profits are
taxed here much more heavily than
In England. while direct war profits
are taxed less heavily.
You will agree with me In question
ing both the logic and the Justice of
that method. Ii would seem that 1t
would be both fairer and wiser and
more in accord with public sentiment
IL the tax on business In general we're
decreased and, on the other hand, an
increased tax were imposed on spe-
cific war profits
CO.. Our federal Inherit. nee tax IL
far higher than It Is In England or
anywhere else. The maximum rute
here on direct descendants Is 27h per
cent. as against 20 per cent. In Eng.
land. In addition to that. we have
state inheritance taxes which do not
exist In England.
(6) OF her total actual war expen-.
ditures exclusive Of loans to her al
lies and interest on war loans) ENG
land has raised LEES than 70 per cent
by taxation (France and Germany far
less), while America 10 about to raise
by taxation approximately 20 per cent
of her total war requirements (exclu-
sive of loans to the allied nations and
Of the amount to be invested In mer-
camille ships, which, being a produc-
tive investment, cannot properly. be
classed among war expenditures).
We men Of business are ready and
willing to be taxed In this emergency
to the very limit of our ability and to
make contributions to war relief work
and other good causes without stint.
The fact Is that, generally speaking,
capital engaged In business In now
being taxed In America more heavily
than anywhere else In the world. We
are not complaining about this; we do
not say that II may not become neces-
sary to impose still further taxes; we
are not whimpering and squealing and