Bisbee daily review., 1918-08-16
A TESTIMONIAL TO THE PRESS
CFrom the Tucson Citizonl

The decision of the house ways and means committee to levy tax of U per cent on the amount paid for leased wires by newspapers is the best evidence that the newspapers cannot be reached by excess profits or war profits taxes. They are not making any. Not seeing any chance of rev enue from the fat or that hard-ridden nag, the press, the ways and means committee sought other means to reach its pocket.
 It will not sour our patriotism to crab a little about these taxes on the newspapers because we are much concerned lest the government should lessen their capacity for usefulness to 1t. The press Is an unpaid arm of national defense Like the Red Cross it does its work without cost to the government, but unlike the Red Cross the press is not the recipient of charitable sub scription The work of the newspaper arm is that of popularizing the methods of the government, which in effect, Is populariz- ing the war, since unpopular methods will quickly make a war unpopular. The methods of the government, such as the draft and the bonds are eminently equit- able, but 1t needs something more than an executive order, or even one of Mir. Will sons earnest addresses, to bring the vast public to cheerful mood of acceptance. In this task the newspapers have been the pa tient skillful, loyal servitor of the govern ment.
 If excess profits were spoken of to the average newspaper publisher, he would ask What do you mean excess profits l haven't seen any plain profits yet. As for war profits, the war buffers no bread for the newspapers. It is graceful in Secretary Baker to concede that news gathering Is an indispensable industry, in view of the indis- pensabIe nature Of 1t to the government He had in mind particularly domestic news gathering-the gathering of local news for each paper. But the gathering and editing of battle news is also indispensable. How else would the government secure full pop ularity advantage of the victories won by American troops? Yet the reporting of wars increases the expense of newsgather- ing, even when it is done by press associa- tions. No revenue has flowed to the press from government advertising because there ain t no such animal.
 The proposed leased wire tax is not the first war tax levied on the press It Is sub ject to telephone and telegraph taxes, and to freight increase on paper. This freight now amounts to a dollar hundred pounds and makes paper cost $. .25 per hundred at the press as compared with $3.65 a year ago and $Z.70 two years ago. The paper rolls are packed in heavy wrappers and thick end boards. They contain iron or wood cores all of which is wastage to the publisher, but pays freight charges.
 The subscription prices of eastern news papers delivered in this section are now al most prohibitive due to zone postal rates. The Citizen subscribed to the Boston Trans cript at $500 year, the New York Times at $l9 year, the Chicago Tribune at $l2 year. The zone law doubles up on the cost of The Citizen to eastern subscribers of whom 1t has quite number. Although the paper is delivered in Tucson for 60 cents a month, the charge would have to be $I.25 in New York City, in order to break even, and the difference would be due to the zone postal law.
 Profiteers may worry about the war prof its, but the press is blythe and carefree in this respect. Taxes on profits will not phase it and some papers will not have the grati- cation of paying even an income tax.