Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1918-04-18
1.-THE RICH MANS WAR
A HATEFUL CALUMNY"
American Business Men Ready to
Make Sacrifices With
out Stint.
TAXES HERE AND ABROAD.
American Taxation the Most Demo.
cratic In the World.
BY OTTO II. KAHN,

Nothing is palmer than that bust.
ness and business men had everything
to gain by preserving the conditions
which existed during the two and a
half years prior to April, 1917, under
which many Of them made very large
profits by furnishing supplies, provi.
sions and financial aid to the allied
nations. Taxes were light, and this
country was rapidly becoming the
great economic reservoir Of the world.
Nothing Is palmer than that any sane
business man in this country must have
f~oreseen that, II America entered the
war, these profits would be immensely
reduced and some of them cut off en-.
ttrely, because u government would
step in and take charge that it would
cut prices right and left, as, in fact, it
has done; that enormous burdens Of
taxation would have to be imposed, the
bulk Of which would naturally be borne
by the well-to-do; in short, that the I'M.
~precedented golden flow>into the cot.
fers Of business was bound to stop with
u Joining the war, or, at any rate, to
be much diminished.
But it is said the big fnanciers of
New York were afraid that the money
loaned by them to the allied nations
might be lost if these nations were de-
teated, and therefore they Unanswered
to get America into the war in order to
save their investments.
Proof That the Charge Is Absurd.
A moments reflection will show the
utter absurdity Of that charge. Let us
assume, for arguments sake, that the
allies hand Deer defeated. Let us make
the wildly improbable assumption that
they had defaulted for the time being
upon these foreign debts, the greater
part Of which, by the way, is secured
by the deposits Of collateral in the
shape of American railroad bonds and
stocks and Of bonds of neutral coun.
tries, a%ggregating more than sufficient
in value to cover these debts. Let US
assume that the entire amount of al
lied bonds placed in America had been
held by rich men in New York and the
east instead of being distributed, as i!
is, throughout the country;
Is it not perfectly manifest that a
single years American war taxation and
reduction of profits would take out OF
the pockets of such assumed holders a
vastly greater sum than any possible
loss they could have suffered by a de-
fault on their allied bonds, not to men.
ton the heavy taxation which is bound
to follow the wal for years to come
and the shrinkage of fortunes through
the decline of all American securities
!. in consequence Of our entrance into the
war?
} Not only is the "rich mans war" al
absurd myth; the charge is a hateful
calLinny,
Business men, great or small, are n
{ different from other Americans, an
: we reject the thought that any Amer
can, rich or poor, would be capable o
the hideous and dastardly plot t
bring upon his country the sorrow
O and sufferings of war in order to er
i rich himself. Business men are boun
to be exceedingly heavy financial loser
through Americas entrance into tn
war. Every element of self-interes
Z should have caused chem to use thei
: utmost efforts to preserve America.
neutrality, from which they drew S
much profit during the two and a la.
- years before April, 1917. Every COZ
sideration Of personal advantage con
y handed men of affairs to Stand Wit
= and support theagitation of the "pcac
at-aDy-price" party. They spurnc
" such ignoble reasoning; they r~ejecle
Q that atNii@t.cn; they stood for W.
when it was no longer possible, W.
safety end ion11, to maintain peac
~ because tb,y are patriotic citiZeIt
y first and b. ness men afterwards.
}o Our Inccaas AK and Taxes Abroad
ID a. The ra.@cst ncomes are take
lg far more hayi!y here taan anywhel
else in tho 'orld.
The maNt um rate OF income tax
Mt ton here is 81 per cent. In I1nglar
IN 1t is 1919 per cent. Ours is thereto
Is 30 per cent nghcr than ~En%land's, al
1t tie rate in highland is The highest pr
~ 'ailing anywhere In Europe. And
~ addition to HE federal tax we ma
bear in m!,d our state and municip
taxes.
CD Moderate and small incomes,
a the other lund, are subject to a t
rQ op,o1lar rn,, 90 tovnyipp hara than