The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1918-08-19
(By Associated Press.)

(By Associated Press.)
Washington, Aug. 17.-Of the $17S,-
100000 personal income tax collected
} Tor the fiscal year 1916, investors and
SPECTATORS in all fields shoulders just
one-third of the burden, labor .0S6 per
cent OF it, and the remainder came
from the multitudinous ranks Of those
whose incomes were classed as de,
rived from business" and services. :"
Embraced within the latter classes
is every calling from that of banker
to the farmer with scant acre, and.
in the profession, from the practition-
er of international law to the modest
chiropodist.
Ninety per cent of the total tax was
derived from those fulsome incomes
of more than $4,000, and 1.66 per
cent from those Of the $4,000 class and
J less, although the latter constituted
more than a third of the total 49,
600 returns. The highest average
rate of tax actually paid upon net in
come subject to tax was 1919 per
cent, which fell upon the highest in
come class of $5,00O0OO and over.
Only ten individuals, however, bore
the burden of that rate. They con-
tributed $13,OO0,00O to the total tax
The average rate of tax paid declined
through the income classes to a min
imum Of .2S per cent for the $4,000 to
$4,000 class.
Although incomes Of 100000 and
more constituted only 1.5 per cent of
the total number of returns, they paid
nearly three-fourths of the total tax
Property" income from stocks,
bonds, rents, royalties and all money
working sources-constituting nearly
one-half of the net total of six bill.
lion dollars reported, even in the face
OF the exemption Of all dividends,
amounting to exactly third Of the
total net income returned, bore nearly
its proportionate one-half of the to-
tai tax because of the much higher
proportion of property" income in
J the returns of the higher income
classes, paying the heavier rates Of
tax. Incomes from business" and
Service" footed the remainder of the
tax bill.
As an evidence of the inducements
to thrift in matrimony, the returns OF
married men, making due deduction
for joint returns Of husband and wife,
indicated their wealth at more than
FIVE times that Of single men as shown
by their returns, the former bearing
a corresponding burden of the tax ex-
cept for exemption in the $4,000 to
!, $4,000 class amounting to about 6 per
: cent of their total income reported.
Although for the country at large
the returns Of single men were double
those Of single women, the six New
England states were a conspicuous
exception to the rule. The total in
come reported by single men in that
section exceeded by barely Is per cent
the total income of single women,
bearing testimony either to the su-
perior independence and earning ca
pacity Of the New England women OF
| a reluctance to share inherited rich
es in matrimony. The District Of Co.
| lumbia and Hawaii were also conspic-
| uous in that respect, showing about
| equal returns for single men and
women.
A striking eccentricity in the re-
. port is the return in the skilled AMI
unskilled labor class ow twenty-five
incomes above the $4,000 mark, five
of them being above 100000 Two
hundred and eighty labor returns
were above 100000
Four commercial travellers showed
incomes of over 100000, as did two
saloon keepers, one professional
sportsman, eighteen hotel proprietors,
and twenty-five insurance agents, Ac-
tors, singers and musicians to the
number of 914 showed a total income
of 1112S,00O, neat average OF over
$4,000 and a possibility to stimulate
the other 10000 not making returns.
Five of these incomes were over
$150,0OO. In the class of authors.
editors and reporters there were IL
incomes of better than 100000, and
two above 100000. Twelve ministers
of the gospel showed incomes of more
than $4,000.
The legal profession earned the
greatest total incomes among the pro-
Ifessions, although the average income
among engineers was higher.
OF the $4,000 manufacturers in the
country in 1916, one in every ten
made returns, paying a total of IL per