French Broad hustler. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1916-1919, 1918-07-25

lively or Selnshly. Inc none that 1a
In his power actually to waste 10 ex-
ceedingly limited. The bulk Of what
he has must be spent and used for,
productive purposes, just as would be
the case If 1t were spent by the gov
eminent, with this difference, however,
that, generally speaking, the individual
A. more painstakinS and discriminating
In the use of his funds and at the same
time holder, more imaginative, enter
prising and constructive than the gov"
eminent with itS necessarily burean-
cratic and routine regime possibly
could be. Money In the hands Of the
ishly on the search for opportunities
- e, for creative and productive use.
In the hands Of the government It Is apt
to lose q good deal OF It's fruct1fytng
energy and ~ceaseless striving and to
sink instead into placid and somnolent
repose.
There need not be and there should
not be any conflict between profits
and patriotism. I am utterly opposed
10 those who would utilize their
try's war as q means to enrich them
selves. The "war profteer," as the
term Is generally understood, In a pub
lie nuisance and an ignominy. ExtOr-
Tomato profits must not be tolerated,
but, on the other hand, there should
be a reasonably liberal disposition to-
ward business and a willingness to see
It make substantial earnings
For, taxation presuppOSes earnings.
Our credit structure IL based upon
values, and values are largely deter
mined by earnings Shrinkage Of
values necessarily affects our capacity
to provide the government with the
sinews Of wal.
The CONSUMPTION OF Men.
Reverting now to the subject Of the
CONSUMPTION Of men, I know I speak
the sentiment Of all those beyond the
years Of young manhood when l say
that there is not one Of us worthy Of
the name Of a man who would not
willingly go to fight If the country
needed or wanted us to fight. But the
country does not want or call its en-
tire manhood to fight 1t does not
eve call anywhere near it's entire
young manhood. 1t has called or in
tends to call in the immediate future
perhaps 25 per cent. Of its men be-
tween twenty and thirty years of age,
which means probably about 4 per
cent Of its total male population of all
ages. But 1t has called from incomes,
business profits and other imposts fall
ing principally on the well to do, ap-
proximately ninety per cent Of our
war taxation, not to mention the con.
tributions to the Red Cross, the Y. N.
G. A. and other war relief activ1tieA
Let me add in passing that the chill
dren Of the well to do have been taken
for the war In proportlonateIy greater
numbers than the children Of the 10
because those young men who are
needed at home to support dependents
or to maintain essential war industries
r exempted from the draft
Our Laws Favor Sons Of the Poor.
The draft exemption regulations die
criminate not, az In former wars, in
favor Of the rich mans SON, but in
favor Of the. poor woman's son.
I realize but too well that the bur.
den Of the abnormally high cost of
living, caused largely by the war,
weighs heavily indeed upon wage earn
ers and still more upon men and we-
men with moderate salaries. 1, yield
to no one in my desire to see every.
thing done that Is practicable to have
NoI ONAASA ASALSuSu ouI SACSSSIVS
taxation on capital will not accom-
plish that; on the contrary, It will
tend to intensity the trouble.
~%aGa- ~ < - x
+ Taxation must be sound and wise
and scientific and cannot be laid in a
haphazard way or on impulse or &C
cording to considerations Of politics,
otherwise the whole country will suf-
fer. History has shown over and over
again that the laws of economics cam
not be deied with impunity and that
the resulting penalty falls upon all
sections and classes.
The question of the individual IL not
the n that counts. The question is
not what sacrifices capital should and