Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1918-03-14
The rich man can spend only a rela.

! 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
is more painstaking 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 bureaus
cratic and routine regime possibly
could be. Money in the hands of the
individual is continuously and fever
ishly on the search for opportunities
II. e., for creative and productive use.
In the hands of the government it is apt
to lose good deal Of Its fructifyina
energy and ceaseless striving and I'd
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
to those who would utilize their coun,
try's war as means to enrich them,
selves. The "war prof1teer," as the
term is generally understood, is pub.
lie nuisance and an ignominy. Extor-
tionate profits must not be tolerated,
but, on the other hand, there should
be reasonably liberal disposition to.
ward business and willingness to see
1t make substantial earnings.
For, taxation presupposes earnings.
Our credit structure Is 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 war.
The Consumption Of Men.
Reverting now to the subject of the
consumption Of men, know / speak
the sentiment of all those beyond the
years Of young manhood when say
that there is not one of us worthy of
the name of 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. It does not
even call anywhere near its entire
young manhood. 1t has called or In.
tends to call in the immediate future
perhaps 25 per cent. of it's men be,
tween twenty and thirty years of age
which means probably about q pei,
cent of its total male population of all
ages. But it has called from incomes
business profits and other imposts fall.
ing principally on the well to do, an
proNimately ninety per cent. of GU,
war taxation, not to mention the con,
tributions to the Red Cross, the Y. M
c. A. and other war relief activities.
Let me add in passing that the chill
.dren of the we'll to do have been taken
for the war In proportionateIy greater
numbers than the children Of the poor.
because those young men who are
needed at home to support dependents
or to maintain essential war Industries
are exempted from the draft.
Our Laws Favor Sons Of the Poor.
The draft exemption regulations dis.
criminate not, as in former wars, in
favor OF the rich mans son, but In
favor of the poor woman's son.
realize but too we'll 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 wo-
men with moderate salaries l yield
to no one in my desire to see every.
thing done that is practicable to have
that burden lightened. But excessive
taxation on capital will not accom-
plish that; on the contrary, It will
tend to intensity the trouble.
Taxation must be sound and wise
and scientific and cannot be laid in
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 economies cam
not be defied with impunity and that
the resulting penalty falls upon all
sections and classes.
The question of the individual is not
the one that counts. The question is
not what sacrifices capital should and
would be Willing to bpnr If IN nad ,pan