Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1919-02-12
FACTS AND COMMENT

De waiting for the president s sigma
| ture on his return from France late
! this month. The bill is erected to
raise over six billions OF dollars, the
| largest amount ever raised in taxes
| in any country on earth. The provis-
! ions of the bill are SO varied thar no
individual can escape paying some
| direct tax. and at the same tiIf1e ev-
| erybody will contribute indirectly il
q thousand ways to the SUPPORT OF
/ the government in winding up the
| war, Five sixths of the entire amount
| viii be raised by the tax on the i'll
| comes OF corporations ard individuals.
The corporatan income tax though
unseen by the stakeholder is felt by
him in reduced dividends, while The
| individual income tax viii be paid il
rect by twenty millions Of people.
| The new income FAX law leaves the
same sums exempt from taxation as
formerly, to Wit, $1,000 for The IN
married Individual and $1,000 for the
married couple. with an extra eXemp-
Thus the couple with three children
may have untaxed an income OF $500,
but on any excess amounts 10 over
$4,000, twelve per cent. will be col
ltoted on the amount over $4,000, In
Illustrate with the family of five: Il
their total income is IS GEO, tho tax is
lrcckoned as folloWs% exemption $500;
taxable income $2iG0 six per cent OF
which is $144. If their income is 81 =
eco, the tax account would run: en-
emption $500, taxable income $4,000,
CT which $4,000 is taxed at sin per
cent and $500 at twelve per cent. AS
the income increases, a gradually IN
creaSlng SurtGX is a0dea until the
raan with $4,000 q year is paying
nearly a quarter Of it to the govern
| ment, while more Than tWo-thiTds Of
a million dollar income goes straight
into the United States treasury. Of
course such part of any income as
is derived from dividends Of corpora
tons already taxed is not taxable Il
second time when it comes into the
hands OF the security holder.
Every war has brought wish il high
Uricos for labor and material. II a
matter of life and death the price
paid for the needed service is . minor
considerations When nation is
fighting for its very existence, its
needs must be met cost what it may
and the individual must purchase the
neCessaries of life in the same mar
!, ket. With the coming OF peace his
tory has no less uniformly shown a
fall in prices, and in these early DAYS
! of 1919 people are anXiou6ly waiting
, until this shall happen and at th=
Sd ME time wondering why it didn't
come Immediately The reason fer
; the delay IS plain; the government
was drafting, manufacturing, hEyinc
and building in preparation for Al
least two more years Of the gigaDti,
) struggle, So huge 4 machine NOV
: ing at such Ian speed could not b,
, brought to standstill in a mon a7t
u is as unreasonable 10 complain q
, tie present continuance of high prices
as it would be for the army to OK
Dect to embark for home the day
} peace is signed.
Peace came SO suddenly that bust
Less has not had time to adjust itseI
TO the new condition. JUST as tiloU-
sands of men have their labor to SCI
. and can find none to buy it, so man
, ufacturers Wholesalers jo5bers ant
retailers are stocked with goods pre-
, duced at high cost for which the
can find no purchasers. 1t was nee.
essaEy to produce these goods, els'
= the essentials Of life in the 2ntici
I pated years of war would not hay,
f been ct hand but under peace con
= dttions prospective consumers are re
r. iuctant to pay rs much as it cost t.
Eproduce the goods in time Of w9I
| Somebody stands to lose. If tho pres
:, pectiye consumer can and will prac
4 tice self-denial Il little longer, /
= wont be he. The present owner mus
@ unload for what he can get befoTi
. new goods are produced under p"aC
: ! conditions. The presumption is thu
! he made enough under war c0l6iiOr
q to be able to stand the loss = Ing
. rsadiustn2elt. business VIII not com
I to a standstil!, because the naCe5s
y ties of Some ana the 0r0iigSljty c
O., others vii serve to move soTus OF tn
! | goods even at war prices. Thus tn
= ,Csses VIII be distril u'ed between a
70 classes from manufacturers TO cor
> sumeIs who cant wait. Each vi
i lose something but such losses al
i lust as 3luch n part Of the cost Of w
"a - are the increased taxes which tn
!. country has so uncomplainlngly horr
" Conditions in America are far fror
s satisfactory, yet the attltude Cf Ia
= ruined BcIgians OuEFt to shame I'll
~. American who finds 1duit with thing
is in ruins The condition Of farm
T. ing may be irF2Ired when one pa.
IS five dollars pound for bacon and
s dollar apiece for eggs. UnemDiCy
IS nlcnt is general, for the factories tia
&c remain standing have been Stripe
. Of their machinery as Claerly as tn
- farms have been robbed of thei
stock. Shoes when they are t. be ny
~ ~ all cost $50 a pair and clothing y
3. proportion. People ofteatiues g
1t about the streets wrapped in blaa
y kets or ether unsuitable materials.
y spool OF thread costs q dollar az
q common blue serge is SIS a ward. Ii
~ entire oou2try i; prcstrats, u cond
!, ton fron% which progress tOw2ri
self dependence must needs be dis
heRrteningly slow. Yet amid all Ii
misery there Is an Cnmistakeabie air {
cry there is an unmlStakeable air
ie eXuberant joy. The Germans h2I
to some. That one blessing, so long q;
II sired, is never lost siEht of. HJr
CRY. sick, wretchedly and SrotesCueI
NJ clad, berea,ed. mutilated it may b
- without employment and without RI
: source yet everybody wears the gle
! look and the happy smile that arc t
marks OF duty done, q test eaJs1re
~ ana a victory won, S;srely Amer
10 cans with citiee standing and horn
w intact will II. find fault oecauE
prices and conditions did rot becou
normal ct q. m. Nov. II 1918.
is The Slim Fein, the party of Iris
Il irreconcilables, met i'll Dublin Jan.
" and went through the motions
punching an Irish republic on Il
E stormy sea Of political existenc
IS Twenty four of the seventy two Sir
l. Fem members of parliament we
present and took part in the proceed
~ irGs. The only reason that the othe
-, were not - hand was that they a
~ at present in suildry british prisol
" serving sentences under The defen
OF the realm act. 4 declaration OF il
T. ! dependence YVES read. 81 constitute
n adopted, a prime minister and cabin