The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1920-04-01

NOW JnaC City treasurer George ii.
Lauer has completed the work Of shak-
ing down the city of Kenosha for
something over three million dollars
as a part of the biggest tax warrant
ever made in the history of the city,
he is invited to get out of the way
and permit real collector to get on
the job for during the rest of the year
ICY our Uncle Samuel is going to shake
Kenosha people until something like
twenty million dollars rolls out of
their jeans.
1t is not the biggest shake down in
the history of the city. It is admitted
that when the government officials got
through last December they had taken
out Of the treasurers Of Kenosha cor
porations and pockets of Kenosha in
dividuals something like little less
than twenty-five million dollars.
Federal agents estimate that Keno
sha's federal income tax this year is
just little over eighteen million dol
lars. Local industrial financiers who
have their fingers pretty close to the
pulse of the taxpayers Of the city, and
who are just little proud of the
achievement of the city, declare that it
WILDE nearer the twenty lnillian MAJ
Second Only to Milwaukee.
1t is admitted by the federal Off
Gals that the income tax paid by the
people of the city of Kenosha to the
United States government is the sec
ond largest contribution to be made
by any city in Wisconsin. 1t is the
second only to that made by the city
of Milwaukee and it can be said that
it compares very favorably. One fed
e~al agent claims that Kenosha and
Milwaukee will pay half of the con-
tribution of Wisconsin towards Uncle
Sans big war bill.
This twenty million dollars that the
government is to get out of Kenosha
this year does not include the thou
sands Of dollars that the people of the
city are paying in the way of luxury
taxes assessed against clothing, hats,
shoes, fancy drinks over the soda
taxes on tobaccos and
liquors or any of the stamp taxes.
1t just includes the income tax which
has already been levied. Some four
teen thousand people in the city who
have returned taxable incomes to the
government are now helping to make
up the big amount, and some two thou
sand who just naturally forgot to file
a return, will later swell the fund by
paying tax with penalties.
Largest Tax Over Forr Millions.
The largest tax collected by the gov
eminent in Kenosha will crowd the
Sd 100000 mark. Two other items on
the tax rolls from Kenosha are way
over the two million mark and there
are a lot of other big fellows. These
taxpayers are not paying as much as
they did in the previous year, but in
creased incomes have been reported by
nearly all of them and the dropping
back of five million in the total amount
is due to the government shaving off
a little of the excess profits Of tax.
The smallest tax to be paid by Keno
shan is in the neighborhood of Lin
coin penny, and there are hundreds
of taxpayers whose contributions to
the government funds is considerably
less than the ten dollar mark. It is
estimated that more than fourteen
million dollars of the tax exacted
from Kenosha will be paid by corpora
tons. The tax is going to aid these
materially in the reduc-
ton of the state income tax to be paid
next year and they are counting on
the big state income and soldier bonus
tax paid this year to bring decidedly
large reduction on the federal income
tax next year.
Most Pay in Installments.
Most of the taxpayers in Kenosha,
of the amount of tax they
are to pay, are paying it on the in
stallment plan offered by the govern
mept, and taking advantage of the saw
ing on interest on vast sums of money
in this way. Some of the larger cor
porations bought up large amounts in
government certificates some time ago
and they have collected the interest
On them up to the time they were paid
over for liquidation Of the big taxes.
Federal Agent Joseph Custer, who
had charge of the collection of the
tax here before the government closed
the books, has been in the city in re-
cent days just closing up his work. He
has stated that it may be several days
before the government is ready to take
steps to get after the delinquents, and
enforce payment of the tax and penal
ties. He stated that there would be