The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1920-02-10
m AARON HARDY UriM

q 0outherncrs, visited newly risen
We3rern community in the days when
-jvIi. war veterans dominated in every
neixheorheod. The local agent of the
investment concern he represented met
the Visitor and made ready 10 take
him, around and Introduce him to
leading citizens.
sLet me warn yea" advised the
agent In a half whisper. 40 be very
careful ab0nt ~hat you say concern
tng, sth.. south and the war. You
knos~ this uonmunity is poopTed by
retsss who came West when The war
ended
II was n yosne man then.' says
tha.Southerncr thus spoken 10. and
had strong sentiments ataut the war
and Ats issues and they were quite
cprasite to those the agent "h"
shUueht ! was a Northern man, sus~
peexsd Buu ! didn't correct him add
Followed his counsel, which in later
life has been Of much value TO me,
fc-.the incident brought home IN me
the. 4u9pQrtance OF being, before all
Else, an American"
Esa.is Daniel c. Roper. United States
eonanissioaer 81 internal revenue. and
as such the pote rtiaily most powerful
Official in the feoerAl government The
''C~ stands for calhoun. and, though
he hasn't lived there fer a long time
he looks upon the small town OF Me
Gail, South Carolina, as home" ard
Is regarded by the people there as one
~ them. Just a& much as il he saun-
teref through its picturesque streets
every day He is proud Of his z'atr's
and sections traditions ard leud~ an
enthusiastic hard toward sustaining
And exalfing. them. Bnt these wine
sfeni with ttt4tt POLITICAL lad OIL
cialiy never think OF him as a South
Carniinian or Southerner and unfes9
ihey made inquiry they would never
know or suspect the fact. Thu ir\
dent i'm the miring town has eu'ise4
MIN to vertically lean backward IN
steering clear NJ invidious sectional
ism. Even when his children finished
the common schools, he cent Them to
colleges in different sections Of the
country.
Il wanted my family circle TO in
clude knowledge OF any pride in every
section Of tho country says he. $50
now IL anyone at tho breakfast table
uttnrs = criticism OF the West OF the
< Middle West or the East there usually
Ii another with facts and enthusiasm
haA&d on experience and Acguaint'
ances. 10 meet IT,"
M Commissioner Roper were Of am
other type. the type often II not gen
erafiy encountered in political Offices
& OF shigh significance. critics cunning
h for him. or the administration he
\ serves, or the government would fire
i III him the word "Fouche," Through
s# the Vast power ne Yields or in GER
REPRESENTATIVES, might WELD, would
rive some warrant for IL, such a shot
u would fly far afeid from Roper. In
b fact, he liz one high government Off
s cial that this writer, who is in fairly
close touch with national affairs. has
% never heard criticized though tho
sa@s Mace he fills touches the supertender
N. sides, that lis To say the money ano
the business and TO some extent the
Ss personal conduct sides. Of millions of
VI Americans. It Is he or his sunordi-
A mates who must decide whether that
\ income tax blank you will soon MI
N out again.. provided .you earned more
III than 81, 900 last year. states the futl
n and exact truth about how much
money you make and largely, what
You do with 1t. He or his assistants
can come into your place OF business
and &c Ear-ynnr books TO find wheth-
er you tell the truth about it's finaAn
ciai operations He must see to II
that the girl at the window takes toll
In pennies from, you every time you
20 to the movies, and also must see
that those pennies reach the treasury.
Every purchase or sale of r. narcotic
dru~ comes in detail within his sur
veillance. Likewise does every OPP
GRAFTON in oieomargarine or adult
Grated butter or mixed -four and in
various other things. And now. II
you undertake to make a little home
brew, Ii Is up to Roper or his vast
semi-secret service force to get you,
provided the fermentation yields
more than one-half of 1 per cent Of
alcohol.
a. nt. In, nfI IA
country who doesn't daily come di-
rectiy or indirectly in touch with the
operations OF the United States inter
nal revenue service. Its name would
imply that Ii IL a mere tax gathering
organization. That il its prime fune-
ton; a function that brought into
Uncle Sans till more than I'VE bill.
lions OF dollars last year. Yet much
OF the bureaus work has next To
nothing, or wholly nothing. 10 DO with
the money raising: ii comprises func-
tons that are OF the policing type as
much as are those OF the treasury
department or the department of jus
ttce secret service forces. And the
money raising involves the exercise OF
far-reaching police powers
In truth, the department of justice
Becret service for running down
'TRedg~ or trust magnates, and the
treasury secret service for, running
down countefefterH, are mere squads
when viewed as to magnitude and va
rfety of operations. when compared
with the corps of investigators under
the bureau of internal revenue.
That corps collects and coilates in
formation that conveys the inner Sc
crets OF the entire business life Of
America
Correct and complete Information
was one. II not the greatest. secret oil
Napoleon's success 1t Is the essence
of power. But the files Of Fouche
Napoleons great and feared police
minister, never contained as much and
J. ~ com piete information about French
men and French affairs az those OF
the revenue bureau contain about
Americans and American affairs.
II you happen to be drug dend
the fact In noted In those files. which
show how much. and how YOU pro.
cure, narcotic your system Graves II
YOU pay an income tax, there is .
record there perhaps OF the repair
you made on your home last year, "a
we'll as the amount and sources ~
your income. II you are in business
Of consequence there is or will be 4
record there OF how much business