The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1920-09-21
SALES TAX is UNFAIR.

SALES TAX is UNFAIR.
A determined move is under way to have
the next congress materially reduce the
present excess profits tax, and enact IN lieu
of it a sales tax. The plan is gaining head
Uav because few consider the far-reachlng
consequences of a sales tax, and most peo-
pie have come to believe the excess profits
tax is either lodged by the profiteer or
passed to the consumer by the corporation
which does not thus dodge it, thereby add
ing to the prevailing high prices. But 1t
should not be overlooked that IN seeking d
remedy for one evil greater one may be
substituted. Sometimes lis better TO en-
dure the ills we have than fly to those we
know not Of" Relief from excessive tax
burdens is demanded by the people. 1t is
one of the important issues. But so far
there have been few detailed plans advanc-
ed. The declarations have been in general
terms The sales tax is among the few spe-
cific proposals, and it is full Of danger
The principle of the proposed sales tax
is that there shall be tax on every sale OF
commodities within certain limitations. 1t
is an attempt to tax the turnover as we'll as
the forwarding sales. But because of the
principle behind such taxation it becomes
an Injustice in it's operations. Wool cloth
ing goes through a number OF sales from
the man who produces the wool to the one
who wears the clothes. If all intermediate
agencies, such as brokers, commission men,
factors and the like be eliminated for the
sake of clearness there still remain at least
six legitimate sales of the raw and finished
product as follows: Wool grower to WOO!
merchant; wool merchant to mill owner;
mill owner to clothes manufacturer; clothes
manufacturer to wholesale merchants whole
sale merchant to retailer; retailer to con-
SINNER. Each of these six sales would be
taxed and the taxes added to the cost OF the
product and passed on to the next one
through whose hands the commodity passed
until it reached the consumer, who, having
no one to whom he could pass the commod-
ity except the secondhand dealer or the
ragman and seldom making either sale,
would be forced to pay the whole amount
of the six accumulated sales taxes.
The merit of any system of taxation is
to have the tax stay where it is placed and
be paid by the individual or corporation
against whom or which it is levied. In
practice the result is to pass the tax from
one point to another until it reaches the
consumer. sales tax would afford the
best opportunity possible for passing the tax
on To the same burden bearer. If the buy
err is the one taxed the tax which the man
ufacturer of wooden clothes paid to the
cloth manufacturer will be included IN the
price which the manufacturer puts on the
commodity when he passes it on to the
wholesaler. If the seller is taxed he must
have a sufficient amount above what ne
otherwise would charge to enable him 10
nav the sales tax and still leave him his con-
templated profit In that instance the sales
tax is directly included in the price of the
commodity.
Naturally. farmers are opposed to the
sales tax scheme. They are at the bottom OF
the raw, products and would have to sell at
the lowest point in the scale, while every
thing they buy, coming through the various
processes of development from raw mate
rial to finished product, including the dis
tribution through wholesaler and retailer
would carry a sales tax in each transfer
and which they would have to pay. Many
of them, speaking through their organiza-
tions, are making vigorous protests. More
of them should; for it is one of the tax
MANS by which they would be the victims
without receiving any advantages. lhey
would pay all the sales taxes on what tac"
buy, out would have nothing to increase
CORRESPONDENCE the prices of what they SELL