Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-05-01
TAXATION GOING Up
NOT DOWN ASSERTS
DAVID LAWRENCE
Only Action Of Senate Or
Veto Of President Can
Prevent Soldier Bonus.
He Declares ...
BY DAVID 1AWlEMCE


WASHINGTON, April 3O.-Taxa-
ton is going up-not down. Tho
Republican party in congress virtual
ly has. decided that more is to be
gained by giving the soldiers Of the
late war bonus than by refusing
to make further cuts in existing
taxes or distributing til, t':r:1en
through the years of the next gen
Grafton.
The ways and means committee of
the house is in tangle. A minority
Of Republicans are opposed to new
burdens of taxation but even with
the help Of the Democrats their
strength is not sufficient to prevent
the passage of the bill IN the house.
Only two barriers then remain-the
senate and the president. If the
house bill were presented to the
White House today it would be We
toed. If it were put up to the SEN
ate in the form in which it has been
drafted it, would be radically chang
ed, but on the other hand, there still
would remain additional taxes where
with to raise money for the soldiers
because senate Republicans must
stand by house Republicans in do
ing something before the next cleo
ton, that will not ALLEVIATE the SOL
der vote. Perhaps the Democrats
would do likewise if they were in
control, for the soldier vote has be-
come like the labor vote and the pro-
hibition vote, something too formid-
able for the average congressman to
withstand especially when dema-
gogue starts a campaign in opposi-
ton to him in his district on that
ground alone.
The ways and means committee
both Republicans and Democrats, had
the new tax bill before them at their
Friday session. 1t had been agreed
upon by a majority of the Republi-
cans the night before and the plan
was to jam it through the commit
tee in time to report it to the house
during the day and thus have it
ready for the Republican caucus Fri
day night. 4e
want TO Do Something
The significant thing is that nei-.
Their the proponents nor opponents OF
the soldier bonus differ in their selT-
timentar feeling that something
should be done for the soldiers of the
late war, something tangible. But
getting down to the bottom Of the
whole business, one finds even the
enthusiasts for soldier bonus cog
infant of the straiA which the plan
would put on the already overweight
ed credit system Of the country.
Those who favor the bill say the ma
ton can stand the extra tax and they
point out that either sales tax on
retail sales above $1,000 a month, or
retroactive tax on war profits would
hit only the big fellows"
But experience with the vicious
circles in the high cost of living has
shown in the past year that the larg-
err concerns merely tack the tax on
their costs Of production and the I'LL
innate consumer pays the bill. So
many members of the house who
have studied taxation are planning
to go before their constituencies on Il
record of opposition to any class leg
islaton whatsoever whether it be 70.
labor or soldiers or any other section
of the community Yet this aumbef
is a minority.
The real truth is that if the ma.
jority of the house believed the bill
Just presented to the ways and
means committee had chance of be-
inc int In
rush it through so hastily. But the
general feeling is that the senate
will emascuIate the measure and
iron it out and that if it still is OBJ.
jectionable, the president probably
would veto It. thus making it even
more advantageous politically to ar
que that the Republicans wanted to
help the soldiers and the Democrats
didn't 49, 80
Some Features Of Bill
1t is to be noted that Of all the
five plans suggested whereby all
is TO be given to the soldiers,
rome OF, the cash payment fca
tides il; to go into effect III!
til next January. Thus If the senti-
lnent of the country in the next cleo
ton is adverse, the measure can be
repealed without enGahgering the
chances of these Republicans who
must depend on the soldier vote al
the the next election.
Some of the features of the bill do
not Involve an outlay of much mon
ey and are i'll the main favored by
democrats as we'll us Republicans.
Vocational training is Dne. cnt and
farm aid and the grant Of and out
west--al! this is possible Of accom-
TliShnlent vita only a few million
dollars. yet it gives the returned sol
die" opportunity to make money.
On the other hand the cash bonus
based upon the number OF days the
veteran was in service would mean
at least billion dollars more in
taxes and if the new and compli-
Gated suggestion for an insurance
written in the present bill, it is e.
timated that the cost would be
nearly $4,000 100000. This estimate
may be found later to have been ex-
cggerated but several house mem
bers insist that the new plan would
knock the value out of the war risk
insurance system itself
The house of representatives really
is playing politics. Tax errors of
the democrats helped to drive them
out of power in 1918 but the repub-
licans are so serenely confident that
the top of the ticket will pull them
through next fall that they are sim
ply, determined to pass bonus oil
and pass the buck to the senate and
The president. In the meantime,
business, big and little may lie fur
rowing it's Drows trying 10 calculate
what the tax burdens of next year
will be, but only the conservatism
Of the senate and the president viii
relieve that worry.