The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1921-03-17
A Sales Tax Plan Clearly Outlined

The valve World. a publication is
sued monthly by the Crane company
of Chicago. has a most interesting ar
ticle in the current issue on sales
tax plan to take the place of the pres
ent cumbersome and complicated sys-
TEN of federal taxation The details
of this plan were given recently by
Jules $. Bache. of New York, in an
address before the Economic club OF
that city. and are here reproduced
for the benefit of those who are in
terested in the adoption of a simple
fair and equitable system of taxation.
Nominal Business License Fee.
"AH individuals, men or women, cit
liens or aliens. desiring to make
business operation of any kind in the
United States. under which they shall
receive money must first take out
license for that purpose from the tax
bureau nearest to their place of bust
ness. l would make the expense OF
this license 81 per annum. That will
put the individual doing business on
the tax collectors books
Everybody taking out such a Ii
cense must keep a record of the
transaction or transactions of the
business done under that license. Even
the most ilhterate planter who raises
and sells a bale of cotton. can make
some mark of the transaction, show
ing the amount he receives by it, and
if he can not. he can have it made for
him
Tax Paid Monthly.
AT the end of each month, anyone
whose sales have exceeded $500 for
that month must send a check for
per cent of the amount of such sales
to the nearest tax collector, with q
statement of the volume of the sales.
At the end of the twelfth month, in
addition to his monthly check, ne
must send in a statement showing the
aggregate of his transactions for the
year. accompanied by a check for the
amount of any underpayment, or a
claim for a refund should he have
overpaid. as it might develop that
some persons had paid on monthly
transaction of over $780, who had not
sold the gross amount of $4,000 per
year. which would he the smallest
amount on which a tax could be
claimed
This limit OF $4,000 per annum
would exempt a major percentage OF
the farmers of the United States, and
100 per cent of the labor However, l
do not wish to be interpreted as stat
ing that neither the farmer nor the
laborer would pay any tax. They
would still pay on the aggregate
amount of their purchases the 1 per
cent tax paid out by the seller OF
those purchases, and to that extent
would be potential taxpayers, and
have their stake in the upkeep Of the
country
This tax is so simple, is SO easily
and automatically collectible, the eX-
penses attached to it would seem
likely to be so trifling in proportion
to the expense of collecting the pres
ent multiplicity of taxes, the state
ments to be furnished the government
in connection with this tax would be
so simple in comparison with the
present intricate statements which the
average citizen is now called upon TO
furnish. and which few, if any of them
FULLY understand, that l hardly feel
called upon to dwell upon this feat
ure of the advantages of this tax.
Largest Total Would Be Small.
ut is claimed that as l per cent IS
added to the price of an article with
each movement that it makes in
passing on from the raw material
stage through the hands of the man.
ufacturer, jobber and retailer, the ag-
gregate tax in the end would be large.
state without any fear of eontradie-
ton whatever that those of us who
have given our time and thought to
working out this tax have as yet
been unable to find an article on
which the tax would aggregate in the
last movement into the hands of the
ultimate consumer a great amount
than ga per cent.
Compare that with the amounts
which the last years of taxation have