Omaha daily bee., 1921-07-18
No Tarat9on. Relief
(rrom the Philadelphia Ledger.)


The tax-revision program, the
long and hopefully waited for tax
revision plan, will come as some-
thing worse than disappointment
to the taxpayer. 1t will come as a
numbing blow.
When tax revision was promised
it meant but one thing to the wait
ing millions; that was lowered taxa
ton. Spokesman for the administra-
tion admit that all existing taxes,
except those on corporation excess
profits and income taxes in the high
er brackets, must stand. They go
further. They admit that there
must be additional Ievies if the gov
ernment is to meet it's obligations,
even though soldier bonus action is
deferred
Taxes are not to be lowered. New
sources of revenue must be found
There is to be stamp tax" an al
Ways-hated stamp tax, on bank
checks; a Scent letter postage
and the nuisance taxes" will linger
on. The taxpayer hoping for relief
gets two blows, almost in the same
spot and at the same time.
Doubtless the government is get
ting little out of the surtax on in
comes above $4,000. as these pass
the collection point 1t is sound
tax levying to remove these, but it
Will be a sore and sorer point with
the small income taxpayers, for
whom no relief Of any kind is fore
shadowed. The removal of the ex-
cess-profits tax and the substitution
of general sales tax is reckoned as
sound policy from the viewpoint Of
industrial revival, but it will be
fought with bitterness by agricultur-
al interests and union labor.
Small wonder that President
Harding is throwing the administra-
ton weight against immediate ac-
tion on the soldier-bonus bill! I'm
less the country wants to pile taxa
tion on taxation, the bonus 1egisla-
tion must wait. We are now trying
to raise $4,000, 100000 for national
expenses. The bonus bill will add
five and a quarter billions to the
load
Secretary Mellon talks with grave
earnestness of the bonus danger. He.
reminds us that we will have all we
can do to take care of the disabled
soldiers and that we should not dis
sipate our resources sin sweeping
plan for cash payments to able
bodied soldiers and sailors" AS to
legislation now, he gives this solemn
warning:
Its direct consequences are in
escapable. 1t would so involve
grave dangers Of renewed imitation
increased commodity prices and
unsettled business conditions the
result would be serious injury and
loss to the whole community, and
in the long run even the veterans
themselves would lose far more
than they would gain.
The real troubles Of the admins
tration begin with the announce
ment Of the tax program and effort
to defer the promised bonus. The
administration is in most un-
fortunate position, in that it must
actually keep schedules in force and
hunt new sources of revenue when
it was expected to lessen the burden.
However, the party in power had
no illusions about this when it
wrote it's platform in Chicago 13
months ago.. The plank on taxation
said:
The burden Of taxation imposed
upon the American people is stag
gering; but in presenting true
statement of the situation we must
face the fact that while the char
acter Of the taxes can and should
be changed, an early reduction of
the amount of revenue. to be
raised is not to be expected.
1t is this "fact" that the admins
tration and the taxpayers are facing
now. The future will tell whether
1.-THE character Of the taxes" can be
changed for the general betterment.
Nor did the republican platform
go to any great length in promising
a bonus to service men. 1t pledged
"the utmost consideration" to the.
disabled, but for service men gen.
orally there was no promise of
funds. Valor and patriotism were
to be "held in imperishable remem-
brance." and the promise made was
this: ''We pledge ourselves to dis
charge to the fullest the obligations
which a grateful nation justly
should fulfill. -
President Harding and Secretary
Mellon appear to have kept thus far
to the actual party pledges. Their
trouble is that the country general
ly and the service men particularly
have taken it for granted that the
pledges would be exceeded.