The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-07-30
PUBLIC HEARINGS
 ON TAX REVISION
 CLOSE YESTERDAY
House Ways and Means Committee Will Begin Drafting New Revenue
 Bill After Session
By Associated Press

Washington, July 29.-Public hear- ings on tax revision were closed to- day by the House ways and means committee, which will start drafting the new revenue bill after hearing Secretary Mellon, Internal Revenue Commissioner Blair and other trsas- uTy officers. in executive sessiu7, be- ginning Monday.
 Chairman Fordney said 1t probably would take three weeks to zs. the bill before the House. The ma jority members of the committee have as yet had no conferences to agree upon B revision programme, and evidence of a difference of opinion among them on certain changes proposed has not been lacking.
 All of the republicans have not vet agreed to the treasury proposal to repeal the excess profits tax and sub- stitute an increase in the normal tax on corporations, but leaders gener- ally believe this programme ultimate ly will prevail A reduction in the sur-tax brackets to a maximum of at least 40 per cent also is forecast, with probably some other changes in the present law
 Get Few Suggestions
 Like the great majority of those who had gone before, most witnesses before the committee today sought removal of the tax from their partic- ular industries, but, as Chairman Fordney repeatedly pointed out, the committee got few suggestions as tn hsu Ia I.r n was to be made up.
 William A. Brady of New York and other spokesmen for the moving pie ture industry, including theatres. asked that the theatre seat tax, the 5 per cent sales tax on films and the 10 per cent admission tax be removed. They declared the industry was in worse shape than any other in the country with 4000 theatres already closed and many others planning to shut down next month. Mir. Brady said the high salaries of movie stars had disappeared In the last year,
 James A. Emery of this city, on behalf of the National Manufacturers association, urged repeal of the ev- cess profits tax and the higher brackets in the sur tax. great turnover or sales tax, while repre- sentatives of the fur industry asked repeal or modification of the tax on their products.
 Urges Cheek Tnx
 Representative Appleby, republi- can, New Jersey, argued in favor pf his bills to impose 2-ccnt stamp on bank checks. to repeal the soda water tax and to levy q federal tax of 40 cents per horsepower on pas senger automobiles and $i0 a ton on trucks with proportion of this to go to the states in lieu of the pres ent state taxes. He also asked for slmplification of the income tax sheets.
 Robert Romans a Boston lawyer, representing corporations and asso- citations holding and developing real estate, argued against any increase in the normal tax on those corpora tions He said none of them now paid excess profits taxes and that any increase in their taxes would be practically unbearable.
 Opposing repeal of the excess prof it's tax and the higher groups Of surtax, Charles H. Lyman. secretary of the National Board of Farm Or ganizatons, said there was a feeling on the part of the farmers that some plan should be worked out under which the vast accumulations Of wealth should bear a large part If the tax burden