The Wolf Point herald. (Wolf Point, Mont.) 1913-1940, 1921-08-25
EASTERN COMMENT
ON BACHELOR TAX
MONTANA is ROBBING PETER TO
PAY PAUL, SAYS DR. FLEIS-
CHER OF NEW YORK
Article Runs Through the Hearst
Chain of Daily Newspapers With
Millions of Readers; Contends that
Society Has no Right to Enact
Laws Enforcing Marriage.

That the Montana bachelor tax,
enacted by the last legislature, is i
effect an effort by the state to "ro
Peter to pay Paul" is the theme Q
an article written by DR.. Charlie
Fleischer of New York and publishe
in all Of the Hearst newspapers froI
New York to San Francisco. The fol
lowing article is reprinted from tn
San Francisco Examiner:
Can society force it's members t.
marry? Montana says yes.
Montana has decided, by statute
that bachelorhood is a special priv
lege.
Montana adds insult to injury.
1t has established a ~three-dollal
yearly tax on unwed adult males
That's bad and sad enough. But oul
third largest state is even SO unkint
and small-hearted towards it's adult
males as to plan for using the bach.
elors' tax to pay towards widows
pensions.
That is rubbing it I'M That is
robbing Peter to pay Paul, in chival-
lOuS AMERICAN dSU1On
A really gallant bachelor, perhaps,
should be glad to stand treat for the
ladies, especially for the widows in
general, since he is likely to have no
one woman in particular for whose
board and keep he is at least legally
responsible.
But robbing Peter to pay Paul in
this style is a bit of a mockery in
Montana, for out there they have not
enough women to go around-say,
one female to three males.
What is a poor Montana bachelor
to do? He can't play hide-and-seek.
With such a preponderance of men,
no guilty man could escape-if once
a seeking oma made up her mind
to satisfy her hamburger. SO it is
cruel in Montana to affix a penalty
to b~achelorhood. That state of mind
and body-is already sufficiently
penalized.
To be an unwed adult made in
Montana is proof that you are recog-
nizably undesirable. At least, no
woman wants you. Or, stop!-it
may be that you are so speedy a
Splinter that you are still uncaught,
unbranded and unwived. AS a Mon
tana bachelor confessed to the writer
the other day: 'It's hard to catch
'em and brand 'em out there!"
In that case, the surviving Mon
tana bachelor should be happy to
pay for his freedom. But not for the
same ungaIlant reason which the au-
thor of the bill suggests. Here he
is-Representative T. H. Mcdonald,
who will speak for himself: Were
you boys off easy. I dare say
there are many who wish they were
eligible to pay this tax"
That c~ynically soulless legislator
belongs to the palmy days of the In
QUESTION. He went ven further and
suggested placing a similar tax on
unmarried women! Evidently he
could not bear to see any one happy.
Anyhow, Mrs. Maggie Smith Hath
away, democratic floor leader, i'm
mortalized herself by killing this
proposition. She rose to the humor
the situation by offering an amend
nent to sell at auction, for delin-
Iuent taxes, all spinsters who failed
% pay.
Often you can kill with laughter
What you can not successfully oppose
With solemn effort.
However, it will henceforth be the
privilege of male bachelors in Mon
ana to pay three dollars a year to-
wards the state support of at least
small part of one widow.
OF course, there is a social aspect
o the whole problem, which deserves
onnio,1o xrnrl ounr II, o0rnnnfi0p
With this not too serious article. 1t
s a question, not to be lightly dis
whether society, through law
nay fairly penalize b~achelorhood and
hus force marriage upon it's mem
|ers.
This is not questioning the con-
titutional right or the legal right,
ut the inherent right.
Certainly society may protect itself
safeguarding marriage as the rec
gnized and orderly means of pre-
itself through legitimatized
hildhood. But, in taxing bachelors,
goes beyond it's inherent right. BY
Montana imposes mar
iage and vioohtes the integrity Of the
Individual.
After all, however important it is,
he family is not the ultimate care
f a democratic state. The individual
the supreme concern of society ;
hitch simply means all of us indy {
1uals. {
Perhaps we are needlessly break
a lance for the Montana bachelor, '
may just happen to be glad to
lay the part of Peter paying Paul {
only be can remain otherwise un-
isturbed in his condition of ques- l
enable single blessedness. /,
But how would you (if you are a
uniformly unmarried MANI like to
ave the state point a gun at you, =,
Your money-or a wifei {