The Topeka state journal., 1922-11-18
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
Information Bureau
WHEN MONEY COMES EASILY.
EREDERIO J. HAsKN. Direcs@F.
Washington, ID. O.

mour. There probably never lived a
man who some time in his life did not
spend at least little while in dream
ing Of the possibility of coming into
!. an estate, an Inheritance, or becom-
4 ing rich over night. The prospect,
however remote and intangible, of un-
rectly earned by the sweat OF the brow
is one which irresisibly provokes
contemplation
That is the reason why wills, miss
ing heirs. lost witnesses and intermin-
able lawsuits involving estates have
so prominent a place in the stories OF
literature and the stage. They are
properties of the Goddess Fortune
whom everyone seeks For this rea-
son the cold statistics of the internal
revenue bureau, recording the bSre
facts of the estates which are trans
mitted in the United States, are OF
absorbing interest. No personal de-
tails are to he found because, under
the law, no such facts may be d.
vulged. The statistics are made avail
able TO the researcher only In general
terms, but even their austere columns
harbor an odor OF the same romance
which made the case OF Jarndyce
versus Jarndyce immortal, the same
fascination which makes everybody
read a will case in the newspapers
The figures do not reveal how the
fortunes were bequeathed. They tell
no stories of newsboys who helped old
ladies across crowded streets and later
woke up raiHionaires because the old
ladies on their deathbeds. remembered
The reader must furnish all such de-
tails. building up what stories he likes
on the hard basis of facts.
Billions Go to Heirs.
What the figures do show is that
in the period from September, 1916
to January, 1922, the latest for which
statistics have been compiled, 42,23o
estates passed to fortunate heirs. The
total sum bequeathed staggers the
imagination. 1t amounted to SS,7S5,-
GAL ,SS9. The average individual would
consider himself lucky if his morning
mail informed him that some old
uncIe's will had left him $1,000. But,
within this brief period enough money
was inherited to make S,7S5 million
aires. The sum il averaged among
the recipients would give each a for
tune of about 100000, which is
enough for a man to live upon all his
days Forty-two thousand persons,
enough to populate a good sized city,
all we're made rich thru inheritance
in this brief period
The beneficiary does not get the
whole amount of the bequest, for the
stern-visaged treasury tax-gatherer
steps in and takes share which, in
some cas- $, is as much as one-fifth.
The total tax paid on these bequests
of nearly $4,000, 100000 was $751;
13S,323. The smaller estates bring the
average down so that for the whole
bulk the rate was only $40 per cent
on an average, or an average tax OF
only $9,597.s5 per estate. The big
estates are those which pay the great
est taxes. For instance, the average
tax paid on the estates in the group
of $10.0oo,00O and over was over s4,-
1t is a curious fact that the bene-
ficiaries of wills greatly dislike to give
up to the tax collector any part of
the sum inherited, in spite of the fact
that it Is practically a gift for which
no labor has been performed, and
sometimes comes from a distant rela-
tive who was a stranger. This curious
disinclination to part with any of
ones winnings from the chance hand
of fortune is illustrated by the tale
of the woman who sued to break
will. She had been disinherited where
she expected a bequest and went to
court She lost the case and, OF
course. the sum she desired.
"Well," she said when the verdict
was rendered. "At least I won't have
to pay the inheritance tax. I have
saved that"
The inheritance tax is levied on net
estates. that is. what remains after
the various deductions permissible
under the tax laws are made The
estates listed in the period under re-
view were brought down to a net fig
ure of $5,407,67S,531 and the tax
levied upon that sum
Deductions are of various charac-
ters. In the first place there n a
specific deduction of $4,000 for all
estates and no one who leaves less
than that sum has his beQuests cur
tailed by the tax.
For the period under review there
were 5,643 such estates having a gross
value of $437,471,290.
Many Deductions Allowed.
The statutory deductions include
charitable, public and similar be-
quests. These took $264,491,6 ,6s7 from
the taxable total during the 1a16-1922
erty recently inherited by the dece-
dent, and which therefore, has recently
paid an inheritance tax, may be ex-
empted. The amount coming within
this category was $67,5S2,902. That
great sum had been inherited only re-
Gently and held a relatively brief
while. Many stories doubtless are be-
hind that classification. What use did
the beneficiary make of his inherited
wealth during his brief period of pros
perity? Was the good fortune too
much for him<and was IL the cause
OF his death? The reader may ex-
ercise his imagination at will; the
statistics reveal nothing.
Funeral expenses. debts unpaid at
the time of death, and the expenses
of the administration of estates may
be deducted from the net or taxable
estate These deductions in this
period, reached a total of $1.6S3, ,40S,-
ia. 1t is presumed a large part of
this billion was consumed by the
classification administrative ex-
penses." To revert to our parallel
imaginative picture, the lawyer al
ways is a prominent figure in the will
case and the wicked guardian is not
a stranger. These gentry are well
strained in finding administrative
expenses in the shape of fees and
charges A billion dollars is q big
bill but the reader may be assured it
is not all for funeral expenses. The
total of all these deductions reaches
the impressive aggregate of $3,47e,-
eS2764