Evening star., 1923-12-17
BONUS WILL PASS
OVER VETO, SMOOT
SAYS AFTER POLL
Passage Would NeceSSitate
Complete Revision of Tax
Reduction Plan.
FEAR OF VETERANS ANGER
AT POLLS GREAT FACTOR
Financing of Compensation Meas
ure Seen Problem Congress
Must Solve.
by DAVID LAWRENCE.

Senator Smoot, chairman of the
Senate finance committee, said on
leaving the White House today that
IA soldier bonus bill would be passed
lover the Presidents veto and that so
gar as the Senate is concerned, the
measure would have at least two
tvotes more than the necessary two
khirds.
The natural inquiry is whether the
tpassage Of the bonus will kill tax
kSevision. The present indications are
hhat the soldier bonus bill will be
kdopted without providing a plan to
khnance 1t and that once the expendi-
bure is authorized it will be the task
kf Congress to find out how the money
San be raised.
Secretary MELONS plan for tax re-
aduction is predicated on the theory
THAT there will be no bonus bill.
SHOULD a bonus be adopted, it may be
necessary to rewrite the entire plan
or at least hold it in allegiance until
the exact cost of the bonus is deter
Ianined. Efforts thus far to get an ac-
scurate estimate have failed, because
lit could not be learned in advance
whether the ex-service men would
accept cash or some of the other fea-
lures Of the plan.
May Pass Luxury Tax.
Faced with the problem of finding the
money to meet the bonus, and at the
same time give the country a more
equitably distributed tax burden than
under present laws. the chances are
that the taxes on luxuries will be re-
tanned and that many of the consump-
ton taxes in the present law will not
be abandoned. In other words. instead
oe calling It a sales tax, the luxury
tax" may be imposed. There is a
movement on foot, too, 70 find out just
how the country would stand a tax on
sales of one-eighth of 1 per cent. 1t
will be recalled that the late President
Harding was in favor of paying for the
bonus by sales tax, but the proposal
failed largely because of the fact that
the bonus itself did not have the neceS-
sary two-thirds to get 1t passed over
presidential veto.
Resentment Feared.
With many new members in both
houses of Congress and a congression-
al campaign coming on which means
that the members fear the resentment
of the ex-service men, the passage Of
some kind of a bonus bill would seem
to be assured, together with some kind
of tax bill.
On the satisfaction which both
measures give the electorate will de-
pend to no small extent the verdict
at polls next November, but the out
standing fact today Is the determine
tion of Congress to attempt both tax
revision and the payment of a SOL
diers' bonus.
Senator Smoot Is hopeful that when
various plans are examined for the
handling of the bonus the nation will
approve his paid-up insurance scheme
whereby the ex-service men would he
assured of certificates that would en-
able them and their dependents to
borrow certain amounts if necessary
TO meet their needs. In this way II is
hoped that extravaganza would be
avoided and the ex-service men re-
warded.
To Be Campaign Issue.
The fact that Senator Hiram John
son and William Gibbs McAdoo have
both come out in favor of tax revi-
sion and the payment of bonus is
regarded here as evidence of the part
the bonus question will play in the
forthcoming campaign, and members
of Congress seem to be unconvinced
thus far that the Treasury is unable
TO stand both. Unless more figures
are forthcoming as to the true costs
the Treasury argument is not going
10 be effective. for every time one dis.
cusses the bonus with a member of
Congress who favors 1t he is ready
with definite opinion that it can
and will be financed. The fight is
by no means begun and votes that
appear to be committed now may be
changed later, but on the present
look of things the bonus will be
adopted and it will be up to Congress
TO find way to pay for 1T.
Copyright, 1921
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