Evening star., 1923-12-24
BUT FEW CHANGES
EXPECTED IN BANKS
Annual Meetings to Be Held
on January 8-Tax Prob
lens Puzzle Congress.

| On Tuesday, January g. all local
national banks, in addition to naany
trust companies and savings institu.
tions, Will hold their annual share.
holders election, resulting in the se,
lection OF directors for the ensuine
year. In majority Of the cases the
directors will meet Immediately
afterward and select officers for 1924,
while in minority of the institu-
tions the organization meeting win
be postponed until the following day.
While there will be, OF course,
many changes in existing direct.
crates, it is understood but few
major changes will be made in Off.
cfal personnels. These changes. SC
far as can be learned, will not bring
new men to tho city. but will be in
the form Of promotions to present
officers.
Tax Exemptions Puzzling.
Three different angles of approach
to the menace of tax exemption OF
bands are now being considered by
members OF Congress. The fact that
three distinct plans have been adj
vanced shows the great public inter
est in the question. It is held pos.
9to'e lhat congress may raVor a.
three plans, the adoption OF whicf
would entail no serious conflict
The first and apparently mos@
favored plan is the adoption of
constitutional amendment whic'
would bring future issues of stat
and municipal bonds squareiy inc
harmony with the graduated incomi
tax. This Is held by its sponsors "a
being by far the most logical anC.
in the end, most satisfactory way.
The second plan is to levy a spa
ctal inheritance tax on tax-free issue2
in addition to the regular inheri.
tance tax levied by the federal gov.
ernment on other property The
constitutionality OF such a law was
fully established in debate in the
Senate about two years ago when an
amendment proposed by Senator
Walsh of Montana was supported by
Senator Cummins of Iowa, Senator
La Toilette. Senator Kenyon and
many others At that time the meas
ure lacked only one vote of passing
the Senate. such law, authorities
believe, would be beneficial in its
effects, but 1t would not produce as
perfect an effect as a constitutional
amendment.
The inheritance tax measure that
came so near passing the Senato
would have levied the same rate of
taxation upon the owner of small
amount Of tax-free bonds as upon the
owner of millions in the tax-free Sc
curities. 1t would have penalized ths
estate of the person who purchased
the tax-free bonds Immediately be-
fore his death the same as the estate
of the individual who had enjoyed the
! freedom from taxation for a score OF
years or more.
The third plan is to enact a law
this winter which will result in
bringing a case in the Supreme Court
of the United States TO definitely de-
G. H.
sixteenth amendment from whatever
source derived Although the great
majority of legal authorities contend
that other decisions Of the Supreme
In the opinion of the court from
whatever source derived" does not
apply to income from bonds that were
tax exempt prior to the enactment OF
equally high legal authorities who
disagree. II is proposed to insert a
provision into the revenue, law 10 tax
the income from state and municipal
bonds, and thus to require from the
Supreme Court decision directly on
that point.
Ii is pointed out that the inheri-
tance tax remedy aud the special law
to take a case to the Supreme Court
are at best only experiments. If they
fail and constitutional amendment
Is not favored by Congress at this
session long delay will result and
hundreds of millions Of dollars will
be lost to the national treasury
through the delay.
$500, 900 Bond Issue Asked.
The Old Colony Railroad Company,
as subsidiary of the New Haven sys-
TEN, sought permission from the In
terstate Commerce Commission to is
sue s3,5oo,0o0 in bonds; $4,000, 600 to
be used to meet maturing indebted
ness. and the remainder to be paid
10 the New Haven for advances which
1t has made.