The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-11-03
TAX REVISION AND
 POLITICAL BUNK
lAtlanta constitutionl

Secretary of the Treasury Mel lon, who has made one of the best officials in that department in American history, and all be- cause he has applied strictly busi- ness principles instead of political influences in the conduct of so great a business machine, has openly advocated a further re- duction of the federal surtaxes of twenty five per cent, thereby guaranteeing a saving to the peo- ple of the country of fully half billion dollars year. Senator Shoot of Utah, the new chairman of the senate finance committee. and a recognized tax expert, has fully concurred in the statement that the government is in such financial shape that the reduc- tions can be made without >em- barrassment to government serV- ices, but he has advised against any congressional attempt to this end at this time, being the year preceding a national election, be- cause of the great political dan ger that opening tax questions might force upon the administra- tion."
 Senator William D. Borah of Idaho, in an address in New York recently, very properly denounced any attempt to play politics with so great an economic blessing as the reduction of the federal taxes. and demanded that if true, as the treasury administrator had said, that the time had arrived for fur ther reductions, then these reduc- tions should be made. and without thought to the political advan- tage or disadvantages to any per son or party.
 The Constitution took the same view, and commended Senator Bo- rah on the frankness and fairness of his position.
 It is inconceivable that the so- called exigencies of party politics, as influenced by partisan in such an official position as is Sem ator Shoot to push or pocket any movement for tax reductions. shall become 8 factor In solving the problem in saving the Ameri- can people, who are sorely dis tressed by reason of the federal tax burdens, half billion dollars a year.
 Particularly is this true at this time when the whole country Is readjusting itself to new economic conditions forced by postwar un- rest, disturbed European affairs. and heavy agragian losses in our own country. If there has ever a cf when the people of this country needed tax relief, and any other financial relief that can be made without offsetting reactions, that time is now. The boil weevil has eaten heavily at the Souths re- sources. European financial dis tress has eaten heavily at the wheat growing resources of the West. The economic reconstruc- tions are nation-w wide, and involve every class and every element of business
 The demagague may say the surtax is imposed only upon the rich, or the business of great prof. its. Admitting that to be true, the masses pay the taxes. They always do. There is no tax im- posed upon a class that is not met by a mass; no tax upon the pro- ducer that is not met by the con- sumner. The people of the whole country pay the federal income taxes. whether they know 1t or not, and to the same extent the people of the whole country feel and respond to any reductions in federal taxes, whether those re- auctions are made upon one class, or another class. in the varied, complicated and confusing system that congress has fastened upon the people.
 The idea of playing politics with tax reductions-that is, to make the American people pay into the government half billion dollars in the fiscal year 1s24-25 without reason other than to pre- vent the radicals of the North west from embarrassing" the Re- publican administration-is not only inexcusable, but it is repre- hensible. Senator Borah is right! If the public thought of this coun- try is aroused to the significance of the respective Mellon and Shoot statements, and demands these reductions, they will be made. Congress cannot with stand such a concentration of united popular will.