Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1924-07-01
Issues

of our country, is affecting the hap
piness and prosperity of the whole
| people. The high cost Of living is
causing hardship and unrest. The
slowing down of industry is adding
to the general distress. The tariff,
the destruction of our foreign mar
| kets and the high cost of transpor
tation are taking the profit out of
agriculture, mining and other raw
material industries. Large standing
armies and the cost of preparing
for war still cast their burdens upon
humanity. These conditions the ex-
listing Republican administration has
proven itself unwilling or unable to
redress.
The Democratic party pledges it.
self to the following program:
Honest Government
We pledge the Democratic party
| to drive from public places all who
make barter Of our national honor,
it's resources or the administration
of its laws; to punish those guilty
of these offenses.
To put none but honest in pub
! lie office; to practice economy in the
expenditure of public money; to rev.
J erence and respect the rights of all
under the constitution.
To condemn and destroy govern
ment by the spy and the blackmailer,
as by this Republican administra.
| ton was both encouraged and prac.
| ticed.
Tariff and Taxation
The Observation-Disclosures tariff act
is the most unjust, unscientific and
dishonest tariff tax measure ever
enacted in our history. It is class
legislation, which defrauds all the
people for the benefit of few; it
! heavily increases the cost of living,
penalties agriculture, corrupts the
government, fosters paternalism,
and, in the long run, does not bene.
fit the very interests for which it
was enacted.
We denounce the Republican tariff
laws, which are written in great part
In aid of monopolies and thus pre-
vent that reasonable exchange of
commodities which would enable for.
elgn countries to buy our surplus
agricultural and manufactured prod.
ucts with resultant benefit to the
'toilers and producers Of America
Trade interchange, on the basis of re-
ciprocal advantages to the countries
participating, is a time-honored doc
trine of Democratic faith. We de-
clare our party's position to be in
favor Of a tax on commodities enter
ing the customs houses that will pro-
mote effective competition. protect
against monopoly, and at the same
time produce a fair revenue to sup
port the government.
The greatest contributing factor in
the increase and unbalancing of
prices is unscientific taxation. After
having increased taxation and the
cost Of living by two billion dollars,
under the Fordney- McCumber tariff,
all that the Republican party could
suggest in the way of relief was a cut
of three hundred million dollars in
direct taxes, and that was to be given
principally to those with the largest
incomes. Although there was no
evidence of a lack of capital for
investment to meet the present re-
quirements of all legitimate industrial
enterprises, and although the farm
ers and general consumers were
bearing the brunt of tariff favors al
ready granted to special interests, the
administration was unable to devise
any plan except one to grant FUR
ther aid to the few. Fortunately
this plan of the administration was
defeated and. under Democratic lead
ership, aided by Progressive Repub-
licans, a more equitable one was
adopted, which reduces direct taxes
by about four hundred and fifty mil
lion dollars.
The issue between the president
and the Democratic party is not one
IN nYrXYl
ton of capital. 1t is an issue of
relative burden of taxation and of
the distribution of capital as affect
ed by the taxation of income. The
president still stands on the So
called Mellon plan, which his party
has just refused to indorse or men,
ton in its platform.
The income tax was intended as a
tax upon wealth. 1t was not intend
ed to take from the poor any part Of
the necessities of life. We hold that
the fairest tax with which to raise
revenues for the federal government
is the income tax. We favor gradu
ated tax upon incomes, so adjusted
as to lay the burdens Of government
upon the taxpayers in proportion to
the benefits they enjoy and their
ability to pay. We oppose the So
called nuisance taxes, sales taxes,
and all other forms of taxation that
unfairly shift to the consumer the
burdens of taxation. We refer to
the Democratic revenue measure
passed by the last congress as dis
tinguished from the Mellon tax plan
as an illustration of the policy of
the Democratic party. We first made
a flat reduction % per cent
upon the tax of all incomes pay
able this year and then we so chang
ed the proposal Mellon plan as to
eliminate taxes upon the poor, re-
duced them upon moderate incomes
and, in lesser degree. upon the in
| comes of multi-millionaires. We hold
that all taxes are unnecessarily high
and pledge ourselves to further re-
auctions.
We denounce the Mellon tax plan
as device to relieve mult-million-
aires at the expense of other taXpay-
ers, and we accept the issue of taxa
ton rendered by President Coolidge.
Agriculture
During the four years of Repub-
llcan government. the economic con-
dltlon of the American farmer has
Changed from comfort to bankruptcy,
with all its attendant miseries. The
chief causes for this are:
(a) The Republican party policy of
Isolation in international affairs has
prevented Europe from getting back
to its normal balance, and, by leav-
ing unsolved the economic problems
abroad, has driven the European
city population from industrial ac-
tivities to the soil in larger numbers
in order to earn the mere necessaries
of life. This has deprived the Amer
lean farmer of his normal export
| trade.
(b) The Republican policy OF a
2rohibitive tariff, eXemplified in the