The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-28
DEMOCRATS, DESERVE THE CREDIT

Several newspapers of Republican per suasion have been inclined to crow over the announcement that "the treasury will be ready July to refund more than $16, 100000 overpaid in income taxes March 15 as result of the subsequent twenty-five per cent. reduction granted by congress" More than million per- sons will be gratified at this information, because the government is proverbially slow in making refunds, even after all doubt as to their merits are removed. It is unusual for the United States govern ment to give up money without legal ac- tion by the claimants, irrespective of the cost to the government in it's process of resistance. That is apparently gov- ernmental custom; hence the assertion that when the government does pay a claim it is usually made to the descend ants of the original claimant. It has even been said that if the government were engaged in private business it would spend a considerable part of its time in jail for non-payment of it's ob- legations.
 Those who have tried to collect claims against the government, even though the claims were righteous, know some thing of the delays and efforts involved in the process. Time seems to be of no consequence to the government, when it comes to adjusting claims. One Repub- lican newspaper, however, praises the treasury department for it's promptness in this instance, with an apparent dispo- sition to gather bit of credit for the Republican administration, in this state ment: "When the history of the transac- tion comes to be written, it should be set down in red letters on page brighter than the rest"
 It would not require much analytical skill to find suggestion pertinent to the promptness with which the refund is to be made. Republicans need all the support that can possibly be obtained. May not the word have been passed along to "get on the job," and secure special credit for the party for performing an execu- tive act that will please many voters? That is political expediency. The treas ury department under a Republican ad- ministration may be depended on not to fail in any opportunity to profit by every strategy.
 That is 8 mere executive reaction in- spired by the possibility of reward ahead. There is another more far-reaching con- sideration. Had it not been for detec- tion by Democrats of glaring faults in the proposed tax reduction measure as inSeniously devised and strenuously ad- vocated by the Republicans, such reduc- tions as would have been made would have been mostly in the higher brackets for direct benefits to large and special interests, the small taxpayers would have received comparatively little relief, and there would have been no twenty five per cent. reduction in 1928 incomes. It was through the Democrats that this reduction was made possible. Those who receive the sixteen millions of dol lars in refunds next month may thank the Democrats, not the Republicans, for the money, and the millions of small tax payers who were protected for next year by the Democrats are aware whence came the relief, even though efforts be made by the Republicans to get credit with additional votes for having put into effect without delay a measure which the Democrats put on the statute book.