The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1925-06-22
CLASS FAvORS
REAL SLASH
IN TAXES
Secretary of Treasury Under
Wilson Would ''out-MeIIon
Mellon

Andrea ". Mellon, Secretary
of the Treasury, 9Oiu recommend
q $500, 200, 900 reduction IN Fed
erdI tGres for 1896. HIS program
SOilI be flung to q Congress which
repudiated his recommendations
taCo years ago.. To anticipate ats
reception this fall The Washing
ton Times has i1tteTUiesUed UGrt0as
Congressional leaders. In the fol-
loving article the conservative
Democratic vieaUpoi1st Is revealed
bY Senator Carter Glass.
By WILLIAM X. HUTCHINSON.
81 am ready to out-Mellon Mel
lon in reducing the Federal tax
burden of the American people,
With this cryptic slogan, Senator
Carter Glass OF Virginia. leader of
conservative Democrats and a
former Secretary of the Treasury,
today endorsed the tentative tax
reduction program Of the Treasury
Department.
The two greatest tax problems
facing Congress, Glass believes, are
to reduce surtaxes and to eliminate
bureaucratic tyrannies'' in admin
istration Of the tax laws. He also
advocates complete exemption OF all
incomes under $1,000 as boon to
wage earners and Tightening Of
the tax burden "all down the line"
Government viii allow.
Favors Cut TO 20 Per Cent.
Mellon recommends q reduction
Of the Maximum surtax rate to
IS per cent: Glass would cut it to
20 per cent at the most and pos
sfbly Is per cent. This from a
Democrat.
II thoroughly agree with Secre-
tarv MELONS theories Of taxation
says Glass. He agrees with mine,
and in fact, advocated them be-
fore he ever became Secretary OF
the Treasury.
81 believe surfaces should be re-
duced In the next session OF Con-
Rress. They should have been cut
"a the last session. If the Demo-
Gratis don't lead the way they won't
have learned the lesson Of the last
election.
aAnd Congress must not stop
with surfaces. It should go on
down the line and relieve those
who don't understand surtaxeS,
but do understand that when they
paid 500 last year and only $50
this year that taxes have been re-!
duced."
Criticizes His Party.
Glass hopes the Democratic party
win endorse surtax reduction with
as much vigor as it approved the
League Of Nations some years ago.
He has only criticism for the
party's tax attitude in 1924.
''The Democrats let Mellon catch
the psychology Of the tax situation
and give the nation a belief that
he was the only man in Washing
ton who wanted taxes reduced,
says Glass. They seemed to, pre-
fer to go before the people with
slogan of Swat the richr and the
result was that the rich helped to
swat them."
For the poor man Glass asks
exemptions for. all incomes under
5000.
There are two principles in
volved in such a class exemption,
he adds. First, there is the theory
of making every citizen nay some
contribution to the maintenance Of
the Government. Second. there is
the fact that 81 per cent Of the
overhead charges, of the time and
lebor Of administering the tax sys-
TIM is involved in the assessment
and collection of taxes from persons
with incomes under $1,000. II this
overhead is eliminated the Govern
ment could save not only great
annoyance to millions of its citizens.
but would be enabled to make the
business Of the Internal Revenue
Bureau current instead Of five years
behind"
eff the American people knew
what goes on in the Internal Rev.
enue Bureau" says Glass. "they
would destroy itp'