Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-12-18
TAX BURDEN IN UNITED STATES
LESS THAN IN NATIONS ABROAD
Only About One-Tenth of Per Capita
income Goes for Levies-Incomes
Furnish the Backbone.

gain their independence would have
been for naught. and the 10 States
would split apart into as many incon-
seuuential units Therefore, arrange
ments were made to bring about con-
| ference In Philadelphia to formulate
definite plan of government. Out OF
this conference grew our present Con
stitution, which was submitted to the
States for ratification in 1887. and was
| finally ratified in 1888.
Powers Of Congress.
The Constitution specifically gives
| Congress the power to lay and collect
| taxes, duties, imposts and excuses and
| to pay the debts and provide for the
common defense and welfare OF the
United States, but it requires that all
| duties. imposts and excuses shall be
uniform throughout the United States.
| 1t provides further that no capitation
| or other direct tax shall be laid unless
! in proportion to the census or emu
meration which il directs shall be
taken every 10 years. This provision
| is modified by the sixteenth amend
ment, as described in a later para
graph. The Constitution also provides
| that no tax or duty shall be laid on
articles exported from any State and
that no State without the consent of
Congress shall lay any impoSts or du-
ties on imports or exports except what
may be absolutely necessary for exc
cutting its inspection laws and that the
net produce of all duties and imposts
shall be for use of the Treasury of the
United States. IT, states are forbid
den, eXcent ~ the consent of Con-
gress -Iay any duty on tonnage.
have seen, was formulated in the Fall
of 1887, yet so great was the opposi-
ton to its adoption that it was not
finally ratified until 1889. In April of
this year the First Congress convened
in old Federal Hall on Wall street, in
New York City, when the election of
Washington as the first President of
the United States was confirmed.
Washington took the oath of office in
Federal Hall on April 80, 1889, and in
accordance with the power vested in
them by the Constitution. Congress
and the President proceeded to organ
ize Government.
1t was not until September that the
Treasury Department was established.
Washington appointed Alexander
Hamilton as the first Secretary and
Hamilton assumed his duties on the
the Government had functioned with
out any finance department and with
out any resources with which to meet
salaries and other current expenses of
Government. to say nothing of the in
terest upon the public debt. However.
in the interval, Congress had passed
and the President had approved, on
July 4, 1883. the first tax law of the
United States under the present Con.
stitution. This law provided for rails
ing money by a tariff on imported
goods and was followed on July 20 by
law levying duties on tonnage and
on July 81 by another providing the
machinery for the collection of duties
While these laws We're passed before
Hamilton became Secretary of the
Treasury. it is believed that he was
consulted as to all of them and that
they represented his wishes and his
constructive genius.
Compelled to Make Loan.
When Hamilton took charge of the
Treasury no revenues had as yet come
in so that he was compelled to make
a temporary loan from the two great
banks of the day. the Bank of New
York and the Bank of North America.
in PHILADELPHIA. At the urgent re-
quest of Congress, Hamilton submitted
to that body, in January of 1890, his
report on the public credit in which,
among other things, he recommended
that the duties on imports and tom
mage provided for by the legislation
of the previous year should be supple
mented by imposts on wines and
spirits, including those distilled within
the United States. and upon teas and
coffee. Congress adopted his sugges-
ton and thus, on March 3, 1871, the
first internal revenue act became a
law.
gestion was made, how seriously we
do not know, that means could be pro-
vlded for liquidating the Indebtedness
OF the country. without depressing
the citizens simply by taxing the
vices prevailing at that time, the chief
of which were said to be perjury,
drunkenness. blasphemy, SANDER and
infidelity.
The writer. inquiries whether
moderate tax upon every particular
vice would not be more conducive to
our welfare than the cramping of our
foreign and domestic trade? Such
tax" he says. must of necessity yield
vast revenue and prove most in
fallible scheme for our prosperity"
|.He advocated moderate tax on per-
jury, which he took to be the most
important and particular staple vice. :"
Drunkenness. he suggested, should be
taxed because lit might be prejudicial
TO trade as well as to revenue to dis
courage it, He feared that the mill
tary men might object to the tax on
swearing and perhaps would want to
claim an exemption from ii. The
writer also suggested that luxuries
should be heavily taxed. but he did
not favor the taxation of bachelors.
1t is hardly necessary to state that
these suggestions were not taken Sc
r.ously by Congress.
Duties and Excise Taxes.
Customs duties and excise taxes
were the only forms Of taxation au.
thorized by Congress and were the
only forms used for the collection OF
revenue for the Federal Government
from its foundation until the time of
the Civil War, with one exception, and
RESORTS.
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