Montana labor news., 1935-12-19

regulate the intclndi workings oil a
Montana corporation such as the Ana
conda is The U. S. Supreme Court
has v decided that we could not
get a man in Burke Clements place.
OF q states which have a state in
come tax only Montana and Delaware,
the dukedom Of the Duponts, are so
craven as to exempt corporations from
paving the same income taxes as natu-
raj persons pay. This state is run by
the Anaconda and the Northern Pacific
as heads of the Grand Alliance. and
their lobbyists and jury fixers posing
as LAWYERS. Here are the two big tax
dodgers in this state. The other
members of the Grand Alliance are
yesmen to these two. The mines of
the Anaconda are on every continent.
The money to develop them originated
in Butte mines, with Butte labor and
high mining technique. 1t is but right
to make the Anaconda pay an income
tax on income earned elsewhere. This
would net probably $475,000 the year.
The u. S. Supreme Court has recently
decided that Montana could do this be-
cause that corporation is domiciled
here.
The Northern Pacific owns all the
stock in the Northwestern Improve
ment Company. During these last lean
Q years, the dividends from this sub
sidiary have averaged above 4 million
dollars the year. This is a land own
ing company, Most of its land is in
this state. The u. S. Supreme Court
says we a put this income under our
income tax law. It would yield $780,
600 the year. It is quite just to capture
all this land by taxation. It is residue
of the old fraudulent Land Grant of
1865. There is yet 4 million acres Of
it in Montana. It should be taxed one
dollar per acre per year until it is
abandoned to the state. There is
money for the state in its land. The
Public School Fund has seven million
dollars of various securities. Brand
jord could care for another 4 million
acres and make good money for the
state out of it.
The N. P. Railway is mining at Coal
Strip by open pit one million tons of
coal the year at a cost of IS cents the
ton. A dollar per ton for this disp1ace-
ment OF labor would bring the state an
other million the year. There is no
good reason why the Northern Pacific
Railway alone should not pay S million
dollars a year to Montana above what
it pays now except the corruption of
our legislators and ~cowardice of our
electorate. 1t would not lower wages
Of its employees. Railroad wages are
the same on the Northern Pacific with
1876 million dollar surplus, Great North
ern with 100 million dollar surplus and
Milwaukee in bankruptcy. Wages are
governed by other economic laws than
the amount produced by labor, under
the system Of production for profit and
not for use.
Reclassify Utility Property.
The place to get about 10 million
dollars additional revenue for the state
is in the reclassification of the property
Of the utilities for taxation. The rail
roads, telephone, gas, power, milling,
smelling companies pay on a valuation
OF 40 per cent. No one should object
to being assessed on the true value of
his property. Let us reclassify and
place at a 95 per cent valuation the
following Pipe lines for gas from
well to consumer, hydraulic power
dams, generating plants, transmission
lines from plant to consumers prem
ises, telegraph lines, telephone lines,
flour mills, smelteries, railroad equip
ment and roadbeds, stations, rolling
stock.
Insurance Graft.
1t is true that lawyers are not usually
producers. But, contrasted with insur-
nee agents our method Of making a
living is quite altruistic. There are
only 1888 lawyers in Montana and we
usually take money from one citizen
and give it to another Cor keep some
ouselves and spend it here.) There are
$500 or 1000 insurance sharps in the
state. The life insurance companies
alone last year took 6 million dollars
more from this state in premiums than
was returned in losses. When one con
siders fire, accident, liability insurance,
it is fair to say, 10 million dollars more
leaves this state in premiums yearly
than is returned by these harpies pos
ing as public benefactors. Retention
taxes, amounting to 2 million dollars a
year from insurance companies would
be moderate. Undoubtedly insurance
had done as much to impoverish this
state as any one pest from which we
have suffered. Their profit ranges
from about 1902 per Get per anum for
fire to $50 per cent for life risks. In
surance companies are not in financial
straits from losses in business but from
investing in holding companies, and the
big fellows gambling with the poor
peoples money.
Severance Taxes.
The Supreme Court leaves the states
rights TO levy a tax on the severance of
natural resources. A bunch of Mime
sofa chaps have invaded Eastern Mon
tana, tapped gas in wells only 900 feet
deep and pipe it back to Minneapolis.
They have as much right to do this
without paying this state handsomely
for the privilege, as a bunch Of rats
has to rob a farmers granary. A nat
ural gas severance tax should yield the
state a million dollars a year revenue.
I In a modern fashion we're +
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