Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1943-03-15


Mn. PICKERING mentioned II
TO Cliff Hopkins at CKLW, and
q Mrs. Tracy called and said
the date was 1913. Immediately
afterward. the switchboard was
plugged with calls from others
who knew.
Sometimes. you get TO think
ing that it's a shame that the
public knows so little about the
nations history. Then. some
thing happens to make you
realize how many people DO
know.
Wen, anyhow, 1918 Is the right
answer--although II you want to
split hairs, you can prove that
It's wrong, too.
While Columbus was still try
ing TO raise the dough for a
ship TO discover America, some
Of the Italian cities already had
income taxes. Florence was the
principal one
The English and French have
fooled around with IL, in one
form or another, for several
hundred years, and Louis XIV
tried one only a few years after
Detroit was settled-he inaug-
urated the law in ITO
Both the Florentines and the
French had TO give up the In
come tax idea, however. because
OF deplorabiy inefficient admin
istrative methods according TO
the Encycloetcetera.
I just dumped in that word
'Encycloetcetera" TO see whether
the composing room would notice
II. Also. 10 see whether you
would. or whether you just look
at the first couple OF syllables,
and guess al the rest OF a word.
The English had their first
income tax. In the modern sense,
In 1893. william Pitt started II.
IL was an on-again-off-again
proposition, though. and nobody
really made 10 stick until Glad
stone did II In 1888. Ever since.
the English have paid income
taxes.
The rates went up At a full
gallop in World War | days, the
highest rate being in effect
from 1918 10 1922. No doubt the
rate is higher right now than
IL was then.
IL looks like an odds-on bet
that we're going 10 have q wal
Looping income tax long after
this war is over. Maybe IL will
make more people interested In
how the tax money Is spent,
though.
So. you ask, how did the
United States manage TO get
along without an income tax
all those years while other
countries we're adopting it?
Answer: We didn't.
The eastern states, from Mas
sachusetts to South Carolina,
had taxes which were more or
less like an income tax, the
former having one hack In 1900
and-something. They were taxes
based on the ability to pay.
Some states still have an In
come tax.
We had an income tax in Civil
War days. and afterward- 1861
10 1872. IL was revived again
20 years later but was declared
unconstitutional.
The result was the Sixteenth
Amendment. President Taft
suggested the amendment in
1909, Congress passed il, and.
in 1913, IL was ratified by the
states-42 states ratified IL.
So when you turn In your tax
report today, and your money
with II, you are paying taxes
under n plan that has taken
hundreds Of years TO invent.
You're paying the money in
bigger gobs than ever before,
too.
But not paying IL a. fast a.
were spending IL. Never since
time began has man devoted so
much treasure TO the task OF
destroying all the things he holds
dear.
Llfe-liberty-the pursuit OF
happiness. Right now we're
willing TO settle for the second
OF these.
IT'S worth II, on this 18th Of
Msrch--but It's hard TO plank
down that tax money without
asking, how did we yet into this