Evening star., 1944-03-26
PIeasures and POSTAGE
will Come Higher
From This Week On

ttSu uuHS " WIN VII
H The coming week ushers In q
general rise in excise taxes and
postal rates.
II Your mail-in almost every cate
CORY except the ordinary city-to-
city 3-cent letter - will cost you
more, beginning today.
III Under the Revenue Act Of 1913,
passed by Congress over the Presi-
dents veto, postal rates rise on in
tracity mail, all airmail except that
to and from our armed forces over.
seas. parcel post, money orders, reg
istered mail, and G. o. D. fees. The
table printed herewith, prepared by
the National Council on Business
Mail, gives the details.
New Rates Criticized.
Opposition to the new postal
rates was voiced last night by
Chairman Burch Of the House Post
/ Of1ce Committee, who declared the
entire new rate schedule is in for
q thorough overhauling.
| He pointed out that vigorous OBJ
lection to the new rates was voiced
by members Of the Post Office Com
mittee at the time the schedule was
written into the tax bill by the
Ways and Means Committee. He
characterized the changes as meat
ak tactics" and expressed doubt
they would yield as much revenue
as anticipated.
He predicted new postal legisla-
ton will be drafted by his commit
tee as soon as an analysis of de-
tailed and scientific reports sof the
cost Of handling various types of
mail, being prepared for the House
group by Post ONCE Department |
experts, was completed.
Liquor to Cost More.
Beginning next Saturday, many
OF the luxury items and some
Of the necessities commonly bought
by the American public will bear
higher excise taxes to yield more
dollars to win the war.
Drinking, for instance, will mean
a greater strain on your pocketbook
as liquor stores and bars add taxes
to cover rise from Sc to 50 a gal
Ion on distilled spirits, an increase
OF from 81 to So per barrel on beer,
and a graduated rise in wine taxes.
These vary from an increase Of S
cents per gallon on wines of under
IA per cent alcohol to 81 on those
containing over 81 per cent alcohol.
For glass of beer of 8 ounces
or more, retailers may charge an
additional cent, the OPA decided. |
No price increase Is allowed for
beer or ale served in quantities less
than 8 ounces.
The restaurant industry, when
they got wind of what was coming
urged OPA to permit bars to charge
a fiat scent increase on mixed
drinks and maintain present prices
on wines and beer. Thus, they said,
they would be able to break even.
The OPA said no.
Drinks Must Stay Same Size.
Hard liquor, served in individual
drinks, will cost from 2 to 4 cents
more, depending on the size and
proof.
Seeking to correct what they said
was an erroneous impression, the
OPA yesterday emphasized that
bartenders would not be allowed to
cut the size of drink to absorb
the liquor tax increase The same
ruling presumably applies to beer.
Although bartenders expressed
strong distaste for dealing in odd
pennies. there apparently was no
alternative in prospect, according
to the OPA regulations.
In the future you will pay l cent
to the Government for every 5 cents
OF the value of your theater ticket,
instead Of cent out of 10 as previ-
ously. Concretely, a 81 theater
ticket will cost $120 instead of $1.10.
II you 60 in for boxes, the tax will |
be 20 per cent of the total, instead |
of the previous II per cent.
If you belong to club, your initi-
alton fees and dues will bear a 20
per cent tax instead of the former
II per cent.
30 Per Cent Cabaret Tax.
II you like night life and patronize
cabarets, you are due for a real
shock when the headwaiter hands
you your next bill. The modest S |
per cent now added for Government
tax will skyrocket to 80 per cent.
When next you step to the tele-
phone to call up that aunt inI
Kansas City, remember that the
Government will add Is per cent
to the bill instead of 20 per cent as
earlier. And. after May /, the taxi
on your local telephone service will
amount from 10 to Is per cent.
It will cost more to send tele-
grams, cablegrams and radiograms,
too, the tax rising from Is to IS per
cent.
The French have a phrase for it:
"C'est la guerre."
Or, in American idiom: "War is
like that"
The American Red Cross, assisted
by the Brazilian Red Cross, reaches
South America through offices in
Brazil, British and Dutch Guiana,
Ecuador, Galapagos Islands, Peru
and the OffSh0re islands NJ Rer1nuda