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The Commoner-
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(By Josephug Daniels, Secretary of the Navy
jii Wilson's Cabinet. All Rights Reserved, 21st
Century Prem, Washington, D. C.)
DO people really Wish reduction of taxes?
"The present taxes are burdensome and Intol
erable and must be reduced,"
I have recently visited thirteen states and
spoken in most of' them, sometimes to Cham
bers of Commerce and other business organiza
tions, and talked to men 9f affairs, newspaper
men, public officials and others who are in touch
with what the folks are thinking about They
are talking, of course, about all problems from
what to plant to indemnities ok whether it was
true that the world war was really a war against
war as we told the Ave million youths who were
enrolled or enlisted. Oh every other topic I
found variety of opinions, but rich and poor,
east and west, there was concurrence of opinion
that federal taxation ought to bo reduced.
I do not state this fact as anything novel or
surprising. Adam had to give a tenth of his
fig leaves and I doubt if he relished the law.
Didn't it make him shudder at the thought Qf
scant clothing if- the thermometer should go,
down? We all want the modern improvements
which cost millions and billions and hurrah
for them, but when the bill has to be paid we
are all ready to find a way to "let George, dp
it." However, at this time, now thai . war (1has
ended and all other things (except tFust-oon-trolled
products) tfiave been tumbling the peo
ple are serious In their demand tor reduction
of the big burdens wihiclr soared in war. Of
course the loudest cries are raised by those who
wish to shift their excess profits tax to the con
sumers. They ought not tp be permitted to do
It, for if anybody qught to pay high taxes at this
time it is. the men and-corporations making "ex
cess profit. If the- real people I mean. the.
folks who labptf and the -folks,-who' produce the
wealth could make their? voice heard in Wash
ington they would thunder to lawmakers this
mandate Reduce no. taxes on profiteers or
those Who. are 'still making excess profits until
all taxes on consumption are repealed. '
THE MAIN QUESTION
The question uppermost is: How can,vcongress
respond to the popular demand to reduce fed
eral taxation? ".'..
I have the answer and' it is as easy as proving
that two and two make four. More than that:
it is the only way to reduce taxation to some
extent immediately and prepare the way for
great reductions in all .the future. It Is self
evident, too; that unless the course I will out
line is taken, instead of any permanent reduc
tion in federal expenses, the day is not distant
When expenditures must be -greatly increased and
that therefore new sources of revenue must be
discovered.
Now f or 4he immediate reduction of govern
ment expenses:
Repeal immediately the Esch-Cummins bill
. of abominations under which many millions of
dollars annually re paid as subsidies to tha-railroads.
No other industry enjoys a government
subsidy, with guarantees of profits on watered
stock, and at the same time is permitted to raise
railroad rates to a point so high as to make ship
ment of heavy freight almost prohibitory. Does
anybody wonder that receipts are falling off
When rates are prohibitory? A ton of hay in a
western state can be bought for six dollars, so an
eastern North Carolina farmer tells me, but the
freight rate is twelve dollars to his home depot.
2. Reduce at once the army to 100,(100 men
and the navy to 100,000 men. Of course it will
require more men if all ships are kept in full
commission and all the army posts are fully
manned. But there is no need for this, I know
what 1 am talking about when I say 100,000
trained men will man all the 12- and 14-inch-gun
dr,eadnaughts and the active necessary fleet
in the Atlantic and pacific oceans, giving on
the JPacific, a navy, stronger in gun-power and
man-power than Japan's -navy, and .giving on
the Atlantic a fleet more powerful than the
"Whole Antlantfc fleet "before 1017 The regular
army will be strong and efficient 'with 100,000
train,ednien. Why do 1 say this? -We have now
in the country over; 500,000 men who. served in
the navy 'during the" world war and 4,000,000
who served, in the 'army. Whether they are
actually enrolled a reserves, , they haye had
sufficient military training to -constitute a strong
reserve in ahjr emergency that may occur in the
Sees Way
toXy !, HP " cal1 hak Aonfcroisce without waiting for any
lPf111fA I Pllff AQ further action by 'congress. He can do so to-
"VVAVV C4uluV morrow it he bo elects. If he will call this con-
next ten or dozen years, and congress could call
them back to duty upon a few day's notice. It
cost millions to train thorn. Wo must rccognizo
that they constitute a valuable potential re
serve. Many of them are on a certain pay
status. The possession of this reserve' makes
possible a smaller force of regulars.
SINCE THIS GOVERNMENT WAS ESTAB
LISHED IT HAS EXPENDED SIXTY-SEVEN
BILLION DOLLARS. OP THAT AMOUNT
FIFTY-EIGHT BILLION DOLLARS- HAVE
GONE TO PAY FOR WAR AND ONLY NINE
BILLION DOLLARS FOR PURPOSES OF
PEACE. AND WE ARE NOT A WAR-LIKE
NATION. BUT SUPPOSE WE WERE: HOW
MANY BILLIONS WOULD HAVE BEEN RE
QUIRED! NOW WE ARE CLEARLY UP
AGAINST THIS PROPOSITION: DO WE WISH
TO CONTINUE TO SPEND 58 DOLLARS FOR
WAR AND 9 DOLLARS FOR PEACE OF ALL
THE MONEY RAISED AND DO WE WISH' TO
CONTINUE OUR BIG EXPENDITURE FOR
WAR? IF WE DO NOT AND THAT IS THE
CONSENSUS OF OPINION AMONG TAXPAY-ERS.-HOW.'
ARE WE GOING TO RELIEVE
OURSELVES OF THIS CONTINUING WAR
TAX?
ONLY ONE WAY ,, ' . '
- There Is only one-way: That is by an. Inter
national agreement to submit national differ
ences to arbitration in some such way as private
difference are disposed of in court, and an -International
agreement to the reduction of arma
ment. We must do that or we must settle down
into, a permanent status of paying out billions
every year for protection. No big and rich na
tion alone can safely reduce armament. It
must be done by agreement of navy-building and
army-maintaining nations.
We Americans may as well face the responsi
bility which rests upon us. It is our nation which
stands in the .way. Reduction of armament will
be an irridoscent dream until the United States
takes the lead. Why-lo Isay this? Because
all'-jhe other countries ratified the peace treaty
embracing .the league of nations. The central
-thought Of that whole document was reduction
of armament and settlement of world questions
without resort to war.
"The league is scrapped, "-says Senator Lodge,
"atleast for four years." Certainly if Harding
and Lodge agree to that statement, the league
is, scrapped, "Rest in peace." v
. ,ut if the league lias been interred (inde
cently I think) -that is no.. reason why some
modus vivendi cannot be found to bring' about
reduction of armament which was contained
in its text. There are more ways to kill a cat
than tochokejt to death with butter.. Long
before the league of nations was draftdd wise
men urged some plan to stop competition of
military preparations. The Hague Tribunal1 had
that in view. Winston Churchill hinted at it
in his plan for a naval holiday.
'"- 1916 NAVAL ACT POINTED WAY '"
The only concrete, practical, ready-made-plan
' now available is contained In the naval a'ppror.
priation act of, August, 1916. a That' was the
bill carrying the largest authorization for jflght?
ing craft ever voted in peace times by any cojihr.
try. It had Its inspiration in Woodrow Wilson's
declaration that this country should have "in
comparably the most adequate navy in the
world." In the epoch-making bill was incor-.
porated the declaration:
"It is hereby declared to he the policy of the
United States to adjust and settle Its interna
tional disputes through mediation or arbitration
to the end that war may be honorably avoided.
It looks with apprehension and disfavor upon a
general increase of armament throughout the
world, but it realizes that no single nation can
disarm."
In view of the policy of our country, thus:
perfectly stated in a few words, the bill provided
the money to pay the necessary expense and
"authorized and requested" the President to in
vite "all the great governments of the world to
send representatives to a conference which shall
be charged with formulating a plan for a cOurt
or other tribunal, to which disputed questions
between nations shall be referred for adjudica
tions and peaceful settlement, and to, consider
the questions of disarmament." - T
-PRESIDENT HAS AUTHORITY '
" That law and that appropriation giye4 PresI-
dent Harding the authority and the money to
'feronce thla month, we can confidently look
forward to securing International agreement and
reduction of armament by overy great nation be
fore this year ends. Is there any country that
would decline?, If so, the world would know
which country harbors the imperialistic desiro
to bo another Gormany.
UNLESS ACTION IS TAKEN AND TAKEN
PROMPTLY LOOKING TO THIS WORLD-DESIRE,
IT IS MORE THAN FOLLY TO TALK
ABOUT REDUCING TAXES,
If President Harding would like a suggestion
of the members ot such commission, I venture
to suggost Its membership: Let him name tho
present Secrtary of State, William Howard Taf,
William Jennings, Bryan, the present Socretary
of War and his. predecessor and the present
Secretary of the Navy and his prederobsor, and
they will, acting with likd commissiorfcr from
other nations, agree upon a r plan for settling
disputes in the forum of reason andhl jocure
reduction of armaments.
Without such agreement, why deceive ho
people into believing tlat large reductions in
taxation is possible?"
.
- "LIKE A MIGHTST ARMY''
"Like a mighty army
Mdves the church of God."
President "Harding -has urged the 'nation? to
take to- heart the ideals of Christianity and. aa
he has written the1 ideals of Christianity hava
been taken to heart.
The flgures-of the church's growth since tjio
war are amazing; , Accessions to the Catholic
church in this country have numbered moro -than
one and a haf millions, and to the various
Protestant churches combined" mftre than .ttw$
millions. . .'.' '
The Baptists lead the Protestant donomiha-,
tions with 300,00.0, added to the church,, bpth
northern and southern branches; the MelhVdisUi
follow with 191,000; the Presbyterians wilh
156,000; the Lutherans, with 110,000; the Con-'
gregationalists and Disciples, with 100,000 o.a'ch;?
Church contributions correspond-to tiie jn
crease in numbers. According to Catholic au-,
thorities, church gifts for benevolent and pdjipa
tional purposes aro the largest in hlstoryi. ''hsi
Methodist church alone reports $60,000,000. for, -church
work and church extension In tlio last
fiscal year. , ;", '';;,,,
Figures tell only a small part of the storyC
The church-going habit, if it was ever In dan
ger, is in danger no longer. A canvass of the
undergraduates of the University of Chicago, '
for example, last spring showed that almost", "
90 per cent of i the students made church attend ,'J
ance a rule. 'Ministers- all over the city report2
larger congregations. The attendance in one'
district containing eleven churches of different" ;
denominations Is estimated at 75 per cent great-,
er than before the war. .
"Like a. mighty array!" The greatest of all" ,
American .Legion today Is the legion of the,
churches of, Christ. r-Chlcago Herald Examiner.y.V , .
BRITAIN'S' BOOZE MONEY WOULD PAX "?"
' ' - HALF DEBT ''r-'-..
A special correspondent from London, under- " ''
date of Aug '5, says: During last year the peo
ple of the British Isles have, spent for liquor -,.
about half the suni Great Britain owes the
United States. ' '
George Wilson secretary of the United King
dom Alliance; estimates the amount spent by -the
British people for drink. last year at 469,-'
713,000, or approximately two billion dollars.
John Bull owes lUncle Sam $4,277,000000 for
money borrowed' -during the war. Not even the'
interest has been -paid on that. . -t
.There were 57,948 convictions for intoxication ?
in. 1919 and 95,637 last year,. of whom 15,425
were women. .Aud British police are far more
lenient than our police.
Many of the newspapers have been agitating
for longer hours of opening of saloons, At4
present saloons may1 b- ijpen only eight hours -a
day. '
If you want to quenclj your thirst after 8 p.
m., the only- place you can do it is in a saloon
or restaurant or? hotel. You can't buy any soft?
drinks elsewhere., nor Ice cream aoda. All these '
shops are shut'.by law at 8. . f
-, r - t"
While we Republicans go out primarily for
results, we ar scrupulous as anybodywhen cofi-?
dltions permit, and it is a great relief fo 'Us 'not
tc need Senator Newberry's vote any longer.
Columbus Ohio State Journal. . .
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