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Show GENERAL. INTERNAL ItKVENl'E HE-I'OKT. HE-I'OKT. The I'ommiNNioiu-i' en (ho Viilliy I ruuUs - How to Mukc AihLUJcr.s, E:tc. .lEoiieul. Washington, 11, The commissioner commis-sioner of internal revenue has completed com-pleted his report for thu fiscal year ending June 30th, 1875. The document docu-ment is very voluminous, Tho commissioner com-missioner says : It may be a consolation conso-lation to know that grievous as aru the burdens laid upun such of our population, -i2,U0O,0UO or more, who consume the articles taxed by our internal revenue laws, tho British public, numbering less by one fourth .than -our people, paid under their I excise laws during tho year ending 1 March 31st, 1S75, taxes measured iu I cold to the amount of SLSH'Jliy.OOO against $110,010,000 paid in currency cur-rency by tho pcoplo of this country during the fiscal year ending June 30th t 1875. Tho report shows that the actual amount of receipts into the treasury horn all sources from and aftor Juno 30th, 1S01, to June HOth, 1871, exclusive of loans and treasury notes, was as follows : Customs, Cus-toms, $1,073,000,000; internal revenue, rev-enue, $1,000,000,000; direct tax, $14,-810,000; $14,-810,000; public lands, 000,000; miscellaneous, 23,000,000; premium on loans and sales of gold coin, $102,000,000. ' Total, $1,300,000,-000. $1,300,000,-000. Tho commissioner says with regard to tiio additional legislation required to enforce the honest collection of the tax on distilled spirits: 1 give it as my opinion that the only law necessary neces-sary is one that snail make the requirements re-quirements as stringent, and the penalties pen-alties for defrauding tho government assovoroiu the caso of the rectifier as they now aio in tho caso of the distiller. Tho rectifier should bo required re-quired to give a, bond in amount equal to tho lax represented by all tho spirits ho can possibly rectify each month. Iho house and tract of land upon which the establishment is located should bo forfeited to the United Slates in caso of fraud. He should not bo allowed to bandlo any spirits at his rectifying bouso except tln.no he purchases fur rectification and sells under rectifier's stamps. Under tho pieaent system of detecting detect-ing frauds thirty days must elapse bolbre tho discovery cojld bo made and the guilt fixed. As tiio apparatus in a ruddying house capable ol refilling re-filling a quantity of spirits upon which tho tax would amount to 100,000 a month may not bo worth more than $10,000, it will readily husucuthat under tho present law which only forfeits tho apparatus' and spirits owned by him at tho timo of seizure, a rectifier may eiil in defrauding tho government of $100,000 and forfeit only $10,000. By aliHCoialing to a foreign country ho alrto eHcupctt criminal punishment. 1 have also to Hiirnt that tho law iu forco in regard to tho roturn to b made by rectifiers is so indefinite that some legislation is needed to j cn forco the regulations. ( The commissioner also thinks tt would be better if rectifiers, distillers and wholesale liquor dealers were required to make transcript3 of their boous monthly instead of this labor being perlornied by tho local officers, as at present. It would relieve the o Incurs of an immense amount of labor, and would accomplish the moro important result of preventing the destruction of the books by parties about to be detected in fraud.1. There would then be a sworn copy in uus office that would always bo admissible admis-sible evidence in court against the guilty parties. I am of the opinion the present large tax upon distilled spirits can be collected with but small loss. This opinion is based upon the fact that every storekeeper, ganger and employe who is connected with a distillery where fraud is perpetrated becomes a pensioner upon tho distiller. dis-tiller. If, therefore, distillers bo kept under such strict surveillauce that the amount of money gained by lraud is not sutheient to pay a large corps of olhcers and workmen in necessary collusion with them to consummate the lraud, they will, as a matter of course, bo honest. As an indication of tho extent of the frauds above described, de-scribed, I bavo the honor to report that documentary evidence is in possession pos-session of this office which has warranted war-ranted the seizure of twenty-four distilleries dis-tilleries and thirty-seven rectifying houses and implicated over fifty United States gangers and store keepers. This evidence shows an issue, between July 1st, 1874, and May 1st, 1S75, of fraudulent spirits by implication of 20,000 packages, containing con-taining probably 1,200,000 proof gallons, gal-lons, und by the aid of false gauging to the additional amount of 1,000,000 proof gallons. This, of course, is but a portion of the fraud actually committed, com-mitted, but in itself indicates a loss of tax to the government in ten months to an ammount not less than 1,050,-000. |