Show o t TAX INoME DEPT T ll r i I Ii rl I r 1 1 T w fl e W WN N u 7 E 1 ELMO SCOTT WATSON T WONT WO be long now Lint untIl Uncle Slim Sam will wilt be saying t to toL Ills his children I and nn approximately two and ond 0 half million Individuals on nearly three quarters ee of o 0 million groups of ot t Liars unis will he digging down I IC In their pockets and C over o n a certain part of ot their thel WS S earnings s to their Uncle ho Is In need of ot tills this monr money to nl al lIng Ing a nation nallon of more than 12 fH and guaranteeing n a continuance of o otheir their life Ilfe liberty and and pursuit of hat hap happiness All of which Is by way If n that the filing of Income to returns hy by corporations flat antI 1111 1 lt dl id ual and ond the payment of ot th the first In In E of the 1923 Income tax lax Is I Idue tine due on March i lr Just w that means menns was WitS hy by u a newspaper editorial writer wh who observed oh er recently Unit lint Many person ire II re hot bothered ilC not so much over Iwer luy puy mt ment nt of their Income tuxes u us uc over o the lb complicated d task of making Ih them m out Even the man who finds after an nn all session with his Ills Income tat blank that he lie owes O the I lie go only twenty nine c cents Ins his to g go through the same complicated Is the lie man who Is entirety out flut ut of stamps Cind please e- e stamps nd class In addition to the general 11 g i ern merit n of the United l States s many mallY In Individual dl states Impose an nn Income tax Municipalities have hate not become ad dieted to the practice but If It they should the average u moan man who has hns to to toBit sit up late Inte to clear to-clear clear up ui the lie Involved ed In to checking up his milk bill might aa ns well ell pr prepare are to ask for a 0 weeks seeks vacation In w which h to pursue ue the elusive e and many loony times be issues which the ordinary lax lat blank presents Income ta taxes In the United States are It a Twentieth lh century product Springing out of the stress of war wartime time conditions they have flourished to such an nil extent tint thai an bumper crop prompts tie government to 10 bund back the surplus The states srole hi hate e not yet t complained I II ell of ot w lag Jog treasuries S At AI this time ot of amateur accountants each armed un tin adequate supply of lead pen In pencils pencils 11 u r ream am or two of note paper text textbooks books on mathematics JO cir dr circulars colors and hope that thai springs eternal ore ure squaring for the Hie great task hsk of to out Ill income tax thank blank It was Just 20 U years ago thit Uncle Sam SaID deckled decided lo to Impose an Income tax Ins upon lon his lots children for fur It II wis wits on in July lUly 12 lets 1900 Ihal the Six y congress ngi 58 proposed posed to 10 the 1 legislatures of or the various states stales the following amend amendment ment to the 7 he con lIn gross gress shall lave power patter to 10 lat lav and nod col collect lect lest taxes on Incomes from from w sources derl derived j apportion II oiling amona the s several states s and without regard to any uny census ensUl or enu ration Tills Fins nut ent ni was 11 ac accepted by hy all nil of It the states except nn lIn 1 tala Island Island Utah ont And 1 1 Virginia It II was tit de lured to have hu been bel l HS S leX l the X I or to the tle Cl II sl II tuti nil III Ion n and u 11 law inv In ins ina s proclamation of n P Knox secretary of ot state In President Tafts Taft's cabinet on February F 23 1913 Lat Last year Uncle Sam collected n a total of ot In Income tax This Tills represented a total of f 3 41 returns of ot which G were In Individual toad partnership and WEre WE're corporation Of Ot the total tax J was paid In by the In Individuals lIi and ond partners and SI 81 18 5 t 12 b corporations To realize hat chat vast sums Americans Lave have paid palt out of ot their pockets Into Uncle Sams Sam's all nil you need to do Is take tole n a alook alook look at the lie table of ot income tax lax collection during the last teu feu years 1918 1015 l 1919 2600 1920 IVO 3 r 03 1921 a- a Ir 1922 w 1023 53 4 19 18 7 1925 1025 W 5 Ha 10 0 Jj 11 1927 1127 17 America Is universally looked upon uS ors the nation on earth and ond an interesting commentary on how bow the stealth of Itt the lie Individual American In- In Increased In Increased creased especially during the war Is shown la to the lie income tax returns dur dur- during during ing Ilig the same period given In the table above In 1913 n a total of re- re returns returns re returns turns were filed filet in 1914 1014 there were In 1915 there were and In 1916 Then came lame the sudden u wave e of ot prosperity lIfTing during the war and In 1917 the number of ot returns lumped Jumped to From then on there was a steady Increase o e In the of ot Individuals IntI who lied flied l income tax IU returns In 1918 1018 there were 1919 WID saw r filing returns and In 1920 the number reached the peak with i Then a n revision re f the Income laconic tax law bow caused the num num- number her ber to drop to It rose to In 10 1922 anti and then jumped to In J 1923 3 In 1924 a total or of ori i persons l lied filed Income tax re- re returns re returns turns In 1925 1125 there lucre was as again a sharp drop In tile the number of Income tux return returns to I 51 Oa 01 February 20 1920 President e signed the revenue He Act ot of 1120 1 ha 1 hanew new law for the sear icar 1925 1025 and which f fl ed ed the normal tax rte fir fr Individuals at ot a 1 S I th 3 andr and r per cent ot for tor net Incomes from 0 up to II It also decreased the surtax rates and Increased increase the personal exemption of a single person to 1500 and of or a n married person or orI bead henl of or a n family to 3 00 It also to 20 l 0 the amount of Income may be considered as ns ell earned tad taxed oozed at nt lower rates rotes The first Ih lie e thousand dollars of net nel income to lu lunil 1111 iii cases rases Is deemed decried to be earned Some Interesting facts rOts on tile the income Inome lux ax situation especially In regard to the he Increase In amount of such duh tax clog bald pidd trio Into Uncle Uccle Sams Sam's picket lok t Suite h-Suite route cuts cute were contained InI In Ina Ina a I rot cut press Ille dl dispatch from Washing Washington ton Ion on a which high hll-h rends as ns fellows s Jol Washington Joseph ph S McCoy JOV- JOV erin eov-erin actuary tae liaa made mide an analytic 81 tic is of or Income tax statistics of or the States Siales for foi tour oui years end and points out rut some omo omo remarkable tatt facts For W fears yeara enra congress has depended on Mr McCoy to furnish the ways and m means and the finance committees information on which to frame tariff and tax meas meas- measures measures ures Ills His opinion Is considered the last cord Vi ord on federal taxes Mr McCoy compares the calendar year of ot 1924 1921 with that thaI of or 1927 Tho The total taxable net Income for 1924 1921 was I returned by I Individuals while chile for It to was returned by only Individuals said Mr Sir McCoy That ThatIs Is practically the same net Income as 09 was returned In to from Crom 60 GO per cent as many Individuals as returned similar Inv In- Income In Income come In 1921 1924 The net Income returned by those with Incomes In excess ot of however Increased from In In to In 1927 The Thenet Thenet net nel Income alone did not Increase but the total net Iet tn tai as returned Increased ruin for 1924 1921 to tor or 1921 1527 Commenting on the showing made Mr hir McCoy said s The strange almost unbelievable fact tact Is reH revealed led by these eta statistics that In spite of the reduction reduction tion of the tax rates by tully fully 40 per percent percent percent I cent out of the total number ot of o rev re returns turns tuns aggregating for tor 1924 Individuals in n 1927 returned net taxes tares of In excess of that rev reo re returned I turned Cor or 1921 Int The average tax re cc re- re returned returned turned for tor 1924 n was as as and for tor 1927 an an Increase of ot average tax taK ot of 1096 per cent and of ot gro gross grobs s tax or of per cent as compared with a 8 re- re reduction re reduction In the number returning net Income of ot per cent and a reduction tion In the average tax lax rate of abut ab ut 40 per cen cent t The reason for tor this lots anomaly Is clearly clear clear- clearly clearly ly the enormous Increase In the and Income of ot the larger larer together with the of ot so many of ot the smaller taxpayers tax tax ayers Mr McCo McCoy asserted that thaI the collections show that S Secretary Mellon was right when he told congress that a re within reason In Income tax taJ rates results In a greater tax yield Another thing thins shown Mr McCo McCoId McCoy Id Aid is is 18 the displacement of ot Individual hy by orate ural business S The 1927 prelim prelim- preliminary show that the Income inary nary returns return rum individual business was teas I total gross Income returned while hilI the by corporations was 5 18 13 The total net Income returned by taxable l- l Individuals for 19 1327 7 was u as a compared with taxable net returned by corporations lions The entire Income returned return by In from wages and salaries was wac wa compare I with Ith only 10 as for tor 3 as the returns indicate would seem to business ss This sums must be paid IAd to that t Immense and saline salaries b by taxpayers as DS corporations tlona The marked effect ot of the new income the a wage e earners rs is is te Ie tax IlK Lowe laws upon the returns of or Incomes from In 1 salaries ij tl i for tOI Ins 1921 IU as 9 compared tred all ali with wages similar return till m 1 7 In spite Increase In Incomes and In Inv the great ot of gr these thee returns for 1924 1921 creased totaled over 3 more than did for o This Is account accounted similar returns i i the personal h exemption n In Increase ed cd for Cor or by of ot 60 per pu cent tent for single le crease to 10 0 cent for tor married persona and of ot per heads of families which redu ed the and ancl number ot of returns over 3 1100 IndivIduals Individuals 19 1927 7 1924 1921 to from I based his study on the Mr Mt McCoy aY statistics of t Income for forthe forthe 1927 the calendar year yc-ir total number numbu i of or individuals mak- mak makIng mak The tor I I was waa 7 i 4 I while Ing returns only for made re- re for tor reduction of or over 43 41 per rent a turns pointed out This Tina was caused bythe bythe by he personal exemptions PO o the revenue re act acl of by the returning net nel me in-me la number The of however IS n excess SS 1921 there were rc OU of such story lon For as u it with 6 for tor 1927 returns f r f over 31 r p-r cent nt Increase 1927 an returning net nel Incomes or of The number 1100 0 for tor 19 1924 1 was vas Siyi and for ov over r an Increase In of ot nta nearly W 95 per percent percent percent IL 1927 number returning s In cent The 1924 74 71 an a of or 1 D was f for tor 1327 1927 an Increase of ar almost per cent |