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Show IS IT RIGHT At the recent convention of the Farm Mortgage Bankers' Assn. of America it was shown that there are over $20,000,000,000 of United Slates securities and $8,000,000-of $8,000,000-of state and municipal securities outstanding of the "tax-exempt" variety. va-riety. In other words the income from nearly $30,000,000,000 of American Veaath is escaping taxation which must be paid on income from other inveslt cr.t- and returns from labor or servi.es lendered. This rendition is an evil in itself, but thai is vol the worst. The evil is growing. In 1912 the state and municipal mu-nicipal issues of tax-free securities amounted to about $4 00,000,000; in 1910 to about $500, 000, 0 0 0 T in 1920 to $773,000,000. Last year's Issues rose to $1,300,000,000, and this year's will be little short of $2,006,-000,000. $2,006,-000,000. . What the mortgage bankers emphasize em-phasize over and over again is that these growling sums are being taken almost dally from busy hands that produce tho wealth of the country and placed in the hands of officials who simply scatter wealth abroad. What justice is there in allowing the holders of some $30,000,000,-000 $30,000,000,-000 of public bonds to escape tax-j tree on the income derived therefrom there-from while the man who works or maintains a business must account, for every penny he makes and pay taxes on the same, including additional addi-tional taxes to make up the amounts lost to the government through the tax-cxemjption loop-hole favoring the holder of government securities. |