Ogden Standard-Examiner | 1920-04-27 | Page 7 | Sec. Houston Takes Issue with Plumb

oo f' WASHINGTON, April 26. Secre- . ! lary Houston took issue today with ' Glenn E. Plumb, author if the Plumb ; j plan for railroad control, on "published ": ! statements of the latter in reference to the federal reserve system and cur- i : rency inflation. He said Mr. Plumb's figures as to government receipts and expenditures were "grossly misleading." mislead-ing." Mr. Houston's views were presented i in a letter made public at the treasury which also expressed the secretary's emphatic disapproval of a capital tax ' , to pay off the national debt, i "A capital tax, in my judgment," the i letter said, "would be entirely iraprac- ticable and so disturbing to industry ! and commerce as to upset business I . and bring production to a standstill, j The great bulk of the capital is in- , , vested in the Industry and trade and j ' is the basis of production." An inevitable effect of the capital j tax would be to "discourage saving i' and encourage extravagance," he said. Ho also believed such effect would be J lasting, probably for "several genera-"jL genera-"jL tions to come." V -jftteft Mr Housl-on aaid total governmental 'VEF disbursements from April 6, 1917 to March 31, aggregated $37,455,645,000, jf..',' and total receipts $14,19S,247,000: The j not increase in the nation's debt for : the war period therefore, was $23,257,- j ?t 398,000, he added, which is repreBent- ' jj ed by Liberty bonds, war savings cer- jj tlflcates and treasury certificates of If indebtedness outstanding.