" That is, they thought
duties should only be high enough to produce sufficient income for
the needs of the government. They objected to tariffs merely for
"protection." That is, they objected to tariffs which "protected"
the manufacturer at the expense of the consumer.
President Wilson held these opinions strongly, and during the first
year of his presidency a bill was passed by which were luxuries,
things which only rich people bought, were heavily taxed, while the
taxes on foodstuffs and wool, things which the poorest need, were
made much lighter. These changes in the tariff brought in much less
income for the government, and to make up for the loss an Income
Tax was levied for the first time, everyone who had more than 4,000
dollars a year having to pay it. In this way again the burden of
taxes was shifted from the poor to the rich.
The President next turned his attention to the banks. Little change
had been made in their way of doing business since the Civil War,
and for some time it had been felt that to meet the growing needs
of trade a change was wanted. Many people had tried to think out
a new system, but it was not easy, and they failed. Mr. Wilson,
however, succeeded, and in December, 1913, the Currency Bill was
passed.
It would take too long, and would be rather difficult, to explain
just what this Act was.
Pages:
689
690
691
692
693
694
695
696
697
698
699
700
701
702
703
704
705
706
707
708
709
710
711
712
713