McCormick messenger. (McCormick, S.C.) 1902-current, July 15, 1937, Image 6
McCORMICK MESSENGER, McCORMICK, S. C., THURSDAY, JULY 15, 1937
A
SOMEONE’S PICKING YOUR POCKET!
f ’
It’s the Hidden Tax Collector—He Respects Not Even the Real
Necessities of Life, and How He Wallops Your Budget!
/
What the salesman doesn’t always tell you: The cost of a used car
and its operation include hidden taxes amounting to 20.1 per cent. If
it were a new car, the figure would be 21.4 per cent.
By WILLIAM C. UTLEY
O YOU make $150 a month?
If you do, you’ll be inter
ested—and perhaps a little sur
prised—to learn that the tax
collector picks your pocket to
the tune of one-eighth of your
income. He sneaks enough from
the family wallet in two years
to buy a new car.
•Yes, he picks your pocket. For
this “take”—which amounts to 12.7
cents out of every dollar—repre
sents indirect, or “hidden,” taxes.
They’re not like your income tax
or personal property tax or a state
retail sales tax, for you rarely know
when you have to “shell out” for
them. They’re concealed in the
price of the goods and services you
buy, even the bare necessities of
life such as bread and shoes. “Death
and taxes are inevitable”—and all
too often invisible.
These are only a few of many il
luminating revelations to come
out of a survey just completed by
. the Family Economics bureau of
the Northwestern National Life In
surance company, of Minneapolis.
The study was started in Novem
ber, 1935. Records of 206 concerns
—public utilities, insurance compa
nies, manufacturers, jobbers and
retailers—were investigated “in an
effort to measure as accurately as
possible the proportion of prices
paid by the consumer for which
taxes—federal, state and local —are
responsible.”
All levies which would not nor
mally be included in the cost of
goods and services sold were omit
ted in the calculations which fol
lowed from the original producer
to the retailer. The principal taxes
entering into the picture'then were:
Farm and urban realty taxes, per
sonal property and general prop
erty taxes of business concerns, ex-
chise taxes, licenses, fees and fran
chises, moneys and credits taxes,
gasoline and oil taxes on motor
truck deliveries, import duties and
the tax element in freight costs in
volved in the various stpps of dis
tribution.
Taxes Are Passed On.
To understand the figures it is
necessary to understand how some
- of these indirect taxes work. “In
the case of a retailer who owns
the building which houses his store,”
says the report, “real estate taxep
are shown on his books as an item
of overhead, and their participa
tion in the ‘makeup’ which he
must add to his cost prices can be
measured with considerable cer
tainty.
“However, if he rents his store
building, the taxes on the building
are necessarily contained in the
rental paid, and are just as surely
a portion of his overhead expense,
even though concealed in the entry
‘rent.*
“In the wholesale price which the
retailer pays for his merchandise is
necessarily contained an overhead
element consisting of the real estate
taxes on the building occupied by
the wholesaler, and just as neces
sarily, taxes on the factory which
produced the goods contribute a por
tion of the price charged the jobber
by the manufacturer.
“This study,” the report contin
ued, “has undertaken to include in
the figures finally attained the prin
cipal elements affecting ultimate
prices charged, whether actually
listed as ‘taxes’ on the books of
the business, or contained as a por
tion of some other entry.”
Social security taxes were not con
sidered, “because they are in a
sense deposits for future withdraw
al.” Gasoline taxes were computed,
because gasoline and oil are sub
ject to local taxes in all 48 states
and the District of Columbia, in
addition to the federal levy.
Tax-Grabber Is Killjoy.
The researchers estimated that
the average worker’s family with
an income of $150 a month spends
$43.50 for food; of this 7.1 per cent,
or $3.09, goes to the hidden tax col
lector. Of the $30 spent for shelter,
hidden taxes take more than a
quarter, $7.59. They account for 8
per cent of the $16 clothing bill, or
$1.28. Fuel and light cost $11, but
9.5 per cent of this, or $1.05, rep
resents indirect taxes.
The tax-grabber really cuts into
the family’s enjoyment of life. The
cost of an average used car, includ
ing license, and gas and oil sales
tax, is $14.50 a month; hidden taxes
get 20.1 per cent—$2.91. And the
$3.00 the $150-a-month family can
set aside for recreation includes
30 cents for the tax-grabber, who
seldom shows his face.
Insurance bears a lighter tax
load. Of the $5.00 spent monthly
for that protection, only 2.6 per
cent, or 13 cents, falls into the hid
den tax barrel. Sundries and mis
cellaneous items—toothpaste, jewel
ry, tobacco, etc.—which cost $27 a
month are burdened with taxes
amounting to 10.2 per cent, or $2.75.
The hidden taxes which eat away
at an $80 monthly income are Slight
ly less in proportion, since it is
assumed that such an income does
not ordinarily permit the owner
ship or operation of an automobile.
Here’s the
way the
tax collector
fares with
that one:
% of Taxes Amount
Cost
Found
of Tax in
Per Month
in Cost
Dollars
Food
7.1
$1.92
Shelter ....
18.00
25.3
4.55
Clothing ...
9.00
8.0
.72
Fuel and Light . 6.00
9.3
.57
Transportation
(Streetcar) . 4.00
11.0
.44
Recreation
2.00
10.0
.20
Insurance
2.6
.05
Sundries &
Mis-
cellaneous
.. 12.00
10.2
1.22
Total ....
$9.67
Annually
...$960.00
12.0
$116.04
Taxes on $200 Income.
There is a slight difference in the
proportion of hidden taxes to the
spending of a family with an in
come of $200-a month. This is again
accounted for by the automobile,
as shown:
Cost
% at Taxes
Per
Found
Tax in
Month
In Cost
Dollars
Food
7.1
, $3.41
Shelter
25.3
9.61
Clothing
8.0
1.76
Fuel and Light
. 14.00
9.5
1.33
Transportation
(Auto
21.4*
bought new)
. 20.00
4.28
Recreation ...
. 6.00
10.0
.60
Savings
#•
•
Insurance ....
2.6
.31
Sundries & Mis-
cellaneous
. 35.00
10.2
3.57
Total $200.00 Av.lJs.4 24.87
Annually ..$2,400.00 12.4 $298.44
*Also Includes license, and gas and
oil sales taxes.
••Tax ratio to total time and demand
deposits In banks studied was .2 per
cent. However, the effect of this tax
would obviously not be to increase the
savings depositor’s outlay, but could
only affect him by reducing the Interest
yield on his savings. The moneys and
credits taxes levied by many states are
paid directly by depositors, with wide
variation in rates and in minimum
exemptions.
“After arriving at general tax
ratios for the various lines of goods
and products represented by the
concerns studied,” says the report,
“further studies were made of in-
You’ll never recognize ’em, ma-
dame, but hidden taxes will account
for 8 per cent of what you pay for
that dress!
dividual products in certain lines—
in the case of food products, bread,
pork, beef, sugar etc. The results
of these studies gave an additional
series of checks though, necessarily,
individual items varied rather wide
ly in some cases from the tax pro
portions arrived at for the general
group of goods.”
The loaf of bread for which you
pay a dime bears in its cost .64
of a cent in hidden taxes, the study
disclosed. Beef prices contain in
direct taxes amounting to 8.14 per
cent; pork prices, 8.04 per cent.
A five-pound bag of sugar costs a
nickel more than it would if there
were no indirect taxes concealed in
it.
Rent Boosted by Taxes.
If the man of the house buys a
suit oi clothes for $25, a portion of
that amounting to $2.62 helps clothe
the tax collector. If the lady spends
$5.00 for a pair of shoes, she will
never be happy to learn that she
could have bought them for $4.58,
were it not for the inevitable taxes.
The great proportion of indirect
taxes to residential rental costs was
investigated with the aid of real
estate companies in 48 cities; rec
ords on representative local prop
erties were taken at random from
their files.
A total of 7,964 single and multiple
family dwelling units were covered
by the final averages. These re
vealed that taxes represented 28
per cent of the current rental rate
of the one-family dwellings studied;
19.2 per cent of the rental rates of
the duplexes and 13.6 per cent of
the rental rates of the apartments.
“The notably lower ratio of taxes
to apartment dwellings is due,” says
the report, “first to the fact that a
portion of the apartment rental dol
lar represents fuel, water, rent, jan
itor service, etc.; second floor
space is more intensively occupied
in apartment buildings, and third,
apartment rental rates have in gen
eral recovered somewhat faster than
house rental rates. In many com
munities, however, tax rates are
mounting approximately as fast as
rental rates are recovering.”
Average Motorist Taxed $48.
The automobile today has passed
the stage where it may be classified
as altogether a luxury. But it’s a
free luxury for the tax-grabber; in
fact it’s soft picking for him. Mo
torists paid an average of $48 apiece
in taxes, direct and indirect, con
tributing a total of $1,349,000,000 or
10% per cent of the nation’s entire
tax revenues during the fiscal year
ended June 30, 1937, according to
the study.
In a detailed advance estimate,
the report sets total federal, state
and local tax collections at $12,872,-
000,000 for the fiscal year just ended.
General property taxes contribute
$4,718,000,000, and income taxes—•,
federal, state, hnd local—$2,629,-
000,000 according to the study, with
the owners of twenty-eight million
motor vehicles ranking a strong
third as a source of revenue.
Gasoline and oil taxes, totaling
$884,000,000, make up the bulk of
motorists’ current tax contribution.
Combined federal and state taxes
on gasoline average slightly over
five cents per gallon, for the coun
try as a whole.
The purchaser of a new low-priced
car pays $101 in taxes, direct and
indirect, during his first year of
ownership, according to the study.
He pays approximately $64 in
taxes as a part of the original pur
chase price, the study shows. This
figure includes $3.30 estimated tax
content in the freight costs, $14.41
in excise taxes, and numerous di
rect and indirect taxes which ac
cumulate in material and produc
tion costs to an estimated amount
of $46.10.
Computations Conservative.
If the motorist operates his car
7,200 miles a season, his gasoline
and oil sales taxes will total ap
proximately $23; with an average
cost for his new car license of
$14.50, a motorist thus contributes
some $101.50 in taxes during his
first year of ownership.
If, however, the $64 of taxes con
tained in the original purchase price
is averaged down to an annual de
preciation basis of $10.42, assum
ing resale or trade-in at the end of
the third year for $350, the motor
ist’s average tax cost becomes
$48.14 annually for the three years,
the study shows. This figure is com
puted on the very conservative op
erating basis of 7,200 miles per sea
son, the report points out.
The owner of a used car in its
fourth to seventh year of service
contributes an average of $35 an
nually in taxes, the study shows, if
he operates his car a modest 6,000
miles per season.
® Western Newspaper Union.
IMPROVED
UNIFORM INTERNATIONAL
UNDAYl
chool l.esson
By REV. HAROLD L. LUNDQUIST.
Dean of the Moody Bible Institute
of Chicago.
© Western Newspaper Union.
Lesson for July 18
LESSON TEXT—Exodus 3:13-16; 4:10-16;
5:1.
GOLDEN TEXT—The Lord will give
strength unto his people.—Psalm 29:11.
PRIMARY TOPIC—When Moses Was
Afraid.
' JUNIOR TOPIC—Moses Made Ambassa
dor.
INTERMEDIATE AND SENIOR TOPIC—
God Stands by His Workers.
YOUNG PEOPLE AND ADULT TOPIC—
Strong In the Strength of God.
Never in a hurry! Who? God.
He needed a human leader to bring
his chosen people up out of the
bondage of Egypt and he spent 80
years getting him ready—40 years
learning all the wisdom of Egypt,
and 40 years learning the lessons of
God, patience and humility, on the
back side of the desert.
Infinite and omnipotent is God,
and he may move with faster-than-
lightning speed. But usually we fintl
him working out his blessed pur
poses, normally, quietly, but always
“on time.”
Our lesson brings before us the
meeting with God which preceded
the appearance of Moses as the
head of the nation of Israel in its
mighty conflict with Pharaoh. We
find him first proceeding with com
mendable care but then going on in
unfortunate humility which amount
ed almost to unbelief and which re
sulted in the substitution of his
brother Aaron as his spokesman,
but eventually we do see him going
about his difficult task with resolu
tion and courage.
I. Justifiable Caution (Exod. 3:13-
16).
Neither God nor man dare entrust
a high and difficult commission to
a foolish man who brusquely
“rushes in where angels fear to
tread.” The fact that one feels
fully and unhesitatingly qualified to
take over such a responsibility is
almost a certain indication that he
is not the man to assume it.
The ambassador must have cre
dentials. God’s representative has
them. When “they shall say”—what
an important and difficult situation
that creates. The one who speaks
for God must expect not only the
scornful bitterness of God’s en
emies, but also the unbelieving
questions of those he seeks to serve.
“What shall I say?” asks Moses,
and God answers that he may say
that “I AM” had sent him. This
name of God reveals him as the
eternal, independent, self-sufficient,
self-existent, immutable, personal
being. Consider, Christian brethren,
whose we are and whom we serve.
Here indeed is “inspiration in ex
cess of duty,** real equipment for
Christian life and service.
But Moses seems to be unable to
see beyond his own human infirmity
even in the light of such a glorious
revelation, supplemented as it was
by miraculous powers, and we find
him showing an »
II. Unjustified Humility (Exod. 4:
10-12).
When God calls a man he knows
his limitations—why then should one
plead them as an excuse for not
serving? The excuse of Moses
that he was not a fluent speaker has
been the stand-by of unwilling work
ers all through the ages. When asked
to lead a prayer meeting, teach a
Sunday School class, conduct a
young people’s meeting, thousands
have lamely thus excused them
selves and missed a blessing.
The perfect answer of God in v.ll
merits attention. God made your
mouth and mine. He gives us the
power of speech. He asks not the
eloquence of polished rhetorical pe
riods, or the flights of man’s imag
ination. He wants but the incom
parable eloquence of his oton words
on our lips. Dr. Richard Ellsworth
Day in “Bush Aglow” rightly points
out that this was the secret of the
power of D. L. Moody.
III. Unnecessary Substitution
(Exod. 4:13-16).
Loving and patient is our God,
but there is a boundary line to that
patience. Moses went too far in his
humility and reflected on the ability
of God, who promptly substituted
Aaron as the spokesman.
Gracious was He in thus provid
ing a helper for Moses. But one
wonders what Moses missed of
blessing and power because of his
slowness of heart.
IV. “And Afterward” (Exod. 5:1)/
Commissioned, bearing creden
tials from the infinite and eternal
“I AM,” and with a strong and elo
quent brother by his side, Moses
stands before Pharaoh to say in
God’s nahae, “Let my people go.**
Preparation and the holy privilege
of fellowship with God are to make
us ready for service. While it is
fdlly to go unprepared, it is double
folly to prepare and then fail to go
when God commands.
Morning and Evening Prayer
It is well to let prayer be the
first emploj'ment in the morning
and the last in the evening.—M.
Luther.
As He Sees Us
As we come to know ourselves
through and through, we come to
see ourselves more as God sees us.
The Counters of Wise Men
Words are the counters of wise
men, and the money of fools.—
Bobber
Complete Play Ensemble
No. 1335
Whether you swing a racket or
watch the play from the side
lines, you’ll enjoy this complete
summer enserhble. The dress with
swing skirt has a side closing that
can be fastened with buttons or
with one of the long slide fasten
ers in contrasting color. Fore
most, it’s a dress easy to get into
and short enough for lots of ac
tion if you’re an expert and take
your game seriously. This play
ensemble is equally smart on the
beach. You can take off the dress
as easily as you would a wrap an4
sun in your shorts with halter tfc
match. Pattern includes design
for all four pieces. It’s the new
est idea in a play ensemble and
as simple as your a. b. c’s to
make. Try it in acetate sharkskin,
seersucker or broadcloth.
Barbara Bell Pattern No. 1335
is available for sizes 12, 14, 16,
18 and 20. Corresponding bust
measflrements 30, 32, 34, 36 and
38. Size 14 (32) requires 5% yards
of 35 or 39 inch material for the
four pieces.
Send your order to The Sewing
Circle Pattern Dept., Room 1020.
211 W. Wacker Dr., Chicago, 111.
Price of patterns, 15 cents (in
coins) each. t
© Bell Syndicate.—WNU Service. '
, I
Worms expelled promptly from the bn man
system with Dr. Peery’s Vermifuge “Dead
Shot.*' One single dose does the trick. 60c.
All Druggists.
Dr Peery’s |
vermifuge
Wrights Pill Co.. 100 Gold Street. N. Y. City
Sentinels
of Health
Don’t Neglect Them t
Nature designed the kidneys to do a
marvelous job. Their task is to keep the
flowing blood stream free of an excess of
toxic impurities. The act of living—-li/e
itself—is constantly producing waste
matter the kidneys must remove from
the blood if good health is to endure.
When the kidneys fail to function as
Nature intended, there is retention of
waste that may cause body-wide dis
tress. One may suffer nagging backache,
persistent headache, attacks of dizziness,
getting up nights, swelling, puffiness
under the eyes—feel tired, nervous, all
worn out. ,
Frequent, scanty or burning passages
•nay be further evidence of kidney or
bladder disturbance.
The recognized and proper treatment
Is a diuretic medicine to help the kidneys
f et rid of excess poisonous body waste.
Ise Doan’s Pills. They have had mors
than forty years of public approval. Are
endorsed the country over. Insist Ob
Doan’s. Sold at all drug stores.
Doans Pills
WNU—7
28-37
Hot Weather is Here
Beware of
Have you ever noticed that in
very hot weather your organs of
digestion and elimination seem to
become torpid or lazy? Your food
sours, forms gas, causes belching,
heartburn, and a feeling of rest
lessness and irritability. Perhaps
you may have sick headache,
nausea and dizziness or blind
spells on suddenly rising. Your
tongue may be coated, your com
plexion bilious and your bowel
actions sluggish or insufficient.
Biliousness!
These are some of the more
common symptoms or warnings of
biliousness or so-called “torpid
liver,’* so prevalent in hot climates.
Don’t neglect them. Take Calo-
tabs, the improved calomel com
pound. tablets that give you the
effects of calomel and salts, com
bined. You will be delighted with
the prompt relief they afford.
Trial package ten cents, family
pkg. twenty-five cts. At drug
stores. (Adv.)
Time Is Foolish
What a foolish thing is time!
And how foolish is man, who
would be as angry if time stopped
as if it passed!
As You Trust
Trust men, and they will be true
to you; treat them greatly, and
they will show themselves great.—
R. W. Emerson.
CHEW LONG BILL NAVY TOBACCO
Here, Dad, put some
of this on—it*!! tk>
farther!**
Evmrybody want* to go farther.
Quaker State endeavors to meet this
desire of the motoring public with
a motor oil of supreme quality, that
is economical, and available wherever
you may go. Try Quaker State.
You’ll find you go farther before you
need to add a quart because ‘‘there's
an extra quart of lubrication in every
gallon. "The retail price is 35ff a
quart. Quaker State Oil Refining
Corporation, Oil City, Pa.