Morgenthau Proposes

As the Senate Finance Committee took up last week the depressing job of rewriting the House Tax Bill--which is big but not big enough--Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau presented himself to make his usual recommendations. Consistent as a phonograph record, he asked the committee to stuff back into the bill three controversial provisions which the House has thrown out:

> Mandatory joint returns for married couples.

> No exemption for tax-free State and municipal securities.

> Elimination of a 27 1/2% "depletion allowance" on gas and oil wells.

The committee promptly turned down the first two. To bring in other revenue to reach his goal of $8.7 billion, Henry Morgenthau asked for additional increases in corporation, estate and gift taxes, new excise levies, a little lowering of the income-tax exemptions.

At least equal in importance to the need for more revenue is the necessity that the bill provide some checks against inflation. Though with every passing day a sales tax made more sense, Henry was still against it.

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