Depression Children

Last week the Governor of New York squiggled "Herbert H. Lehman'' at the bottom of a bill taxing retailers within his State 1% on all sales. Effective May 1, the tax will apply to everything people buy except food, motor fuels, public utility services. Strictly a child of Depression, it will be operative 14 months, put $30,000,000 new revenue in the depleted State Treasury. Since the economic crisis, four other states have adopted retail sales taxes. Depression children also, they appear to be thriving.

Mississippi enacted her 2% tax May 1, 1932. Up to last week $2,157,622 had been collected, exceeding expectations. No retailed product is exempt from Mississippi's tax.

Effective April 1, Illinois passed a 3-c- tax on all retail goods sold except gasoline and farm products sold directly to the consumer. If you buy $1 worth of food in an Illinois restaurant; a little item at the bottom of your check requires another 3-c-. Proceeds go to dependent unemployment relief.

Illinois was prompted to enact its tax after Indiana had adopted a similar excise, thus diminishing the chances that Illinoisians might do some of their shopping across the border. In Pennsylvania in August 1932 a general sales tax of 1% was put into effect for six months. Pennsylvanians hoped to draw off $12,000,000 into their Treasury by this means.

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