Reichstag Balks At Big War Taxes.

New York Times 100 years ago today, April 6, 1913:
Army Increase Will Be Voted, but Proposed Methods of Financing It Will Be Bitterly Fought.
SOCIALISTS LEAD ATTACK
Debate, Which Will Begin To-morrow, Is Likely to Cause Violent Conflicts Till Summer.
By Marconi Transatlantic Wireless Telegraph to The New York Times.
    BERLIN. April 5.— Beginning Monday, the Reichstag will be the scene of a bitter parliamentary conflict, which, unless all the signs fail, will last until the Summer vacation, and may not even be finished then.
    The strife will be over the Government's armament proposals and the accompanying taxation measures, the legislators having to face the prodigious task of finding ways and means of raising 1,250,000,000 marks ($312,500,000) at once and providing further tax sources which will yield an additional 200,000,000 marks ($50,000,000) yearly. That is to say, they will face this necessity, provided the proposed increase in the army strength is adopted. '
    There is, of course, no doubt that the Socialists will oppose the measure tooth and nail on principle. The non-Socialist parties will support the Government, although many progressives do not see the necessity of withdrawing an additional 136,000 young men from productive labor for a period of two years. They admit that the general European situation contains more menacing possibilities now than in years, but they realize sadly that every move made by Germany toward increasing her armed forces is simply a signal to other nations to do likewise. Nevertheless they will respond to the call of patriotism and vote the measures for raising the peace army to about 800,000.
    This, however, is the simplest part of their work. So far as the "Kanonenfutter" is concerned there is no lack, but able-bodied men are more plentiful than money. With a population a third greater than that of France, Germany has a national wealth estimated at $5,000,000,000 less.
    The proposed billion marks tax amounts to a quarter of the nation's annual savings, and to that must be added the $50,000,000 to be raised yearly.
    According to the Government's proposal the billion marks will be raised by a tax of one-half of 1 per cent. on all estates of 10,000 marks ($2,500) upward, while on estates the income of which is 50,000 marks ($12,500) and upward this tax must equal at least 2 per cent of the income.
    A concrete example will best show what such a tax means. Take the case of a man who has $6,000 invested safely at 4 per cent and yielding an income of $20 monthly. His tax will be $30, which equals his income for one and one-half months.
    The Government purposes further to transfer to the Empire various stamp duties now imposed by and payable to separate States. It will also demand a contribution from each State of 125 pfennigs (31 cents) a head of the population. This means, naturally, that the States will in turn be driven to impose new taxation.
    The Reichstag, of course, has nothing to do with this, but it is mentioned here merely to show that the added burdens imposed upon German taxpayers are by no means represented entirely by her imperial war taxes. There are German municipalities where the taxation amounts to 10 per cent, of the income of their inhabitants.
    Lively opposition is voiced to these tax measures, but thus far there has been a striking paucity of substitute proposals.
    The Socialists are bitter because the sugar tax is to be retained, although it was half promised that it would be abolished soon. They are displeased also over the fact that a million estates are to be made taxable, particularly because it was intimated at first that estates under 50,000 marks ($12,500) would be exempt. Both Socialists and Progressives desire an inheritance tax, which the Government is afraid to propose.
    Other objectors see in the proposals a blow at State's rights and the surrender of new and far-reaching powers to the Imperial Government.
    Altogether the proposals seem to please nobody, but the opposition is so lacking in unity that nothing is confidently predicted now except that there will be a warm fight.
    The armament proposals, although their outline was known long in advance, contained some surprises, notably the proposal to appropriate 50,000,000 marks ($12,500,000) for marine aerial equipment. The bill provides for ten naval dirigibles, of which two are to be reserves; also four double revolving balloon halls, and fifty aeroplanes, of which fourteen are to be reserves. The life of an airship is estimated at four years.
    Moreover, there is to be a further expenditure of some 20 000,000 marks ($7,250,000) generally for the airships proposed, making a total of 79,000,000 marks. A supplementary 20,000,000 marks will be asked later, making a total of practically 100,000,000 marks, ($25,000,000.) :
    In connection with this a comment in the semi-official North-German Gazette is interesting. The Gazette says that nobody realized England's progress in aviation until Col. Seely's recent speech, in which he declared that England's aeroplanes were the best in the world.
    "Everybody was astounded at the statement," The Gazette adds, "but no doubt it is true. The British press must have known this, but it has displayed exemplary patriotism in not allowing an intimation to reach the outside world."
    The Gazette appeals to the German press to refrain from printing news concerning improvements on dirigibles and aeroplanes, their accomplishments, bomb-dropping contests, &c., saying that the present course only serves to keep Germany's enemies informed of everything that is going on.
    The feature of the armament proposals which finds most nearly unanimous approval is the plan to spend 210,000,000 marks ($52,500,000) in the construction of fortresses, mainly on the eastern frontier.
    Although the army increases will be adopted, there is no question that the most thoughtful public men of Germany are beginning to realize what it means to be a "Volk in Waffen." They point to the combined military and naval budget, now roundly 1,000,000,000 marks; to the 800,000 men in the army, and the 64,000 in the navy, all withdrawn from active life for two years' unproductive labor, to the coming single expenditure of 1,000,000,000 marks and the addition of 200,000,000 marks to the permanent budget.
    They see the neighboring nations maintaining their ratio of strength by following every increase of Germany and begin to wonder where it will end.