July, 1942
THE K I N G ’ S BUS I NE SS
245
Significance of the News By DAN GILBERT Washington, D. C., and San Diego, California
concerned, but that furthermore produces highly desirable effects Of relaxation in men who have been subjected to hard work and long hours of drilling. , . . Beer . . . contains sufficient alcohol to Create a feeling of well-being and good fellowship in the consumer, but not enough to be habit-form ing. . . . Here is a chance for brewers to cultivate a taste fo r. beer in millions of young men who will eventually constitute the largest beer-consuming sec tion of our population.” Not “habit-forming,” indeed! Some how, the brewers seem to be counting rather heavily*on that habit in the future. Two bills are now before Congress to provide for the elimination of in toxicants from army camps and en virons, Bills S. 860 and H. R, 4000. Since America still has a representa tive form of government, the Chris tian people of the land have oppor tunity not only to pray but also to notify their elected representatives as to their will in this important mat ter. Dare America risk defeat by en couraging dangerous self-indulgence?
THE CRISIS OF THE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL AND COLLEGEI • Thoughtful commentators have re cently given attention to what they call “the c r i s i s of the independent charitable and educational institu tions .of America.” By “independent” institutions dre meant those which are not supported by public taxation, but rather by religious or private organi zations. A half century ago, the larger part of all American colleges, hospitals, and charitable institutions were fi nanced and operated by private or re ligious organizations. Today, educa tion and charity are predominantly government enterprises. Few thought ful persons would criticize or oppose the entrance and extension of govern ment into these fields of public serv ice: However, all sound analysts must recognize that independent educa tional and charitable institutions have an important place in the Amer ican system. If the separation of church and state is to be maintained, and the independence of the church safeguarded, then provision must be made for j the carrying on of educa tional and charitable enterprises un der religious auspices. To make educational and charitable a c t i v i t y a government monopoly
"College a n d charitable be quests are drying up, because of heavy taxes on individuals and corporations, war bonds and other subscription campaigns, and the disappearance of large fortunes. These conditions have already : g i v e n to the colleges and the charities problems of finançing which in many instances are des- . perate.” -. The unavoidable “crisis” of inde pendent institutions has been compli cated by proposals, now before Con gress, “for revision of the income tax laws to make private educational and charitable institutions subject-to taxa tion and to limit the income tax ex emptions which private individuals may enjoy for gifts and contributions to such Institutions.” Randolph Paul, tax adviser to the Secretary of the Treasury, has proposed to Congress that: . . charitable or educational cor porations, now exempt from cor poration income tax, be subjected to that tax on income derived from a trade or business owned and operated by the corporation, but not necessarily incident, to the tax-exempt activities, and, that an amount bequeathed or transferred for special charitable . purposes, now deductible in com -.. puting the estate tax, be limited • to a specific percentage of the de ceased person’s estate.” Commenting upon these new tax proposals affecting religious, chari table and educational institutions, Mr. Krock has said: “The impact of the proposals would fall heavily on churches, hospitals, and similar institutions. It would demolish the fiscal foun- , dations on which they have been set for morq than a hundred years, and in the' instance of charities would penalize the source instead of the use of their revenues." One can appreciate the zeal of “tax experts” who are ever seeking new means of raising revenue, but as Mr. Krock says of these new tax pro posals: “They constitute the first blow the federal government has ever launched at such (religious' and charitable) institutions, delivered in a time of t h e i r g r e a t e s t trouble.” . - [Continued on Page 279]
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would be a long step in the di rection of totali tarianism. . In a Constituti o n a 1 d e m o c r a c y , there m u s t be room f o r t h e flowering of re ligious e d u c a tion as well as of secular edu cation. COMPLICAT ING THE CRISIS: • In analyzing the predicament of independent r e 1i g tous and charitable insti tutions, Arth u r Krock, W a s h i n g t o n corre spondent for the N e w Y o r k T i me s , has pointed out:
MOW CAN H E ?
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