The People: They Also Serve

It's a good wind that blows no ill. April's breezes brought welcome boons: a respite from steam heat, restorative glimpses of crocus and forsythia, the first game of the new baseball season. April also brought federal income tax time—and the searches for misplaced receipts, much desperate arithmetic, and the disappointments of finding that due payments turn out to be larger or refunds smaller than expected.

The total federal take from personal income tax this year will amount to an estimated $45 billion, a record high (see tax story page 26). Americans are not the world's most heavily taxed people, but...