The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1884-04-05 00:00:00

THE YEAR'S FINANCES.

In a leader on the results of the financial year the
Times says: The Revenue Returns for the financial
year ended March 31, although showing a surplut
over the studiously moderate estimates made by Mr.
Childers a year ago, do not give a particularly satis-
factory impression of the national position. After
allowing for estimated remission' of taxation, there is
a surplus over the revenue of the preceding year of
about £650,000, but during the last quarter the re-
ceipts have fallen off at a somewhat serious rate. The
land-tax and the house duty show an increase of
£50,000, or half the total improvement for the year,
and the Post Office has produced £280,000 more than
in the corresponding quarter, or more than half the total
improvement for the twelve months. These, however,
are items in which there is room for considerable fluc-
tuation from quarter to quarter, which does not neces-
sarily indicate steady progress. The Customs, on
the other hand, have fallen off £109,000, the Excise
£168,000, and Stamps £251,000 during the last three
months. These departments of the revenue are the
accepted indices to the general prosperity of the
country, and they correspond only too faithfully with
the general depression of which the commercial
world has recently complained. The net decrease
for the quarter amounts to nearly three millions, but
rather more than two millions of this occurs under
the head of income-tax, and is, of course, due to the
removal of the supplementary lid. charged in the
preceding year. For the whole twelve months
property and income tax shows a decrease
of • £1,182,000, a considerable amount of
arrears at the higher rate having been col-
lected in the earlier months. Customs show upon
the whole year an increase of .X 44,000 and Excise
of £22,000, which are very trifling sums in any case,
but particularly when compared with the heavy falling-
off in tho last quarter. Stamps have fallen off
..E221,000 during the year, which is less by £30,000
than the loss on the quarter, a large part of the
receipts under this head being contingent upon events
of highly irregular occurrence. The Post Office and
Telegraph Service show an increase of £465,000,
highly satisfactory as a business profit, but not offering
any indication of general prosperity to counterbalance
unfavourable symptoms elsewhere. The net decrease
for the year is £1,799,000, which, deducted from the
estimated loss of £2,451,000 owing to the fiscal
changes of last April gives the total advance of the
revenue.

Mr. Childers last year estimated the expenditure at
£85,789,000 and the revenue at £86,029,000, thus
leaving himself with the modest surplus of £240,000.
The actual revenue for the year is, however,
£87,205,000, or £1,176,000 above his estimate, which
added to the estimated surplus, ought to put him in
possession of the handsome sum of £1,416,000. It
ought to be explained that in addition to making a
very moderate estimate of the revenue from taxes re-
tained, Mr. Childers made an exceedingly liberal esti-
mate of what he was about to lose upon income tax.
lie put the loss for the year at £2,135,000, while, as
a matter of fact, it. amounted to only £1,182,000.
It is impossible to suppose that the difference of
£953,000 can be explained by the normal growth of
the incomes of the country. It is clearly due to
an inadequate allowance for the arrears outstanding
from the previous year. Mr. Lowe once raised a
storm by demanding a quarter's income-tax in
advance, but it is perhaps almost as reprehensible to
play with a balance of nearly a million in order to
provide for contingencies in the future. It is need-
less to say that the contingencies have arrived, and
that Mr. Childers will have nothing like the
large sum to play with which he ought to
have according to the calculaticos of his Budget
speech last year. The half million which it has
been decided to pay on Indian account by antici-
pation may, perhaps, be fitly expended out of a
balance of this kind, more particularly as there is
little prospect of its recurrence. It is doubtful, how-
ever, whether such an application of the revenues of
the year to the charges properly falling upon the
next is altogether consonant with the strict but
salutary rules by which the finances of the country
are regulated. Oher extraordinary expenses have,
no doubt, been incurred, which will swell the expendi-
ture side of the account, and perhaps justify. Mr.
Childers's prescience. It will be interesting, how-
ever, to hear his explanation of the figure:, given last
year, and the unexpectedly wide difference between
them and the tabulated results.