The Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1860-02-21 00:00:00

the event of the defeat of the pu‘Wnt-MiniStry, and the
resumption of office by the Earl of bieigy, Re. new Re-
form Bill would be proposed by the Conserthefre•
def.. 'We tried -to settle the question," remarked The
exq'tenlice, "and failed—failed because we were not
even' Pernafftd to' catty our proposal into committee,
where it might,'l4( trollied fardty, have been amended.
Th'fs Nth* so', should theist consider ,Reform their
_pf:erot!'atiVe; fail to Carty a measure before
their eigefrifoti (dee, it Will not te' for the -Con-
tiervatives, with Moir recollection of the' mintier in
which their last attempt *As ieceived .to propose any
fresh legislation upon the subject."
The lack of anything like public feeling npon the
question -en pointed, out by several of the rrob,le. earl's
supporters, in pied of, the soundness and sagacity of his
lordship's determination after which the form of
amendment or amendments wu' briefly discussed by a
partion of the meeting, and the Pftreedings—which
had been uniformly enthusiastic and harmorlvivi—were
brought so a termination.

THE CHANNEL.
FEAEFIJL
On'e6 o'clock, as the
On Sunday morning, fliitYa
steamer Ondine, Captain James from Dublin
to London, was abreast of Beechv Item, she came
in collision with the schooner Heroine, of Bide-
, ford. She was struck just abaft the beam, and
irmiedlately began to sink. So great was the injury
that fa Itm than 20 minutes no traces of her were
visible. A portfoi? of the passengers and crew, 21 in
Oh: )ally-boat, and landed at
number, were saved in'
Dover, where the Sailors' Home was at once opened
for their reception, and very possible ebyrofort afforded
that their distressed. circumstances required. They
were lauded perfectly destitute. About 50 of the
passengers and crew arc missing. Some of them, in-
cluding- the captain, took to the starboard life-
boat, but it almost amounts to a certainty that they
were swamped, as they could not reach the Heroine.
!In the darkness of the night one fearful shriek was
heard, and no more was seen or known of them. At
least 30 must have gone down in the steamer. The
(Malik' Was a very unfortnnate vessel. She is the same
steamer that a few months ago, when off the South
Foreland, ian doWit the Robert Garden, a Dover
collier, whereby the pilot and several of the aew were
drowned.

CONSIDERATIONS ON THE BUDGET.

The subjoined tesnarks (says the Saturday
_Review
from which we copy tberi), were not intended for
publication; but, without reference to the high authority
of the writer, the weight and significance
of the ob-
jections which are urged against some portions of the
budget will explain a departure from our usual practice.
It is proper to state that the writer is most friendly to
the present Outernmetit,
1. It is too CoMpficatecl, and it involves too Many
changes in taxation. Ali stich eltanges are in themselves
a serious evil. Half the hardship' of a tax, and much of
its apparent inequality, disappear as the tax has been
long in existence. New interests accommodate them-
selves to the taxes, whilst, on the other hand, old exist-
ing interests are rudely disturbed, and much hardship,
in addition to the money raised, is unnecessarily caused
by the imposition of any new tax. In the present case,
would not the more simple course have been practically
the wiser course---to leave the existing taxes undisturbed,
and to effect the necessary adjustment of revenue to
expenditure by Means of the income-tax ?
It The changes are based upon erroneous principles.
First, the continual abandonment of indirect taxes,
whilst there is a deficiency in the revenue, is a mistaken
policy. The substitute must be found in a large increase
of direct taxation. It is impossible that this can go on
beyond a lithited extent—an indefinite amount of direct
taies will not be tolerated. Au income-tax of 10d. in
the pound daring peace is a near approach to the limit
beyond which (tired taxation cannot be carried. A
second error is the total abandonment of a tax, instead
of the yeduction of it. A diminution of duties causes.
increased consumption by lowering price, and conse-
quently. the revenue revives. By abolishing duties this
advantage is altogether lost. This most important con-
sideration seems to be overlooked in the present budget.
3. The in:microns small duties to be repealed produce
a sum not unimportant in the aggregate; it may be
doubted whether anybody really feels them ; and it
seems a gratuitous creation of financial difficulty, leading
to danger, to surrender such sources of revenue when
the loss sustained must be made good by an increase of
direct taxation, especially the income-tax.

. .
4. Can we be assured that t e
.public will really
obtain the benefit of the repeal of the paper-duty ? Will
it not remain in the pockets of paper-makers, news-
paper proprietors, and publishers,?: ,At least we ought
to have very cleat evidence on this point before we sur-
render so large an amount of indirect revenue under our
present financial pressure. Upon similar principles
surely the hop-duty might be most properly retained
until we have a surplus revenue to meet the -lose which
must arise from the repeal of it.
5. What advantage can it be shown that we shall ile.
rife from red9ing the duties on brandy to the level of
the duty on spirits, and from the entire repeal of the
duties on silk gloves and various other articles ? - Will
not this be a useleSS sevilice of revenue ?
6.
.The resort to the ineorne4ax as the source from
which all fluctnationS in out financial balance are to be
adjusted, whether those fluctuations arilie, from extraor-
dinary expenditure or from voluntary remission of other
i taxes, is most dangerous. Many delicate and difficult
questions beset the assessment of
anmeome-tax. These
NVIII of course be pressed in a more and more embarrassing
form as the rate of the tax is raised ; but still more will
these difficulties become ineOnveriient and pressing as the
taxi
in made uncertain as to its duration and fluctuating
►'xis
the
rate. It. is only as a permanent
.and,invariable
tax that it can be considered as approaching to justice
and
equality. An income-tax, steady and invariable,
oat ht to form a part of our permanent and settled
system
of taxation--.in that form it is just and may be
d 'ed. But as a variable tax, to be worked, up and
decfZaccording to every varying financial pressure, it is
admiLs of no satisfactory
eminently unequal and unjust,
defence, and, it may be feared, cannot be maintained. A
new adjustment of the tax will be demanded, for reasons
which cannot be satisfactorily answered ; and such new
adjostment, if attempted, will go far
efficiency of the tax.
7. The treaty is l
its principles and in its details. to endless -
to destroy the
open . objections,i
both in
Relaxation of impor •duties ought to be the pure
result of a regard to our own interests, and not a matter
of bargain with other powers. Such treaties necessarily
restrict our free discretion in regulating our own revenue
system, and involve us in obligations which many prove
cinharrassing, and the source of future ill-line. and
disputes. The advantage of liberal principles f
. trade
has already been given to a great extent by this country
to France, and we have been for some time past lookinir
for the equivalent due to us. Reciprocity, therefore,
sunder present circumstances, is not air equal game to the
two pes.
8, Hence it is not surprising to find that the provi-
sions of the treaty aro apparently that
and unfair.
France gives very little—we give a great deal. What
we give is of inestimable advantage to F iron, raw materials of manufauture of allrance—coal
kid—the'
means, in fact, of developing all her latent resources and
power for manufacturing industry and for warlike equip-
ment. What we receive from France is comparative]
of small importance—luxuries which afford no additional
means of directly augmenting our power or resources—
brandy, wine, silks, gloves, &c. And add to these the
admission of our manufactures into Prance at a duty of
thirty per cent. ! Surely this requires no continent. -
9. Further, the treaty precludes us from any dis-
cretion as to the expediency, with a view to- our own
trite fecal policy, of imposing a duty upon the export of
coal and of iron. When a country has a peculiar
advantage in the production of a commodity, either as regards cost or quality, a duty upon the export of it, if cautiously imposed, is amongst the best sources of
revenue. Coal certainly, antiprobably iron, fall under
this rule—and the more especially as they are 110 W to be
reckoned as most important munitions of war.
10. What practical benefit will the MASS of the people
of this eintutry derive
from the admission, at low prices.
of the inferior Freuch the admission, Their present beer is
vastly superior for them in every respect, and the com-
mand of that at a moderate price renders the admission
of inferior French wines a privilege of no real value, if
not absolutely undesirable.
11. The exact nature of the. operation of calling- up
the money in the hands of the maltsters is not very
clearly explained ; but it may .be presumed that it is
capita/ taken out of their hands, not really revenue, and
applied to the exigencies of the year. If so, it is
equivalent to a loan.
12. There are some things, no doubt, in the Budget
to be approved. More free commercial intercourse
with France is in itself desirable. It must tend, more
or less, to widen the field of employment, to extend the
command of material enjoyments to the people of both
countries, and to strengthen friendly feelings by the
multiplication of amicable and beneficial intercourse.
But these advantages, so far as this country is concerned,
must be considered as reduced to their mininium when
the effect of the arrangenunit is to give so little of real
importance to on
; whilst to France is given a
free command of coal, iron and, machinery, and raw
produce—thus powerfully assisting her in the develop-
ment of her warlike preparations and in the facility of
contending with us in industrial competition.
The force of this consideration is flu eatly increased
when we remember; first, that France still retains thirty
per cent. Protection against our Free-trade ; secondly,
that the pecuniary price which we pay for an arrange-
nick not over favourable, if it be even joist'
er to us, is a
large increase of direct taxation in the form cotee, already carried to a sufficiently high mintp ; and,
Present Ruler of
thirdly, that the character of the
France, now unequivocally displayed, renders the main-
tenance of amicable relations altogether precarious, ex-
cept through the conviction that our defensive armaments
are abundant and
is so complete, whilst our financial system
sou :mina p erfect order.
13. The mutual Obligations and restrictions involved
1 in a commercial treaty, as well .as the suspicions anti
jealousy between two nations, each of whomwill imagine
that it has been over-reached by the other, ma,
, very
probably exert more iniluenee• in generating a state of
hostile feeling than will be corrected by the
anticipated
The 'effect of this
increase of commercial intercourse.
extended intercourse will be greatly paralysd,.
bee;insi.
it springs from a wrong source—the legal ties of a hard
bargain instead of the spontaneous unfettered sense of
it, ovni independent interest on the part of each countrv.
The principle upon which, on the . adoption of Free-
trade principles on our part without referenee tet reci- .
procal action on the part of other countries, we repudiated
commercial treaties, was perfectly sound.
Their natural
tendency is to create embarrassment and mutual jealousy.
They invalidate the feeling that
and the removal of restric-
tions nl prohibitions is a pure and unequivocal gain to the
country which gets rid of them ; and they check the spon- .
which
taneous dotions
her of Free-tr
tariffadweitho regut,au atone, as the country
libera aplise present equivalent
will have less to give in the way of reciprocity,' should
she subsequently enter into ii commercial
treaty.. If we
are right in now entering into a reciprocity treaty, we
:then we
.reduced our protective
must have been wrong
duties without aceompanyingt equivalence ; for we sur-
renderedat that
. period erataho e.ly that which we now
riate mstr i l' or tor obtain-
ingvant as oar inst. and approp
a lair and equal bargain.

HORNDY CASTLE, LAscAsninE.---The magnificent
estate of llornby Castle, North Lancashire, which has
been some time in the market for private competition,
has within the last few days been Purha,sed by, Mr. John
Foster, of Cliff-hill, near Halifax. The purchase-
money exceeds the sum of £200,000,