The Express.
London, England, 1855-04-21 00:00:00

DEPARTURE OF LORD JOHN RUSSELL

FROM VIENNA.

VIENNA. FRIDAY.
Lord John Russell left Vienna to-day for London.
IL Droop de Lhuys remain.. The conferences
are not formally broken off, and attempts are made
to find a ground on which the suspended negotiations
may be renewed.—Daily News.

THB BUDGET.

As we expected, the resolutions moved last night
by the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER were adopted
by the committee without opposition, and can
scarcely be said to have been seriously discussed.
The House of Commons evidently feels that as money
must be had by some means or other, it will not do
to be nicely critical. There is another circumstance
in favour of the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER.
lie has not had time, even if he may have had the
inclination, to alter materially the financial arrange-
ments of the year contemplated by Mr. GLADSTONE.
It is extremely improbable that the latter gentleman,
had he continued in office, could have stuck to his
anti-ken crotchet, and a loan would in all likelihood
have formed • part even of his scheme. The
Budget, in short, is quite as much Mr. GLAUSTONE'd
Go Sit GEORGE COREZWALL LEWIS'S. Of course, the
ex-Chancellor of the Exchequer is not so unnatural a
parent as to quarrel with his own offspring, because
it is being named by another. His opposition, there-
fore, is disarmed. Again, it is not the cue of the
Derbyites to make a serious onslaught on Ministers
re ; and this silences another financial critic—Mr.
Dismazi.t. Sir O. Lams has therefore no hos-
tilities to apprehend beyond • partisan warfare con-
ducted by a few guerilla chiefs, unconnected with
and independent of each other. If we may judge by
appearances, they intend to make of certain items of
the Budget • handle for ventilating their notions on
sundry abstract principles of finance and taxation,
but to offer no serious opposition.
The ambiguous paternity of the budget, to which
we have alluded above, renders it no fair test of Sir
G. C. LEvits's capabilities as a financier. Finance
L a new field for him, and his previous pursuits do
not warrant the expectation that he will be found to
have maturely studied the subject. The speech with
which he prefaced his resolutions, able though it un-
doubtedly is, is perhaps too full of dissertations on
general principles to indicate that sharp eye to
practical details, and that promptitude in action,
which are the most indispensiblo requisites in a
Minister of Finance. But it would be unjust to pre-
judge him.
The loan is the feature of the budget which is
most likely to be exclusively his own. It must be
admitted that the favour with which the ken has
been received in the money market seems to show
that he has known how to make it acceptable to the
moneyed interest ; while the opinion expressed by
Mr. MASTERMAN and other shrewd practical com-

mercialists, that the terms on which it has been con-
tracted for ars fair to the pubic, recommends it in a
still more important point of view. That the public
at large, and even many members of the Stock Ex-
change, should not see their way clearly in the mat-
ter, is not surprising. Since the close of the lut war
kw loans, and none of any great amount, have been
required in England. A race of English dealers in
. . .

th funds has arisen which has scarcely any practical

experience of loan transactions. Perhaps this—
more than the determination of Government to
accept only bidding. for the whole amount—has
thrown it into the hands of the great bones which
las secured it. The extensive foreign relations of the
Rcrrascutto family have kept them more au fait of
loan transactions than most of our English capitalists.
At the same time we believe we are correct in
stating, as a matter of fact, that a strong feel-
ing prevails in the City that it would have
been desirable, by accepting partial biddiogs, to
bare thrown the loan open to a wider competition.
On this point it would be rash to express a decided

opinion ; and the only other point open for
discussion is the intention intimated by the
CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER to submit a

resolution to parliament, declaring that after

. _
the close of the war one million of the debt'
now contracted shall be extinguished annually.
There can be no doubt that the natural tendency of a
national debt to increase, readers it desirable that

every opportunity of keeping it down should be em-
braced ; but it is an open question whether
the realisation of this principle is actually pro-
moted by adopting such resolutions in advance.
Circumstances, mere than Parliamentary votes, will
determine when repayment is to commence, and by
what amount of instalments.

As to the increased taxes proposed by the CHAN-
CELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, they are probably
Neither much better nor much worse than any others
that could be suggested. Two only appear to be open
to controversy. The first of these is the proposed
penny stamp on bankers' cheques. Every tax
that interferes with the free circulation of
capital is objectionable on principle; but
it must be admitted that the proposal to
impose a penny stamp on bankers' cheques,
when mooted last year, did not encounter
a very decided opposition. At the same time, con-
sidering the very great amount of trouble to
men of business that such a tax may bring along
with it, the sum of 200,0001.—its estimated return—
appears to be a very trifling gain. The other proposal
alluded to is the augmentation of the ditties on
Scotch and Irish spirits. May not both lead to an
increase of illicit distillation ? The duties on Scotch
spirits are to be made equal to those on English
spirits. But ought it not to be kept in mind that
almost all the spirits distilled in England are from
grain, and that almost all the spirits distilled in Soot-
hied are from malt? And ought not an allowance
to be made to the Scotch distillers for what they thus
contribute to the revenue under another name ?
Daiiy News.

THE CIVIL. Banvics.—Mr. W. H. Mover, tempo-
:try clink in the Audit-Ales, has been appointed an'aesiarnat
aznatiner. There is a Tammy of thins clam clerk in the
Ledger Bin Branch of the Admiralty, Somerset-house,
caused by the resignation of Mr. W. A. Welsh. Mr. Un-
less hoe been appointed feentas of the factory at Keyhem
peck Yard Mr. W. F. EREdial, inniqr clerk in the Colonial-
Wee, has been appointed private secretary to Mr. John Bell,
Se new Maar Seentary to the Colonies.—Ciesi &me,
6,11 M.