The Express.
London, England, 1862-01-22 00:00:00

LATEST INTELLIGENCIL

FRANCE AND ROME.

The Inele'pendanee Beige, in its leading column,
makes the following remarks on the prevalent
rumour that the Emperor thinks of doing some-
thing at Rome :
We lately said that between the contradictory opinions
current as to the presumed policy of France at Rome, we
did not hesitate to class ourselves with those who, not con-
sidering the solution of this question to be indefinitely ad-
journed, hold, on the contrary. that it is ripening
and that on the first favourable opportunity it will
make a step from the region of vague diplomatic
conferences to that of accomplished facts—or facia
on the point of being accomplished. Rumours
noticed to-day in our Paris correspondence corroborate
theme impressions. According to these rumours, the cabinet
of the Tuileries is still steadily pursuing, with the modifica-
tions called for by the progress of ideas, the original
project set forth in the pamphlet, "The Pope and the
Congress." That project was a species of compromise
proposing to leave the Sovereign Pontiff him rank as a
temporal monarch reigning over a part of Rome, but at the
ems time making that city the capital of Italy, and
asigning to its inhabitant, a position somewhat analogous
to that of the citizens of Washington in that neutralised
territory which contains the President's palace and the
chambers.

(nurse's
FRANCE.
M. FOULD'S FINANCIAL STATEMENT.
PARIS, JAL. 22.
The Moniker of this morning publishes the report
on the state of financial affairs, addressed by M.
Fould, Minister of Finance, to the Emperor.
The minister commences by stating that he pro-
poses to establish in the budget a great distinction
between ordinary and extraordinary expenses. He
announcesthattheordinary expenses of the budgetof
1863 show in the aggregate an increase of 70 millions
over the estimated expenses of 1862, but this surplus
of expenses is only apparent as the supplementary
credits, voted or decreed, which have been added
to the provisions of the budget. These were in
1860, 131 millions, and in 1861, 152 millions.
M. Fould then continues :—" The exposti of
the budget will contain special details on these
questions, but I believe it my duty to at once
state that there will be in the Ministries of Marine
and War an increased expenditure of four millions,
calculated on an effective of 400,000 soldiers and
85,700 horses. But these figures, compared with the
real effective of last year, show an important re-
duction, as the average effective of 1861 was
467,000 men, which, by the Ist of January,
1862, was reduced to 446,000. By the Ist of
January, 1863, it will be reduced to 400,000.
In the budget of the Ministry of Marine
the credits amount in the aggregate to
168,000,000 francs, for the ordinary and extra-
ordinary service, which forms an important diminu-
tion in the expenditure in precediv financial years.
In fact, notwithstanding the increase of 70,000,000
in the supplies for 1862, the budget of 1863 will
show a real and considerable reduction." M. Fould
then proceeds to give an account of the ways and
means of the budget, and states that he will exone-
rate from all personal taxes and taxes on
personal property every individual who has
nothing but his work to obtain a livelihood.
Every workman who works alone will be exone-
rated from the tax of a patent for the exercise of
his trade. M. Fould will also reduce to one per
cent. the duties on valuables transmitted by post.
In order to insure the regularity of those
branches of the public service in which the
estimated expenditure might be exceeded, the
minister proposes to modify certain taxes
as a means of increasing the revenue.
These taxes are a new tax on horses and
carriages of livery, which is estimated to produce
millions francs, and the augmentation of the
Axed dues and fees at the public registrar
offices, which would produce 10 millions franca.

A modification is also proposed in the method of
collecting the proportional registry fees, which would
produce a revenue of 10,000,000 fr. A slight increase
of the stampduties is estimated to yield 9,500,000 fr.
An increase in the stamp duties on bills of stock
and licensed brokers, which would produce
1,200,000 francs. A fixed tax on bills of account
and on receipts is estimated to produce 12i million
francs. The total of these new resources is esti-
mated at 50 millions francs, which will allow of the
settlement of the ordinary budget of 1863, and leave
a surplus of revenue amounting to 20 millions francs.
M. Fould then discusses the general financial situa-
tion. He estimates the deficit at the end of 1861
at 1,006,000,0001 r., and says:—" It will be wise
to take advantage of the peace we now enjoy to
bring about • reduction of our deficit. I be-
lieve myself able to assure your Majesty that
it will not be necessary for that purpose
to have recourse to • loan, which would
add a fresh burden to the public debt." M. Fould
farther states that it would be desirable to arrive
at • unity of the public debt, and says, " Would
it not be possible, without neglecting the interests
and rights of the state, to insure to the holders of
public bonds the continuance of their present in-
come by offering to the holders of the Four-and-a-
Half per Cent. Ream the option of exchanging
their bonds for new bonds, insuring to them the
same income in Three per Cent. Routes. In
March, 1862, the state will withdraw the option
of conversion or redemption. If the holders of the
Four-and-a-Half per Cent. Rentes, in order
to ensure themselves against the redemption, would
wish to effect the conversions themselves, they
could do so by exchanging their bonds for an in-
scription of 3 per cent. in the public books, which
would produce the same amount of Routes without
the expenditure of any considerable sum. At pre-
sent the only difference between the two
funds would be about 8001 r. for every 450 fr.
of Rentes. The bondholders, however, would be
justified at present in awaiting more favourable
conditions than those which would be obtainable
when the state will have reassumed its right of
redeeming these Renter. The payments which
would be made by the bondholders to make up
the difference (cos lte) would amount for all the
bonds of the Four. and-a-Half per Cent. Loan to
about 300,000,0001 r. It would be necessary that a
law should leave the faculty of fixing, according to
circumstances, the payments to be effected by the
holders of the Four-and-a-Half per Cent. Rentes
for making up the difference. These payments
could be made in several instalments, which it
would be beet to make coincide with the period of
the annuities in arrears. This conversion would
be entirely optional, but there is no doubt as to the
success of the operation. If by some fortuitous
causes this conversion was only partial, at all
events, the magnitude of the Four-and-a-Half per
Cent- Rentes would be diminished, and their re-
demption would be therefore more easily effected
afterwards. As soon as circumstances would per-
mit, the state could proceed to the redemption by
making more vigorous use of its rights in this respect.
The extraordinary budget for 1863 will be made
the subject of a special law. The extraordinary
resources of the state consist of 574 millions francs,
consisting of the balance in bonds of the obligations
centamaires, and 10 millions francs„the amount of