The Express.
London, England, 1849-09-06 00:00:00

FRANCE.

PARIS, WIDNEIDAT, 6.30 P.N.

The Patrie says that, according to the deeps's:thee
that have been received by government from the
divers prefets, it is improbable that many councils-ge-
neral will damned the revision of the constitution.
Should the desire of change show itself, it would do
so is vague expressions only of a desire that a certain
Salty and stability should be given to power in the
interest of affairs, and fur the prosperity of the coun-
try. According to the despatches from the prefets.
the minutes of the proceedings of the council will
contain chiefly views on &centralisation, hopes
for the re-establishment of taxes that have
been abolished, and a strenuous opposition to M.
Passy's income-tax. It seems indeed evident tkat
everywhere the opinion of the councils-general is un-
favourable to M. Passy's scheme, which his partisans
now pretend has been pat forward by him merely as
a proof that he would leave no means untried to fill
up the deficit that yawns before the country. A fair
specimen of the arguments used against the proposed
income-tax will be fund in the following conclusions
come to by the council of the department of the
Somme, where, as we stated yesterday, • vote has
already been recorded against the excise on
drink.. The council of the Somme thinks that
an income-tax would doubtless be the most natural
and lawful cf all taxes, if it satisfied two conditions;
namely, if it rested on a true foundation, and if it was
the solo tax of the land. If it were possible, after
fixing the entire expenditure of the country to open
an enormous register, in which should be inscribed
by an all-seeing hand, the income of each, and then
divide in an equal proportion the total of the public
burdens, then would the beau ideal exist in matters of
taxatiou. Such,unfortunately, is not the cue. Not pos-
sessing the infalible register just mentioned, another
must be opened, in which each citizen will be required
to inscribe the amount of his income. So far so good.
But the statements of the honourable citizens of
France must be controlled by some means, and this
can only be cone by two methods, equally repulsive
to Frer.ch character, namely, inquisition or secret in-
formation. Supposing that there is no mode of con-
trolling the statements of each, they must be taken
as the basis of the tax, and then where is the guarantee
of the just repartition of the tax ? Lies must infal-
libly be told, by some through avarice, others through
ostentation or necessity. The first condition of
a true basis to this tax does not therefore
exist. With regard to the mond condition, as to
whether the existence of an income-tax, as the sole
impost of the country, is possible, it is evident that it
cannot be seriously thought of now. Besides the in-
come-tax itself, there are others on land, house,
moveables, nay on the very person of him who is
expected further now to pay in proportion to hie
income. Tree smallness of the tax is no reason in its
favour, seeing the impossibility of the form and the
iniquity of its basis. Such are the reasons given by
the council of the Somme. 'the first decision on the
question of decentreliz etion has been given by the
council-general of the Douches du Rhone, which ex-
presses a desire fur the enlargement of the attri-
butes of local corporate bodies, a reduction of
bureaucrat formalities, simplification of the adminis-
trative machinery, and more expeditious trans-
action of public business ; finally, diminution in the
number of person employed, to be obtained by the
abolition of useless formalities.

It may be remembered that when the budget for
1849 was under discussion, the National Assembly
ordered that the pensions accorded to certain preLots
and other functionaries, after the 24th of February.,
1848, shAdd lit examined by the council of state, and
subjected to revision,. Tact body has jest sent in its
decision on ten of the cases, confirming the pensions
alre4y granted, and deciding that grave infirmity did
rally exist in each cue at the time vile.. the lilac-
Unary withdraw from active service.