The Express.
London, England, 1848-03-07 00:00:00

Me. ANDlitiON, M.P. for the Orkney isles, moved the
next fteolution:
the
flat this meeting le el opinion that the conntry will not any longer
submit to inquisitor's'. unetol4 and endradi_____," wi
ll
resent Income tax, but Met it to quits properce. to support snob an
principle of the patio burdens, eh the Plan er ale et the
of direct taxation es shall as upon each subject of the
state such a contribution to its Meows as shah be fairly propcetioned
to his means.
—He considered the present tax grossly unjust, ss the poor
who could least afford it had to pay the greater portion of it.
Take a tradesman who made 2001. a year from him business.
his
He had that for his life only, or perhaps only whilst
health permitted him to attend to it. lieved had to pay the
same amount as the gentleman who recei 2001. forhe
rent of land, and who received it whether he was ill or well,
and when he died could leave it is his family. Anotherito-
reason why be objected to the tax was, hat it wae inquis
rial; for if • tradesman reflood to submit to whatever de-
mand the Weatherer made upon him, he was obliged to
submit to an investigation into his affairs, which was any-
thing but pleasant.
Mr. D. W. Wias seconded the resolution, and it was

adopted.
The meeting was afterwards addressed by ?deans. Sturges,
Bartle, Lee, Hall, &c., and the resolution having been ear-
Tied
The uswa compliment having been paid to the chairman,
the meeting dispersed.

WESTMLNSTER REFORM SOCIETY.
A special meeting of the members of this society
was bold last evening at the York Hotel, Covent-garden, to
take into oonsideration the budget now befcre the House of
Commons: Mr. Pouncey presided. Mr. Lushiogton and
Sir De Lacy Evans, the member' for the city, were among
the ginsffiemen present.
Beira the aonuneneement of the regular proceedings, Mr.
LIMMINOTON (who was obliged to leave the meeting early)
reloaded toosy.• few words. He regretted exceedingly the
muss whisk 'rudders had adopted with regard to the 'bud-
gets the senesquence of which lied been, that is the earlier
of the discussion he had been under the necessity et
against them, and he saw no prospect of deviating
'from t course. Mr. Hume had that evening proposed
that the income tax should only be continued for one year
instead of three ; and, although he objected to the tax alto-
lase, he Ifelt that he mast support Mr. Hume's prop-id-
' lien. seleing the least of two evils. He was of opUion that
say deanieney is the revenue should be supplied by Win,
the land—in feet, by putting on a property tax ; and, if that
wee not sufficient, by imposing • probate and legacy duty on
real property.
Sir Da LACY Evans observed that he had equal objen.
dons to the continuance of the income tax even for one
year, but he saw no alternative.
Mr. Gwynn then addressed the meeting in a speech
strongly condemnatory of the increase is the estimates,
particularly under the heads of army, navy, and ordnance,
which had taken place from the year 1836, when they
amounted to 11,730.0731., untillB47, when they were in-
creased to 17,340,0961., and which latter estimate had been
exceeded by nearly two millions. Mr. Gessin having no
resolution to move,
Mr. PIMUT begged to move one which he had prepared.
It was to the effect that the proper mode of in part supplying
the revenue was by a probate and legacy duty upon real
estates equal to that on personal property; that there
was no reason why the income and property tax should
not be exten•led to Ireland, if continued in Great
Britain ; that the land tax having considerably fallen
off as a source of revenue, having become of less
magnitude than the window tax, while it was still
levied in the other great countries of Europe, so
as to form a third of their total revenue, the equalisation
and increase of the tax was imperative for the purpose of di.
minishing indirect taxation ; that a great saving in the con-
tracts for supplying the army and navy might be made for
the ensuing year; that no additional funds were wanted for
national defences in the present state of Europe ; that the
meeting deprecated any increase in the income and property
tax, unless accompanied by an equivalent decrease in other
modes of taxation ; and were also strongly of opinion that
previously to the re-imposition even of the present tax, it was
the duty of the legislature to take mesas to render it more
equal in its operation, especially by removing the obnoxious
njustice of imposing the same charges upon professions or
trades, and other uncertain sources, as upon incomes arnfing
from realised property ; that, as a means of continuing the
peace of Europe, the government of the several nations
throughout ought to decrease, by mutual consent, their re-
spective armaments, which would lead to the tranquillity,
and extend the liberty and happiness, of the European people.
Mr. CRIBB seconded the resolution, to which
Dr. Barre moved an amendment, proposing that a com-
mittee be appointed to prepare a petition to parliament, pro-
testing against the inequality and unjust principles of the
income tax.
Mr. Gluon( seconded the amendment; and a long dis-
cussion ensued upon the question,
Mr. PILOUT being of opinion that • property and income
tax were the only proper ones, because they would do away
with the necessity for indirect taxation, while several other
gentlemen were for the abolition of th. income tax at all
hazards.
Sir Ds LACY EVANB recommended that a petition, em-
bodying a comprehensive view of the subject of the financial
measures of the government, and intimated his willing.
ness to take charge of and present the document, if
it was drawn up. He was of opinion that • property
tax was desirable, indeed indispensable ; and that the
only excuse 'for and palliation of the income tax was, that
it was en approach to that measure. He believed that, how-
ever contemptuously they might regard the governments of
the Continent, almost every one of them exhibited more
justice to the body of the people than was evinced by the
legislature of this country. He thought that the govern-
ment refrained from proposing either a distinctionor a probate
duty on real property, or to establish a between
property and income taxes because they were apprehensive
of losing their majority in'the two houses by the means. It
was only, therefore, by agitation out of doors that the go-
vernment could be compelled to propose such measures to
the legislature. He believed that the land tax could very
well be equalised ; its present inequality was monstrous. It
was about 2,. 10d. in the parish where they then were, and
in that in which he raided only about one farthing. He
thought that, however right they might be in condemning
any extravagance or imamse of expenditure on the part of
the remount, they. were wrong in advocating any
decrease in'the existing naval and military forces of the
country, as they were at present considerably less than the
fortes of neighbouring countries.
On the question being put the amendment was lost, and
the original motion carried by a small majority. It was
then agreed that a petition founded on the resolution should
be presented to parliament, and a committee appointed to
draw it up.
Mr. HEALEY then proposed a resolution to the effect that
the only remedy for the financial embarrassments of the
country was the formation of • new ministry by Mr. Cobden.
The proposal excited some surprise, and was eventually
withdrawn it being understood that Mr. Healey was at
liberty to ell] a special mewing for its consideration. The
usual complimentary vote to the chairman concluded the
proceedings.