The National Register.
London, England, 1816-02-11 00:00:00

POLITICAL DISQUISITION.
The Iscomt-Tax considered as Unjust, Oppressive, and
Ruinous.

THE Continuance of the Properly-Tax for a time, which
Mr. VANSITTART admits he cannot declare to be limited, but
whicli may lead to a permanent adoption of the measure, we
instantly foresaw would give a sudden alarm to the whole
country. The city of London, not merely as being first in
rank and importance, but as being a respectable body of the
people most readily convened, have loudly and unanimously,
in their Common Hall, raised their voices against it. Mr.,
WAITHMAN, the mover, was actually seconded by every
speaker; and by none more strongly supported than by the
respectable Mr. S. DtxoN, who is his stout and sturdy eppo-
nent upon almostall other occasions.
The Property-Tax imposed, now that a definitive treaty of
Peace is signed with France and with all Europe, if not all
the world, is so violent a disappointment of all the hopes of
the people, that it operates like an electric shock, or the cry
of invasion. BUONAPAfterE, with 1004,00 Frenchmen, or,
what would be far more probable now,. BLUCHER, at the head
of his Prussians, CTZERNIT2SCHEFF and SCHWARTZENBERG,
atty orother heroes whose names we cannot pronounce, with a
host of Prussians and Austrians, and ahordeof Camas, landed
on our coasts, we believe would not more suddenly rouse the
feelings of the country than this " dreadful note of prepara-
tion," for the comforts of peace, and the glories of conquest.
It is our intention to examine with fairness and with cool-
ness all the public acts of our Government, upon which the
opinion of a regular journalist, who undertakes to be the faith-
ful ;ter and weekly historian of his times, maybe required;

reps:
and if we did not entertain for this tax, in its commencement
and its progress, a rooted abhorrence upon every principle of
political economy, financial prudence, and public liberty, our
voices should not be heard amongst the number that oppose
it. If we deemed it necessary, we would submit to it: if we
thought it wise, we would commend it : if we held it tolerable.
we might be silent. But we condemn it altogether as une-
qual, unjust, inquisitorial, ruinous to individuals, disgusting
even to the collectors, injurious to morals, pervertible to the
worst oppression, and, finally, if tamely rect.i 'ed and fully col-
lected, exhausting to the resources, and prejudicial to. the pub-
lic safety, of the country.
This, we know, is taking a high tone, because it has been
the fashion 2anongst a great many to censider a pro e:ty-tax
accurately collected, ;is the fairest and mod just ,of all taxes ;
all by .me of tha.:2 who are eal:el Oppositio. writers, as e
Editor of the. Miwning Chronicle, it has been 110.:,:y
and. Were we ofthis opinion, it must follow: .•
"refer it to allooAprs, end recommend the abe
etlacr tvAcs a.c..‘ount chat. If indecd it is;

tion can be made, the iiiirest of all taxes, it would 'Z.): in
our opinion, that it should immediately hecorae the only tax.-
Whosoever, therefore, professes this opinion, can have no jus-
tification for opposing its continuance, but ought to propose
such modifications as might render it effectual for the pur-
poses intended, and deprive it of all those means of oppression
and inequality, if possible, which are supposed, upon* this hy-
pothesis, to render it inconvenient in practice, and. odious to
the people.
We will examine the arguments for it, and against it. It
is said to be most equal, because it takes from each indivi-
dual's income a fixed proportion;. and if every man is taxed
according to his income, every man is taxed justly. It is
also less expensive in its collection, -as it is supposed,s. than
any other tax; and he who pays to it, pays only what Go-
sernment receives with a small deduction of poundage, and
is not burthened with an increase which is added to it so. pro-
!: t, by all the previous hands through which the tax has be In
pia sill it is finally paid by the consumer. This we believe
is .11e sum of all the arguments in its favour, except one which
we had nearly forgotten, and whieh we thank the Morning
I.ChrOnick for bringing to our mind; namely, that it tends
to get at the property which the wealthy and . penurious
withhold from the reach of Government, when they tax cans.
modifies and expenditure, and makes the drier pay to the
support of Government one-tenth of the income which he
wrings from the poor, and hoards for posterity. •.. s
On the contrary, it is urged that it is an unfair tax;. fr
because it considers the owner al the freehold and of the
life estate as possessing the same means of contributing tss
wards the necessities of the Stite: and what is still worse, ex-
acts fissu the trader and the professional man a similar pro-
portion of his income, Ikhieh is necessarily precarious, and
dependant upon the contingencies of health and fortune, as
from the man of fixed income, who, to use the vulger phrase,
has the same money coming in, whether he works or plays.
Secondly, the mode of collecting it is necessarily galling and
oppressive. It puts some men to a cruel inquisition, which,
if it tries nothing else, tortures their conscience; while it af-
fords to others the means of evading a necessary tax im-
.pudent imposture, and at last by a perjured falsification of
the truth. Thirdly, it enables Government, in all cases cf
commercial and professional assessment, if they should be in-
clined to act corruptly, to enforce the tux strictly :against ob-
noxious indiYiduali or against classes and sects of the people,
while it enables friends of the commissioners and supporters of
Government to acquit the property tax nearly at their own
pleasure, as flu as professional or commercial income is con-
seris..d. This, on the other hand, is the plain substance of at
arguments which we have hitherto heard against it ;
to
Which we shall add some of our own, derived front a deeper
owledge of political eeonomy.and the osurces of taxation,
its effects upon the value-or "waxy and the property of

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