The Sun.
London, England, 1862-04-04 00:00:00

year 1860.61 was £72,504,000, and that of 1861-62 was
£70,838,000, being a difference of £1,666,000. Turning to
the revenue, he stated that last year it was £;`•x,670,000,
and there would have been a deficit of £1,1':4,000, and
with the supplementary grants it would have amounted I
to £1,489,660, but deducting the suppiene alai grants
there was a small surplus of £3 ,000. Com-
paring the revenue of 1860-61 with that of 1861-62
it appeared that in the former year it was £70,380,000,
and in the latter £69,671,000, being a decrease of
£609,000, but from circumstances connected with
the financial year it was, in fact, £809,000. This must be
considered satisfactory when it was remembered that in
1801-62 we had parted with three items of revenue—by
reducing the income tax a penny in the pound, making a
loss in three quarters of the year of £850,000 ; and the
paper duty had been abolished, the loss of duty on the last
six months of the financial year being £665,000; while no
malt credit had been taken up, as was the case in 1860-61,
to the extent of £1,122,000, which had not been available.in
1861-62. There had been a loss in this latter year, as com-
pared with 1860-61 of a sum of £2,627,000 ; so that after de-
ducting from that the real decrease of revenue in the last
year of £809,000, there had been an improvement in our
sources of r evenuo last year of £1,828,000. In the face of
a diminished trade with America, which amounted to
£12,609,000, oar exports having sunk from £21,667,000 to
£9,058,000 ; the depression arising from the want of cotton ;
and after a harvest which, though good in quality, was de-
ficient in quantity, there had been an increase in our sources
of revenue of a sum of £1,828,000, It was not the fact that
the revenue had not increased but was in reality declining.
In the Customs, on the first three quarters of the last year
there was an increase of £468,000, but in the last quarter
there had been a decrease of £lOO,OOO. Although tho gross
revenue had fallen off £609,000, yet the Customs had ex-
ceeded the estimate by £464,000, the stamps by. £130,000,
taxes by £lO,OOO, the income tax by £15,000, and the mis-
cellaneous by £Bl,OOO. Tho Crown lands bad fallen off by
£5,000, and the Post-office by £lO,OOO. In the Excise there
there had been a falling off amounting to £456,000; there
had been a loss on spirits, hops, and paper—in the latter
case partly from the repeal of the duty and partly
from drawbacks. Referring to the estimates, he stated
that of the China indemnity, which was placed at £750,000,
the whole receipt had been only £478,000 up to September,
but when the two quarters due in March were paid there
would be a gross receipt of £658,000. There had, however,
been an arrangement by which an addition was made to the
compensation paid to the merchants in anticipation, which
by so much (that is, £193,000) would diminish the receipts
to the Exchequer. The whole sum actually received this
year would be £266,000 from this source. The expenditure
for the coming year was thus estimated—For the interest of
the public debt, £26,280,000 ; the consolidated fund would
stand at £1,900,000; the army at £15,300,000, and the mili-
tia at £700,000. This included a charge of £700,000 for
Indian effectivos, which appeared for the first time in the
estimates, and deducting this, the amount of the estimate
would stand at £15,270,000, as compared with £15,481,000
last year, being a diminution of £275,000. The navy was
estimated at £11,800,000 as compared with £12,276,000 last
year. The miscellaneous estimates were estimated at
£7,819,000. The revenue departments were estimated at
£4,750,000, the packet service £916,000, and a vote for
China would be asked of £500,000. The total estimate of
expenditure was £70,040,000. The estimate of revenue for
the coming year ran thus .—Customs, £23,550,000; excise,
£18,340,000; stamps, £8,625,000; land and assessed taxes,
£3,180,000; income tax, £10,100,000; Post-office, £3,650,000;
crown lands, £300,000; miscellaneous, which included for
the first time a payment for Indian effectivcs and non-effcc-
tives, £2,275,000, and the China indemnity, £170,000
The estimate of total revenue would be £70,190,000 against
an estimated expenditure of £70,040,000. The question,
therefore, arose whether new taxes were to be imposed. 'Not
many months ago he had entertained the hope of being able
to remit taxes, but subsequently there appeared a proba-
bility of heavy expenditure, and there was the prospect of
additional taxation. In looking to our resources everything
was favourable, except that portion of them which de-
pended on America. So far as trade was concerned there
had been an improvement for our exports to America which
in September were £483,000 were in October £709,000, in
November £739,000, in December £860,000, and in January
£1,253,000. But it was in reference to cotton that anxiety
must be felt, and the prospect in that respect was not im-
proving; But looking to the state of trade with France
since the treaty had come into operation it would be found
that whereas in the six months between September and
February, 1859-60, our exports to France were £2,196,000,
in 1861-62 they amounted to £6,910,000. There had been
an exceptional export of corn to France of about £BOO,OOO
or £900,000 in value in 1861.62, and deducting this the real
amount of increase was £3,039,000, although the gross in- ,
crease had been £3,895,000. There had been also another I
increase from this source, for there had been an increase in
foreign and colonial exports, in connexion with the treaty,
amounting to £4,572,000, so that the real increase in Is6l-
- was over £10,000,000. In the single article of woollens
there had been an increase from £134,000 to £1,181,000.
This was to be taken into consideration in connexion with
the increased good feeling between the two nations, for
which result it was not necessary again to congratulate the
author of the treaty, whose services would become matter
of history. Referring to the question of a surplus, he
showed that if he bad one it would have been demanded
of him ; but even looking to the important question in-
volved in the supply of cotton, the Government had come
to the conclusion to do without a surplus and to
impose no new taxes,' reserving to themselves the privilege
of taking the necessary stops to meet any exigency which
might arise. As to the remission of taxes, it was plain that
there could be none on the figures which he had brought
forward. Nevertheless ho must refer to demands for re-
mission which had been made on the Government. It was
urged that the duty on spirits should be reduced, that the
sugar duties should be modified, that the malt credit should
be remitted, that the small duties charged on imports and
exports should be removed, and also that some alteration
should be made in the duties on wine, and that the hop
duty should be repealed, As regarded alterations ho pro-
posed to make, it was proposed to lower the duty on play-
ing cards, and the duty on what was called the Inventory
Duty in Scotland. It was proposed with regard to Foreign
and Colonial Bonds or Loans to make a charge of 8 per
cent., which was charged now on loans in this country,
and there would be created a system of supplemental li-
censes running fur three days, during fairs and markets, for
publicans. As to the spirit duty, there had been a falling
off last year below the estimate ; but as it was proved not
to have arisen from an increase of illicit distillation, but
from a diminished power of consumption combined with
the increased sobriety of the people ; it was not preposed,
therefore, to deal with tho spirit duties. With regard to
the sugar duties, being classified duties, they were unequal
in their pressure ; but tho difficulties of removing this clas-
sification were such as to preclude any such change with-
outpre paareoeamtpoleatesseinnrairyaineotommthietteseufbojrectht,eapnudrphoosew.would beto
the malt credits, no such case, in his opinion, had been
made out as to justify any change,
revesepneciallyf
as any alteration would deprive the
51,300,000 a year. As to the minor dutiesu° ono
imports and exports, they entailed an amount of labour in
collection which gave them a claim to repeal; but they
amounted to £182,000 a year, and with a surplus of only
£150,000 it was not possible to deal with them, besides
which they afforded the means to the Board of Trade Of
obtaining valuable statistical information. Still he was
willing to grant an inquiry into the subject. With regard
to the wine duty, comparing the two last years of the old
system, from 1858 to 1860, the mean deliveries in those
years amounted to 6,552,000 gallons, bringing in a revenue I
of 11,697,000 ; and in 1861-62 the deliveries wore 9,732,000 I
gallons, being an increase of 3,180,000 gallons, and the re-
venue under the reduced duties was £1,105,000, being a
decrease of £592,000, showing a favourable increase at least
in the trade. But on the whole it was determined to retain
what was called the alcoholic test, but altering and modify-
ing it, by reducing four scales to two, admitting all wines
from 18 to 26 degrees of alcohol at a duty of ls., while
from 26 to 42 the scale would be raised from 2s. 5.1. to
2s. 6d. ; and above 45, an additional duty of 3d. on every
additional rise of strength. The financial result would be
that there would be a net gain of £15,000 a year to the
revenue. As to the hop duties, it was not possible to part
with duties which yielded £300,000 a year on the average.
It was, however, proposed to do something in the way of
commutation; by readjusting the system of brewers'
licenses and including in them a charge for the hop duty;
while, at the same time t, relief would be given to smaller
brewers in respect of the charge for their licenses. In this
way the revenue would get nearly as much duty as now,
while it would cause a complete free trade in home and
foreign hops. There would be a general average addition
of 3d. on each barrel of beer brewed to the charge for
the licenses of brewers, though in the case of smaller
brewers it would be smaller in amount per barrel. The
customs and excise duty on hops would be repealed from
next September. It was also proposed, as regarded private
brewers, to exempt from license all brewing carried on by
the labouring classes. In all cases where the house occu-
pied by a private brewer was more than £2O a year, or in
the case of a farm above £l5O a year, there would be a license
charge of 12s. 6d. ; below those amounts there would be no
license. The financial results would be, that whereas the
receipts from hops and brewers' licenses were now £345,000,
the receipts in future would only be £300,000, Tho right
hon. gentleman then proceeded to take a review of the
financial results of the last three years. The impression
that the public expenditure was growing, he argued, was
erroneous, for that of last year was less than that of the
year before, while in the year ensuing there was a decrease
111,the estimates of over £700,000, although many items of
~, Peenditure were included in the estimates which had never
be
nincluded before; and putting those items out of cal-
, the actual diminution was £1,700,000. Still the
attention
level of orve
fe: itxPendituro was such as ought to meet with
comfort and satisfaction
a higher level than could be borne with
yonodwiltien of finance. The growth of
with a sound by the people, or than was com-
patibleexpenditure was part'
the gr,wing wants of the
country; then to a sense or:7 to
hinnascurity which had prevailed
in The country; next to the
the establishments
08f, and lastly, to special
and expenditure of other coansileajec° of
:Illencies. which had
demands which had arisen out
spaani7 up. There was a fearful racp
aenditure going on
ailioDgst tho nations of the world, I: rano() ire the last 20 years