The Sun.
London, England, 1853-06-29 00:00:00

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, JUNE 29, 1853.

The Income Tax Bill has passed through its
last stave in the House of Lords, and now only
aivaits the Royal assent to become a portion of
the law of the land, although prevented by the
etiquette and privileges of Parliament from alter-
ing a money bill sanctioned by the House of Com-
mons. Several of their Lordships recorded their
dissent from several details of the measure in the
most earnest and emphatic terms. A division
was even taken on one of the clauses, the rejec-
tion of which had been proposed by the Earl of
WICKLOW, an d supported, among others, by the Lord
Chief-Justice, whose personal experience taught
him the grievous injury that must necessarily be
sustained by many Irish landlords in being com-
pelled to pay the tax—not on the amount which
they actually receive, but on that which they
ought to receive ; so that in the case of a defaulting
tenant they will have not only to submit to the
loss of their rent, but will have to liquidate
claims that could only be justified on the suppo-
sition that they were in actual receipt of their
rents for which they were rendered liable. This
is a grievous hardship—and, what renders it the
more intolerable, it is one which applies almost
exclusively to Ireland and to Irish land-
lords, and from which their English brethren
are at least comparatively free. It cer-
tainly appears quite sufficient to impose
the burden on Ireland, for the first.time, without
rendering its operation even more inequitable and
oppressive than in this country, where, in truth,
it is quite bad enough as it is ; but it is a serious
grievance to make an exceptional law far more
stringent than that in force on this side of St.
George's Channel, which, through the unjustifiable
demands of the tax-gatherer, will complete the
ruin of landlords already subjected to deep dis-
tress, and brought to the verge of poverty
through the insolvency or dishonesty of de-
faulting tenants. There is no reason why
the Income Tax should not be extended
to Ireland why those who receive money
from any source, applicable to their own
purposes, should not contribute to the liquidation
of the national liabilities and the maintenance of
the national establishments, as well as their Eng-
lish brethren. But it should really be an income
tax—not, as we have already stated, a charge on
that which a man ought to receive, but had not
received.

But it may be said that there is a clause in the
Bill which affords an adequate remedy for the
grievance—that there is a provision to the effect
that when a landlord (~an prove to the Commis-
sioners that he has ptlid income tax on rent
which ho had failed to receive, in conse-
quence of the bankruptcy, insolvency, or
absconding of, or the removal of goods by,
auy tenant he should roc eive back so much of the
duty as he paid in. respect of such rent
lost to him, and this is; relied on by those who
framed the enactment as a satisfactory answer to
the objection ! Stronger evidence could not be
afforded of their gross &Ind unpardonable ignorance
on Irish affairs. The provision is little better
than a mockery and a delusion, one that could
rarely, if ever, be made available by the aggrieved
And plundered landlord ; but which is even more
impolitic than it is deceptive, inasmuch as its
tendency, if it could be made available, would be
to act as a direct incentive to the greatest cruelty
and oppression, and a s the natural result to
agrarian outrages and bloodshed, producing
eventually a state of affs irs more deplorable than
anything that has yet b.3en witnessed in that un-
happy land.
The accuracy of tiles?. assertions can be easily
tested. Indeed, any pErrson at all acquainted
with Ireland, or the Ins' 13, will be enabled to
substantiate them. It is: notorious that in Ire-
land the Bankrupt or Ins Olvent Courts are seldom
if ever re3orted to, on account of arrears of rent.
The arrest of the person of the defaulting tenant
is the last remedy sougitt by the landlord, for
should he do so, he loses the chance of distrait,:
ing ; and he' is also but too -well aware of the inu-
tility of the process, even if it
a flame, and it could be executed
without setting the country 2
occa-
sioning the most serious evils. Were it other-
Wise the staff of des() tribunals would
be materially enlarged, as ample occupation
would be provided iu adjudica,thig on the cases of ,