The Sun.
London, England, 1851-04-28 00:00:00

CEYLON.

Mr. BAILLIE wiiihed to know, a 3 the Hon. Member
for Montrose had expressed some opinions on this sub-
ject, and had given notice of a motion which might ma-
terodly affect the state of the question, whether there
was any intention on the part of Government to carry
the recommendations which had bt en made into effect?
Lord J. RUS6ELL said that the recommendations had
been so Vague that he had not presumed to act upon
th,m, and that he waited fur further advices before he
o
could express any opinion whatever.
PROPERTY AND INCOME TAX.

The House then proceeded to the orders of the day,
and the motion for the seemid reading of the Propert
and Income-tax Bill having been put,
Mr. SPOONER said that he rose to move an amend .
ment that this motion should be postponed till this day
six menthe. In 1842 Sir B. Peel proposed the imposition of
aft lac, i-s.:::-tax becense he found an empty exchequer; but
with loaf imposition, to which Parliament had owl_
sertei, there was also a condition annexed—that it
ehOulcl not be continued tor more than three years. It
`,z,A P. Lx upon income; tad- that tax was manifestly
ircipo.ied Mr a peculiar purpose, 'and for a particular
ti''-'
"• In 1846 the deficiency in the Exchequer had
eel', supplied, but then came forward the grand financial
p.. rojeees of Sir Robert Peel. Ile had determined to do
`ii`Teca* a? with most of our indirect taxes, and then the
i`
P-tax Ras contiuucd for three years. This carried
the natter on until 1843, when the aspect of Europe
T. such that is was not difficult to ret an Aci`a to carry on
tax I ' the fur three years longer. But a time had now
arisen in a
w ich there wfts no complaint of want in the
exchequer, when, in fact, the Chancellor had a surplus,
and no necessity.7aisted tor the continuance of this tax.
this tax, because to go into any arguments against
nothing
e but the greatest emergency
could justify it. i
into Mr. Francis Horner, as far
back as 1815, stigeaatize
it as an unjust tax, and called
upon the then CiaN able
lorof the Exchequer to abandon
while the
the bead of the present Lordhimself, who was at
Government when this
tax was first introduced, denounced it as not only unequal
to
in its operation, but also liable lead to much fraud and
deception.
Now that wast c
itshetaracter of the tax as
given by those who now proposed
continuance; and
he put it to
the House whether it was prudent,'
elves ov
in the existing state of agriculture, to,
be could
persevere
,z
with this measure? If G
say was, that they would find
dmtehnet
them did, ell
mistaken
it they thought it would lead to no opposition
or
resist-
ance out of doors. .No tax, in fact, was morobuox.
great mass of the people; and he, therefore,
implored the goose mass
to sanction its continuance,
to the g
lie knew instances in which persons rather than show
their books, and let their affairs be known to the world,
had submitted to pay extortionate sums under this tax;
end he was quite sure if the House knew how unequal
this
iniquitous tax pressed on the people, it would pause
hVore it gave its sauction to the second reading
theoit- Home Bill. The Right Hon. Baronet the Secretary fur
, 6,1", Department, in a very short, but very power-
ful
*ranec',"lo speech, said on a former occasion, if he had
the melancholy
prospect before him of this becoming a
i ,.permanent tax, he ‘
t, inehlualsithyou; would endeavour, to nish
ldbunt,
looking to its probable dura-
tion,that if its then, thinking
inetinoett.t.object to it • . ;..ht
ou a future occastou resist the tb ey mm
effect.
Yet the Right Ha,. Gentleman
the tax with mere
that
opinion when he was out (t)il.eltn, wh*ntertained
office, now came and asked
the House to agree to the v
alteratien whatever. Then again,
tax without any
who was now an influentij'g'.in, Viscount Howick
membervernment, Paid to impose a tax
of the Go-
on property was unjust,
obviously on income and
and
that the income tax shouldhe agreed
confined to periods
of the greatest possibl be
e emergency, such as when the
country was involve 4 in war or suffering
un,uer serious
difficulties. That Noble Lord was high in office,
was a clever and able men, and was
likAy to adopt an opinion hastily, and nhe
ot
hoped that when this remark went to the Noble Lord
in another place, he would explainhis
;;pinions on taxa-
tiote. and say bow he came to give his support to the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, at a time when
the country was involved in no war, and when
there was a surplus revenue. He next came to the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, and he must confess
that all the Right Hon. Gentleman said made a strong
im'presssnn on his mind, and that be heard all that came
Irvin hia, with great delight. He said that so far from
Ole to pressing exclusively en the rich, it pressed
ou the labouring classes, and diminished the means of
employment, and that he could not but believe that
the Right Hon. Baronet (Sir R. Peel) could think that