The Sun.
London, England, 1851-04-10 00:00:00

the iniquitous impost must be thoroughly or-
t:•:a most euergetk cxe-rtions must.

be made to free the country from the reproach
of injustice. If the various constituencies im -
press upon their respective representatives the
necessity of preventing the continuance of the
tax in its present oppressive and unequal form—if
they let it be clearly understood that the re-elections
of the Hon. Gentlemen may probably depend not merely
on their votes, but on their activity and determina-
tion on the present occasion, the victory would be
secured, and Sir CHARLES WOOD, compelled by the
remonstrances uf his colleagues to pay some attention
to the voice of public opinion, would feel the propriety
of yielding—we will not say with a good grace, for
that, we believe to be impossible, to the pressure from
without. _ _

The parties concerned in the more equitable assess-
ment of the impost, generally speaking, are in the
enjoyment of the elective franchise and possess con-
siderable influence in the selection of representatives
for the various localities in which they respectively
reside. They constitute what may be termed, par
excellence, " the middle class," consisting of
merchants, manufacturers, traders, and professional
and literary men, including the clergy of all
religious denominations, and legal and medi-
cal practitioners. These persons do not know
the immense power placed in their hands ;
they have little notion of what they could accomplish
by union and organization. They should for the time
being sink all minor differences, and co-operate cor-
dially together for the purpose of enforcing that
justice which is denied to their humble petitions and
entreaties. Clubs should be established, every member
of which should pledge himself to oppose every
candidate who would vote for the renewal of
the income-tax in its present objectionable
form. If such a course were adopted
the result would speedily be perceptible. Those who
looked forward to obtaining the " most sweet voices''
of the electors would see the propriety of deserving
their confidence, and would oppose Schedule D with
all their energies.

A brief consideration of the recent return of per-
sons paying the tax under Schedule D will show that
we have not in any degree exaggerated the power and
influence which they possess. It appears that there
are charged in the whole under that schedule, no
less than 144,626 persons, of whom 19,893 are in the
enjoyment of incomes exceeding 5001. per annum,
while the remaining 124,733 receive less than 5001.
per annum, this latter class contributing in the aggre-
gate 661,0001., or a little over 51. each, showing that
the average incomes may be taken at about 1701. per
annum each. Now, these personsare with few excep-
tions scattered through the various cities and bo-
roughs, and they all possess, or are entitled to pos-
sess, the elective franchise. It requires but little
argument to prove how greatly the result of
the elections in these districts must depend
on the views of those educated persons. They
would, in fact, constitute an absolute majority of those
who could be brought to the poll in many towns,
and would prove absolutely irresistible; that is to
say, if they could be induced to pull together steadily
and efficiently. Let any person who doubts the
accuracy of our assertions take the trouble of in-
quiring into the composition of any borough constitu-
ency in his vicinity, and he will speedily be con-
vinced. The experiment is at least worth a trial,
and if once attempted suct.ets is certain; and Sir
CHARLES WOOD will speedily be compelled to come
to a different " conclusion" from that which he had
formerly arrived at.

In order to exhibit more clearly the gross ine-
quality and injustice of the present system, let us
take different persons, paying the tax on an income
of 3001., or in other words chargeable with V. 15s.
each under the contemplated Act. The first is a
fundholder with 10,000/. in the Three per Cents.,
which at the present quotation may be taken as being
worth 9,6 sol.—allowing for the cost of brokerage,
&c., in disp❑si❑g of it. In handing in his half-year's
contribution, 41. is. 6d., he gives something less than
the 1-2,200 th part of his actual capital, an arrange-
ment with which he may be supposed to be very well
contented.

His brethren, the proprietors of ground rents or
well-circumstancNl real estate, or the mortgagee whose
money is securely invested at 4 per cent. in land or
railway debentures, are in nearly similar positions.
Their properties, in any of these cases, may be as-
sumed as being worth twenty-five years' purchase,
or 7,500/. sterling ; and therefore, in paying 41. 7s, 6d.
for the half-year, he gives about 1-I,Booth of his ac-
tual capital, against which payment he can utter no
reasonable complaint.

There are other less valuable interests in land, such
as estates in small or dilapidated houses, let out at
weekly rents, and held for rapidly expiring leases.
These might not command more than six or seven
years' purchase in the market, and a consider-
able portion must be set aside to provide for
bad debts, &c., but yet the owner must pay
far more than the ground landlord, who
receives his rent without difficulty or trouble, and who
looks forward to coming into early possession of the
entire. The interest may not he worth 2,0001., and the
charges will be for the half-year's income-tag 41. 73.
63., and for the new house-tax—for that practically
will fall upon such proprietors, and not upon
the tenants-51. 12a. 61, total 101., or 1-200:h part of
the capital. That man is certainly not fairly treated
in being compelled to pay 9, 10, or 11 times more
in proportion to the value of his property than his
more favoured brother proprietor. The merchant,
manufacturer, or trader, may make 10, 15, or 20
per cent. on the capital embarked i❑ his business,
and if we as;ume as the average that the amount be
2,0001., to realize an income of 3001. we find him
paying about the 1.400 th part of his capital each
half-year.

Let us finally teke the legal or medical practitioner,
whose only income is derived from his own
unceasing and laborious exertions. The half-year's
earnings constitute his only wealth, and indeed he
may consider himself fortunate if he has 1501. that he
can call his own, without being subject to any
demand. He then pays 1-35th part of his entire
estate, or about sixty times as much in proportion as
the fundholder, or fifty times as much as the owner
or mortgagee of well-circumstanced real estate!! And
yet this statement does not show the full hardship to
the professional man. How many are there who
have not a half-year's earnings in band, who have
been compelled to expend their profits as fast
as they are raceived, who, in paying the tax, apply
their entire capital, and who consider themselves
fortunate if able to satisfy the tax collector without
anticipating their future income.
And this is the system which the people of Eng•
land are called upon to sanction and perpetuate. Be-
cause Sir CHAILLES \%ooD, totally incapable of per-
forming the duties of his office, cannot devise
a plan for an equitable arrangement, a
task which we venture to assert that any
accountant or clerk in a mercantile house, at 1001.
per annum, coukl accomplish in a single day, we
are still to be the victims of his incompetence and
incapacity. Once more, however, we repeat, that
the middle classes have only themselves to blame if
their reasonable demands are not complied with.
They have the game in their own hands, if they
only play their cards properly, but nothing will be
done if they remain careless and apathetic.

We publish in another column s the protest of the
French Republican refugees against
ca-
lumnious accusations brought against
ent them by cer-
tain Noble Peers and Honourable
the two Houses of Parliament, have suffmeernedwthhoemin-
selves to be made, we
to trust
the
a x the vehicles
for giving circulation
wmi 't
a t nggnlay,
n t falsehoods
which the police spies of Austria in this country
have invented in furtherance of the scheme of that
conspiracy against the liberties, civil and religious,
of mankind, of which the Austrian Government is
the head, and of which the recent Papal aggression in
this country was an overt act. In this solemn'pro-
test these refugees make use of the following ex-
pressions:—

" We, therefore, declare in the most solemn manner
that whosoever attributes to us, the French Republicans,
refugees, now residing in London, designs such as those
-individuals have attributed to us,
These are strong expressions,
slanderer." These
in any manner
similar to them, is a vile slan
but they are at the
same time true expressions, and we trust that Lord
LYNDHURsT, who appears to hold the Austrian brief,'
will for the future, seeing how he has been misiu-