The Sun.
London, England, 1860-03-26 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, MARCH. 26, MO.

Mr. Brunton, the entire expense of the Scinde
line, with the additional works necessary, would
be under £1,400,000. Although the extent of the
line was not more than 114 miles in length, the
termini were necessarily applicable to a traffic
carried over .700 miles—viz., from Mooltan to
Keamaree. The average cost of the railway would
be about £lO,OOO per mile. The capital account
showed that £1,239,683 had been received to the
31st of December, and £895,128 expended, leaving
a balance of £5,200 in hand, and £339,355 with
the'Secretary of State for India in Council.
The report respecting the Indus steam flotilla
states that the six towing steamers and 25 cargo
barges arrived at Kurrachee in November last, with
the necessary artisans and appliances, and the
eight remaining cargo barges left some time ago
the port of Liverpool for Kurrachee. The passen-
ger steamer drew only 22 inches, with a speed of
13 miles an hour, and had space for 500 men ; the
towing steamer drew 17 inches, and towed at the
rate of 84 miles an hour four barges, carrying to-
gether 450 tons. There was every hope of seeing
at no distant period the entire flotilla of 53 vessels
in active operation on the Indus. The native craft
on that river had been increased during the past
year by 3,625 boats and by 19,790 tons. The
capital account showed an expenditure of £165,870.

BOMBAY, BARODA, AND CENTRAL INDIA.
The first section of thii company's line from
Umrolee, on the north bank of the Taptee river, to
Unklesur, near the south bank of the Nerbudda
river, was opened at eight o'clock in the morning
of the 7th ult. by a royal salute from the Castle of
Surat. The first train, containing between 500
and 600 European and native gentry resident in
the district, performed the distance, about 30
miles, in an hour and a quarter, the road being
in excellent condition. The bridges, more or less
extensive, were all of iron, each girder having
been fully tested previous to its being sent from
England. The peculiarity of the bridges on this line
consisted in their being made on one and the same
plan, as originally designed by the consulting engi-
neer, Colonel Kennedy. The spans were uniformly
of 60 feet each, the piers and abutments were
formed of cast iron screw piles firmly braced toge-
ther, and the superstructure of triangular girders,
The bridge now in course of copstruction for car-
rying the railway over the Taptee river was about
one-third of a mile in length, while that construct-
ing'over the Nerbudda river was about two-thirds
of a mile in length, of which rather more than one-
fourth was completed. The visitors crossed the
river Nerbudda in boats to a pavilion erected for
the purpose, where a grand entertainment waspre-
pared, at which Mr. Lane, the general manager,
presided. Various toasts were given and responded
to, after which the visitors recrossed the river, and
the train started at 4 45 p.m. for Umrolee, where it
arrived in the course of two hours. It appeared that
the proceedings throughout were of a very satis-
factory character.

lower than piece goods, because it is in an earlier '
stage of manufacture, is raised to 10 per cent.
The same reason would apply to grey cloth, as
compared with the bleached, dyed, and printed ar
tide. But existing contracts now afloat will be
admitted at the old duty. Thus we have a tariff

imposing one single uniform ad valorem duty of 10
per cent. on all dutiable articles except beer, wine,
and spirits, which remain unaffected. The total
gain to the state by this modification of the tariff
is £351,700. The standing orders were suspended
to allow of the bill being at once passed through
council, and it came into operation on the 20th
February.

IL—Trades License Bill.—The license duty pro-
posed is extremely moderate, but it is meant to be
passed for ever. It consists of three rates :-Ist,
two shillings a year on artisans, including weavers,
leather workers, and small traders, but excluding
the agricultural menial classes in village commu-
nities who are attached to them, and are generally
paid in grains. 2d, eight shillings a year on retail
shopkeepers and small manufacturers, who work
for local retail sale ; and 3d, one pound on whole-
sale traders, bankers, manufacturers, and profes-
sional men. These rates will be uniform, and
apply to all of each class without any discrimina-
tion as to incomes or extent of business. The

licenses are to be taken out each year. Thus a
complete register of trades will be formed, and act
as a, check against evasion under the income tax.

Tax.—The tax will apply to all
incomes above the limit of £2O a year. From that
sum to £5O the rate will be two per cent. On all
incomes above £5O the rate will be four per eent.,
of which three will be paid to the public treasury,
and one be appropriated to strictly local purposes.
In the appropriation of the latter, municipalities,
where they exist, will have a voice as in the United
States. There will be four schedules—No. 1 will

include income derived from real property ; No. 2,
income from trades and professions ; No. 3, income
from the public funds ; and No. 4, income from
public salaries. There will be no exemption what-
ever. The case of the Zemindars who are subject
to periodical revisions of settlement, will be met by
levying the tax on one-half the rental which they
pay to Government. At present it is 66 per
cent., one-half of which represents the net income
of the Zemindar. But the same standard will

obviously not apply to estates under the per
petual settlement. The several provisions of the
bill for assessing profits are_ the same.as in England,
by voluntary returns made to the commissioners to
their satisfaction. But to meet the peculiarities of
special districts or cities, Government will be at
liberty to adopt any other mode of assessment,
through's, punchayet for instance, or by levying a
lump sum on a certain city or community.
IV.—Tobacco Tax.-- Home-grown tobacco will be
taxed at a rate corresponding as nearly as possible
with the import duty, that is, sixpence a pound on
the raw, and a shilling on the manufactured article.
There will he difficulty in levying such a tax, but
when an English Minister makes such an excuse he
his told that he holds office for the purpose of over-
coming difficulties.
Such are the new taxes. They are equitable and
just to all alike; they infringe no principle of wise
legislation; they offer no impediment, on the con-
trary, they remove hindrances to future develop-
ment. They may involve opposition—even risk and
danger—but it is our duty to incur these that we
may remove a greater evil, the deranged state of the
finances. As to reduction. There is much room for
improvement and re-arrangement, but none for re-
duction of the civil expenditure. As in England, that
must risb with increasing prosperity. But a great
reduction can be made in the military departments,
not in the pay and emoluments of either officers or
men, but in the numerical strength, by a better dis-
tribution of forces, and by contracting commissariat
and military expenditure. The native army must
be reduced to the smallest possible minimum, the
country held by European forces, and by a police
somewhat of the character of the Irish constabulary
to perform all civil and quasi-military duties.
The deficit is 91- millions, and will be 61 next
year. What the new taxes will yield India happily
affords no data from which to f-orm an idea. But,
however sanguine we may be as to their result, large
military reductions will be necessary until we come
to the expenditure of 1856-57. In the conclusion of
his speech Mr. Wilson declared against an imperial
guarantee for the Indian debt. He urged
the necessity for administrative changes, so
that the finance department should control the
revenue, and that the local governments should be
tied down by annual estimates for each branch of
expenditure. What is wanted is central control and
local responsibility.
For the present there will be no necessity for a
loan. The cash balance in the Indian treasuries is
£15.000,000, and in England £4,600,000, -the
highest point which it has reached for many years.
Until the new taxes become fruitful and the reduc-
tions are carried out, this will be found sufficient.
Mr. Wilson sat down, promising to hear and weigh
all objections in detail, but declaring the crisis too
serious for argument and discussion. The time for
energetic action has come. He gave notice of a bill
to extend to the whole of India a system of well
secured convertible paper note currency, to be in-
troduced either on the 25th inst., or on the 3d of
March.
Sufficient time has not yet elapsed to allow of an
expression of opinion frem all classes and all quar-
ters as to Mr. Wilson's financial measures. There
can be no doubt that they will be passed in all
their entireness. We believe them to be equal to
the difficulty which they have been brought for-
ward to remove. Though a four per cent. income-
tax will fall heavily on the public, we believe the
public will willingly bear it. There may be oppo-
sition on the part of the native land and fund
holders, and the organ of the former has already
begun to grumble ; the license tax may be difficult
of collection from the artisans, and the 2 per cent.
income tax may be met by passive resistance in the
shape of fraud on the part of the natives, We have
throughout disapproved of the tobacco tax, which
we look upon as oppressive. But we have as much
confidence in Mr. Wilson's " executive ability and
power to give effect" to his measures, as admiration
of the wisdom which has planned them. We believe
that the new taxes will yield far more than he an-
ticipates ; that even without reduction they will
extinguish the deficit, and render it possible
within the next five years for us to look upon an
income tax as no more a permanent impost than it
is in England. If Mr. Wilson is able, without
universal opposition from the natives, to carry his
measures into effect, he will, indeed, justify the
opinion which sent him out to India as even some-
thing more than her Chancellor of the Exchequer.

BO4IRD OF TRADE RETURNS.

The Board of Trade returns for the month of Feb-
ruary were issued on Saturday. We subjoin a state-
ment of the total declared value of the exports of
British and Irish produce and manufactures during
the month and two months of the last three
years : _ _

For the month.
1858
1859
1860

For two months.
.... £14,510,016
19,207,566
20,088,437

The aggregate shipments in February were
larger by X 1,107,797, or 11 per cent., than in Feb-
ruary, 1859, and larger by £3,433,524, or 47 per
cent., than in February, 1858. Those for the two
months of the present year were larger by £880,871,
or 41 per cent., than in 1859, and larger by
£5,578,421, or 38 per cent., than in 1858.
. .. . _

Examining the Chief items of these exports,* we
arrive at the subjoined general figures for the
month, viz.

Month of February.
1858. 1859. 1860.
Apparel and slops £115,281 £159,648 £152,365
Beer fond ale
Books 27,914 36,131 39,494

Butter
Coals and culm 203,972

50;998
181,674

46,166
178,118

Cottons
Cotton yarn
Counterpanes and small

wares
Earthenware and porce-

17,796

lain....
Furniture

80,855
17,074
20,929

33,095

94,996
17,174
21,508

Glass, common bottles..
Haberdashery and mil-

linery
Hard wares and cutltry 188,699
Leather, unwrought 14,391
Ditto, wrought 90,085
Sachllery and harness 17,986
Linens (cloths of all
kinds and cambries) 268,175
Linen yarn
Machinery, steam en-
gines
Ditto, other sorts 130,160
Iron, pig
Ditto, bar, bolt, and rod 124,372
Ditto, railway of all
kinds
Ditto, cast • 58,773
Ditto, wrought 140,146
Copper, unwrought
Ditto, sheets and nails 122,710
Lead
Tin, unwrought
Tin-plates 80,502
Silk manufactures (silk
only)
Other articles (of silk
only)
Silk, thrown 18,022
Ditto, twist and yarn
Spitits (British)
Wool
Woollens (cloths, &c.).. 178,048
Ditto (mixed stuffs,
. flannels, &c.) ... 220,973
Worsted tuffs, 195,535
Woollen and worsted
yarns

327,114
254,898
30, 950
93,88
20,85

25,259

110,323
16,770
29,661

369,532
288,255

36,591
121,410

321,672
159,038

21;567

43,336
129,412
46,244
160,495

381,697
162,692

158,402
60,433
189,627
68,870
98,524
31,430
20,096
107,726

56,721
120,087
36,108
169,699

194,564
36,022
227,697
78,492
135,743
23,152
17,103
121,181

27,520

66,338

57,82'

32,063
53,155
17,275
11,420
32,530
233,471

34,211
24,063
15,218
22,065
90,247
304,432

328,063
351,822

358,606
413,394

163,749

274,898

The principal increase is in cottons (including
yarn), woollens, and worsteds, linens, haberdashery,
hardwares, and cutlery, beer and ale, earthenware,
and leather manufactures. The export of iron
shows a moderate increase. There is scarcely an
item of importance on the unfavourable side.
The annexed shows the quantities of the chief
articles, of food taken for consumption during the
month :

Month of February.
1858. 1859. 1860.
Cocoa
Coffee
Wheat qrs. 263,5543 226,239 53,087
Flour cwts. 309,172 216,966 125,263
Butter cwts. 26,094 26,195 39,848
Rico cwts. 127,149 121,982 116,745
Cheese cwts. 23,503 24,114 21,580
Eggs No. 8,486,200 9,407,000 9,919,400
Pepper lbs. 322,561 319,790 276,382
Rum gals. 301,740 288,748 383,349
Brandy gals. 86,050 90,561 8,406
Sugar, unrefined,cwts. 680,976 619,741 606,882
Tea lbs. 5,433,387 5,939,113 6,582,106
Wines ..gals. 503,365 604,762 161,924
There is an increase in coffee, eggs, and rum, but
a considerable decrease in wines and brandy, the
operations in which were paralysed by the expec-
tation of Mr. Gladstone's financial scheme. The
consumption figures relating to sugar and pepper
are likewise below the average. The quantity of
foreign bread-stuffs required was small.