The Sun.
London, England, 1860-03-27 00:00:00

ciency.
The taxes he proposes are a revision of the cus-
toms, lowering duties which are unprofitably high,
and raising those which are too low to an average
ad valorem duty of ten per cent. To the great
wrath of Manchester her products must pay in
India the same duty as those of other manufac-
turers—yes, even the sacred cotton of , Man-
chester must pay its ten per cent Tobacco is
to be rather heavily taxed. A small license
on trades and professions, not below two
shillings, and not exceeding twenty, for any ;
and, we hope Mr. GLADSTONE will not forget it,
mutatis mutandis next year, a graduated Income
Tax, of two and four per cent., with no ex-
emptions such as those which disgraced the
last proposal of the Indian Government, will be
levied on all incomes from £2O per annum and
upwards.

Such is an outline of Mr. WiLsoN's proposals,
and we have little doubt that he will firmly carry
them out. He tells the Indians that, though
he will listen to suggestions, the crisis is
is too grave for discussion. Standing orders were
therefore suspended, and the bill passed at once.
He looks however to reductions of expenditure as
well as to increase of revenue. The native army is
to be reduced, and we are to be saved the
cost of watching it, and the hazard of another
military mutiny. 'A small native army, a con-
stabulary, and a Europeaß army are to be
sufficient, and before long a considerable surplus
revenue may be expected to be laid out on remune-
rative public works. Of course some details
may not work as expected, and may need
correction, but on the whole Mr, WILSON'S
budget seems to be an admirable one. IVith
commerce increasing, wages rising, railways
already a great success, irrigation recommencing
in good earnest, the native soldiery returning to
well-paid labour, and the electric telegraph con-
necting London, Bombay, and Calcutta, we may
surely give up all talk of throwing away India as
an unprofitable speculation. England will yet
fulfil her mission in her Eastern empire.

There cannot be an instant's doubt, of course
but that in this discreditable affair of Savoy—Eng-
land has been deceived by the French EmrEnon.
But there cannot, at the same time, be any doubt
also, that the English Ministers have been deceived
with their eyes open ! If we needed proof positive
of this—proof that could be adduced in evidence
against Ministers—we should have to do no more
than examine in detail the important document re-
ferred to by us yesterday, en passant, the temperate
bat resolute protest of the Swiss Confederation.
The evidence in fact there accumulated, with a
clearness quite damnatory of our Ministerial
policy, is so remarkable of its kind, that we accept
it almost as a duty to enter here upon the examina-
tion of this now historical document—allowing it to
speak for itself as much as possible, by quotation
upon quotation.
The document is simply entitled, as will have
been already remarked, " Note of the Swiss Go-
vernment." It is dated from Berne on the 19th of
this present March. It is signed by SCHIESS and
lIEROSEE, Chancellors of the Confederation. At
the very outset, what are the words of this ex-
plicit diplomatic statement ? They are these :
" When," says the note, " at the beginning of last
a
year, the peace of Europe appeared to be seriously
menaced, and hostilities were on the point of
ofb Switzerlandreking
feltout inUpperitself
eltaly,
calledth the
uponFederalexplain
with entire frankness to the high Powers the atti-
tude which, in case of war, the Confederation pro-
posed to take with reference to the provinces of
Savoy comprised in the Swiss neutrality—pro-
vinces
on which Switzerland has important rights,
founded on European treaties, and on the stipula-
tions of the 29th of March, 9th of June, and 20th
of November, 1815." And the Note adds imme-
diately afterwards, " in the answers with which
they honoured the note of the Federal Council of
March 14, 1859, the high Powers fully estimated
the point of view in which Switzerland then placed
herself." So that certain contingencies involving
amongst other high interests, those of the inaliei-
able rights of Switzerland, were taken into account
by all the great Powcrs (England conspicuously
amongst them) from the very commencement !
Further, the note goes on to remark, " After the