The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-11 00:00:00

War
c e 0
pe r perhaps emergencies equal to war in a time of
t aaxationd that might
was h
fall on e duty of
e txhat
enditure, House to
and fall on it
form a sle
n gp
manner hat all might contribute their just
a,portion. Ile would include in the tax on expenditure
oles,,ed taxes, land-taxes, taxes on houses, and so
,t1t:l'? would put as large a proportion of it as he could
within luxuries of the rich, but that must also be kept
due limits. His limit would be the point of
production.—(Hear, hear.) He would not ad-
t.atliQe beyond the point at which individuals would
whichs bubmit to certain privations than retain luxuries
cel 'h9Y Miht otherwise enjpoint which thought The the tax
t;xliries shoguld reach thatw
''xPerienee to be the point of greatest production.
Ytion could not avoid a tax on articles of general con-
rap
tlicy because when they wished to raise a revenue
oo Must tax those articles which were the most largely
(1, and therefore they taxed the articles most
lvaerallY consumed by the lower classes. But if they
thetV,thernselves of that opportunity—if they availed
revised elves of the large surplus in the revenue—if they
lh.v, this tax, and based it on sound principles—
rilight raise a tax for the service of the State with-
full
with'hY extraordinary pr: sure on the lower classes, and
assurance .hat at the end of three years they
tat',.rget rid of that mo-t oppressive and most unjust
h 4,-hey might have done this, if, in the first place,
Plid, au dealt with protective duties. On the night of
tion:Y, the Hon. Member for Stockport asked a ques-
`t'l which he got no reply. He asked the Right
iniott,,,le Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the
htitro:' of taxes, not for the benefit of the Exchequer,
genial ,the real and not merely nominal benefit of co-
the
„_Plaaters, charged to the people of this country by
dErriLl'utective duties. lie (Lord Howielc) did not won-
leo,e'rt the members of the Government shrank from
Iheye,)lllg that question, because it was impossible that
tot be 111,1 Make any calculation of the burden which would
tlidkotiP°lting to the public feeling. But though they
athm,,e4rn what the Ministry calculated the amount
Sion '4X to be, they learned this by the universal con-
liotis; it)! every Gentleman on the other side of the
Isi',Tkt all protective taxes, or, in the language of
tetio:uie Lord the Member for Liverpool, " all pro-
thl47°lred a tax on the community." They learned
`,s
_,ltight Hon. Gentlenem the late President of
kio4l;t4rn of Trade, and he could not give the actual
t 75,
1)00-4°f the tax upon sugar, but. he said this—that
1,,e to this
as the maximum thus obtained—that it might
but that he did not think it would. The
14r 'in. Gentleman the Chancellor of the Excise-
t°etheßight Hon. Baronet the First Lord of
°natfaSurY,
had been afraid to state the actual
~tleulati°rthe information of the country ; but if the
t.atet:ins of the Hon. Member for Stockport were ex-
-1:4 to til'elhy did they not submit their own calcula
f -louse ? They did not think proper to do
CA, °r,. a Very good reason they did not think proper
,t,i'at course, and they, therefore, tacitly ad-
'ttwe._'•uat a tax was levied upon the people, beyond
the
sat into the Exchequer, upon the article of sugar.
oe, :hie Principle they levied a tax on coffee, on
-hbe the fact—they
L'gyk e
n tobacco on butter, and above all, on corn.
eW thi • to- knew it, to be so,
t, °settc'ed Howick) did not hesitate to avow his firm
that if they had been prepared on a careful
°' the amount of the burden so imposed,
N'Peciael'4, not for the public service, but for
k,,,Streti °enefit of a particular class—if they had been
k'd'veit°t,look on the amount of this burden, and to
k ~thoy„ hey might have given relief to the consumer,
ta all, to the industrious classes of this country,
,Itqa,ttne time leaving the tinanet s of the empire in
eilo4,,teLits to give every reason for a well grounded
144 • tuats before the expiration of the three years,
sesiut,heY in the revenue.would be fully covered. He
Iri`qth 'd that this result would follow ; and lie
before the next general election, the electors
tsx d Would well consider this—whether this
n{—a tax for the purpose of maintaining the
ket, Protection, because, disguise it how they
e.tt,,,tY came to that at last—whether the
0 ph' should be taken on their shoulders
iirP°se of bolstering up, for a few years
11."ers '" system of protection which even the
Seuilttir''f the Government were fain to admit
the principles of reason and of common
itki:itt zit his„ principle of common sense they must
euthdiks", Instead of as at present attempting to cor-
k,,tlo (tlProve the income-tax, which, after all they
ktlitlit;,wolild still remain oppressive and obnoxious.
.:,,t,that the time was not far distant when they
1;str3:113" common-sense necessity of relieving the
10%, taking of a tax which produced nothing to
leil'ecl.ller and was most obnoxious to the feelings of
,„
Gus said that the speech of the Hon.
Member for Liskeard was not so
Het asked
have been expected from him. He asked
I.j'harsci t° record their opinion of the income-tax.
Ito 4-tterized it as odious and unjust, but he did not.
})otAl4s •4t , trier that more tolerable which was to be per-
t (Sir R.H. lnglis) believed that there was
th'lf,'' oot,h House but who thought thatthe property
e'teo,') be a tax renewable for three years but a
is~eelf' they thought that were a tax merely
'eLats, they would bear it as an inevitable
of'Runt the case was wholly different, for in the
x'4o of
last four weeks, not one individual had
`I.A. be 1,`515 his own personal opinion that the tax
io ,`,lhoved at the end of that period. Let it be
lOth Lae to do so—let them
1)0,. Power of Parliament
,ljk,4ott,,L"er of removing it at that period, but let
1,-"e the dicta of the Treasury benches on that
`fiteY ought not to be contented with the
tstioN'h_ti any Minister. They should, under these
"'ke-'44!lCl' Make the Bill as little oppressive and ob-
tk„Plssible lie did not agree with the Hon.
e he Meru. ber for Sunderland that it was itn-
:l4Nie, ‘',,inake a tax on property either efficient or
'*.q,ll. I.e did acknowledge, that a. tax on property
Lort,ilicult than a tax on income. But when the
u asked his Right Hon. Friend the First
,:rreaSury, " How will you measure the in-
rti4 annuitant ?" He (Sir R. 11. Inglis)
I„Yr--If the heir apparent derived a life
il•ecirj.rn a freehold, or from the funds,
to him, for the mere purposes of taxa-
klt4l4,l6,
t -,:uell of them' he derived it, as he paid the
1,4P0rl both. The Right Hon. Baronet then
ok6l"ltt the tax should be levied upon incomes
Vl)irit„ve 1501., and that some improved system of
t,
he incomes of the individuals o taxed
aFnt tee oPted in order to do away with the Go-
krPtation to fraud. He did not believe that
,4,tlatti. reductions on the 420 articles named by
Baronet would so materially benefit the
th,„ °trle lion Gentlemen seemed to anticipate.
tight stitykeduction, would be of some. service to the
tho " thought there were higher considera-
Olo,„Nos, which actuated the Right Hon. Baronet
',1'4411(1.07:t°1 this surplus.. The Right Hon. Ba-
tlltv "'bleb "fly that he might have made other re-
`•t" might have proved of more value to the
N' I.ltirpl. Bight Honourable Baronet had a
icli/li'",3 than was ever possessed by any
l.kLltile :ft—indeed he believed at no period
lig"ent generation had a Minister been able
o.ftt to that House, and state that he was in
litll,stio-tt,a Clear surplus of 3,500,000/. Now he
N.)av, think that a certain portion of that sum
tNr„, be,
t which"--n thrown back upon the country in a
of t 6, would have :tended more to the general
ng ss• .9°lnnaunity. He could have wished that
o,Nicelof,l%ht have been done to relieve the spiritual
/toll, the Country which, he contended, was as
,',ttli'sle,ted with the social ill feeling which at
bL"'°, as any two of the propositions which
i'llir,vlo,Pght forward by Gentlemen sitting on the
kk4-11tif the Rout t there was another consi-
us, 5 se. u
0),"lt tureuniary nature which induced him to
I:qty'rs egestion. An impediment some thirty or
tnd tif!' Was thrown in the way of spiritual
'l'td is impediment had been continued down to
441iRiaYtnotwithstanding it went in direct opposition
ab Principles of the country. The House
fr." not aware of the amount of money
.„(tiVy ,i)tn charitable sources by the operation of
ctt:4 ilintY. The sum raised by this tax was
wtebtrieb national point of view, but still suffi-
-14 , th(„! Bche channel of spiritual charity. In
tish and Foreign Bible Society, the
\ht Yearduty upon legacies bequeathed in the
was 2,900/. But perhaps, in the case
th, Missionary Society, the interference had
tliat vrection of spiritual charity. The amount
54')°1sty in the last three years had been
it ao4verage of 5001. Now, he did not think
these olitical economist who would object to
th'rt.,)itlek,tie_harities from, in a national point of
lingly low duty imposed on them. No
l) ';',Al,4tifthat the amount was sufficient in the tit.;-
11,i 'ls tile Chancellor of the Exchequer in con-
while, on the other hand,. did. not the
it, /tie kt, toe amount justify its being withdrawn?
‘44 stit°llllt did not, he believed, exceed 50,000/,
qettif It he of argument he would say 75,000/. per
lisi,„"tt exceedingly small sum, in a national
Ija e kr, ,"t when applied to purposes of spiritual
that became became of some importance. He wa
ek had any further suggestion to make to
h ue Could not conclude without stating
It; 4114)4 been and very different arguments than those
ktki have
adduced by the Right Hon. Gentleman
N,P'lVlAPP,()(;rte'tfhthe Exchequer, he should feel it his
•Iffttc,"e amendment.
l''ttor itv,/vitlic,l:4loN said if the income-tax could be
L'tklitii,i,°lll(l, tliniinishing the receipts of the E. xclie-
true.ta° donbt, be an improvement in principle
l'L'4,4. IL's' But he thought the arguments of the
ylp,n-rutlet were fallacious. Time principle he
It:4 tot,rierst,which they ought to levy the income-
-lit.c't three dto be this :—lf a person possessed an
4ild of h Years, he was to be taxed to the same
t, th, 17.44 an income for life. But if the sug-
I 'lrt'Zt., tho"gt lieu. Baronet were adopted, they
:',lli(i4 his ilierPeinant at the time when he had
teantest to a third party—a man who
NPOlt of e nUity. for three years was to be
,tho th4t an rate as a person Viso possessed the re-
'll%tbk),!)es,o-rl'lliltity for twenty, or, in fact, at a time
rjtll:,eoitßr s„ entitled to the reversionary interest,
h•lktleilttet 'ile poion of the burden. Now they
two the reversionary interest constituted
.114„eritieths of the whole value of the per-
mtylett,ak upoit therefore, could not proceed with a
1Z0,,t) 4,1'4 41: the principle of capitalisation. They
ree„'",nee, impose the tax upon the party en-
reid -3sl°rls because he would very reasonably
?1,4, 4,044.2 luk had no property whatever in pos-
ik,44sths,,t4e-te,rear.) Now, with regard to the laying
-.'cus not, if he thought they could get
;414N t ttunable taxes, such as the protective
interest,lndia t' or the protective duties
ZtL Ito b erest, which Hon. Gentlemen who sat
"4,1" itto les particularly represented, by re.,
44;0(at • °Me.t
(141'4 tr,0,11 ax; he would gladly do so. But still
aver" net rectobetter to continue a property-tax be•
iosk,r,re those expensive establishments
10, (jrruhle from the taxes imposed t)ther articles. It was a much abetter