The Sun.
London, England, 1842-03-17 00:00:00

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS.

FROM THE EVENING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
T.OBE.It is very remarkable that not one of
the Ministerial organs of the press now ventures to
-,ay a word in favour of Sir Robert Peel's Income
Tax. That some temporary recourse to property has be-
come nveessaw, is the utmost they assert ; but that this
measure is a fair and just appeal of the kind, they dare
not now asseverate. Andthe Times, fearful (it would
appear) lest some d—d good-natured friend should
take it into his head to contrast the tameness of its pre-
sent lucubrations with its famous Income Tax philip-
pics of 1816, reprints the latter, and proudly points to
them—" That's my thunder—as good as new !"17hese
are bad omens fbr the future idolatry of Sir Ro-
bert's Juggernaut car of Finance. When the most
devout find they are to be crushed by its wheels their
fervour lessens. It is the fate of the present Prime
Minister on this, as on former occasions, to dis-
gust adherents equally by what is good and by what
is bad in his measures. The Examiner said of
him long ago, " In the political world Mr. Peel
is to be resembled to that unhappy creation in the
animal kingdom, the flying fish, whose double capa-
city subjects it to double enemies, and whose
changes of element are but changes of persecu-
tion. He has his good points and tendencies, urge
his apologists, and we do not deny them ; but
we will 'feat:oy confess our suspicion that those
partial, good points are even causes of the peculiar
acharnernent we feel towards him, for they are
sufficient to constitute provoking inconsisten-
cies, and make the man one disappointment." If the
late Ministry had offered to reimpose the most ob-
noxious of war-taxes, can it be doubted for a moment
how the partisans of the present would have scouted
it ? Yet the late Ministry could have pointed to great
and essential measures for food and commerce.
They, could have pointed to measures effectually aimed
to remove that pressure on the national resources, which
was mainly caused by dearth and dearness of ne-
cessaries. Sir Robert Peel's multifarious med-
filings with the tariff are very small change for
these. They resemble the rubbish of washed metal
of all sorts of denominations which an English-
man receives with bewilderment in his first con-
tinental travels. The feeling of being cheated is only
silenced by the impossibility of reckoning what may
really be the value of so many minute coins. But
about the Income Tax there is no mistake. It is
justly observed by a Morning Contemporary, that the
temporary nature assigned to it only aggravates
its injustice. "He lays it on for three years
only, as he says. A man with a three years'
lease of
.an estate of one thousand pounds a year will,
therefore, on the whole, contribute just as much
as a man with an estate in fee of the same amount.
The estate of the first will expire at the end of three
years ; the estate of the latter will last for ever after
him ; but the demand on it will expire at the same
moment as on the former, because the tax will,
according to Sir Robert Peel, cease at the end of the
three years."
STANDARD.—It is as impossible, said "Mr.
Burke, to tax and please; as to love and be wise. All
taxes are odious, but taxes must be imposed if society
is to he held together. It seems, therefore, a duty on
the part of every good citizen to support the minister
who imposes taxes which are not glaringly unneces-
sary or unjust ; and this without respect to party
interests. But no moral aitomaly can be imagined
more gross than the offering resistance to a minister
of one's own party proposing taxes admitted on all
sides to be necessary, and in their form as just as any
taxes can be made. We must again put the question
fairly as it stands. The question is not, whether
any new taxes shall be imposed, but what new
taxes ?—not whether we can go on adding three
or four millions annually to the public debt, but how
are we to raise three or four millions a year most
fits*, and after, but long after, ascertaining the
Justice of the distribution of the impost, with most
attention to the public convenience? This is, we
suppose, the fair state of the question, and yet many
persons seem to misunderstand it. Otherwise we
should not hear, as we do, of complaints from this man
and the other ; of the hard bearing of an Income Tax
upon him, because of the largeness of his family. One
gentleman writes to say, that his family numbers 14
persons, and that it is cruel to impose a tax of nine
pounds upon the 3001. a year upon which these 14
persons must be supported. It is hard ; but we chal-
lenge the substitution of any other efficient and im-
partial tax, which must be a tax upon necessaries,
that would not bear more hardly upon him. It
is not as a good, -far from it, that an Income Tax
is to be received; but as the least possible evil.
IVe believe, however, that the majority of reclaim:
tions against an Income Tax do not proceed from
persons in the condition of the correspondent whom
we have quoted, but from those to wherm the tax
will apply most justly and most lightly—the very
rich ; at least we see the organs of the money power
—consistent in upholding their idol, if in nothing
else, agreeing in this, though opposed upon all other
subjectz—the most 'forward in endeavouring to preju-
dice the Ministerial plan. When we see this ive
cannot help thinking that the money power is the
party waging the battle though the ground chosen
is the interest of the industrious. Lord Brougham
has reverted to his arguments against the Income Tax
2G years ago ; others have done the same—we have
carefully examined all these reproduced arguments,
cml we have been surprised to-see bow few of them
apply to the present time. Putting aside hard words,
such as odious tax, detested tax, inquisition, &c. &c. &c.
—putting aside, we say, hard words, which never
pcive anything, these arguments are reduced to com-
plaints of a breach of engagement, that the tax should
cease with the termination of the war ; and to the
expression of a fear that the Government having too
much money at its disposal, would make an ill use of
it. 'The force of the pledges has, however, we pre-
sume, expired with the ministries and, statesmen by
whom these pledges were given, who have been long
at rest, and surely had no power to bind posterity
thvough all time

DEATH OF TIIE DUKE OF NOR-

FOLK.

We regret to have to record the death of the Duke
of :god()lk, who expired at his town residence in St.
;Emus's-square, about eleven o'clock this morning.
His Grace had been for. some time indisposed, and al-
though it wes thought probable that the arrival of
spnrig might effect a favourable change in the state
of hiS health; yet it cannot be said that the death of
the IXoble Duke was unexpected by his family and
medical advisers, most of whom were around his
death •bed.

Bernard Edward Howard, twelfth Duke of Nor-
folk, Earl of Arundel, Earl of Surrey, and Earl of
_Norfolk, Baron Fitzalan, Clun, Oswaldestre, and
Maltravers, was one of our oldest Peers, having
beeli born in the year 1765. He was the son of
Henry Howard, Esq., of Glossop, in the county of
Derby, by the second daughter of Sir William
llul vneux, an Irish Baronet, and a member of
the house of Sefton. The late Duke, then Arr.-
toward, married in 1789 the third daughter of the
second Earl of Faueonberg, but his marriage being dis-
solvel in 1794, the Duchess remarried the late Earl of
Lneau, by whom she had a second family-. On the
(bath of the eleventh Duke in 1815, his Grace suc-
ceeded to the title and estates of the senior branch of
the house of Nortblk, and of .course also to, the here-
ditary Earl .Varshalsy of England.

The creation of the Dukedom of Norfork dates as
',ack as 1483, and the earldom of Arundel was
,!ated in 1139, so that the Duke of Norfolk and Earl
ok' Arundel is both Premier Duke and Earl of Eng-
land. It is unnecessary to refer here to the distill:-
guished men which this house has given to ourcountry.
Tin pages of history are Teplete with references to
the family of dloward, which are sufficiently familiar
to render detail. in this place quite Unnecessary.
lice late. Duke was a Knight of the Garter and a
I),rivy Councillor. lie was also, as is well known, a
nu!ntbets of the Roman Catholic Church, and was, we
I;olieve, the first Roman Catholic Peer who took his

- - - •
in the douse of Lords after the passing of the
t.lief 13111. He was also the patron of 24 livings in
Church of England.
The Duke is succeeded in his titles and great pos-
Fkk'SSiiMs by- his son, Henry Charles, Earl of Surrey,
fimiterly Mernber for Horsham, West Sussex, but
whWVas 'a short time since summoned to the House of
Peers by the family title of Baron Maltravers. The
Fre%:nt Duke was born in 1791, and married, in
1814, the eldest daughter of the first, and the
sister of the present Duke of Sutherland, by whom
fle has issue, Lord Fitzalan, now by courtesy Earl of
;'itirrPy; the present .representative for the family
bsorough-of Arundel. His Grace, who is a moderate
Liberal in polities, filled the office of Treasurer of the
ilk, Royal Household and Captain" of the Yeomen of
the ; card, under the late Administration. His Grace
is a Privy Councillor.
The death of the Duke of Norfolk places another
Garter at the disposal of tile present Government.

STATE-OF :rte`
(From the Mitlichester thAlarDietEdn•
MANCEIESTER.—There was very little change in our
market yesterday. measures
The financial
proposed by
Sir 11,)bert Peel have been, on the whole,
gloomn favourablya
whichd de-
spondency.e-
ceived, and have tended to diminish the
previously existed :but,
beyond tlfis,
no improvement can be reported. Tlit.re is no increuse
or business, either in goods or yarn ; and prices of both
remain at the very l .owest point that has yet been reached.
RoenDALE FLANNEL MARKET, MONDAY, MARCH
1 4.—Thvi e has been a
gloomy piece market to-day, and
but very little business transacted at any prices. Dur-
ing the last week a small manufacturer for the Blackwa-
ter Market ha's assigned over his effects for the benefit of
his creditors. One of the largett firms,cf cotton spinners
Lave given notice to reduce the wages c,t their workmen,
on Saturday next.
HUDDERSFIELD MARKET, MARCH 15.--After an un-
paralleled length of gloom, and a waste of We energies
of industry,
.* is with great satisfaction we report that
the aspect of this market is more
cheering.
Buyers were