The Sun.
London, England, 1842-04-07 00:00:00

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LONDON:
THURSDAY DIORNINCL APRIL 7, 1842.

We stated yesterday that the increase in the miscel-
laneous items of revenue was derived from what might
be called accidental sources, and accordingly we learn
from Sir IL PEEL'S answer. to a question last night put
by Lord J. IlussETA, that no. lesS than 340,0001. has
been derived from the ransom.,of Canton. The revenue
of England is swelled by priZe-money. It is partly
the fruit of booty. We hare made the Chinese pay some
of the expenses of the war, In whatever light this cu-
rious, and, perhaps, unprecedented fact, may be regarded,
the 340,000/. is purely an accidental sum, and cannot
be counted on in any future returns. But for that sum the
ordinary revenue would have, shown% decrease in the
quarter of about 288,0001., and, taking that as an
index to the year, we may assume a falling off' in the re-
venue of 1,196,0011. per annum. We do not wonder at
Sir It. PEEL'S alarm, cr at the emphatic manner in
which.he, knowing these -things, spoke on March 11th,
of the mighty evil that had entered into our finances.

We pointed out yesterday that the great source of the
increase of revenue in the year was the increase la the
su&pr duties, as compared to the year before. That in-
crease is nearly equal to the whole increase for the year,
687,00.61: Deducting from this sum the Canton prize-
money (340,0001.), the increase in the revenue for the
whole year was only 327,00014 or very li;tle more than
the half of the increase of the sugar duties. Instead of
the revenue indicating, therefore, as some of our Con-
temporaries assert, an increase of trade, it indicates the
reverse. The sole increase is in the importation of sugar,
for every pound of which the public pays about 2d.
to the planters over and above its price, and over
and above the duty, which goes to the State. The
amount of sugar imported is no index to a healthy
trade, requiring for its purchase a corresponding expor-
tation of English produce. A large portion of the price
of the sugar is never sent to the Wrest Indies to reward
the cultivators of the commodity ; it is pocketed by the
owners and mortgagees of the 'soil, who live in England,
and is a mere addition to theirincome.

But while the revenue is falling off, and the expenses
of the Government are increasing, the public debt is in-
creasing also. It appears, by a paper just published by
order of the louse of Commons, that the capital .of the
public debt was increasedin the year 1841 by the sum
of 6,949,600/, bearing an annual interest of 210,0001.
Since the beginning of the year 1834 the capital of the
debt has been augmented by 3.5,000,000/., bearing an in-
terest of 1,200,0001. Sir R. PEEL'B income tax is to prevent,
we presume, this continual accumulation of debt ; and
whatever inconvenience it might cause to individuals, pro-
vided it were likely to effect that object, and no better
method of accomplishing it
.could be found, we should
be constrained to approve of it. But we fear that it will
dry up the sources of future revenue, while we know that
a more certain and efficacious means of improving the
national resources may be found in- doing justice to the