Star.
London, England, 1830-04-14 00:00:00

THE LIGHT OF HEAVEN AND THE LIGHT

OF KNOWLEDGE.

We have often heard it said what a hard thing that the very light
of Heaven should be taxed ; with bow much more reason might
one complain of the tax on the light of knowledge ? To tax news.
papers is precisely the same in effect as though Government were
forcibly to curtail their circulation, or say to all who cannot afford
to pay sevenpence per week, instead of twopence—You shall not
react ! Why it is that proprietors of newspapers have rarely or ever
petitioned against the enormous tax on their property, is a question
we cannot answer. Perhaps they think that, as the tax Is again
paid to them by their customers, they suffer uo loss; but in addi-
tion to the outlay of a heavy capital to provide a large number of
subscribers, who pay quarterly or yearly, what they are obliged to
pay immediately to the Government and the risk of bad debts, their
Wm of custom is incalculable, both with regard to newspapers and
advertisements. Of society there is a most numerous portion of
of intelligent men, whose income at the highest does not exceed a
guinea a week, who, after they have paid for the taxed necessaries
of life, can but ill afford sevenpeoce foe a newspaper, but who, if
they could purchase it for half its present price, would have one
every week, instead of as now occasionally, or not at all. And
with.regard to advertisements, we do not exaggerate the probability
in saying that they would be more than doubled. Instead of our
being the first nation in the world, we shall, by and by, be the last.
This country Is now fast declining, not for the want of talent or
industry, but entirely through taxation. From this it is every trade
suffers. In the same manner as it throws our clothing machinery
out of occupation, so does It impede the circulation of newspapers,
and the employment of hands in
.the printing business. In Ame.
rice are papers published daily , to which no paper in this conc.
try bests any compuison In point of advertisements ; and as to the
circulation at newspapers, they are ten to our one in comparison to
the population. That in England, ten times as many would pur.
chase newspapers, were it not for the duty, and ten times as many
advertise, every conductor eta newspaper has abundant evidence. A
person advertises a house to be let. Out of thousands of readers
there may be only a few wanting such a house. and these may not
chance to see the advertisement. The money then is thrown away
but two or three repetitions of the advertisement would most likely an.
ewer the desired effect ; that, however, is a chance, and how few for
such:a chance will risk the present cost of advertisements ? On our
own knowledge we can venture to assert that, were the advertise.
ment duty reduced from Ss. 6d. to es. or Is. 6d. nine out of every
ten advertisements that appear once would be repeated two or three
times ; and as foe the advertisements of persons wanting situations,
as bailiffs, clerks, teachers, servants, &c. who have now only the
worst and most ineffective means possible of making their qualit- -
Sons and wants known, they would be increased fiftyfold. To this
important and valuable class of the community the newspaper is of
no use whatever. They would be as well off if no means of adver-
tising existed ; for how can a passe out of employment, with only
a few pounds in his pocket to supply his necessities, until be obtains
employment, afford to be throwing away a considerable part of kis
money to advertise the number of times generally requisite to ob-
tain the notice of any person who may want his services ? The
fact is, the question is one of public interest ; it is a taxwhich, of
all others it would be well to get rid cf ; and we hope the time is
not far distant when the public will see it in this light, and petition
the legislature for its abolition. In towns more than a third of the
population never see a paper ; and in many • village of this en-
lightened country, where the schoolmaster teaches the children to
read, for what purpose we know not, such a thing as a newspaper is
not known. Such persons must surely be desbous of being enabled
TO read she occurrences of the week, which his Majesty's duty pre.
vents ; and those whose better circumstances enable them to read •
piper do not think of the amount they pay as taxes, because they
pay the printer, and not the tax.colkstot ; but when they duly eon.'
eider it—when they learn that, for a weekly paper they are taxed
newly one pound, and for a daily paper upwards of five pounds a
year, they will see its oppeessivesess„ and that, as far as regards
paper and print, they could afford themselves the indulgence of two
papers instead of one. Readers of newspapers now often share the
cost, and lend them from one to the other ; others pay for the loan
of them so much per hour. So that, on an average each paper
serves, perhaps, ten persons, each of which would prefer haring a
paper to himself, were the not taxed IVO per cent. se In villages
where one paper serves all the inhabitants, each would purchase
one. In short, the more we the subject, the more strongly
are we convinced that, if let; adtertisements and news.
papers were reduced one.half, its produce to the revenue would be
Increased.— leeno's Beth Journal.

SirW. H. PALMER, Bart. wia announce himself. can-
didate to represent the County Mayo, tbe nt-ut vacancy. He was
'tntertained to a public dinner at the CoL:rt-House of Lastlebar on
Tuesduy, by bh tenantry.

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