The New York herald., 1862-03-05

nouncing an opinion upon the details, we shall
wait till we see the whole bill, which is
very voluminous, extending to one thousand
pages 1t is evidently very comprehensive
measure, as it ought to be; but it is possible
| that an improvement might be made in various
| items-that the tax on some might be increased,
and the tax on others reduced with advantage.
For instance, fifteen per cent on spirituous
| LIQUORS manufactured in this country may on
| consideration be found entirely too small, and
the same may be said of leaf tobacco, ten per
cent on segars and three per cent on articles
which ought to be taxed highly, as
being luxuries, and not necessaries Of
life The true principle of taxation
is that every man should pay for the defence of
the nation in proportion to his stake in the COM
munity. Under European governments the
poor are too often taxed equally with the rich,
and some times more. For instance, if the same
specific tax say twenty cents per pound, is i'm
posed on tea worth half dollar per pound and
tea worth dollar, the rich man, who will, of
course, purchase the high priced tea, only pays
half as much as the poor man in proportion
| to the expenditure Of each upon that article.
The poor man will consume as great quantity
of tea as the rich; but he cannot afford to pay
the price for the superior article. The ad valo-
rem per cent principle is therefore the fair one
and it ought to be applied to the whole
schedule of taxation. The tax on newspapers,
for example, ought to be so much per copy, to
be collected in the form of stamps. This would
show which paper had the highest circula-
ton, and in which it would be for the public
interest to advertise. The committee seem to
have adopted instead Of this general tax upon
all printing paper, including that for books, and
pamphlets, and bank notes, as well as that on
which newspapers are printed. AS far as the
receipt of revenue is concerned, that mode will
be as productive as the other, and equally fair
to all classes of journals in regard to the equal
distribution of the burden; but it is not equally
fair to the public nasmuch as it leaves the cir
culaton undetermined. There is, however, an
other way to arrive at that point, and that is
the tax on advertisements and on income.
As we have said, the general principle
Of the bill is good, and most of its de-
| tails are all right. But the mode of collec-
ton, if we rightly understand it, is highly
Objectionable, and that feature of the bill
ought to be altered in the House. The bill
provides that the President shall appoint a
Commissioner of Internal Revenue, with sala-
| ry of $4,000 per annum, his Office to be in the
Treasury Department, with suitable number
of clerks. This is unobjectonable But not so
| the further provision that the country is to be
| divided into convenient collection districts
with an assessor and collector appointed by the
| President for each district, who shall have
power to appoint such deputies as may be
| needed. Now this will alarm the people, who
will be sure to regard it as a political engine
like the custom house, to say nothing of the
enormous cost TO the country. Such a swarm
| of taxgatherers would swallow up half the
amount of their collection; and, considering
| the politicians who would probably be appoint
| ed, there would be every danger of embezzlc-
ment of the public money. The true course is
to let the different States collect it by the same
machinery by which their own taxes are col
lectcd. This arrangement would scarcely add
anything to their expense for collecting their
| own taxes, certainly not more than five per
| cent, which might be allowed them by Con-
gress, while it would save the money raised by
the people from being devoured by political
barpies and cormorants.
IL is estimated that tax Of two hundred mil
lions will be required, besides fifty millions
expected from the tarif--two hundred and fifty
millions in all. Whether the bill will produce
the amount required cannot now be accurately
determined, as such taxation is new expert
ment in this country. But at the end Of year
the schedule can be regulated by the expert
ence Of tho past. There can be no doubt that
the country is able and willing to bear what
ever burthens are necessary for the sustain
ment of the war. It is better able than ever
England was in her most palmy days. Her war
taxes have far exceeded the present pro-
gramme. Indeed her present peace tax is far
ahead of that now proposed as the financial
basis for one of the most gigantic wars on re-
cord. A year ago the taxes for the British
government on peace footing amounted
TO three hundred and eighty millions of dol
lars (s3s0,O0O ,O00). Our resources are far
greater than those of the little Islands called
Great Britain and Ireland. The capabilities
Of the republic were tested In improvising
in a few months an army of 100000 men,
equallingnot only In valor and endurance, but in
military skill, any veteran troops in Earope. by
the creation in the same brieftime ofa navy which