New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-04-22

Uonso Iistened without a suspicion that il was the
talisman destined to change all this poverty into
onulspce Mr. Lowes transitional sentence is char
acteristic: II have now TO beg the koin'
mttee to allow me to make digresslon WHICH
they will find is really to the purpose anu
leaving the subject of finance for moment JUST rs
Arosto leaves his two knights shiyerng their iances
with equal fortune and leaving the balance ana tns
Abyssinian debt to fight it out between themselves
wish to investigate for short time totally dii-
ferent subject" Briefly stated the scheme Is this:
That certain taxes heretofore imperfecty assessed
and collected by local officers should in future be
assessed and collected by the regular Government
machinery; that the land tax. the house duty. and
the income tax, all heretofore paid by INSTALL
ments should he paid in payment at the be-
ginning of the year in January The resnle
for the fiscal year. April ], 1869, to April l. 1870
would be to include in the first quarter Oh 1871
large amount of collections which under the pres
emit system would be distributed over the whole OF
that wear and which therefore would not be included
in the fiscal year ending April l. 1870 The amounts
thus anticipated would be 100000 of the excise Ii
censes f9OOOO of the land and assessed taxes, and
fl, 100000 of the income tax. The gross sum which
Mr.. Lowe would thus be entitled to carry to the
credit of the current fiscal year would be t5SoooOo
giving him surplus of f3,3S20O0 in place OF
the miserable fS2 000 which he had contemporary
described as no surplus at all. The expedlena
ingenious, and the result SO brilliant that the
House at first seemed scarcely to comprehend the
| explanation. Perhaps Mr. loves art deserted him
when he came to reveal the secret for which he had
| SO carefully prepared the way.
But he did not stop here. The best way to prove
this real acquisition of solid was undoubtedly
to show how he meant to spend it. Men could hardly
believe their ears when they heard the Chancellor,
| who had opened his bddget with nothing but pres
dictions of distress and hints at taxes that might
| have to be laid on, go on to propose tho
| abolition and reduction of taxes aud
duties to an amount which would have seemed
generous in year of unexampled prosperity First,
penny off the Income tax-one of the two pennies
| laid on to pay for Abyssins. the victims of which
Mr. Lowe Justly thought ought to be the first to en-
10Y relief as they had been the first to suffer- Next
| he would apply what he calls his "windfall" to the
| abolition of the duty on Corn. / imagine soma
American readers may rub their eyes as they read
that the duty supposed to have been abolished a
score Of years since has oil the while been paying
into the Treasury the sum OF 100000 year. It Is
suddenly discovered that this is relic of the Protec-
ZIONIST policy So long as it nconyenent TO spare
the money, Free Trade scrupes slept undsturbcd by
anybodys remonstrance, nor that magician has ap-
peared to create surplus out of deficiency by little
bookkeeping legerdemain, a reputation for conss1
ency can be cheaply bought. Behold cries the Frees
Trader, how virtuous am; give up 100000 year
for my theory How long he continued to enjoy this
revenue in spite of his theory is point he does not
| care to dwell on.
What freak led Mr.. Lowe to include in his aboliA
lions the patry duty on hair powder, yielding f9Sd
year. do not know. He desired also, he said, to
get rid Of the duty armoria bearings but as he
could not do that the best thing it appears TO me
is to increase TIA much more sensible conclusion,
| tha Ia
those leves on useless display which one would have
supposed Air. Lowe eager to make heavy, but the
whole charge put at two guneas only. The duties
| on locomoti0n are simplfed anG reduced. and this
part of the scheme is one of the most popular. The
tax has been oppressive proprietors of carriages
| for hire and NEST of all on the London cabmcn. A
| cab paid about eco year, most enormous per-
centage on its value and receipts, and the cabmen
| cannot charge it to their customers because their
rates of fare are limited by lawi so they
have as Mr.. Lowe says, only one resource
they take IL out in badness" 1t is pro-
| posed to cut down this tax from go to two
or three guineas year. Finally, the duty of licenses
to sell tea realizing $4,000 year, is to come OIL.
Some minor changes have omitted TO specify. They
as well as numerous figures and details, which have
taken pains to exclude from this letter. will be found
tho summary which send you to print by
itself. The net remissions amount to f3,CGO,oOo,
or winch t2,94U.UUO lalI WltulH tHo pEeScua
year. After all these are deducted, there will
remain q surplus of f442O0O on the Budget for tho
year lS60-70 1t rests with the House, nominay, to
accept or reject this scheme, but there can be no
doubt it will accept it by great majority 1t Is tho
scheme not merely of Mr. Lowe-thOugh il is he who
| is entitled to the credit of its conception-but
| of the Government, and will command the
| assent of the supporters OF Government;
| even were it not itself too auring in ts
prospect of financial relief to be rejected Against
the great advantages is undoubtedly prevents must
be set the Inconvenience sure 10 DO felt by great
numbers of persons, in paying at once, and at the
beginning of the year, tax they have heretofore
paid by three four installments 1t will come hard
the first time. after that it will DO their own
fault If they do not manage 10 meet it.
the objection that this real increase Of the rev-
enue but only an anticipation. The replies are obs
yious Mr. Lowe himself said it will not again.
nor need it, since the exigency will not occur. An
Abyssnian deficiency is not to be expected every
year, and but for that, the Chancellor of tbe
Exchequer would have had clear surplus of
four millions independently of his new plan. The
her plan does not add to the gross revenue but it co
lects in advance what is wanted pay debt already
due: rather that debt being paid to put the inan-
ces and the balances of the Government in a sound
position. Probably in that view it deserves all the
praise for ingenuity bestowed it, and it is certain
that its adoption will secure every Substantial reduc
ton of taxes and promote that general contcntment
which follows alienation of burdens that the
best OF times were only too heavy.
pATAT ACCJDFNT TT J0rrrc