Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-04-20
ENGLAND REDUCES WHILE WE
INCREASE TAXATION.

erly urges a reduction of the taxes inn
posed upon the people of this country,
and says the people Of the United States
have now an excellent opportunity of con
trasiing their own financial policy-or
rather the one that is adopted by the au
thorities at WashiDgton-with the very
different course pursued by the English
Government The English Government
has very large debt TO provide for, is
obliged to raise correspondingIy large rev.
enues, and is under deep obligations to
maintain and strengthen its credit In all
these respects, the condition of
the United States is precisely
the same as that of England. But when
we come to examine the means adoptedby
the respective governments to secure the
desired results, the contrast is very marked
and conflicting. The idea of the United
States Government is to pile up the taxes,
and accumulate a large surplus in the
Treasury. In England, on the contrary,
the principle is adopted of reducing the
taxes to the lowest possible point, and
keep the Treasury balances down to a
sum that is barely necessary to cover ex-
Ipenses.
1 Mr.. Robert Lowe, the English Chancel-
lor of the Exchequer, in presenting his
Annual Budget to the House Of Commons,
for the fiscal year ending March 81, 1870,
found a surplus in the treasury of ST.
$4,000 According to Mr.. Boutwel's
idea of finances, this money ought to be
locked up or distributed to the bondhold-
holders, who do not want it. But Mr..
Lowe takes very different course. He
thinks that it would be more beneficial TO
the nation at large to employ the large
surplus in reducing the burdens upon in
dustry. He proposes, therefore, to abol-
ish the taxes on beer, soap, paper makers
and newspaper stamps. The sugar
duties are to be reduced one-half; news
paper postage is to be reduced to the
nominal rate of one-half penny for each
six ounces; the malt tax is left untouched,
but farmers are to have the privilege of
brewing their own barley. The obnox-
ious income tax is to be reduced to four
pence in the pound or about II per cent
/ Some minor taxes are also taken off, the
aggregate reduction of taxation amount
ing to $40, SOO,OO This policy of reduc-
ton of taxation in England is by no
means novel. 1t has been practfced for
q series of years. 1t is found by expert
ence that the capacities of the people for
taxation are increased by every successive
reduction. This is easily accounted for.
Taxation is a burden upon industry, and
an impediment to production. A reno
val of the pressure gives an impetus to
manufactures and commerce, and thus
renders the people better able to
sustain taxation. This has been found
to be so invariably the case in England,
that whenever q surplus occurs, whether
arising from reduced expenditures or in
creased receipts, or from both causes, the
people always receive the benefit in a re-
duction or repeal of some tax that presses
more severely upon consumers. Since
1860, the taxes on tea, coffee, sugar,
wine, tobacco, have been reduced, some
of them several times. Besides, a great
number of taxes have been repealed alto
gether. The English people under this
policy have steadily grown in wealth and
prosperity, and the credit of the govern
ment is seco nd to none in the world.
The time has now come for inquiring
whether it is not time for the people of
the United States to initiate this feature of |
the financial policy of Great Britain. Ger
tainly our very different financial policyis
not producing any f1attering results. Our
government holds on like grim death to
every dollar that goes into the treasury,
and the idea of relinquishing the odious
income tax, or of reducing single item
of taxation, is regarded with Indignation.
The people are every where feeling the
effects of this course. Industry is more
depressed at the present time than at any |
period for a number of years. There is no
business activity and the number of idle |
wOrkmen is constantly increasing. That the |
financial credit of our government |
is improving under these circumstances
is by no means evident. The receipts of |
the two governments for the financial |
years, respectively, were very nearly the
same. For the fiscal year ending June
80, 1859, the receipts of the United
Stats treasury amounted to 1870, 943, TAI,
with a surplus, over expenditures, of |
$40, 453, l49. For the fiscal year ending
March 81, 1870, the English government
received total of $S76, 72O, 900, with a
surplus of S17,S5O,OO But there is
this important difference. In England
every dollar of taxation goes into the
public treasury. In the United States
only comparatively small proportion of
the taxation goes into the government
treasury. Our tariff and internal revenue
laws are 50 contrived as to increase the
burdens upon consumers, three and in
some cases five times over and
above the amount actually re-
ceived by the government. 1t is this diff
ference that tells so fearfully against
American industry and places it at an i'm
mense disadvantage as compared with
that of Great Britain. Yet we see that
English statesmen are constantly plan
ming how to reduce still further the bur-
iens upon taxpayers. Surely it is time
tor American statesmen to initiate their
example.
The difference between the debts of
the two countries may be urged as an ar
gument in favor of our high pressure sys-
tenn of taxation. The English govern
nent does not feel called upon to provide
for the payment of the principal CT the
national debt. In the United States the
of our debt is very prop
erly regarded as cardinal feature. But
{ we reduce the nrincipal st the rate of |