The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1899-03-12
THE FINANCES OF ENGLAND.
Need Of Reforms in Taxation Made Ap-
parent by the Times.

NEW YORK. March 1.-THE Londor
correspondent OF the Tribune writes
Unless all signs fail there will be i'm.
portsnt debates on fiscal problems aftei
the chancellor OF the excheQuer lays his
budget before the commons
one Of these signs is the ominous warn.
ing from Sir Michael Hicks-Beach that
the balance OF revenue and expenditure
may be on the wrong side and that meas.
ures may be required for meeting a con.
siderable deficit. Another straw which
shows the direction OF the wind is Mr.
Morsey's protest against the alarming in.
crease OF national expenditures.
The most remarkable indication. how
ever, OF transition stage in national
finance is the candor of the Times
in recommending the reimposition OF
duties which We're abolished when free
trade was established as .be permanent
financial policy OF the United Kingd m
That great organ of English opinion has
been publishing a series of important ar.
ticles by an expert on the finances OF the
hast two years and it virtually adopts
his conclusions that the time has come
for reconSidering and revising the sys-
tenn Of taxation In a bold and compre-
herlsive way, The method recommended
involves return TO principles which
Golden and Bright condemned. The
points of argument are as follows:
The national expenditures have In
creased about 30 per cent during 20 years
and the bulk Of the additional burden has
been thrown upon direct taxation. where
as indirect taxation has remained almost
unchanged, customs and excise being
taken together, The death duties have
been nearly trebled and the income tax
has grown proportionately and all the
extraordinary burdens of the state and
a steadily increasing share Of the oriin-
AIRY burdens have been thrown by direct
taxation upon a limited class.
These increased direct charges now OPP
crate as high tax upon capital and are
detrimental to the interests of the work.
ing classes They also involve exhaus-
tion of what was once a great financial
reserve. 1t was once easy to meet a
fresh emergency by putting an extra
penny on the tax. but 1t Is no longer
practicable to do this since the extraor-
dinary resource has been converted into
the ordinary source Of revenue under
conditions of profound peace. The In
come tax has not been below pence in Ii
years and year after year 1t has stood at
s pence, The center of gravity of tax
ation has been altered by tremendous
increase of direct charges without any
corresponding addition to indirect.
charges.
The conclusions from these promises
are courageously Drawn by the Times
1t will be the act of weak government
If the probable deficit Of the treasury be
met by adding another penny to the In
come tax or by the feeble eXpedient of a
suspension Of the sinking fund. 1t is
dangerous to depend continuously upon
direct taxation for carrying extraordin-
airy burdens and It Is hardly less peril
Gus to restrict the list of chargeable com.
modtles for indirect taxation by reim-
posing the shilling duty on wheat and
that of a penny duty on sugar and also
TO renounce the idea that a free break
fast table" Is a sacred British privilege.
The Times doubts If the present chan
cellor Of the exchequer Is likely to pro.
pose these radical changes, yet 1t is con,
WINGED that II some measures Of the kim