Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-08-22
IMPERIALISM IN INDIA.

The. British Government In India is u
xoS1Hpus Tux cater. The expenditures in
Book for 1899. ut page i39. We're .e95SSi.-
TIN round numbers $3.50. 0N0. 0oo-of which
GEG.2S 20, or about Sla7 1905. eco. was cx-
pended in Great Britain. And 1t imposes
taxes IN such = manner rs TO make them
excessively burdonsowe upon the prbduc-
ing classes; Upon the same authority. at
page Ito. IL appears that in 1Sai-3S the
amount of lana tax was E25. 49,. 500. that
ne custom tax VAS ei.571lo0. ANA that
me salt tax was eS. 400. Thus We have
something like Sl2l.U)OC00 or tax or rent
taken by. Great Britain from the occu-
tax of some S20oOj,CO9 coniiscated from
consumers of foreign goods. and $4,000. c0o
rom consumers OF salt OF the land tax
we shall have more to say further on
The other Two taxes but especially the
LATER. are Enthusiastically burdens upon
me common people. What heavy bur
den the salt tax must be, may be mag
med. when II is remembered In connection
with its magnitude that the wages of an
day.
Among the expenditures by Great Brit
ain In India in iS9i-'9S. according to the
Siatesman's Manual were eS,99i 900 (say
Si0.QO0,Oc0 FOR collecting the taXcs0 G27.
U2aut0 tabout Sl21ooo.Oe0) for the army:
Gl5.72l 900 (S75.00) 0oO in civil salaries and
E3.is9.2oO Gl5DOi.o0O for interest on the
public debt, which amounts to e2s7325. l6a
81 0ec ceo;oOO. OF this public debt ellS.-
SSa.233 (about $5oO,O00.0G9D is held in Eng
land Among the annual expenditure Is
\ salary item of cs5QSO (sl25oo0l drawn
nF Lord Cur2on, who donates S3,OQO to
God help the people of Indian en-
claimed member of Lord Curzon's .coun-
Ell, who is reported in the Manchester
10 explain that $4,000, 600 Is annually paid
to European officials employed in India
that the land Is SO heavily taxed in many
provinces that the peasant cannot save
in good years for the years of bad har-
vest.
In the British House of Commons it
was shown recently that lin Madras In the
p.nst eleven Years the number Of civic.
amounted to $4,000 and that in the pre-
ceding eleven years 1t was Si0,0G0. During
the debate in which that statement was
made. member on the government, side
OF tho House, one WHO has spent a large
part of his life in.India, characterized the
real cause of Indian impoverishment as
heavy taxation.
We have said that we should give
further attention to the land tax which
Great Britain collects in India. AS al.
rcay stated. this tax amounted in lS97-sS
TO 925932,3oo tahout Sl25OOo,ooO). It Is
levied on an arbitrary assessment of
holdings. which IS for the most part fixed
periodically at intervals of from twelve
10 thirty years. The rate of tax is perma-
nentiy settled and in tracts Is conserva-
lively reported to be about two-thrds Of
"a rupee .(say thirty centsl per acre of
cultivated land, and as representing about
ne-tWcnty-fourth OF the gross value of
tie produce. In temporarily settled tructs
the rate is reported as somewhat less per
acre ana as REPRESENTING upOuL onc-tcntu
to one-twelfth of the gross value OF the
produce. The tax is strictly not a land
tax. but Il produce tax: for It is imposed
not upon land whether cultivated or not
but only upon cultivated land. And doubt
less 1t operates In most cases of small
holdings as an extortionate rack rent.
But the worst of the land tax Is not
revealed by statistics OF public revenues.
Back of the tax gatherer Is the rack
renting landlord. Nominaliy the govern
mcnt In India is the owner OF the soil,
but when the British began tn govern
there they found q system OF tax farm
ing in vogue, which. to the British mind.
had the appearance of system of large
proprletorshlp of land.
So 1t appears that between the British
government, the zemindars and petty pro-
prietors. from onc-tourth To onc-hnlf or
even moro of the earnings of the Hindu
farm workers is contiscated as land cNac
tons In addition TO the condscations
through variety of taxes with the oner
Gus salt tax at the head OF the list. When
the primitive methods and laborious pro-
ccsscs OF production among these people
are considered. IL is apparent that only
II hand to mouth existence is possible
where so much Of the laborers product
is eXtorted from him.