Omaha daily bee., 1909-11-20

A political crisis Of international interest
is approaching in Great Britain. The de-
termination OF the House OF Lords to re-
ject the budget as soon as the formalities
Of debate are gone through with is indl-
Gated by the motion Of Lord Landsdowne,
on which discussion begins next Monday.
Lord Landsdowne is the recognized leader
Of the forces opposed to the program OF
the liberal ministry, not only the present
revenue measure, but every distinctive
party measure passed by the House Of
Commons since the liberals came into
power. His motion for rejection is pressed
to a vote, will bring to its support an
overwhelming majority Of the peers and
force an appeal to the country for which
the Tories have been striving for two years,
There are go members in the House Of
Lords. Four-fifths Of them are Tories by
Inheritance. The Lloyd-George budget
drove into the ranks Of the opposition sew
eral liberal peers, among them Lord Rose
berry and Lord Iveagh, the former an ex-
tensive land owner and the latter a titled
brewer, representing the two interests most
seriously affected by the taxing features
OF the bill. There Is left but a handful
Of liberal peers, estimated at forty, to
battle for the bill. Scarcely fifty Of the
entire membership participate regularly In
legislation, and only on occasions such as
the present when their income and their
privileges are menaced do they concern
themselves with legislative affairs. Under
the leadership Of Lord Landsdowne no diff
ficulty viii be experienced in rallying the
Idle peers and overwhelming the feeble
liberal minority.
TIL anticipated action of the lords in
rejecting the budget overthrows a custom
sanctioned by the usage of almost fifty
years. Not since 1850 has the lords
antagonized a finance bill sent up from the
House Of Commons. In that year, in order
to make good the loss of revenue due to
the repeal Of the paper duty, the COM
mons sent to the lords two bills, one in
creasing the property tax and another
stamp duties. These were preliminary to
the abolition of the paper duty, and the
whole scheme was expressed in three
separate bills. The lords concurred in
both Increases, and then rejected the bill
abolishing the paper duty. Immediately
there was a constitutional crisis. The
commons commended that the lords had
by violating the constitutional usage"
OF more than two centuries, encroached
upon the commons prerogative, The lords
retorted that so far from killing a supply
bill, they had rejected one which diminished
the revenue Of the crown ana pointed to
two unchallenged instances Of vetOinE ad-
illustrative measures in which revenue
raising was an incident, as their justifiea-
ton. They denied emphatically that they
had interfered with the budget. The COM
mons, however, remained obdurate, and
finally adopted, at the suggestion Of Lord
Palmerston, a series Of resolutions the gist
OF which is that the peers are not to sit in
revision of the financial calculations Of the
lower house made in carrying cut its con-
stitutional power Of providing for the sup
port Of the government. For forty-nine
years the platform" OF the commons
adopted in 1850 has been the unquestioned
last word" on the subject.
The increased taxes provided fer In the
budget are designed to meet an anticipated
deficit roughly estimated at $50. 900 900. The
estimated expenditures Of the government
for 1so9-1o are placed at $s2o.750.OO0. The
revenue on last years basis of taxation
was calculated to reach only $741. $780, MOO. 4
portion of the deficit is to be met by re-
ducing the sums appropriated to the sink
ing fund by SIC, 900, 900, leaving only about
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additional revenue is required for the old
age pensions, $780, 900. 900, and for Increased
raval outlay of from SIS, OOO,O 900 to $50 900. 600.
Various Increases in existing taxes and
duties are made, chiefly on liquor and
liquor licenses, tobacco and in~herltances.
Income taxes are increased from % to %
cents on each s. and a super tax OF p
cents on each s. on incomes over SIS. 900
a yaap Tbaca fncraogag etrflr. A.. ,..t A.
do in a tender spot, as the chancellor Of
the exchequer planned that wealth should
contribute the bulk Of the deficit. The
greatest source of irritation to the lords
and landlords, however, is the tax on I'M
earned increment, amounting to 20 per cent
Of the increase in the value of land. To
the land owners this taxing innovation is
denounced as "socialistic'' and "revolu-
tionary."
you will understand" said George Paish
OF the London Statist, in a recent lecture
at Columbia university, that the mere
ment duty of 20 per cent is a matter of the
future only. Land is to be valued at tbs
present time and the tax is to be placed
upon the future increment in the value.
dating from the time at which the vaTua-
tion is made. How much this tax will yield
in the future it is difficult 10 estimate
But having regard TO the enormous ad.
vance In the value of urban land in the
past and the probable further great in
crease in the future. the tax should ulti-
mately be a productive one. We have in
our country a population OF only $1,000 %
which Is growing at the rate OF about l
per cent per annum, or 450. 900 a year. Our
wealth is doubling about every thirty-tbree
years and the value of land seems to rise
Just about in proportion to the growth Of
wealth, that Is to say, as'we grow richer
we can afford to pay a higher price for
the land Hitherto the unearned Increment
from land has entirely escaped taxation. |
Not infrequently it happens that the land
is left al very low rentals for a period OF
years In expectation OF a great increase in
rental at a subsequent date and the in
come thus derived by its possessor conse-
quently escapes the income tax, which is
imposed only upon the incomes actually
received from year 10 year regardless of
the Increment in the capital value"
zee
All parties concede the necessity OF pro-
viding more revenue. Old age pensions
have come TO stay. The naval program
OF four dreadnoughts a year has been
Increased To pfgbf ,pHAr thu gu,r - -