Evening star., 1932-01-03
BRITISH FACING HEAVIEST
TAXATION In ALL WORLD
Burden Appears Heavy Enough Even
to Threaten to Change Char
acter of People.

The remainder was left in shares OF
the tobacco company, which were valued
at about f2700, 900, but which, owing to
the slump, are worth only about fl $50
900 today.
This incredible taxation is changing
the whole tone of English life. 1t Is
cutting out the very foundation of the
British aristocracy by shattering the big
estates; great county famile5-the
backbone of the British middle class
are forced to send their sons early into
business pursuits instead of raising
them as heretofore for Parliament, the
army navy and Great Britain's public
services; retired army and navy officers
and civil servants are so impoverished
by mere income tax that their place and
moral prestige in British public life Is
fast diminishing.
Three quarters of the Briton's cur
rent income tax is due and payable jan
uary l, owing to the necessity to get It
in to balance the budget. More than
G287 900 900 in income tax, surtax and
estate duties must be collected by
March 81.
Estates Given Up.
Examples of the inability to maintain
former estates under such pressure are:
IOAu 1ClbS N44C VA I1416 luAAaD bASSCcs
landlords, who just sold ZOO acres Of
his estate, Knowsley, to the City of Liy-
erpooi
During the last year Lord Astor
closed down Clivenden, his historic
mansion on the Thames
Lady Louis Mountbatten closed her
house in Park Lane.
Sir Philip Sasson closed his 25 Park
lane, his houses Folkstone and Hert-
fordshire
Lord Harewood, husband of Pincess
Mary, is reported to be closing Hare
wood House, offering his mansion, Ches-
terf1eld House, for sale and moving to
a less expensive street. He also sold
his Benvenuto Cellini jewel for 10000.
Marquis Alyasbury sold a great part
of his beautiful Seven Oak forest.
The Duke of Richmond sold his his
torical Trees Goodwood.
The Earl OF Durham sold Lawrence's
Red Boy"
The Duke of Norfolk sold his estate,
Littlehampton.
Lord Radnor sold his estate, Folk
stone.
Tax Extended Downward.
So much for the ravages of such de-
structive taxation among the mighty
great. For ordinary humans it can be
understood what it means when from
one-SiXth to one-quarter of cnaS earn
ing is coniscated by a needy govern
ment. And this year ! 100000 new tax
payers have been added, reaching down
to those earning less than SIS q week,
who are liable to SIS income tax.
Another burden under which the
Briton is staggering is the failure to ad-
just his industry to postwar conditions,
with the result of a chronic decline in
export trade, on which his very exist
ence as first-rate power depends. In
volume Great Britain's exports have not
yet regained their pre-war level.
In 1928, good year, they were IS per
cent under 1913, measured in terms of
the pre-war price level. In 1880 the
volume of exports was less than 85 per
cent of 1928, and they have shown a
further decline of some 90 per cent for
the first nine months of this year.
Great Britain's invisible exports, such
as the return from shipping, overseas
investments and other incomes which
up to date have more than compensated
the adverse balance of imports over ex-
ports, have fallen SO alarmingly during
the world slump that deficit in the
balance OF payments Of at least ESQ.,
100000 is expected for the fiscal year.
And Great Britain will have to draw
that much on capital.
Another burden which Great Britain
is bearing is that one person out of
every five of the working population is
without job.
(Copyright, 1897