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THE NATIONAL INCOME AND EXPENDITURE.
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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than one innocent person suffer the penalty of the law ; the punishment is the wages of the culprit ' s sin and the idea of anyone but the real culprit being made to bear it , is monstrous ; according to the opposite theory , mere suspicion seems almost sufficient to justify the infliction of punishment . In such a dilemma as often presents itself * all we can do is to take a just , wise , and moderate course in accordance with a beneficent and enlightened practical expediency suggested by the exigencies of the time . Above all should not be
things , let it be remembered that punishment considered as expiatory or vindictive ; but as preventive and reformatory . Its object is the safety of society . To prevent certain mischievous acts , penalties are annexed to them by the law . This involves the difficult question as to the kind and degree of punishment , the expediency of hanging for murder , &c . Our only guide here is the experiences of the time being as to what punishment is the most efficient for preventing a given offence , due regard being had to the princip le of proportion ; as penalties that are too severe tend to defeat themselves . We see that Manchester has memorialised the Government to
institute an inquiry into the operation of the present law of capital punishment ; the main point is , whether , all things considered , death punishment is , in the present state of society , the most efficient preventive of murder .
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npHERE is so much difference of opinion respecting the J- actual state of our national . finances , that it maybe desirable to place before our readers the actual results of the last financial year , terminating-on the 31 st March , 18 G 0 ; more especially as a new Financial Secretary to the Treasury has been appointed , who will probably-feel the necessity of strict accuracy in the data from which he prepares his estimates for the ensuing year . The following Tables are draw from figures which have appeared in detail , in the " Financial Eeformer" for September and October , as the Government accounts are so subdivided that they do not f tmiish the means of ascertaining the cost of each item or service ; and no conclusion can be drawn without analysing the various Tables which are scattered through the " Blue Book , " annually published under the title of " Finance Accounts . " INCOME . 1 . Customs ... ... ... £ 24 , 391 , 083 17 4 2 . Excise 20 , 240 , 466 13 6 3 . Property and Income-Tax 9 , 660 , 14119 3 4 . Stamps 8 , 040 , 090 11 10 5 . IiandTax 1 , 137 , 034 1 2 6 . Assessed Taxes ... 2 , 100 , ^ 9 7 9 7 . Post-office 3 , 310 , 655 8 0 8 . Crown Lands 416 , 530 18 8 9 . Miscellaneous 1 , 801 , 584 3 0 £ 71 , 104 , 127 0 6 EXPENDITURE . Interest and Management of the National Debt , £ 28 , 638 , 725 12 5 Army , Militia , and Ordnanco .... £ 14 , 057 , 180 4 2 Navy , including Transports and Packets 11 , 823 , 859 0 0 Naval and Military operations in China ... 858 , 057 0 0 26 , 739 , 102 4 2 Civil Expenditure 14 , 241 , 488 12 6 69 , 619 , 20 ( 5 9 1 Excess of Incomo over Expenditure 1 , 484 , 860 11 5 £ 71 , 104 , 127 0 6 These are actual results , about which there can be no dispute j and it appears that up to the 81 st of March last there was a surplus of £ 1 , 484 , 860 11 s . 5 d . The incomo from all ordinary sources was £ 71 , 104 , 127 0 s . 6 d ., while the expenditure , which we have divided into three heads , was £ 69 , 619 , 266 9 s . Id ; namely , £ 28 , 638 , 725 12 s . 6 d . for the interest and management of the National Debt ; £ 26 , 739 , 102 4 s . 2 d . for the Army and Navy ; and s £ 14 , 241 , 438 12 s . 6 d . for the Civil Expenditure ; making a total of £ 69 , ( 319 , 266 9 s . Id ., as previously stated . The expenditure for the current year was estimated at s £ 76 , 000 , 000 , but it is to be feared that this amount may be considerably exceeded ; and many financiers oaloulato that the total outlay , including about £ 18 , 000 , 000 for looal taxation , will not be far short of One Hundred Millions sterling . It as evident that suoh profuse expenditure must operate most injuriously on the industrious olasses , and we therefore consider that it is our duty to endeavour to prevont the possibility of any misunderstanding with regard to tine national incomo and expenditure ; so far as we are enabled to do so from the loose documents which are submitted to Parliament . In the Finance Accounts there is no attempt to
lay before the public any statement which can be easily underst ood ; and the contradictory explanations of Members of Parliament in their autumnal speeches to their constituents , show that they have a very vague notion of the financial position of the country . The detail of the Civil Expenditure requires notice , and we have endeavoured to analyse it , so that it may be intelligible to those who wish to know the cost of any particular Service . PAID OUT OF THE CONSOLIDATED FUND . 1 . Civil List £ 403 , 260 0 0 2 . Annuities and Pensions ... ... 350 , 713 14 3 3 . Salaries and Allowances 157 , 602 9 10 4 . Diplomatic Salaries and Pensions ... 163 , 061 0 1 5 . Courts of Justice ... 712 , 417 17 2 6 . Miscellaneous Charges on Consolidated Fund 177 , 339 9 10 : 1 , 964 , 394 11 2 7 . Payments out of the Income of Crown Lands hi its progress to the Excheqiier ... 116 , 977 4 11 PAID OUT OF SUPPLY SERVICES . S . Collection and Management of the ¦ Revenue Departments ..... ... 4 , 4 : 38 , 548 3 6 9 . Public Works and Buildings ... b' 81 , 419 0 0 10 . Salaries and Expenses of Public Departments ... .... ... 1 , 472 , 096 0 0 ... 11 . Law and Justice ... 2 , 72 f > , l ; M 8 5 12 . Education , Scienre and Art ... 1 , 2 G 7 , !) 92 0 0 13 . Colonial and Consular Service ... 410 , 041 4 6 14 . Superannuations and Charities ,.. 24 <> , 109 0 0 15 . Special and Temporary Objects ... . 808 , 727 0 0 16 . Civil Contingencies ... ... 1 ) 8 , 000 ' 0 0 7 , 721 , 518 12 11 £ 14 , 241 , 438 12 6 The method and arrangement of the '' finance accounts " . are lamentably defective , and the only Parliamentary paper which gives any tolerably clear statement of the revenue and expenditure of the United Kingdom , is the return granted annually on the motion of Mr . Williams , tlie member for Lambeth ; even this , however , is too complicated to be easily understood by those who are not thoroughly conversant with figures . Under these circumstances it is to be hoped thot the " Blue Book , " No . 483 of last session , containing the report on " Miscellaneous Expenditure ; " or , in other words , that part of the civil expenditure . which is voted in supply , will receive due attention during the recess . One paragraph in this report deserves particular notice , namely , " That the present system of audit is imperfect , inasmuch as only a portion of the expenditure is brought before the Board of Audit ; but the subject having been very fully considered by the Committee on Public Monies , your committee confine themselves to referring- to their report , and expressing an opinion that some steps should be taken to introduce a more uniform and efficient system of audit . '' The committee were unable to finish their examination of witnesses , and strongly recommended the appointment of a committee next session to resume the inquiry . Unfortunately , two very active members have ceased to hold seats in the House of Commons . Mr . Wise has retired from Parliament iaconsequenco of ill health , and Mr . JLaing , the Treasury Secretary , has accepted the office of Financial Secretary for India , therefore their services will be lost ; but probably jir . Laing ' s successor , Mr . Frederick Perl , might be induced to serve on tho now Committee , and , if ho should do so , it may be presumed that he will throw some light on the intentions of Government with rospect to some better arrangements of the public accounts . The various financial returns differ so widely in some cases , that although professing to furnish information respecting tho same item of fi nance , it would appear as if tho amounts had been taken from books wholly unconnected with each other . The better arrangement of accounts would also lead to a more regular collection of taxes , and tho oases of defaulters would then probably be loss numerous . \ fc Wo do not , however , wish to enter upon this branch of the subject at present , aa tho chief object is to insist upon such a system of . accounts a& shall insure accuracy in the Parliamentary R eturns , and enable those who prepare thorn to finish their work within a reasonable time . There havo boon constant complaints for many years that tho fmanco acccmnts arc issued too late for any practical use , as they never appear till long after the supplies have been voted . Tho Committoo on Public ? Monies dwelt very strongly on this point , and as tho mconvenionoo is fully acknowled ged , some improvement may possibly bo attomptod noxt soesion . Tho only oomp lote remedy would bo to oloso the financial year on t he 31 st December , instead of on tho 31 flt Maroh , and the whole machinery would , then soon got into regular working order .
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90 g The Saturday Analyst and Leader . [ Nov . 3 , I 860
The National Income And Expenditure.
THE NATIONAL INCOME AND EXPENDITURE .
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Nov. 3, 1860, page 908, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2372/page/4/
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