The Italian Government is by no means out of its
financial difficulties. Signor Vacchelli, Minister of the Treasury, con- fessed on Wednesday, when introducing his Budget, that the surplus of D400,000 expected last year had been reduced to a de- ficit of E44,000, which must be increased by surrendering certain receipts from taxes on food that press heavily on the comfort of the people. The total deficit of the next two years, therefore, could not be less than £1,840,000, which could not be met by economies, for already the amounts allowed to some Depart- ments were less than the sums positively necessary. Nor could it be choked by increasing the Floating Debt, for that already reached £23,000,000, and must be reduced by an issue of permanent bonds at 4i per cent., thus increasing largely the unproductive outlay. Signor Vacchelli proposes, there- fore, to utilise some small Sinking Funds, and to sell the State reversions to some of the property of the religious corporations, expedients worthy rather of an impecunious landholder than of a great State. If still further necessity arose, a new Income-tax must be imposed upon those who were well off,— a proposal which, it is said, will be most unpopular with the existing Chamber. It is curious to note that all the Latin States seem to have reached the end of their tether in the matter of indirect taxation. Italy and Spain shrink from new imposts, and even in France the Finance Minister confessed himself last year at the end of his mental resources. We were nearly as ill off before 1845, when Free-trade put the Treasury right, and enabled the industrious to make fortunes, of which the State got its share.
