The Right Hon. J. T. Hit) bert is Secretary to
the Treasury, and by no means the kind of man who says unwarrantable things. We cannot therefore but attach importance to his speech of Saturday at Oldham, in which he intimated a strong hope that Sir William Harcourt would deal with the death-duties in his coming Budget. It was, he said, " a question of fair- ness between land and personalty, and between the poorer and the richer men." We have given elsewhere other reasons for believing that the Chancellor of the Exchequer has come to this decision, which will probably provoke one of the stormiest discussions of the Session. Even if Sir William is unexpectedly moderate, the proposal introduces a new principle, and a far- reaching one, into British finance. It is easy to say there ought to be equality of sacrifice among the various classes of society, but how far is that doctrine to be carried ? We have some sympathy with the principle, but there is a point at which overtaxed capital and mental energy would betake themselves to happier lands.
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