The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Michael Hicks-Beach, was rather
sanguine, and perhaps hardly as prudent as he might have been, when he said in his speech on Colston Day at Bristol (Wednesday last) that it was "within the reasonable bounds of possibility, that he might have the good fortune to present to Parliament' such a statement as might enable us to meet the needs of the country without increased taxation." That means of course that the rather large surplus which he expects would go, not to reduce taxation but to cover the in- creased expenditure on the Navy, on education, and on reducing agricultural rates. Now that would be rather a gloomy than a .sanguine forecast if there were no danger of war ; but in the .present very unsettled state of Europe and Asia, there is only too much chance that we may have imposed upon us responsi- bilities likely to increase greatly the expense of our services. And as we are already in for an Ashantee expedition, whether it has to fight or not, we should hardly like to count with any -confidence on exemption from additional taxes.
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