THE NATIONAL REVENUE.
Although it is too early yet to speculate at all intelligently with regard to the outcome of the national finances for the year ending March 31st next, the revenue returns for the first nine months of the current fiscal year are not very encouraging. It is true that the aggregate revenue to date only shows a decline of £8,447,000 as compared with an estimated shrinkage for the whole year of 221,127,000, but the receipts were specially affected during the past quarter by, _the inclusion of about £13,000,000 representing assets taken over from the Currency Note Department in connexion with the fusion of the Treasury Notes with the Bank of England issue. Moreover, the figures in the final quarter have still to be affected by the fact that the Chancellor will not benelit as he did during the corresponding quarter of last year by the receipt of about £12,000,000 from the Road Fund, and the fact that a year ago his new taxes were designed to:give him specially large yields in the final quarter of the year. The Income Tax and Super-Tax revenue is also showing very. clear - evidence of strain, and whereas the Chancellor in his Budget estimated for a decline for the year under this head of about £18,200,000, there is already a fall for the first nine months of over £26,000,000. On the other hand, Mr. Churchill, in addition to his windfall resulting from the amalgamation Of the note issues, has also secured an increase for the first nine months of nearly £6,000,000 in Estate Duties, whereas he had expected a falling off of over £5,000,000 for the year.
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