Taxation in Italy.

Thames Star, Volume XXX, Issue 9047, 20 April 1898, Page 4

Taxation in Italy.

The Italian people may w«U be excused for the loss of temper over the excessive taxation to which they- are subjected. They pay in taxation 20 p«r cent, of their incomes, while Greece paid before the war only 14J per cent Of the other countries considered heavily taxed, Holland and Portugal pay 13 per cent. > France, Austria, and Roumania, 12 ; Spain, 11 ; and Germany and Russia 10. Amon& the countries with light taxes are Great Britain, the people of which pay 6£ per cent>, the United States 5£ and Canada 4£. The seriousness of the Italian financial situation is increased by the poverty ot the people. It has been computed that tbe average capital of each Italian is £100. This is a smaller amount than owned by the people of any other country except Portugal and Roumania, where the average is £90, and Russia, which goes down to £60. England heads the list at £330, being followed by France with £250, and the United States and Denmark at £230. Taxation in Italy has reached such a point that it is a common saying there that " there is nothing untaxed except the air we breathe. ■" When the people are suffering under such a real and pressing grievance, to attempt to divert their attention by raising the religious ques ■ tion is mere childishness, not statesmanship. -—Exchange.