NAVAL AFFAIRS.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14978, 27 May 1914, Page 9

NAVAL AFFAIRS.

GERMAN LEAGUE'S DEMAND.

("Times" and "Sydney Sun" Services.) • BERLIN, May 25.

The German Navy Leaguo demands the carrying out of the Navy Law before 1920, - 6 . The League points out that Germany has greater taxation reserves than has Britain,*which cannot bear much above the present burden.

Pisoiissing.a few years ago, tbe question whether Germany could afford to realise her naval ambitions,, the Berlin correspondent of the •'Standard" wrote:-"-Fr3nco in 1903, with a population approximately of 39,600,000, raised £162,450,000 of publio revenue, including national and local taxation. Great. Britain, with a population of about 43,000,000, collected £205,850.000 ii) 1907, whereas Gorman}', with a population of nearly 63,000.000, collected only .£150,6?5\000 for 1908. Iv other words, French taxes wore at tho rate of £4. 2s per head of the population; British at £4.15 a 6di while Germany's wer© only £2 9s 6ir: In. other words, taxation-per- head .19.60 per cent: higher.; in France-and-98 per cent, higher in Great Britain than in Germany. These results, aro based upon figures published by the German Government in connexion with Us present fax scheme. And now as to Germany's financial power. Inasmuch as the German .'nodule can casuv use at. ; homo all the* new capital they can i create, rind as'rthey bay©,mu;oh* less ! money available 'for inve-t&nent «i foreign securities thai} the English ahd the French, observers'are aeoustomed to think--'of Germany as. a. comparatively poor country. It is high time that* they r-evlse that judgment, for it is certainly no,longer true. The meet cautious estimates- of ; the Tiational wealth of the empire -place, it at ahout ten billion pouncts,; while a recent, writer assumes * iotaj of above seventeen httlious. This writer, Stein-■ roann-Bucho'V 1 - as J ust *Pul>lJ?o<?d two pamphlet.-* on the subject, m which his calculations are sot %th m much detail. His figures aro based largely upon the returns of firo truwraneo com* panics, tajs rolls ,'aud other more or less .trustworthy sources, Why is it then that. Germany, with her large population of isdustrioua people, with her splendid industrje-i, m the forefront "of scientific methods and achievDments, has such wretihod public finances as compared "*nih laigland and Franco? The answer-is cojoparativoly sirt«)lo. The German' people have refused to shoulder the financial burdens called for by their national policy. They have neglected to levy taxes, equal to those paid b"* other countries. A fow figures will mako this porfcotly plain. Although . the Germans consume much more, tobacco than the French, tbo Gorrnqn tobacco taxes yield only £4,2#>,QO<K or about Is"-id per head, while, France gets £18,360,090* or'9s 2d per .head. If C'ermanv. should adopt a tumuar por caout rate, her revenues from tobacco alone would amount to £29,Q0j3,<X>0. Tho average German consumes o< per cent.* more alcohol in the ahapo of brandy than the average Englishman, vet the German taxes- on alcohol yield only £7,380,000, while they would yield £30.725,000 if the per caput rate of taxation were as. high as it is in Et}g- • land. The beer taxes in Germany- yield oulv Is lid per head, against 5s 10.6 d, in "England from tho malt tax "alone. Hence the Empire and tho German ■Siva** get oxlv £5,900,000 out of beer, against £12.670,000 "yielded by the British malt tax. At the Bntish per caDut rate Germany could collect above £18,000,000 from beer.