At any rate, it will not do actual harm such as has resulted from another expedient, tried Clementel's predecessor, M. de Lasteyrie. He adopted' what called the "Borderean de conpows," a device intended to prevent income-tax frauds in regard to revenue] from marketable securities. It was decreed that every person cashing coupons or dividends must fil up 8 form (borderean) containing his or her name and address, nationality and other particulars. Revenue officials would then visit the banks, examine the forms and ascertain whether the signatories their income tax returns, pointed out that the scheme was utterly impracticable, because it provided no machinery for sorting the millions of forms which would accumulate in the banks, and because the officials could not do more than dip haphazard into a chs de coupons" and t's government was faced with the task of putting i into effect, The result was disastrous. Large quantities of French Government and other securities were held in england, and when the holders uncovered that, to essay French g, come tux, they must "make an davit before a French Consul land pay a fee, they naturally declin" hel to have anything more to do. with "uch troublesome investments. They accordingly sold out, and large quantities of French bonds were thrown on the market, causing prejudice created in the minds of British investors against French securities in general. All this could have been avoided if the Chamber had taken the advice of experts but French politicians are afraid {of listening to any financial authority st they should themselves. be accused of corrupt mi The shadow of Panama and Cornelius Herz ix over them all, In a forlorn hope of putting the "border can de roupans" into effect 1 fraud-detector, M. de Lasteyrie the banks to classify the not unnaturally refused to burden themselves with large staffs of sorters. Tt was then suggested that the forms should be collected from the banks and dumped on the tables in the G. P. Jsurting-ruom—the only place big enough fur the purpore—where they would classified ut night by. tangs of retired Post Office sorters.
That such a plan should be seriously considered is a proof of the straits te which the Revenue Department was reduced in its efforts to carry piece of unpractical legislation. is now befor the Chamber.
wonders if that body will ever realize the harm that is done to the tire community by ill-considered attempts to tax capital. As the late Baron James de capital water. When you Rothschild said, Ph
try to take it up in your hand, you ket only a few drops; the rest runs through your fingers.'
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.