Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/588

* IN C<ENA DOMINI. ditioni and modifications, dates back to early times; some tracing it to Urban V., and others to Martin V., Clement V'., and some fn Boni- face VIII. Its present form, however, it re- ceived from the popes diilius II., Paul III., and finally I'rban VI 11.. in 1G27, after which it continued for a century and a half to be pub- lished annually. Pius V., in 1568. decreed that it should be read evcrj- Holy Thursday until superseded. The contents of this bull have been a fertile subject of controversy. It may be briefly described as a summary of ecclesiastical censures, esjiecially of those with which ({rievous violation of the faith of the Church, or of the rights of the Church or of the lUmian see, are visited ; excommunication being dniounced against heresy, schism, sacrilege, usurpation of the rights of the Church or of the Pope, forcible and unlaw- ful seizure of Church property, personal violence against ecclesiastics, unlawful interruption of the free intercourse of the faithful with Kome. etc. The bull, however, although mainly dealing with offenses against the Church, also denounced under similar censures other crimes, as piracy, plunder of shipwrecked goods, forgery, etc. This bull, being regarded by most of the sovereigns of Europe as an infringement of their rights, en- countered in the seventeenth century the deter- mined opposition of nearly all the courts, even the most Catholic; and at length, in 1770. Cle- ment XIV. discimtinued its publication, which has never since been renewed. Pius IX., on October 12, ISfiO, abrogated many of its cen- sures. INCOMBUSTIBLE FABRICS. Much atten- tion has been jiaid to the production of incom- bustible fabrics, and of solutions which may be applied to any fabrics to render them more or less fireproof. As typical of the first may be mentioned asbestos cloth when this fibre is used either wholly or in part to form the fabric. Ex- periments have shown that many salts possess this power of rendering substances which were immersed in solution of them incombustible, but at the same time some of these injure the fabric, spoil the color, or are so very expensive as to render their general use impossible. Two. how- ever, viz. tungstate of soda and sulphate of am- monia, produce the best results without injuring the tissue or color of the fabric. The first of these acts physically by preventing contact with the air, and does not interfere with the process of ironing and starching; it is, therefore, preferable for goods requiring washing. For fabrics which are used without previous washing, sulphate of ammonia is preferable. Soluble glass is a high- ly alkaline solution of minerals composing glass which is applied to textures, in theatres espe- cially for curtains and scenery, to render them fireproof. Fire touching them melts the invisible minerals into a glaze which excludes air and prevents combustion. All these solutions, how- ever, are likely to lose their elTiciency if some time has elapsed since they were applied. See FlHEPBOOnSO. INCOME TAX. A tax upon the income of individuals. It may be levied directly upon the individuals receiving the income, or it may be collected from the income at it.s source in" the form of a tax upon dividends, interest on bonds, etc. It may be uniform, taxing all incomes at a uniform rate, or progressive, increasing the rat« 514 INCOME TAX. of taxation with the amount of income received by the individual. An income tax may differ- entiate between various forms of income, as, for example, between incomes from labor and in- comes from property, or Ix'lwwn permanent and temporary incomes. Differentiation may be at- tained either by levying a higher rate upon some forms of income than U|ion others, or by the imposition of a supplementan.- tax upon ])roperty oi upon consumption which will in effect fall upon the incomes discriminated against. In .States which lcy an income tax it is usual- ly the practice to cxem|)t small incomes, or that portion of the income neco>ssary to mere inde- pendent existence or to the maintenance of the usual standard of life, and to Icvj- the tjix only upon the excess. The theory of such exemption is that the State should not take from the indi- vidual in the form of taxes what it will be obliged to return to him in the form of poor re- lief or otherwise. In theory the income tax, more nearly than any other system, meets the rc(]uirements laid down in the most adv.xnced canons of taxation. A man should l)c taxed according to his ability, or 'faculty'; and income is the best test of ability. A graduated tax on incomes is popularly de- fended on the groimd that it may be employed to bring about a more equal distribution of wealth. In the latest financial fheori-. however, gradu- ated taxation is justified on the ground (hat a man's ability to pay taxes increases more rapidly than his income. Differentiation of fixation is advocated on similar grounds. One who receives an income from permanent property is in a more favorable position than one who receives an equal income from labor, since the latter is compelled to make provision ag.ainst unemployment, while the income of the former is quite at his disposal. It is, therefore, in accordance with the faculty test that incomes from property should pay a higher rate than incomes from labor. In practice it is found to be difficult to deter- mine directly the magnitude of a man's income. This is especially true in countries like America and England, where it is the policy of Govern- ment to interfere as little as possible in the busi- ness affairs of the individual. This difliculty is greatly reducwl when the tax is levied, not di- rectly upon the individual, but upon the source of the income. Under this system, corporations rqay be required to withhold a part of the divi- dends for the payment of the tax as well as a part of the salary of employees. When the tax is levied at the source, however, it is difTicult to graduate it so as to tax those who receive large incomes at a higher rate than those whose in- comes are small. The income tax was introduced in England as a purely fiscal expedient. The huge expenditure of the Napoleonic wars forced the adoption in 1709 of an income tax. which, with a short in- termission, lasted till the close of the war. It was again revived in 1842. and although in 1874 an attempt was made by Gladstone to secure the repeal of the tax, it has maintained its position to this day as an integral part of the British financial structure. The British income tax is levied on the source of the income, and does not attempt to provide for graduation or difTcrentia- tion. It has proved to be a ver>' productive tax; and by changing the rate the Government is en- abled to increase or diminish its revenue so as