French government objecting, the allowance stopped, and consequently any progress of army organization.
The temporary coöperation of Bazaine was greatly due to Maximilian's effort to retain French army officials for the finance department, thereby placing additional responsibility on their government.[1] But all this had served merely to postpone the trouble. The budget for 1866 placed the expenses, with a low estimate, at over $35,000,000,[2] and as the revenue in the preceding and far more prosperous year came to little more than half this amount, the outlook for the present one may be imagined. Among the measures adopted to meet a portion of the demand was a contribution on the net revenue of town and country estates of one sixth and one seventh respectively, and a tax of six and one quarter cents on each 50,000 square varas.[3] But the difficulty with these and previous exactions was to collect them.[4]
- ↑ Langlais having died in Feb. 1866, M. de Maintenant, French inspector-general of finances, took his place till Friant, intendant en chef of the French army in Mexico, was permitted to occupy it jointly with his own-a double duty which led to conflicting measures. Niox, Expéd. du Mex., 598 9.
- ↑
The estimate as prepared by Lacunza for May till Dec. demanded for the
Ministry of war $4,395,710 Ministry of treasury 2,379,077 Other departments 2,807,962 Subventions for railroads, steamship lines, etc. 1,466,334 Interior debt 1,937,000 Old contracts 720,948 Interest on debt 6,715,150 French army support 3,205,130 $23,627,311 - ↑ 'Contribucion injusta y designal,' exclaims Arrangoiz, Méj., iv. 94, since property near towns was far more valuable than remote land. But the object was also to compel the distribution of land among the Indians and immigrants for cultivation. Domenech, Hist. Méj., iii. 383-4, takes a more reasonable view. An attempt to bring sold church property under fresh levies failed, as did many another measure, such as Basch, Erin., i. 136-7, enumerates, ergaben auf dem Papiere ein sehr annehmbares Resultat.'
- ↑ The attempt of Détroyat and others, L'Interv., 241, to attribute causes to single individual effort or neglect is hasty. Comparison with municipal taxes. Jalisco, Tarifa, 1965, 1-14; Trigueros, Mem. Municip. Mex., 1866, 1-66.
vance, in accordance with instructions from their government; but Bazaine took upon himself the responsibility, although a previous advance by him had been objected to in Paris. Kératry quotes the letter written by Maximilian in Feb., thanking him for this aid. Nax., 97-102. See also Arrangoiz, Méj., iv. 90.
