cess of profits over expenditure. The conditions of modern business life are so complex by contrast with those of former centuries, that national systems of taxation are undergoing rapid changes and are constantly subject to revision so as to suit newer conditions of economic life and changes in the variety and intensity of public demands.

The Budget. The expense of government is so influenced by the whims and private interests of citizens and office-holders, that it has often proved difficult to balance expenditures with receipts. Then, too, sudden emergencies, such as war, or unusually expensive public works, might make an unexpected deficit. For this reason in modern states a budget is carefully prepared in advance, showing possible expenses and estimated receipts and indicating changes needed in taxation so as to avoid too large a deficit or surplus. In the United States the national government is slowly moving towards the adoption of a budget system and about three-fourths of the commonwealths (states) have already adopted some form or other of the budget. In less scientific days, in case of special emergency, great reliance was placed on forced loans, or on the confiscation of the property of persons charged with disloyalty, or of wealthy corporations like the church, or of unpopular foreigners like wealthy Jews. Fees from petitioners or from litigation furnished a large source of revenue, as also the income from the sale of office, special privileges, or monopolies, or from the debasement of the coinage. Under color also of such powers as maintenance, purveyance, and eminent domain, or the right of seizure in time of war, large additions to revenue could be made when necessary. All such irregular forms are passing out of use, and in

constitutional governments seizure of any sort is now regularly accompanied by a fair compensation to the

owner.

Aside from the difficulty involved in settling on the kind and subject of taxation, there are inherent difficulties in devising efficient systems of assessment and collection. The old-fashioned system of "farming" or leasing out the privilege of collecting taxes, so productive of tyrannical abuses, and its counterpart in feudal lordships and dues, have been superseded by elaborate schemes of assessment and collection by responsible governmental officials. The ideal of a fair and impartial assessment is exceedingly hard to realize, and in practice the burden of taxation, both direct and indirect, is proportionately heavier on the average person of small property and income. Such evils will slowly disappear as a more intelligent democracy dictates the policy and administration of government.

THE WAR POWER

War and Peace.-The original sovereign power of the state, as already explained, is that of war. Even now a state's chief business is to be ready for war and to wage it whenever national safety or national interest demand it. In modern times diplomacy along with methods of arbitration is becoming increasingly important as a means whereby dangerous disputes may be adjusted and treaties for offense and defense negotiated. In a rude civilization a formal notification of war is not deemed necessary; each state seeks to attack its rival unawares and preferably when the latter is poorly prepared. In more developed states a formal notification

is common, though diplomatic negotiations usually supply the information long in advance of the formal proclamation. In theory no state declares war or makes peace without the consent of the dominant interests or classes within the state. In practice this power has to be confided to the head of the state in order that no time may be lost in case of emergency. The head of the state, however, is always in touch with the leaders in national affairs and is advised by them. These dominant interests vary with the economic development of the state. At first they were voiced by the elders and war leaders of the horde, then by the heads of families in early patriarchal times, at a still later stage by the heads of all important clans and families, together with men eminent for public services in war or peace. When commercial states developed, the possession of large wealth, whether personal or landed, gave the owner a voice in council. To the voice of these has been added the will of the people as a whole, made known through their representatives. Rarely would a modern state venture upon the step of declaring war or of making peace without the hearty accord of public opinion formally or informally expressed.

Service in Army or Navy.-All able-bodied men by theory must serve in the army or navy or in services subsidiary to these. In times of great stress women also may be drafted into the industries or into vocations suited to their strength. If war is always imminent, all men are given a military or naval training and a sufficient number kept in readiness for immediate service. If a state is so situated as not to fear war, it does not enforce military service and depends on volunteers in cases of emergency. Occasionally a small standing army is main

tained as a nucleus about which a larger army may be formed. In the same manner a navy, large or small as may seem best, is kept in readiness for emergencies. In tribal states petty wars were fought by volunteers who delighted in the excitement of battle; larger wars demanded the services of all the men of the tribe. In the stage of developing confederation, or feudalism, each district sent its quota for a common war. In modern times the state keeps a permanent paid army in its service, and supplements the services of these by volunteers and by drafts of men levied from districts in proportion to population.

States in times of stress have used slaves in war but always under protest, fighting being considered the privilege and the duty of freemen. Convicts and criminals occasionally have been sentenced to serve as a punishment, but this custom is now condemned as derogatory to the service. Occasionally states have hired foreign mercenaries to fight in their wars, but this custom also is no longer favored. In the Great War imported laborers, chiefly from Oriental countries, were employed behind the battle line in great numbers by the Entente Allies so as to allow them to put more men into combat organizations.

The burden of supplying ships and men for the navy used to fall on seaport communities only; gradually a permanent navy developed, supported by the state and supplemented by vessels seized or bought at the outbreak of war. The use of privateers also was once common but is now practically condemned by all leading nations. Commercial states using the sea support large navies so as to protect their commerce in case of war. The importance of "sea power" as a factor in world su

premacy has become fully recognized since the publication of the late Captain A. T. Mahan's great book on that subject.*

Positions of command regularly belong in old-fashioned systems to men of the higher social classes, with occasional exceptions in the case of men of decided talent who may rise from the ranks. The present tendency is to make all positions of command open to merit, and this system holds in democratic states. The training of men for war was in early times the duty of the older experienced warriors. At a later period the family and the community respectively trained their members. At the present time the state either directly trains its forces or fixes standards and supervises administrative districts in the performance of this duty. Scientific technical training is also furnished by the state for the officers of the army and navy and vocational training given to many of those enlisted, so as to supply skilled workers to the many branches of the service.

In earlier systems armies subsisted by foraging or plundering while on the line of march. Each man furnished his own equipment, according to a set standard; the wealth of a person determined the branch of service he entered; the wealthier served in the cavalry or in the heavy-armed troops, and the poorest as lightarmed troops. The expensiveness of modern equipment and the great size of armies compel states to furnish all supplies of weapons, equipment, food, medicines, and other necessaries. So important has the supplying and transportation of armed forces become that the whole matter has become a special study under the name of

See Alfred T. Mahan, The Influence of Sea Power upon History.