Chapter 502

In order to have enough troops, was there any other choice but to expand the army? If they wanted to expand the army, they naturally needed money.

The Hungarian Republic's finances had been on the verge of bankruptcy since its establishment.

The new government did not know how to manage money at all. The taxes collected with great difficulty had not even warmed up in their hands before they were carelessly spent.

Kossuth was directly responsible for this problem. It could be said that the new Hungarian Republic government had surpassed Austria in corruption.

This problem could be referred to the Republic government after the Xinhai Revolution. Under the circumstances where the old order had collapsed and the new order had not been established in time, high-ranking officials became even more unscrupulous after there were no constraints.

"Mr. Kossuth, the government has collected war taxes twice this year!" Marquis Loki reminded.

Hungary's taxes had always been independent of Austria's. During the period when the decadent aristocracy controlled the government, there were often messy taxes, and the people's lives were very hard.

They had thought that after independence, everyone would be able to live a good life, but the reality was the opposite. After there was no "Austrian exploitation," their lives were even more difficult.

The new republic government gave more rights to the local governments. In their opinion, as long as it was an elected government, it was an honest and upright saint.

Reality was always different from ideal. Now Hungary had learned from the Americans. Not only did the central government have the right to collect taxes, but local governments could also collect taxes.

Simply put, the number of tax collection agencies had increased, and there were no restrictions. Officials took the opportunity to amass money, and even some community governments had formulated a lot of messy taxes.

Of course, the nobles did not need to pay these messy taxes, nor did the capitalists. It was the ordinary people who really paid for it.

However, the war tax was an exception. The nobles and capitalists had to pay it together. The problem was that they collected it so diligently, which was difficult for everyone to accept.

How long had the Hungarian Republic been established? Even if the preparation time was included, it should have been less than three months, right?

In such a short period of time, they had collected war taxes twice, and now they had to collect war taxes for the third time. The enemy had not yet attacked, and it was already too "expensive" to live.

Unlike capitalists, who could find ways to evade taxes, the main industry of the nobles was land, which could not be hidden. It was not easy to evade taxes.

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

"But the situation is not up to us. According to the information we have collected, Austria can now invest up to 400,000 troops in the war with us, and the National Guard is less than 300,000.

What's more, they are well-trained regular troops, while our troops are just workers who have just put down their hammers or farmers who have lost their hoes.

The gap between the two sides is too big. If we do not have the same number of troops, we have no chance to win this war! "

Well, the situation of the Hungarian National Guard was actually worse than he said, because the ordinary soldiers were not full of passion at all.

Even the number of people was less than 300,000. The National Guard was just a grassroots organization, and they did not have strict control over their subordinates. After many levels of embezzlement, the remaining money could not afford to support so many people.

But it didn't matter. There were policies from above and countermeasures from below. In this regard, the capitalists were the most experienced. Under the influence of what they saw and heard, the officers who were born into the bourgeoisie quickly thought of the strategy of substituting one for the other.

Apart from recruiting a portion of people to keep up appearances, the rest would be empty. If there was an inspection from the higher-ups, they would just recruit people to make up the numbers. Of all the troops in Hungary, the only ones who could fight were the students. They were the real revolutionaries, fighting for national independence.

Of all the armies in Hungary, the students were the only ones capable of fighting. They were the real revolutionaries, fighting for national independence. The rest, including Kossuth, were no longer simple revolutionaries.

"Mr. Kossuth, I think it's necessary for the government to disclose its expenditure. The republican government has only been established for a short period of time, and you've already spent a year's expenditure of the Hungarian government!

"Mr. Kosuth, I think it is necessary for the government to disclose its financial expenditures. The republican government has only been established for a short time, and you have already spent a year's expenditure of the Hungarian government!

This was an awkward question. Kosuth's face was gloomy. Everyone knew that the new government had high financial expenditures. In the past, he had used war as an excuse.

But the war had not yet started, and the expenditure was already so high. If there was a war, what should they do?

International loans? No consortium dared to lend money to them, which meant that they would not be able to return it. Austria was also a member of the great powers, and would not recognize the treaty signed by these rebels.

Other than that, they could only raise taxes. This was not a good idea. If they could not solve the internal problems, then no amount of money could fill this bottomless pit.

"Yes, the government can disclose its financial expenditures for everyone's supervision. But now we are in financial difficulties, and we need a sum of money to tide us over.

This time, the government will not take the money for nothing. We will issue bonds and let everyone subscribe. The annual interest rate will be 7%, and the issuance will be tentatively set at 200 million guilders. (11.69 grams of silver).

If the bonds cannot be sold, then we will have to collect another war tax. "

Kosuth chose to compromise. He still needed the support of these people. Without the cooperation of the nobles, it would be nonsense to collect taxes. It was also possible to make appropriate concessions.

Seeing that the noble representatives present were very tough, and even the war tax was temporarily changed to a war bond, Kosuth was willing to bear high interest rates. He did not want to provoke everyone's sensitive nerves.

The Republic of Hungary had been established to represent the interests of the emerging bourgeoisie. As soon as it gained independence, it had issued a series of decrees that were conducive to the economic development of the bourgeoisie, including the abolition of a series of exorbitant taxes that hindered economic development.

These reform measures had won the support of the capitalists, but at the same time, it had greatly increased the pressure on the government's finances. After all, the bourgeois economy could not be developed overnight.

Kosuth's government had no experience in governing. Some people suggested that the government issue Hungary's own currency. After tasting the sweetness of issuing currency, the penniless republican government began to print money in an attempt to get out of the financial crisis.

Reality had taught Kosuth a hard lesson. Without enough reserves in his hands, he only relied on the credibility of the government to issue currency. Naturally, it became a gorgeous waste paper.

After the failure to issue currency, the financial crisis of the Republic of Hungary broke out, and from then on it embarked on the road of tax increases.