Star. — London, England, 1816-03-08 00:00:00

r • , ~~ tleolan had done to the high characters in question. All the answer, however, he could give to vebut had been wilted was;, that not any return to the (,r,fer had yet been received ; but he had no doubt the delay bad been accidental or tinavoidable. The LORD . ADVOCATE of SCOTLAND de. elated the delay to have been unavoidable, is the • - CohindAioners . had to make the Most minute investi tratinitiin xlithe.Eastein Counties. There was car jnterr.ion of delay or disrespect on the part of the Commissioners; and their report would, no doubt, bP e made to arliament in a short time. • Mr. ABERCROMBY Coincided in all that. bad • been said of The recessity for the Commissioners to' , give the most 'mature consideration to the subject. He was only anxious that the delay that bad °Our red, should not pass the notice of the House. withiot ,sore inquiry as to its.cause. • The Lotto ADVOCATZ and Mr. AINLICROSINY prim explained. • • .• Mr. TIERNEY said them bad been a report shalt •tlit Right Honourable Gendetnan who had just sat • down (the Lord Adveckte), was one of the Gen. tlemtn who had applied lon an increase of salary. He wished to know whether .this were the case, and trusted the Right tionourabk Gentleman would giv,e an answer in per:on. The LORD ADVOCATE replied, that his Ma-, ivsty's Ministers were so-much in thi.habit of receiv ing hints from Gentlemen on the opposite sides as to what they ought to answer , that they were perfectly fatiiili anted u them. The question, however, which was put to him, was one which be neither could nor ought to answer. CIVIL LIST. Mr. BROUGHAM asked when a certain PAper on this subject would be laid before the Howse ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said it was nearly ready. Mr. TIERNEY wished to know why the produc tion of the Accuont so long expected was not forth coming, and wht.n it would be produced ? The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said ir, 111 probability it would be delivered te-murrow. Mr. 'TIERNEY replied, that it it were not pro &lced to-morrow, shonid feel it his duty to move s direct vote of censure on the persons concerned with the Civil List, as he was convinced that there was something improper at the bottom of this subjeci, which prevented ,the production of the papt:rs— (Hale, hair). Lord COCHRANE moved for Copies of various Cortespondener between the Admiralty and himself, •in 'Febastary and March, 1814, with extracts from certain , Official Documents and the Muster Rolls of Ships stationed in the Mediterranean, for the purpose of *hewing that he was employed to a certain time in the public service. After a few words from Mr. LOCKMAN'', Sir Jo slyn Yoram, and Mr. Cameo. the Motion was ..atgreed to. Mr. COKE moved for Accounts stating the emo luments received by the Thitributers of Stamps fur the County of Norfolkk—Oidered. PROPIATT TAX. ' Mr..TIERNEY said it would be very desirable to know, winking. it was the intention of the Right Ho nourable Gentleman to MOTO the continuation of the Prope - rty In the Committee sat Monday, as h . was question which stood fur that day in point of form? Would the Right Hon. Gentleman be so r od AS to state in what condition the House might expect to stand as to besiness for die next week ? Was the Property Tax intended to be brought on, or was any other mode to be suggested in lieu of it, as it was dAily more and more proved to merit the tlecoest consideration • The CHANCELLOR. of the EXCHEQUER said that Ministers and the House must coinciue n:th . the Right lion. Gentleman, that the measure, hen ever it might be brought forward, ought to expe rience every consideration. —As to the precise time when the subject would be brought forward the Right Han. Gentleman said, that till the House should agree to the vote of money in the Committee of Supply, to the amount of five or six millions, tie should not feel himself authozised to introduce this measure in the Ways and Means. Mr. TIERNEY I.; lied, that he knew there was the greatest anxiety oa this question ; and he hoped that some - Gentle/rata of more consequence than himself would bring forward a resolution on Monday, which should cause the House to noders:4nd when the question should be brought on, or whether, under any circumstances, it was one vinich ought to be en. • tertaiited—(Hear, hear.) Petitions were presented from Dartmouth, from the county of Perth, from Chumleigh, Devon, by Sir T. Acland, paying relief - trom Agricultura Distress ; from Newtcn Friars, Somerset, and from the palish of St. George, Bloomsbury, against the Property Tax, which were received, read s and or. cleric!' to lie on the tabte. Lord NUGENT, on rising to move for leave to present It retatto tram use. lleerheadp of S:olre, Buckinghamshire, read a letter with which it was • accompanied. It gave a deplorat,le view of the state of the people formerly employed in agricultural labour, who were %brown en the parishes, and even there.could not get proper relief, because the rate* could not be obtained. The writer was a Gentleman • who had perhaps never bete.re troubled himself with polities, but from what be bad vritnesd, he said he felt deeply that the people were grievously . The Petition stated aline feeling, and attributed their grievances to the intention of Ministers to Main tgin a large staoding army, which Would require the Property Wax to be oppressively levied, is order to. 'support it. The Petition was received. Mr. BENNETT snored to bring up a Petition from Shrewsbury, which he stated to complain of the • Property Tax as patfial, unjust, and oppressive, =dap an y circumstances Ltljo i lritioners also prayed far t g e abo li t i on of the uty, and spoke of the largo military establichontalm in °their minds noconstito• tional. With such ~j tations he cordially agreed' and he trusted that miuers would.yet find it better to pit some other ' to taxation than the patience of the pe4ple. The • • don was received. Mr. DJCICE'NBOI4 rose to present one front • wivelimoutlot, in Sari y. kko abeeredd, that among '-.e evils o f vrhieb . the pa donwe complained, was ' vital importance. It related to the general in the quantity of leed"sown this year with as wall as the quantity thrtsvrn back on the other evi one of ti • decrease Whoa. • hands °fibe owners, and now.lyieg uncultivated, as the farmers, from the low price of Wheat, could not afford to cultivate them. Whatever might be said *bout the faith of Ministers on particular points, there loas one general system of faith ill all Governments, rivhich was an engagement so to support the interests of apiculture, that the people should not run th e risk of b eing - starved. The Petition was sen ftceivell.. Mr. 13ROUGHAM said he held:in his hand a Petition from the town of Honiton, in Devon, against the Property Tax. which, amongst other facts, com- p/ained chat the most galling and intolerable parts of, the system were the compelling the petitioners to lay. open their concerns to a train of inspectors and spiels' and they trusted the House would refuse its monism td the measure under any modifications whatever. Oil this subject be-was enabled, from what had very lately come to his knowledge, to offer a very striking commentary. A very respectable person, a ship. broker, residing at no very great distance from that .House, had occasion to purchase an article a a cheese.' meager's, which be received wrapped up in a paper 'that proved to be, to his no small. astonishment, the .retern of one tot his friends and neighbours to the Commiaanners of the Property Tax. lie called, on, the Gentlemen, and stated the circumstance. and obey both called on the cheese r., The trades - Watt told them be had lately b ought le d great lot of, waste paper, of the same kind ; land they found, upon farther inquiry, that the paper in question bad bees, exposed to sale by the Commissioners, and.consistedj of the whole rt4llllls of what was tottsmoub called their jurisdiction, bot which be should call their in4 l question. Thus p i o t se lpeared the private iffairs of all persons were ex posed, not only to tom , Commis,io ners, but to the world, by their returns being ex posed to sale as waste paper; and if he had seen no reason before to oppose the Tax, this circumstance alone would induce him to do it. For it would seem, that all attempts for making the Commissioners keep faith with those under their inquisition were unavailing; and there appeared no great chance of making these persons keep the secrets of individuals.] unless they took two or three others to assist them. , by which all the affairs that came before them would, be verbally exposed. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER , denied that such a charge could generally apply to the Commissioners. He remembered a similar ch.., cunistance that occurred about a year and a half ago; but on inquiry he ascertained, that it was a ge neral practice with the Commissioners carefully to destroy all•the returns after they were done with, par ticularly what were of a private nature. and except ing such as it was necessary to preserve for certain purpose.a. But it also appeared that some few of these returns had occasionally got abroad.' Heahought, however, that he could take upon himself to say, that neither the Commissioners for London, nor any other district, connived attic sale of these papers ; and if the Honourable Gentleman would inquire farther. be would find that this was the fact; however the papers might have got abroad, the circumstance *as certainly without their knowledge. it cert.tiuty never was intended that the private concerns of any indivi dual should be made public. There was a great de-I a rea of Misapprehension altogether respecting the operation of this Tax ; for under it, in 1815, there were nine persona out of every ten who did not make y mums whatever, except for the purpose of eta Mining relict from it. It was well known that in the year 1803, in order to prevent the grievance of com mercial exposures, any person who chose to be as. tossed by responsible references of his own appoint ment, had the liberty to be so, provided the Commis siotiers approved of them. Yet, though this law was afterwards abolished, he should be perfectly satisfied to take the aswssments which should he made on such persons by Gentlemen of their own appointment, if the Commissioners saw no objection to them.— Undo - such circumstances no person could object to disclose his affairs. As to the pressure of the Tax upon the agliculturist, it bad been ascertained that out of ab.,ve 1,130,000 tanners only 165.000 paid any portion of it ; and of these persons only about 6,50',) paid for above 41000 a-year. Of .589,000 tellants, it appeared that 140,700 were exempt, and of the remainder, who paid only £lOO a-year, were 4::',(X)0 a . ..,(1 no more. The number of 'farmers who would be exempted under the proposed modifications, would bP :thou( 527,000 out of 589,000. The far mers who • would have to pay on the reduced amount of their rents, woold only pay one-60th pan of them, or £lO in e*ry 4600- - It therefore natu rally followed that this class of persons would receive great relief. It would also be a subject for canticle. ration, what relief could be granted in cases of total loss ? and there was no class which demanded relief to which the House would not be disposed to listen. if the Honourable Gentleman could point it out.— The Right Hon. Gentleman then went into a series of details to shew how little the Tax, as it now stood, affected persons in trade. There were 1,129;049 en gaged in trade and handicraft employments,of whom only 256.802 latii made returnsaitad of these 109,760 wire t mespoko es, eitsuraiag --less than 46;) alder; so that those who did contribute to the Tax were no mine than 156,542. This number :slid tot hailed* journeymen, who were exempted if their respective weekly incomes did not excited 30s, Reverting to the ease of commercial persons, the Right Honour. able Geetleman expressed his opinion that it was its;. possible to devise any other mode than that already pointed out; such persons would be - merely'ealled en to expose the profits of any particular branch amide in which they might be engaged, and they usiihi be concerned in various branches, without ever being called on by the same Commissioners to eipose she whole of their affairs. , t Mr. BROUGII.AM, in explanation, said be bid 1 mach no allusion,in regard to the sale of the returns, to the Commissioners of the London district. -Mi. BA RING said there had been a sMtelisent, my conveniently dressed out, in a Treasury Paper, for the purpose of making die measure ;pitiable; it • bow many millions of mechanics, with an io- MIN ender 470 or 480 a-year,. were totally etempted. frona'this Tar, from which it was meant to be itt faffinis that those persons had no interest fit the goes. rots. But it must be seen that all these persons were am only obliged to pay indirectly to the Tax, but they were also all indirectly connected with the fate of their - masters, whose reduced state, from stein*. don in trade, must affect all who were concerned un der them. ht the same way as the, farmers' labourers were affected by the distremet of the farmers. The relieving of one part of the people (the farmers) for the purpose of burtheninig saddler, was a project un worthy of the great Minister of a greet natio... The relieving of persons by remission on accereit of dis tress was just ; but it was not so generally, if the re lief were cnly Partially applied. The great point would be to direct our attention to the principle of the az, which was.established for the support of the war—:(Heer, hear,)—and therefore the thing which . the Country Gentlemen would have to consider was, that they haie been establishing a measure of finance, which Government may hoe recourse to upon occa :ion, and screw it up by degrees, like the little ad .vances they have made irons time to time upon the Tea and Sugar Tax. He wished the idea to be incul cated upon every man's mind, that this Tax Was of such a nature, that nothing could justify it but the Most arduous war,.such as we have just emerged from: If this tax were eventually renewed he - hoped the te nant would be exempted from it. The Chancellor of die Exchequer thought the objection to the measure which had been spoken of on account of the disci° , sure which individuals were compelied to make was not great, as - a clause allowing ..the -psrties to make their returns to two referees had not been much acted upon. He (Mr. Baring) was net surptised that few persons Would have availed themselves of that clause, as the tifouble and embarrassment which it lad to was not to be endured, and was, if posciblc. worse than the common course of proceeding. lie condemned the Property Tax for this—it took ilk per eve'. troit, the trader's profits in oue cuntern, and allowed bun no drawback for the lobirs he tyirht-sust► , n itt cite other; thus a ship-owner wlui might gFitt.on ore ves sel, was obliged to pay the Property Tax on his pro fits on her, though he ►tiuu:d sustain a lost to an evial amount on the other. Mr. PRESTON condemned the Property Tax as a measure wholly unlit to. be re'ortLd to in a tree country. He objected to its principle as unt.oustitu lional, and as being directly at vat tance the rit of English liberty. Every man who loved vat tt:e and the British Constitution, was bound to tesibt Si, arbitrary an impost, which went to introduce a fourth and a fifth power into the itate, and consequently destroy that system, to establish which our ancestors had shied their best blood. The Petition was ordered to lie on the table. AGitxt:L . rcum. nes MESS. Mr. WESTERN rose to move that the House should go into a Committee on . the Agricultural Dis tress of the Country. He did ilex anticipate much opposition to his motion, because the conviction was so universal that the Agricultural interest was di.- tressed in an extraordinary. degree, that he thought it impossible for that li,use to refuse to give the sub ject their most patient and deliberate conrideration. It he were to suppose any objectioi.s - wonld bi urged against that course which he should recomtnend, •Le.f• must conclude they would be fuunded on the• suppo sition that to dog his might increase the'alarm which already prevailed, or that it could only tend to excite hope, which would ultimately be.disappointed. lie did not think, however, that in.either of these respects any inconvenience was to be appithended• from the adoption of that Course which he would'aeconamend.' Whatever might.f rove the extent of the power of tl.e Legislature in this citsehowever incapahle•they . might be to afford :alt the necessary relief wli.ch t;:e case demanded, the) ought *sotto shriniefront the in-' vestigatiou of its merits—they • ought-to make it known what these really were,-and t•1•14t40 consi der if something could ItOt be (lode fur tittoben'et of the thousands of individuals Over witom ruin 'was at that moment impending. SinCelielairgiven-notice of his intention to bricg forwardthe present motion, he had been called upon c ancl written to; by a great' number of persons. .From the conversations he lead had, and the letters trohickhe had lead, he was aisle to :hew that the cutustry-preseateika.pieture of distress perfectiy unexampled.' He had intended to-read some of the letters in thedseurse of the spetch r. but as this was fatiguing to-the House ans Pas it would be more satisfactory that. thcy• *shook, learn the- facts which they contained from that evidence whiCh lie thought I it would be neceskirtnsgo into; be ihnnia not tt.es pass on their time, by car: ying his first deter thinatiOn iutoeffect on this occasion. He endeavour:elf -io col lect some documentary information forthe House on this interesting question, but the piper s for elicit tie bad moved had not yet come in. From another source, however, he could give them some proofs of the extensive distress which prevailed. In e..e, County of Norfolk, the number of Writs issued in the course of one year had increased from 540 to 670. This increase had occurred from 1814 to 181.5, while the .Executions taken out had been increased in the same time - from 96 to 174. Among similar state ments, 'be euerted 47 Exchequer Paucesses to have been issued against- the Parish Collectors, in conse quence of their inability to get in the Assured P raxes. The distress in the Counties of Suffolk and Sussex, and in the Isk of Ely, he :hewed, from comparative statements, to ..be alarmingly great. He would go no farther to prove the extent of the calamity. Up to the year 4813. the egeicoluiso.of the country 41i asi been in a thriving.strite; at least, it had been on a level with the Other manufstcturei. of the country. To what was its subsequent depression to be attribu ted I Alfas it to .be ascribed to the immense ressure of Poop's Rates, which in. annotir.t almost exceeded Nikita-41km.; near') • Was it to be ,ac counted.for frodt:the pressure of the Tithes, from the magnitude of National 4ebt, or the paper Circu: feting medium t orr•was' it to be explained by the cir cumstance •of snrplirs produce from the soil having ~ ben thrown on the markets t He was of opinion the present diitress proceeded froin a combination of all these causes. He did,not believe it had been brought ' about by the return of peace. The rapid tall in the price *ut grain.had preceded the period at Which the public we.* led to anticipates termination of the war. . Wheat, which had previously been at 120 s. the gum.- ter, in November, I'Bls i lied• declined to 70a. 'T'here 'was then no expectation of peace to affect the mat ket ; and therefore that of which he spoke must pro.' geed hem some other cause. The return of peace, In fact, it we might judge from the 'experience of the past, was stot likely to produce such a ' change. • Ilk would be seen if we looked back to what bad taken place after the peace of 1782, and after that et' 1763. Atter the peace of 1785 the k average price•of Wheat •in the succeeding five years, compared with the average price of the five last years of the war,.had increased from Sire to seven shining( in the quarter f •and OA making the same comparison 4 between the . fire years wl:ieh years which preceded the pea's of I p ' r n ia d o l f h c e o Pe rn i t c j d err iti o r r vi ei l 4 glit .v sfi r i; There had been a surplui produce ii this had,. in a great measure, tend, price of groin. The, market price, w.ts a sut.plits or a deficit on thc 41, rtyre-ly in the ratio of Or ! r ule „, multii:lied ten ford eie , :er w ie. who took to market the pr-,'lice - . correct an over;t , Tl:ed marke t as of other cm:mod:cies niielt. Th. checked, but probably this would 'through his destruction ; for them modity was visch, that it could cv't pleasure. fie considered the price been raised higher it wocl t extended anti extendwoz circiTat.ite struck him it mo:a hay:: beet p: pressed by the witialr7l.:itig of th, antra. The markets, howcver, overloaded with .prode::.. Tots bad crotended that in 'Enland v:i enough corn to meet th. dealdrid 'eltii, however, bad Lten done; at the imprcvivents adAeti t.dcen culture were such e that England al produce a sufficient quantity c.fgr: poi etioir true." times as numerou s /owed - fwd.. citcn;ating to have lad the effect of cocoa, exertions; and these, it would be wee not earned to half the est might be carried; had been ti:e de nand of the country, bet to The toll in the ;nice of Wittat its to ;Os. the quarter, I:ad occited among the a;; ititer.,st. b;,.ett increased by the rejection of INI3, and this was still Wither ag jection of that t‘if 1814; and to the the fall of the price .1 Wheat, ah quence them, added a new not ooly •adal 'nee!, but be WAS forced to take his corn-to market, . fur whateaer ;mice be coold get., H universal OpLioll that orany.great mad:: by the farmers in the last did not believe this opinion to be him it appt•ared they had not had , so. The price of C , .rn hid nit bee' might have expected it would cumstances of tie countrv. T,te modifies was influenced by tasatit considered, and the price .of Corn. of taxation, in the ten pars pri compared with the price of Curt .of taxation, in the ten years from ducting the two yea: s rt scarcit, House would be surprised that wit Atoned pet icd the price of Corn k In the ten-pars preceding the yeas Corn' averaged 4.75. per qu , at ratri . : , unt of taxation of tl.e cot te'd yvass was 5e1.1,000,00. Foe F ingin ISi2; - t!;e averave price of tne qtpirter, and the taxation ot 'itnnunted to 475,000,W0. From seen thar.the pricifof corn had not while die . taxation Of the calm: and, uridcis such circintstances, it sible for the farm:is to have The present distress, he thought, great measure by the sudden with, culating:medium which had so btr, Speculation's. A stagnation in tal:y grew our of the want of ago was then experienced. It was at that the. ;wires of things now shot what they were One hundred and At one non: the superabundance medium was loch, and the pt ices became so high in conseqoence, alarm began to be entertained ; I the other extreme, and the con that would give sire were beyond tv,s enabled to form.. NVitli rep the produce of onr . land, it hid bt Tinos ways ; but he thought on :Simeon: to the value of ail the. pt , he considerably above 200 minim the milt co the kingdom at 57 Ibi produce was always estimated at own opiri.ou, it was nearer five rei wou'id merely take four. Multi'', give •228 utillitms ; but he wank millions. Now, it this 200 millions by an augm.mtatitEs of produce for it, in a manner such as no ma, known, was it unteasonable to 501 on the gross amount had withdrat medium I The paper was in coin withdrawn ; for it was 4ounded of ps• duce to a very considerable tbareforis, on the JeCfeAlle in N. withdrasen. la suck a situation tensive cil:cts had .biaen produced . the depressed value of the produce b;011 (ruin a surplus, thou) portion to the surplus. As far a: practicable, it must consist in takin, in finding a market foe it —from tit sequences they, w ithed to follow, —Supposing things to go on in r without any interittence on the cure, what would be the effect would at last remedy itscif-i-the a Ainsinvion of prodtice—the pi ress , v,ily be destroyed, and the pi as coetice not only rise. hut rise cess. F..r the lligh price would , as, it were, hum the gradual iocre; taxation, but front positive SCIUCII Alid dieretOre there was no estir, trom such a destruction of prod greatest nii,chiefs at peseta was, of industry were so much dimin, a considerable diminution - of cons, the price of Cora had decre.sscd so 'ple could get so little employ - met starving as it were in the midst of They might have corn che:sp as joke at the cheapness of bread, shut their eyes to the fact that the ing at the bat= time.--(llear, areot • 115:1.eai'Prisclisei.h:rded3ccanjeitc°'rct " i _ $ T 4 Nri J in -:hel - " Ior 6 4 1 t i 101114 i era • . I _ ol l InR es:Th . .4 Lk • ith t s oio! ' ' In" tie c 041.1 : 1.4 411 J tie 7 w ah.l he wai s., ? t se P I tea '‘e 1400.41 alatii 41)(1 • urdei (;mitt . 1 ,4, 1 44 ) rni " s ei.at hen tK 122:ditlfqiito:4! OTC, arag.ng n eit y 4 as in :Itnt 41 4 Olipott'r nme to itinnt 1513, t ot • CuilbjJmusie . !14 * his c t• 'll4 4 ' ) he ta' alerts , of the Corn b: 4 enar heir ;ep,, tr i hole . ‘ l e . Tie! !n un oul d iinl rt, and to part trip •, nnsu .Fk knew it thsd. he to rat f„ rimes kad he to t twenty hem, Id :oe means i sia u :ds L 1 t been so Irian q p r r n i:x an te d alitaz !lada tia tatiun. II •.n a urn and t h e imrl i u; : i a : . m ne e s t :l l' Vita' t.L . 3i1(04 ea 4 1 ).;:t ' er ( 1 ) .:11 h I ' a b l d l ee e o T 'vtc9slBlr7ten lu i b i l e Ta s 7% .rs i tlyt l this ot Ott inLoloi.titt o nt, tsh cap c isp o i4f2, ll :o r.;:rj n ? h, e .:hlea . i s ieft r ilaie s :l‘)4 .w ry dill de lar~ ng ted Sir he, was cane lc a, on•e4 . .thdrawal of . their cone:assets ccommodatise s:. .id . not to be 4. •' I VC 10U101 COM: (kg% a ice Ind : y years aka.- he of Ice of the citco7l. l 4; :ts :111 ornic.lo- 1 odu ice, that a voila d ; but we acre 808, )nsei•ssmes.s at *.•= l ries id any v:ea s eniu, and re tie ‘alx 4 cot been cat i nod in v • re , it air c .Iculhiot! Unit odllCe (if hal 111 , 4 • wei ii ) DS. would •'' ' tuillions. The f,,ft• as at four rents; is l •- . • • : 2 0( rents than tour, bur • hilt . 1 1 )1ying .57 by 4OM gre. I:11d Cali R o rl J. 34 u ere dcrec,al e beyond the alcoaA an mats had ever Irla •irits suppose that ea ill .• is a brawn the circch:4 d ft) Doseq st race of the le* s on the value of al; le extent, and al+ 4 fight )Iraltse, be menu' brt In of things watt IS ed by chi: vat cgs , Rs c ace of land, a .e 1"• Cc tough beasirm no rt .114 g r as any rea'2edy , i+J king eking off 64: st:o:J;, igr I that , •ilit tLec; s at w, av, must be d.iive 4 • and t!:cir prcsert cr . ., •fo e part of the Jxg' Bets? Why 0:: 0 '74 . .) .0 prices 'woni:! m produce wools] le tttl e prices Inc' t he ein an encn !Doi elf I not muse ratoslJ 'ton ncrea‘c of wealth ahi city. —(ll.lr,her; eCO stimstiug the to all roduce. One 01 610. 'as, that the mite/ the in..besl as to orr ai the c msor.iption. Thr" so very much OP lent, that they of plenty.—(lo the it s dirt—they inisht f. but they could At: he pent& were it- hcar;`. —The rvi Pot