The Press. — London, England, 1855-04-21 00:00:00

,~~ wrote a poem against the Irish Tories, whom he ably desorihed as going first to Heligoland, and then to another place with a shorter name. That colony, therefore, has its political use. The next, please? Mr. B.: The Cape of Goo I Hope. Lord JOHN : Ah, and those infernal Kaffirs, and still more abo minable colonists. What a deal of trouble they have given about the convicts, instead of allowing the Home Government to work out its own plans. In old times it was called the Cape of Tempests, and I think the former title was the most suitable. I dare say I shall have a good deal of bother with that Cape. Mr. 13.: Ceylon. Lord JOHN : Hang it, Mr. 8., you've got into a set of pleasant re collections. Lord Torrington, and so forth. 1 made a very good joke about its capital being sugar-candy, ha ! ha! I forget exactly how I put it, but it nearly killed Charles Wood with laughing. Ceylon— " spicy breezes"—Bishop Heber's hymn—all right. Mr. B.: The Bermudas. Lord JOHN : Waller, the poet, has described them. I never knew any other use of them. Mr. B.: Barbadoes. Lord JOHN : The scene of the story of " Inkle and Yarico," and in the play of that name there is a chorus containing the words, "And all Barbadoes bells shall ring." This was an inaccurate expression, for at the time, and for long after, there was but one bell in the You see, Mr. 8., that inaccuracy seldom evades detection. The island itself I don't seem to know much about, but I have an impression that everybody there is always being ruined. Mr. B.: Montserrat. Lord JOHN : Is that one? I never heard the name, except in Sir . Walter Seott's charming tale, the " Talisman." Is not the Marquis of Montserrat one of the characters ? Mr. B.: Hong-Kong. Lord Joss: Ah ! that's in China. I know all about that. By the Way, make a memorandum to see which way the Chinese revolution is going. if I thought the rebels were quite sure to succeed, I would interfere and protect them against the tyranny of the Imperialists. Palmerston thinks nobody can do the non-intervention business but himself. Mr. B.: Mauritius. Lord Jolts : That was where that unscrupulous libeller, the late Hook, got into a scrape ; and serve him right, for assailing his superiors in birth and ability. • such difficult negotiation in the market that it had never been possible to raise a single large sum by this means. They involve, in fact, the complex principle of repayment at once of principal and in• terest, which increase the difficulty of their terms. He theh pointed oat the inconvenience of making regulations for the full repa3ment of loans at stated times. He quoted the reductions of the interest of the national debt since the conclusion of the war, and the income tax, which bad then at ten per cent. produced 14,8t40,000/., while last year at six per cent. it produced little short of fourteen pillions, thus showing the increased inicome of the country, and its increased power of bearing taxation.. For all these reasons the Government bad dceided on the creation of a loan of sixteen millions, with a sinking fund annexed of a million. He then traced the pro gress of taxation from the beginning of the late war, showing its great increase during the war, notwith standing the large stuns borrowed. He now pro posed to raise by taxation a sum of 5,300,0001. For his purpose he increased the duty on sugar by 38. the cwt., and estimated the gain to the revenue at 1, 4 400,000/. Further, he added one penny .a pound on coffee, which would produce 150,0001. The next was an addition to tea, the duty on which be raised to Is. 9d. in the pound, estimating the increase at 750,0001. He then proposed to remove the exemp tion from stamp duty on bankers' cheques, making 200,000/. increase. The duty on Scotch spirits would be assimilated to that on English, being raised from Os. 3d. to 7s. 101, and that on Irish raw from 4s. to Os. The increase would be a million sterling. It would be advisable to throw a part of the burden on direct taxation. The ineomeltax afforded the fairest means, and he proposed a simple addition of one per cent. to the existing tax, by adding twopence in the pound to the present fourteen pence, which he calculated would meet the deficit yet required to complete the entire additional taxa tion. lie asked for the liberty of issuing 3,000,0001. additional Exchequer-bills to meet further demands. He then adverted to the proposed loan, which would be taken on equitable terms, and the resolution§ re specting which *tire read from the chair. Mr. LAING said that the house should not, without due consideration, commit itself to the principles just announced. Twelve months ago we were told not to throw the whole burden on posterity. The present juncture was one in which it was necessary to alter our plan ; but we are not prepared at once for such a total alteration of the system under which we have been so long acting. He entered into many practical details to prove, that if a definite proposal ad been laid before the puLlic for the entire ? - "tx -1P rtOg+ LONDON, SATURDAY, APRIL 21, 18M. POSTSCRIPT. HOUSE OF COMMONS.—FRIDAY. THE BUDGET. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER commenced his statement by apologising for its delay. The Government had desired that the statement should be es complete as possible, and there was an advan tage in waiting till the financial year was completed and some view could be taken of the result of the Vienna conferences. After a review of the estimates and expenditure of the past year, he proceeded to the estimated expenditure for the present year, which be calculated actually at 86,899,561/., but it would be necessary to have a considerable margin under the present exigencies, and he proposed to make arrangements for 86,339,000/. The estimate included 16,214,0001. for the at-my, 16,653,0(10 navy, T,t 08,000/. ordnance, a credit vote of 3,0 00 , 0001 ., and an instalment of 1,600,(X)0/. for the Sardinian loan. The sum was large, but not over the wants of the country, for the disbursement of the past quarter had been no less than 19,474,000/. He compared the military expenses with those of the last year of peace, which had risen from 16,000,0001. e t0 32,000,000/. in the past year, and 43,000,0001. in the present. He estimated the revenue for the ensuing year at 63,339,0001., including 20,500,0(W. for customs, 17,000,1001. for excise, and 15,535,0001. for property tax. This would leave a deficit of 23,000,000/. to be provided for. For this purpose the Government had decided on asking for a loan. No doubt there were many objections against intruding Government with the power of borrowing money, but experience had shown the impossibility of avoiding it. He showed be checks which the prospect of increased taxation had already offered to the business of the country. We bequeathed our science, our art, our institution to posterity, and we bequeathed our debt with them. At the same time we accompanied that debt, as far as possible, with measures for reducing it hereafter. All loans by subordinate bodies carried it their regulations for repayment. Terminable Cumities offered many advantages, but they were of Tilt FtESS. Mr. B.: St. Helena. Lord JOHN : Ah ! we Whigs made good capital out of that rock and Sir Lowe, in the old times. lye an affection fur St. Helena. Let's see, though—are you sure it is ours still? Didn't we give it up to France? No, no; you're quite right, it was not the island, only the remains of the Emperor. Go on. Mr. B.: Australia. Lord JOHN : That's a place I shall make very short work with, if the people are troublesome. Another. Mr. B.: Sierra Leone. Lord JOHN : An invaluable place. One sends troublesome people there, and one draws admirable sentiments from it about liberty, emancipation, and all that Would you like an appointment to Sierra Leone, Mr. B.? Young men should be enterprising, you know. Mr. B.: I am much obliged to your Lordship, but my connections are English, and—shall I go on with the Colonies? Lord JOHN : What. are there any more? Mr. B.: Lots, my Lord. There s Antigua, and St. Christopher's, and Demerara, and Honduras, and Jamaica, and New Zealand, and Trinidad — Lord JOHN : Stop, stop! Do you mean that all those are our Colonies? There must be some mistake. Mr. B : I can give you some more, my Lord. There's Anguilla, Bahama, Cape Breton, the Falkland Islands, Gambia, Goza, Lord JOHN : Be quiet, I tell you. • Mr. B.: But I know a lot more. Lord JOHN : Pray be quiet. Such a list of names is quite over whelming. Of course I don't mean that I shall have the least diffi culty in managing all these places, or that I shrink from the respon sibility ; but still one's hands will, I see, be pretty well occupied, if I add to the duties of my office those of Parliament. By the way, your memory is very good—do you remember what, in a lump, they estimate as the number of—of—ha! ha subjects ? Mr. B.: Well, your own separate number is not very large, but then they are scattered all over the world. But, between you and Mr. Vernon Smith, you number about a hundred and thirty-seven millions of vassals, who look to you for government, counsel, and guidance. Lord Jour; : Not more? What a fuss people make tsbout the duties of the Colonial-office. However, here we seem to stop. Let us have some refreshment. Your memory does you very great credit, Mr. 8., very great, and I am pleased to see how well informed you are. [They get out. amounts required, the Government knight have expected fair terms, whichever principle they had adopted, instead of hesitating between two or three. He objected to the increased taxes on articles of coi . sumption. Our Whets had paid 10 per cent. income tax, and they were not less patriotic than they. Sir H. WILLOUGHBY did not believe that any Chancellor of the Exchequer could raise eighty-six millions by taxation in any year; and he argued trom this against our carrying on an aggressive war against the Russian empire. • Mr. GLADSTON said that the votes involved in the proposition involved only distinct prinoiples. The votes on the loan had no analogy with the votes f. it additional taxation. The last was merely a technicil vote, with which Parliament might deal hereafter ; but the first would be conclusive as between the state and the contractors. He objected to voting at once on that part of the resolutions which provided for the repayment of the loan. He thought that time should be given for consideration of that provision. He could not agree in the proposition 'Which had been made for increasing the income tax to 10 per cent.; it involved an extension of the income tax to income under 1001. a year, and social questions are not to be decided a moment. Its extension be believed would come, but Would carry with it very numerous and complex consideration. Considering that all loans were contracted at a disadvantage, be admitted that nevertheless a sudden increase of taxation might be yet more injurious. So far from any apology being necessatrfor the late bringing forward of the Budget, it might have been still further postponed until the result of the Vienna Conference was decided, and be pointed out how much of the money asked for would be saved in the event of peace. Should that not be. the reeelt our relations with other p. were would be materiely altered from what they were be fore tligeortference began. Retaining all his objec tions to the system of loan, he was nevertheless pre pared to say aye to the proposition of his right hum hien& A desultory discussion followed, in which the budget was criticised by Sir F. Kelly, Mr. Williams, Mr. Macgregor, Mr. Muntz, and other s ; and de fended by Mr. Masterman and Mr. Matins ; after which the resolutions embodying the budget were agreed to. The house adjourned at eleven o'clock. The proceedings in the Lords were quite utirni portant SATUItI~AY, t any I trom 7 War in the The es f. it hnicil !after ; e state t once for the should i. He been cent.; 'conics t to be elieved nerous tat all Emitted I might I being 3udget, 3til the and be ed for Lid that p. were ere be. objec- ss pre- ht bun. ch the Mims ind de- ; after A woe urimi