The Statesman. — London, England, 1815-04-20 00:00:00

gd 1% be Ad ti t. e V tl VI VI tl r, 0 F' 1. f- I. • ti 11 1 1 ~„i f the tax, not bec lege we were going to war, but great expences actually had been, and must ..ober he incurred: and on that account he Would cme for the Speakei'g leaving the Chair, believing 1 1,.,t the Property Tax would be most valuable, most „ riT er, and most efficient. )lr. Nlll{ll ished to say a few words to w hin wl'y he sopporteil the question for the :wilier's loving the Chair. Ile hoped the tax „ i s b.r co moilifwil as to rei‘dor it less obnoxious to p eople, espocially in the article of the assessors, allooioa an appeal from their decisions. 1,, ket:og for this ques'i , .ll he did not conceive he r.. oar. .11r. W• said. if any thing could induce r i , Into lor tlx, it arrulcl he the argument of i!..• 11011. C't11•"113,1 who list ; but lie thought roi;sti; woos, that (toiler any modifications iil•,l# to he propi,•cd, atothio4 could he more oh -o,;oris than the late tax. Ile had no doubt lint ntidpr certain modifications, and distinguishing hoween different idols of property, and relieving it firm it. , vexatious mode of collection, and its inquisi.. r iwors, it might be made the proprrest tax in the „„,! ( I hot front chat he u iitlers!onti from the Chan cr:!or of the Exchequer no modification whatever iris it tended, and as such he thought it a tat which °tight ttry..r to lie revived. ,11r.Ai , ietman ATKINS said, that he should not a ppose the retie%al of this lax, if adequate measures uore taken to provide against the vexation uo justly of in the mode of collection. II AR VEY said he approved the principle of the Property Tax, if it were properly modified; and hr ti•nr ht the lime was now arrived when the House, hi such modifications as he had no doubt many Hon. Members hail it in contemplation to propose, might mike it a productive anti a popular tax. In the pre via when great exertions were demanded, he it %mild be bitter to adopt such a tax so rw(!ifi• d, in preference to others, which would fall more heavily on different classes •of persons who (.001 ill afford to hear them, and which, perhaps, acrid in the end not prove effective. WF.STEIIN thought the Property Tax so tort ohj..clinnable that it oottht never to be resorted ;.gaitt. If you took one-tenth from the produc th—to..; of the commercial, the manufacturing, and in 2261.31411ra! interests, you took one-tenth from too k msk..ral protlactiveness of the country itself. He, th!ft' . l . l ol 111)1)" , (.1 ;IP ` .i4imikPr ' s leaving the Chair. :.lr. DICK lENiON thou.tht tlt. Property l'ax not rot highly obnoxious. but he insisted theft. was not t.r• same power in tho cluntry to pay it now that Clot.. was fortnetly. He had with the deepest regret from the Chancellor of the Exchequer, that no H,oatiett ma: intended. The whole property of tl.e o,untty was at this ninment in such a state, that to 41,1. Ellen the value of ally property he had from to i.nother. Mr. ROSE thought a Committee the best mode of (Ite measure, and there it would be found 1. t. 1,. Protwi I . I%tx was tho most effectual that cou'd o.ed . Not e itlodatolieg the man y ass o,ti ons ilyst *vs operation :11:1 CI agape(' property, the •••`% , ,in realits, tint dttlitt!; its continuantte !, , n ! ,crtv had doubled is valea. It was a tax !.:r pr..tel4llv to any 111.1 could' lift kid on eonsump t;oo, ler derioz an es poriencf. of 30 years, he had r.;•if .110) obherved, that in (3xes laid no articles of or.ualp!ion, rvery eoe hat! drawn three times us si *as olvnined by the Government. Even in s pro , ;•0,e(1 by the Chancellor of the F...chetprr, it would he found (lint nine out of ten would any 11Tbk1 119 MOH) as .mold be required by at' Ptopei Iv Tax. lie stated that but for that tax fuailed edroperty of the kingdom would have been snoil ilatvd pip% ious to it. The Three per Cents. llnki Wien below .Isl, and vet since that the Govern. tn•::( had hot , ("3 ed GOO Rtllllntl S. Mt. BRAND thought any discussion on the Pro t...it) Tax, at the present time, as premature, as tar proposition itself; but he must observe that the tax was, in many instances, extremely ohjec tionahle, and such as a case of the most urgent necessity slotte could justify. No such case had, l'aneter, been Olen laid :-.,•fore the house, and it tas not e'en asserted, hut that Peace may still he ceeartl. Ile thought that if it were nocessary, at Presetit, to rake any immerse sums, it would be much more advisable to meet the exigency by a V. , te ut Credit, than by impnsiog so severe a tax. 11 , .illowed that the Property Tix would raise the timt. effectual Aupplie!:, as biro}` the most general 55..-11 of confiscation. In the event of war it would 1).• the best, but it had not appeared tat ear was alholutely nece.sary. Ile would, how • er• propose, Ps an amendment- 4 ' That the consi °"'ion or the Pt opt , rty 'fax Act be postponed to fori nig ht." II r /% 1 ‘., • ,'• Into to second the motion, as some - . ntioo W 4 . 11 1,1 1, 0 rC(lllirPil 1)(1 " nrn $lllXy should ...4 oy 1 1,(04),C0M. n year. 110 dial not think a toe' 0111 the country %%a , : 11/ well pry- P" , l pty the tax us the House seemed to itnafjc... , Ti Kit ry aished it to bP unl ,, rctond tlett " ‘" 7: ;::: fur the fl , nenilinent, he should not hold 1.„ from proposiii4 farther delay, if !ortni4ht GP !loose should tint he in pos- N• 10 ., of 1111..11:Jute infornintion upon this important CAI) obcorred, that althouzli the of lot(1 novaiwed within twenty yr4rq, t' sl • ll°,l . by the Right Honourable Gentleman (\lr. ""`e), that valve had notoriously fillets of late t ' .11 ?• and that fall was acQigued as a main argument fo r Corn Bill. Therefore the condition of pro. 1 1 ) . P . " uas truly described by the llo!initrable Mein- Somersetshire. It had been statea that war mitt! ant take place, but if it even should not, he h n 'i"( l doubt that this tax, once imposed, wool(' he upon the country for ever.—[ No, no! front r Vinicterial .vide.]—The Chancel - tor of the E. rt4 tli er, hrin ever, bad said, that h' should find if not impossible, to propose a lnss P " . l"iountile tne, hut this was telling people l, '` lt if they desired the removNl of a blister, they %,ettilsl have a caustic; nod if the Right lion. Gen teln!ti sn , urceed in reconciling, the public to l)r "Petty Tint. he would evince a degree of con fr fr om which he might flatter himself with being by posterity upon the same shelf with the I• ."rd (Castlereagh). • The Hon. Member con. that there was no necessitl for war ; that ; on I,f:~PC~ TlrE STATESMAN. the contrary, we might remain at peace, and should soon, nt least in two or three years, see that the ' country could preserve peace without an expensive armament to defend it ; for he ridiculed the egre gious and disgraceful alarm which appeared to be ex eitad in Ministers and their Allies by the intellect of one man.— [hear, hear !]— But he was persuaded t! at the question of peace or war entirely depended upon this *country, and that Ministers would do every thing in their power•to urge the Allies to War. That they would give the money to support the War if the Allies would accept it for warlike operations ; and to show this, the Hon. Member referred to Treaties of Subsidy, forcibly ani:nadverting upon the refusal of the Noble Lord to give any answer upon this subject. Lord cAsTLEREAGII observed,• that the Hon. Member in supposing the continuance of the Pro perty Tax, had relied more on his own supposition, than any statement made by his Itielit Honourable Friend. In reality, it %vas intended to revive it only for one year. Ire was anxious that it should ap pear to the world, and particularly to France, that no hesitation existed in that House to arm the Eire:: i cutive Power to resist any outrage on the liberties of Europe ; but if the- House should feel that peace can be preserved under that description of Peace ! Establishment which the lion. Member (Mr. Whit bread) would recommend, and if they would rely upon that confiding sy stem of policy towards Bona-. parte, advised by the same Hon. Member, then, indeed, the propositions of the Chancellor of the Exchequer would far exceed the exigencies of the State. As to the remarks made on his Right Hon. Friend's speech, he would only observe, that it was a proud statement that this country had gone so triumphantly through the contest, of which the Honourable Member (Mr. W.) had despaired in every stage, and in which we 111(1 been constantly threatened with being humbled before the feet of him who had been there called the great man ; and he had but little doubt that, while there would remain the same presiding wisdom, the same persevering firtnness which even the speeches of the Honourable Member should not shake, that the same glorious result would crown their future exertions, as had dignified their former struggle. Mr. WHITBR EA D denied that he had ever called Bonaparte a great man in the sense conveyed by the Noble Lord ; but if a mart were to shine by compe -1 risen—[Crier of spoke! spoke!] i Mr. PONSONBY said, he was one of those who thought that if the House should vote the Property Tax without its being shown that war was unavoid able, that tax would become perpetual, for every future Chancellor of the Eachequer would do all in his power to make it so. As to morliications, it would be impossible to make any consistent with the efficiency , of the tax. Another objection was, the facility it afforded to Ministers to enter upon war hod other expensive measures to which it was an ab soluteprovocatioo. lie asked if the Chancellor of the Exchequer would say that he might not advert to a Loan as well as the Property Tax, and if he could not say no, why not take part of that Loan now, and thus supply the present exigency ? The Noble Lord cowl:tined of some things that had been said thi. night, he also complained, that it was laipossible to tell when the Noble Lord would think it a pro per day tr. lay bt fore the House all the Papers rela tive to the proceedings of the Congress, though they were daily making their appearance through other channels. The Noble Lord's letter to Prince Harden. berg was true; he also thought his letter to Prince Tal leyrand was true; and that the letter of the Plenipo tentiaries of the King of Naples was true. Ile was induced to think so because none of them had been ' denied ; and from the whole of these he thought from his soul and conscience that the Noble Lord and the I Congress bad been the meatus of now placing Bona parte on the throne. The letter of the Prince 'fa'. leyrand was a jesuitical production, as it related to Naples. Nothing was more natural than for Murat to look to what appeared his best security. Had the agreement with him been executed, he could have had no pretence nor temptation to act as he is stated to have done. Indeed, it was generally understood, that be had no predilection for Bonaparte, who wished to add Naples to his kingdom of Italy. If the Noble Lord could show him (Mr. P.) that he was %smug, he should he happy, both for the honoor of this country and for the interests of Europe. Ile had given his reasons already against the Property Tax, 'which he never could look at in a favourable light. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he should not follow the Right lion. Gentlemau in the various topics upon which he had touched, but confine himself merely to the question before the • House, and in order to show the Right Hon. Gentle man that his feats of the Property Tax being imposed for ever, if it should be now agreed to, he would read one sentence from the motion, which he intend ed to the Committee. [This sentence was, that the several Acts relating to the Property Tax should be renewed and granted to his Majesty for the term of one year, to commenre from the sth of April, 1815.] As to the insinuation that Ministers would never want a pretext for continuing the tax, wiles! the ' Right Hon. Gentleman could point out in the his tory of this country, circumstances that were analo gous to those which how prevailed, he did not think he was jus•itied in that assertion: The House arid the • country, however, were in a condition to judge from events which were matter of public notoriety,whether, though war was not actually declared, the existing circumstances did not call for the whole energies of the nation. He confessed he viewed the measure with less alarm than seemed to be felt by some, be cause he did not now propose any new and untried system of finance, but simply the renewal of • one' which for many years had been acted upon without • atlydetrimeet to the prosperity of the country. His object, in the Committee, would be merely to pro , pose the general principle of that system, and any discussion as to the details would take place in some future stage of the measure. The Right Hon. Gen.; tternan had said, and said tally, that a large loan would be required in addition; and it,waii singular, therefore, he should oppose a tax which could alone be considered as a sobstitute for a still :larger loon, which would necessarily have a great 'effect ttpbo the public funds.. It nes agreed do all 'hinds that the public debt was already.:toerlatire; and to,con-• tinue the whole burden of the- ceeetry upon the feuding system s and the credit of the ceuutry ) would be to ruin both the one and the other. lie considered it as more hatiourable uud inore natural to bear some of it ourselves, rather than to lay it all upon our posterity ; and it was, besides, al% ays a 1110`;[ incur. venient time for raisin; large Lo4:is %sidle the issue of great public events was uacertain. NJ bargain could be made with any sot of contractors under such circumstances, which would not be liable to unfair advantages on one side, or unfair losses on the other, as it would be impossible to disclose to them all those particular transactions which alone Could enable them to judge of the propriety of entering into such engagements. Mr. METIIUEN said, that in giving his vote foi the motion, he did so from a conviction in his own mind, that whenever the present state of things in France should Ct'ZISP, the tax should cease also.. Mr. FREMANTLE voted for the amendment because he thought the delay would be in no manner prejudicial, but en the contrary, would satisfy• the Hotte and the country, by showing that all undue precipitation was avoided. Lord MI Ll'ON said, that though he was the last man who would pin his faith upon the present good faith of the Ruler of France, vet, at the same time w•e might not to plunge headlong into a war without trying every reasonable means for securing peace. He should vote for the amendment, not because he wished to embarrass the Government, but because he regarded Ibe renewal of the Property Tax as the ul timate issue of war, and coupling that renewal with the warlike speech of the Noble Lord, [near, hear]; no man could doubt that the Government was deter. mined on hostilities. he said the Government, for it was clear, that the Noble Lord was now the Go vernment, and that his opinions, whatever they might be, were the ruling opinions in all that con cerned our foreign relations. 'He was sure the peo ple would pay the lax more cheerfutly, if it appeared as the coesequence of an inevitable war instead of the cause of war.--[llear!]—lf a war should be neces saryl and that necessity clearly made out, no one would more willingly give support to Government than himself, not because he dreaded the superior ie. tellect of Bonaparte, as was said by an honourable Member, but because he dreaded the genius of the French'Government and the ascendency of that mi litary system which threatened the repose and liberties of Europe. Ile should vote for postponing the tnea cure until further inform:Lilo:l relative to our foteign aff a ir, e 0 . 1 1 ( 1 be c omu,unirated. Lord LASCELLES said, that he should he sorry, if in the prese, t state of Europe, that House Were to show any backwardness in defence or war, according as either might he necessary, and he should he sorry also to think that the Government was at al! in• fluenced by those insidious communications which had been made to it by the French Government.-- He should not vote for the motion on the supposi tion that giving the Property Tax would be an in ducement for going to war, but because an injury would be done to the public interests, if means were not provided for an adequate defence in the first in stance, and for war itself should it beCome neces sary: the House then divided upon the Amendment, when the numbers were— Ayes Noes 18.1—Ma jority in favour of Ministers 125. When the G.iiery was re-opened, we found the House in the Committee, and the Chairman moving the Resolution for the renewal of the Property Tax Acts for one year, to commence from the sth'of April, 1815, %hick was accordingly carried. A Resolution for Funding Eighteen Millions of Exchequer Bills was also adopted, when the House resumed, *and the Report was ordered to be received to-morrow. The other Orders were then disposed of, and the House adjourned. HAMBURGH PdPER.S. FRONTIRRI OF ITALY, APRIL 3.—Soine accounts say that Murat has taken possess.on of !tome, in the name of the predtended King of Rom... The Pope, who has left his capital, seems to he going to. Venice. It is said that au affair has already taken place near Ferrard. VIENVA, APRIL s.—Murat was by the last ac counts at Pesaro. _ _ We expect every day the re-opening of the Ger. man Committee. Since Austria has given in a Decla ration to the united Princes and free cities, exactly similar to that of Prussia, Holland will now proba bly take a part in the Germasi Committee, on ac count of Luxembourg ; the same is hoped of Den mark, on account of Holstein ; Baden and Darin starlt, who did not sign the Note of the Princes of the 22d of March, had previously offered their con tingents. Since the alliance between the four great Powers, several conventions of the same tenour have been concluded with other Powers. Danmark gives an army of 25,000 men; and has offered 40,000, if it can be assisted by a subsidy in the equip ment and maintenance•of such force. The Saxon deputies are gone to. Presburgh to the King, who has called them to him, to deliberate on the state of the country. Ho'has not yet signed the Convention, but it can hardly be doubted hut that he will soon do so. In a fortnight after the King has signed, the admi nistration of the country will be given up, according to stipulation, by Prussia to the Saxon authorities.— The Saxon troops will be under the command of the Duke of Wellington. The many important cqn. ferences between the Sovereigns themselves have in duced the Emperor of !lassie to give up his intended journey to Prague, to cause no delay in the measures which require the greatest promptitude. On the re ceipt of the very first 'teas of Boriaparte's lauding, Alexander said very sensibly, " The thing is trifling if we do not treat it as a trifle." The Archduke Charles will certainly set out for Mentz at the end of this 'week: The Crown PrinCe l of Wirtemberg goes away before him,' to take the command of a Jorge army of Austrian, Wirteniberg, and Hessian troops. BKEILAV, Are tr. B.—The Russian army of reserve of 80,000 knell, which will he stationed in Bavaria, is to march through this city at the eild df this month. The Mirth driroops by TOlpu and Srelnau has con timidd'llVedy abbirt deli days. The whold army that ' will piss through our province is stated to be 215,000 men. . DRESDEN, ?teem s.—Some pbpers having spread a NIP report .of ai,nidet in Droien ; %hich hi:l • vigorous measures In he necesstry s this r,., . formally and officially contradicter' by the F , ;• • General Government. • ‘S'Atts.kw, APRIL 6.—The (lay before yev, the Polish General Krukowrecki arrived help 1;‘,.,. Vienna, with the news,' that the esistenc • (- kingdom of Poland is finally decided. This u.t. 7: pected and agreeable news caused uncommon joy here. A new piece was performed at the Theatre, taken from the Polish history ; and at those pa•-tge: which suited the occasion,. there was' genericl cry of " Long live Alexander !" in the evening, the whole city was illuminated. IVe do not yet know what are to be the boundaries of the kingdom of Po. land, General Krukowreeki was lately in England, whither he was sent to receive the Poli4t prisofterd of • war. . BERLIN, April 11.— His Majesty has signed the letters patent for the taking possessing of the Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine, the Duchiot of Cleves, Berg, and Guelders, the Principality of Moors, and the Lordships of Essen and Werden. In a Proclamation to the inhabitants ref the Kline ) Provinces 'united with •Prustia, his Majesty slates, that when the Congress unanimously proposed the incorporation• of these Provinces with Prussia, he did not, in giving his assent, forget the dangerous sites. lion of these frontier countries of Germany, aed. the difficulty of defending them : but conpidering that they are the bulwarks of German indep-edence, and that Prussia, whose own dependence has blew threatened by their loss, had the duty, as well aft the honourable claim to defend them, he yielded to these higher considerations, and reilActing be 7 sides,• that he united with his \objects a faithful, generous, and German lieop!e, who .would joyfully share with them every danger to defend their comemott freedom, he had joined these countries to the Prussian crown, confiding in God and in the courage a mt loyal. ty olhis people. Ilk Majesty promises that they shall be governed by mild laws, their religion pr'oacted, and its servants be placed in a sithalion to support their office with dignity, that a Bishop's see and university, and seminaries for Priests and Instructors, shall be established. Ilk Majesty observes, that he is sensible of the burden.; which a continued state of war has inevitably caused, • hut bids them remember that they proceeded chiefly from their former con. nection with France. The taxes shell not be op. pressive, and sh‘ll be regulated, after consulting them, according to a plan to be formed for the other Prussian States. The military establishment to aim at defence, and the expence of a large standing army be spared by the organization of Landwehr in time of peace; but in war, all must take up arms that ar• able to use them. Weir, says his Majesty, threatens your frontiers; to remove it to a distance I shall for a time ask for new exertions; I shall choose a part of my standing army from among you, and summon the Llndwehr, and form the tandsturm, if the danger should come so near as to make it necessary. But, united with my brave armies, and my other subjects, you will subdue the enemy of your country, and partake the glory of having insured for a long series of centuries tl►e•frwdooa-sud independence of. the Gorman empi (sived) FREDERICK WILLIAM. Dated Irina*, Apr 1 3. FRENCH PAPERS. I' PARIS, Aram 16. TELTDR AMC DISPATCH. TUE' DUKE OF NLBUFEKA TO THE MINISTER att,i " LYONS, APRIL 16, 1815.—0 n the 12th, the city of Marseilles, on the invitation of the Marshal Prince of Essling, and without waiting for the,ar. rival of our troops, hoisted the tri-enlourefl It flies since the loth at Draguignan and Antibes. " At noon, •this news was announcetl . lolthe capi' tat by the discharge of 100 cantiou erukey therar. tillery of the Invalids." His Majesty this day reviewed the National Guards of Paris, composed of 12 legions, forming battalions:4s 24 hattalious trete (Ira wII up in 11.0 Court of the Palace of the Thuilleties, and tl.e or! , er 21 in the Mice du Carousal. When the t 2/ first battalions were reviewed, they clo'u'd; the others entered the court, and faced in the rear. 'f he Etnperor pa'ssed in succession through all the ranks, and stopped for s•tme time before• each battalion.— The officers at length forming a circle, his Majesty addressed them nearly in tints terms:— '• Soldiers of the National Guard of Paris, I aro ♦ery glad to see you. I formed you 15 months ago for the maintenance of public tranquillity in the ca pital, and for its seem ity. You fulfilled my espec tation. You shed tour blood for the defence of Paris : and if enemies' troops entered our walls, the fault was not in you, but in treason, and especially in that fatality o hich adhered to our affairs under those unfortunate circumstances. .► The Royal Throne was not suitable for France. It gave no security to the people oo their most pre• cious interests. It had been imposed on us by the foreigner. if it had existed, it would have been a monument of shame and calamity. I am arrived, armed with all tl►e force of the people and of the army, to efface this stain, and restore all their bright ness toihe•honour and glory of France. " Soldiers of the National Guard, this very morn ing the telegraph of Lyons has informed me that the tri-coloured flag flies at A►►tibes and at M►tseilles: 100 rounds of cannon, fired on all our frontiers, will acquaint the foreigner that our civil dissensious are terminated. I say the foreigners, for as yet we know not any enemies. If they collect their troops, we will collect our's. Our armies are all composed of heroes who have signalised themselves in many battles ; and will present to the foreigner a. frontier of iron ; whilo numerous battalions of granadiers and chasseurs of the National Guards will guarantee our frontiers. 1 will net interfere with the *Pin of other nations; woe to the Governments wbo shall interfere with our's. Reverses have retempered the character of the French people: it has recevered that youth, that vigour, which, 20 years ago,tstuui►►tl• ed Europe. . " Soldiers, you hive been ferce4 to • prescribed by . the nation ; but the. px4l were in your hearts. You swear to tak , for a rallying and to defend o wear coloorl ationat colour Ice them alwaa 1 that impailif • ~- fr