The Sun. — London, England, 1812-06-18 00:00:00

. . . . ed from the , intention pat to,:'eAr - ty into irnitie-, di ite execution the projected barracks. He begged to be distinctly - understood On . this 'part of the • subject. Ire by no _means- disapproved of. the Wan for the erection of those barracks, although he was 'not prepared to give an immecl:afe opi , !lion upon it. " The Board of ,Treasury had sim ' "ply determined not to make themselves responsible for a plan, the merits'of which they had not yet had sufficient time,to 'Consider. It was probable, and" indeed More than probable, that the resolu- . tion to wilielithe House of Commons had agreed; bt something approaching to it, would be carried into effeet: At this time, he should repeat; that the present'Goverinnent had not been in office for 4 period sufficiently lon_to enable them duly to " . ,lei;preeiate the value Of the proposition—alear , r , ! , :ir ! from the Opposition Benches) . Didthe Gentle " Alien oppositethink a week was ample time for such 1 consideration ?. or did they disapprove of . the Te ,- .olution of Government to inquire minutelyinto. • the expenditure of the country ,?-=-The ENtraor xlinaries of the Army..unprovide.d for last year, Amounted to . 2,300,0001.5 . besides which tliere Zvere for the resent year 5,000,0001. : fdr Eng ilntl, and 200;0001 for - Ireland. The ordnance (including Ireiand)..Was 5,279,8971. ' 'Die iniscel 4neous services (inclUding 400,0001. Irish perma nent grants) *ere 2,340,000 L ItWas . also in ,tended to propose a vote of credit of 3,000,0001. fur England, and 200,0001. for IreLnd. The sub *dies would be nearly the same as last year, viz. 1 00 ;000l. to Sicily ; and 2,000,0001. to Portugal. aese various items . would stand 'therefore as Follows, vit. : - . l laxY,exclusiVe of Ordn'ince Sea • Service ,:419,702,399 - 41.41 Y, iticludidg ,barracks and , • tr eoairoissariat - C 14,577,69 17,7 - 56,160 a tto, Ireland 3,178,462 txtraor • ' ~ Eng'land 4 ' °°° ' °" ? s,`'co;odo dinarics ? Irehm . l 200,000 - • • U n • , r provtded ditto last year .2,300,00 Q i t i.littnce, mciuding Ireland ' ~ 5,279,897 1,;7,ei1a3e044 (igcludi ng 400,e001.) ----,. perinauent Grant 4 ote of Credit ' Egtgland 3,00 0 ;000 ,„- „ ~,,, C Ireland Sicily 400,000 Ptirtuoi • 2,000,000 2;350,000 Total of Joint Charge 455,189,456 P ro this sum must be added 100,0001. repayment of the Loyalty Loan, and ,700;0001. interest on E xchequer Bills issuedein the last year, making together, 1,800,2921. To this must also be added tke amount of Exehequer Bills charged on the ifis. of 1812,' outstanding, which it was not in tended to replace by the issue, br new bills; viz. .387,6001. He was bound to state that this ar rangement.was suggested by the Bari'.;;of Eng and th emse l ves LC) his late, Right lion. Friend, and acquiesced in by him ; a circumstance which I.lfticiently proved that the Bank had not the de !ire which had been unjustly imputed to theth of 14 creasing the unfunded debt without limit. These -4 ' )3 §, added together, made 4,187;8921. ; which again added to the stint Which he had already stated of 5 5,188 i 4561.• in. the total of the supplies 12, 376,348. From this must be deducted the Irish proportion of 58,188,4561. or 6,845,700. 'and the Irish 'Civil List, &c. 180,0031, making to. ; gether 7,025,7001. The result was, that the total. of tse Supplies left to be provided on the aeconet f England, was 55,350,681. The way in which he proposed to - meet thiS charge, enormous as it geared to be, was as follow's, viz.—Th i v Annual J-kuties 3,000,0001. ; the Surplus of the Consoli dated Fund, 3,600,0001.3 the War Taxes (includ ing the Property Tax) 20,400,0001..; the Lottery ' lOO ,OOOl. • the Loan in the 5 per Cent, Annul les, funded by the Subscribers of Exchequer ills last year, 6,789,6251.; the Exchequer Bills 'Asued on the Vote of Credit, three millions e aud here he would observe that there would be, 4 _ o addition to the • unfunded debt, a tuffi ietit amount of Exchequer Bills having been rintled to cover the - three million issued on the do te of Credit of last year. The Naval S t oles, now for the first, time brought to this ac count, would be 441,2181. ; the surplus of the . t „aYs and Means of last year would be 2;209,6261. ti tiis surpl us arose i n a Ivey which - he would ex- P l ain to th e C omm itt ee . A p ar t o f th e gran t s o f la st year c o ns i s t e d o f E xc h equer Bill s , t o b e p a id 0 1 , 113 y the aids of that year. - A large portion those Exchequer Bills had been. funded 3 and, i f er making go o d a small deficiency which ex the sum, as he had before stated, of t i°9,6261. was left unappropriated. The .only ar illete of the Ways and" Means which it remained for b i ,', 4l to enumera t e , was the Loan-15,650,0001. vi z "se various items would, stand, therefore, thus, A te , nal Duties s Z 3,000,000 Vv. Pius Consolidated Fund 3,600,000 axes Ixes Le a Y 300,000 - Vol b t i Subscribers of Exchequer - Bills funded.. ,789,6'25 Credit. , • . 3,000 ,000 Storec , 441, 71.! 218 lUs 'Ways and MranA, 1 611 ,created hy fund le, Part of the Exchequer BillS charged on the 2,203,62 G of that Year 15,6:50,000 ,C 55,390,459 4p e Ways and Means exceeding the Supply about would next advert to the-mode in the probable amount of the Surplus of the °o solidated Fund and the War Taxes . had bee n h l etlhated. The Surplus of the Consolidated Fund been calculated on the average produce of the Cust oms last years. The average produce a the for the three: last years was 5,160,0001. ; c 'k t he Excise, 13,118,0001. ; of the Assessed - e 3 3 5,559,0001. ; of the Sta m p D u ti es , ',1.,.0,1 0 001:;) of the Post 'Office, 1,240,0001.; l i i s ' l haft Grants, 100,0001.; of 'the Personal `ate .of the Crown, 141,0001.; of the Land p)., 1 ,310;0001.; of Exchequer Fees, 60,0001.; li e t oe Tontine, 24,0001.; of the 11.50,001.; and of Jmprest. Monies, Bmaki7g, the total average annual ears Opt of the Consolidated Fund for the last three 3 7,262,0001. to which must be added,- tC‘ 6 ,00014 on - accoun t o f t h e war taxes, matiing, Co 'whole 39,938PC01. The whole-charge of the b i Ilsolidated Fund for the year ending •in Fe t,g,.ry last was A 4,504,0041. ; leaving .a Surplus mti5 ,434,0001 . B ut i t-was necessary on that stir-, ' TSto Provid e -f or th e di sc h arge o f 900 , 0001 . vote d ht Session, and the charges of the present loan. til.ereseetn. s deducted from the gross surplus, left ___ _ _ • IXe had estirnated it at ::3;60,00qi. 13cio f the nearest round sum. 116 war taxes, •ciistoms, •and excise, bad been estiniated., on - the average produCe'of the three last .years. (Into the de'- • tails of this part of:the - Right Hoflonrable Gen tleman's sneeeli, the lOwness of is tone, and - din 'not being possessed of the Official documents,.pre vents 'us from Minutely entering.) Hea'nticipated that it Might be thought:Unfair to state the pro bable- produce of the .revenne this year on the. average of the three last years, 'bteatise it might be urged that that revenue -was gradually falling "off; but such was tint tbe.fact. The quar ter ending the - sth January, 1811, fell consider ably short, even to the amount of 760,0091: of the quarter'ending the .7th January- 1810, The quar ter' 'ending the sth Oetober,. 1811, .fell short by '469',0001. of the (mailer ending the ,sth- October; 1810. But the quarter ending the. sth of January, 1812; exceeded the quarter ending the sth of Ja nuary, 1811, - by 31,0001. ; and the quarter ending the sth of April, 1812, -exceeding the amount of the quarter, ending on the - sth day of April 1811, by 463,0001.; a SIIM, much surpassing the increase which the new duties could have occa sioned in that qnarter; and which : sliffiCiently proved the growing increase of the revenue. After adverting to the terms on which the twelve mil, lions loan of last-year was . borrofved, the total charge on - which was six and a half ,per cent. e he stated that the capital stock Created by the pveient loan would be '27,514,0001. ; ^rtd tlntt the total charge, compounded of 826-,0001. interest, arid 275,1001; Biriking - Fund and. management, Won' Id be 1',101;0001. The rite of interest to the subscribers "would he 51. ss. 7d, per cent.; and the whole charge to the publics, ,including the expellees of management, 7.per cent. The pre sent situation df the country had not enabled his Majesty's. Mini,'terzi, to edlelude the loan tei so advankageous terms as were obtained liSt years ; but then it should be remembered that the present loan was for a Mob larger sum tha.'!' for - the loan Of last year ; and he believed it would be found that no loan of such a large amount had ever been - contracted for; bur on still higher in, terest. Indeed, he feared that the contractors for the-loan had more reason to complain of Navin; • been hardly'dealt by than the public... He should feel happy if the bargain should prove more pro ; itable to them in future than it had hitherto done. Such an improvement of the public credit Would be hailed with the greatest satisfaction by 'his MajeAy's . MiniSters: lle 'would proceed to that which was the most important, elhough certeinly it was the most disagreeable• part of his task, and certainly not the - less unplea sant to him, front, the circumstance of his having. been induce* to make considerable 'al= terations _in the plan left, by his Right 110- nourable Friend ; he meant the statement of the new duties . necessary to Meet the charges of the Loan. . The estimated produce of these in tended new duties wa's 1;903,0001. The first ar ticle was a tax which would fall on nobody. Gentle Men might : Smile ; but if it was in other respects unobjectionable, he trusted it would not be cenSure(Lon that account. It was intended 'to discontinue the bounty on the exportation of printed gOods. This bounty bad grown 'from a small charge to a very large one, amounting on an average of the last three years to 308,0001. ; circumstance however highly satisfactory, as shewing the, great increase in the exportation of those goods. Lie trusted that no evil would result to the manufacturer fron t the cessa ti on of the bounty. - The printed goods in question were Much cheaper at present -than wilen, the bounty was originaty zjantett, and therefore much abler to meet foreign manufaetures in foreign markets. The bounty was therefore no lOnger necessary (especially in the present state of the world with respect to commerce) as'Britisl _ . manufactures were not 6:eiuded from the con tiucnt of Europe on account of their high price or inferior quality, but their exclusiOlia3"therely in consequence of political prObibitio, and war like measures.-•--When those ceased, the country might expect to .scr. the British manufact►ires, without the assistance of any bounty, again mead into the accustomed Continental channets. He thought, - therefore, that the abolition of this bounty, which vas only a halfpenny a yard on printed goods ,of tie lowest quality, and three-halfpence .a yard on gOods of the highest quality, would 'be considered by all par ties as wholly unobjectionable. He ireely chn fessed that he was unable to say as much of the' remaining propositions which he NVas about to submit to Parliament; but the Committee were aware, that in his situation, an individual had fre quently but a choice of evils ; and that the only question which he could put to himself Was, W whe ther.. the evil which. he. 'chose as less objec tionable than those which he- rejected. The first article which he proposed' to tax, teas one to the taxation of which he certainly en tertained considerable objections, ilthough it certainly was one which, upon the whole, appeared to him the least unfit to bear an addi tional impost. it was in article on which no in- crease of duty lia4 of late years been laid; fie meant Hides and Skins.' They now paid three half-pence a pound duty. By doubling that duty he expected (calculating on, the average produce of the three last years) that:the sum of 325,000 L would be produced. The next article was one _ _ the excise on which he should also rropose to double. After- the most extensive enquiry, he had, not found that this increase was likely to iniure the Manufacturers of the article to which he.alluded—Glass. It was not prOhable that . the consumption, would be, itch affected. by such a tai; and indeed he was -warrranted, froth conduit- nications which he had had with the inunufactuan, to say, ilia being protected Iby heavy import du ties, from suffering the com!ietition of foreign ma- 1 nufa.Cturcrs, they had no' aPprehension of any evil consequence to themselves. • The prodtice of this tag, calculatirg as before on the *average produce of three ye*ni, he would - •estimate pit 328,000/. The next poposition which he wished to make to the Coiinnittee was to add r t,cn per cent,. to the existing duties on Tobac- co; which afforded this criterion; - that it was corn- petent to bear an additional tax, namely, that the consuraptionoi it wctut an inereaaing. tie did not' think that the addition which he prgposed would , On the revenue; and Ojai estimating the proddce on an average,sitnilar to that of the former rirticles, he. IVonld take it at 107;000/. His next financial sn2, - 4estion would be to introduceeertainregulations 't. , ;i' ,. ectitigs the duty on Goods sold by Auction. It 'et'a s tt ,- 01 known to the COthntittee that estates, and otherpioperty of great extent were continually put up to sate fear the purpose ascertaining their va lue ; they were, then bought in ; by which the auction dnty was Avoided; and afterwards soli by - private contract. It was his intention to propese that this property should pay no less ditty when bought in than when actually sold.; but that the proprietor slumld .be .entitled to recover - the amount of the duty in twelve months - , if dur ing that period the property should not have . changed hands. It was also -well - known, that many articleS, particularly imports, were, ex empt from the auction duty. It was a Om mon practice to ,mingle in sales 'such privileged goods with those, Which were not privileged 5 and thus to defraud the revenue. He proposed that when any good not' exempt were introduced into a sale of goods that were exempt, the whole should be immediately rendered liable to the duty. The Cornmittee.mast beaWare, froth the nature of the case, that nothing like an. accurate estimate could be formed of the produce of these regulations. On a due consideration, however; of all the cir-r eumstanees, be did not think he should overstate it, if he took it at 106,0001. The next article:on which he,prOposed to raise an additional revenue , was one which he should have been pleased to avoid—it was the postage of Letters. He. should hcommend an addition of a• penny on all letters tarried more than 20 miles, f Although he •cer tainly felt.. great regret at increasing this, tax, more especially as, it so extensively affected ton mercial correspondence, 'yet he really did not know any expence which, Upon , the -whole was ' paid with less reluctance:. He would estiMate the produce. of this proposed increase at 220,000/. All the articles wi:ieh ~he had , hitherto men tioned ',had been under the consideration of 'his late Right Him. Friend as ,fit and fair -objects of tax- - 'Rion.. His Right Hon. Friend had. also enter tained the intention' of suggesting a ' t ax on Private Breweries. - This, however, was, his• opinion; liable to insnrmonntable objections. His Right . Hon. Frieda, wishing to avoid the Qbnoxionsness of bringing thOse,..private breweries under the cognizance and authority of thel 4 .;%eise, had pre ferred'a cOminutation of the duty for every person of whieli a ' -, consisted.. family The calculation, _ _ however, :which had been made- for. his . Right Lion. Friend,. he. .(111t, Vansittart) had since found to he cgrOgiOsly. erroneous. .The produce, of the commutation had been -,estimated at 500 ; 0001. ; 'he was ;certain that it „Would not pro duce 300,0001. Besides, there were a variety of objections, to the measure, and upon the whole,, he thought it better to abandon- it, and to pro pose to the Committee in its stead an increase of the Assessed Taxc. He knew that any addition to the 'Assessed Taxes was sensibly felt by the country. But the present rate of those duties had been so long established, and_ the add;tion which he meant to propose was so moderate, that he hoped the public would., not be. alaruied on the subject. • He intended to except houses and win dows, and had 'selected Men-servants; Carriages, Horses, Dogs, and the Sports of tine Field, as the . best objects of this increase of duty. The exist ing duty on every male servant was 21. 4s. ; he proposed,to add 4s: niakidg the duty 21. Ss. On occasional Gardeners he ineant to propOSe a similar additional duty of 45 . . 'Mereantile-Agents; or , Riders , for Cothmercial Houses, - now paid 11. Ss. he proposed that they should pay 21. On Stewards and Overseers he proposed an additional duty of 21. Porters engaged in trade,' and of other descriptions; now paid 11. 4s. ; be proposed that they should pay 21, and that the same i ncrease should take' place with respect to the Drivers of all Carriages, ekcept . thoSe engaged in husbandry. Occasional Waiters . in taverns and in private houses (and he knew considerable difficulty had, existed in the Minds of.many persons with respect . to the necessity of, including the last class of iriYli viduals .in their return's, which ,difficulty would now be removed) he should propose _to pay a`dury' of 11. Servants in 'Agriculture now paid ; now proposed that they shOuld .pay 4.5.4m.)re . .. Th .whole amount of the increAed mines. on ma!;e ser r : vants :he calculated at 155,6001. He- would pro ceed to the consideration of the duty on Carriages; a single four-wheeled - carriage now paid:l 11. he proposed that it should pay 121. Mild so - in pro portion for a larger number.' The produce of this increase lie .:estimated at- 39."01. • Hiirscs kept for pleasure now paid.a duty of 21. 13s. 4d.; lie proposed an addition of •four si~illiu s; making the .(luty 41. 17s. 6d.c lie -was also bonadto state, that he deemed -it .necessary to increase the thities on Mines employethin Ifus= bandry and Trade, - the' forinu by 3s. 6d. the latter by 10s. -He - estimated this increase. • at` 20,0001. It was his intention to propose in crease lathe same proportion in the duty on dogs except that, in pursuance of a recommendaticm which he had received, he should impose a higher duty on Greyhounds than on other dogS. l -41 - e, professed himself unable to say why, except that it was for reasons best known to sportsmen. Ile presumed that Greyhounds' were more valuable dogs, and afforded greater diversion in the field. —This increase, he Calculated, would produce 31,00 W. The last increase of the Assessed Taxes, which it was his inter Lion to propose, was an in crease of the duty on Certificates to Gamekeepers ; munely, 4s. for gamekeepers being assesst-d ser vants, and los. 6d. for gamekeepers not being as sessed servants.—fie thought that this would pro duce 21,000/. The amount of these increases in the assessed taxes, he would therefore calculate at 515,000 t. the whole would stand thus, viz. Customs—By discontinuing the Bounty on Printed • • Goods exported, taken on averag. of last 3 years . -,C.'303,000 Excke—Hides and Skins; by doubling the existing. , . dUties, on an average of the last.three yi•ars.... Glass .. ditto ditto ditto.... Tobacco; one-tenth addition to all the existing ditties, on a like average ' . .Auctions,'REl illations, e4iroated to produe,... - Poit-Oilice—Addition of one penny on all Letters carried more than 20 miles, estimated to produce. ' 220,000 Assessed Takes—Male Servants T . . 153,000 .Carriaiges - 39,00 ti norses and Dealers Dogs quote Certiticat,s 325,00 - -023,000 107,000 100,000 He was sure that it !nest e very satisfactorY tb the House and to the Public, that after the adelatry had so often seemed to be upon the very hoe ter of ,exhausting its resources, and after no fit subject of taxation appeared to offer itself, that it was practicable to provide SO large a von as that, the details of which be had just completed, With so little pressure on the people, and particularly on the lorier elaSa of the - comintutity.—(!tear.)—lT the attention of the House had not been so C 91214 pietely exhausted, as well as himstelf, it was his intention to have offered sonic general observations on the subject s .--(Dear, hear.) He would, hows every; refrain from trespassing longer upon their patience, and would conclude by moving his first resolution. Mr. liusitissoN said, that with respect to the taxed proposed by his Right Hon. Friend, it did not appear to, him that they could have. been bet ter selected, in t.he present circumstances of the country. He compliMented him also on the cans did, unreserved, and clear manner iii which he had stated every things , . This wits the third Buds get since be had first called the attention of the House to the subject of their financial condition ; upon which occasion he had inculcated the access sity retrenchment and economy, and an equa lization between the income and the expend tore of the. country. He had then taken occasion to state that ,the ordinary Loan, and the ordinary System of taxation,s was not efficient to the con ducting of the war on its present extended basis; and all our dOmestic purposes, but that some othei tax more beneficial, should directly be resorted to. What had been the result since he had made that statement ?• In the year 1810,-the whole addition to.the Loan,, for the purpose of *making up the difference between income and :Expenditure, wai 16,311,0001.—in 1811,, 19,500;0001.—and in the present year ; . 27 . ,870,0001.—1n e 1810, the price of the Three per Cents. was above 70—in 1811; 6'3,—; and in-the:present year, 56; being a diminutiOn;' in that space . df time ; of not less than 20 'per cent; To provide for the inceeasechchargei under which the nation laboured, the. ordinary resources of taxation were not adapted ; and the mode pursued in 1810 was one which he could not the n; n o r did he since approve of—that of availing ourselves of the temporary -prosperity of the Consolidated Mind. In 1811 it might he said; that the new taxes were not only adequate to the charges of the year, but that a surplus had arisen from them; capable of discharging the interest of the whole Irish Loan. lie took shame to himself when he stated that it was only two days ago that he called for accounts to skew the actual produce of these taxes - . An addition was made of 20 per Cent. to the taxes on British spirits, - and of 12 and a half per Cent. on foreign spirits, but hevvas sure that neither of these would be looked upon as of a per manent nature. If ever they looked to the testo ration of peace, they must see that the contiuus ance of such duties could only operate to increase the profits of smugglers ) and deprave the morals of the people. The duty on foreign timber im posed in the preceding year, was intended, as a discouragement to the importation, oat.' certain!y in that sense it was completely successful, but in the same proportion it was injurious to the re venue, yet the calculation on its pi'oduce was made without any reference to such a result. In the present year they returned to the ordinary re sources, but the very, expedient they were driven to before, was in itself a proof of the inadequacy of such resources ; this was the first time daring the last six years in Which any thing like a hey,. taxation was attempted. He now came to 'a hat he regarded the most important part of the subject, he meant the depressed state of the public credit, on account of these demauds, that as he had al ready, stated, had fa i llen 20 per cent. since 1810 . ; :a case which', in his opinion, justified him in maintaining; that this was a time in which they could not look to such expedients, if they would support the public creditor—a thing which they must do: It was satisfactory to find, notwith standhs that the depression of the funds was not produced by any national disaster, the terms' of the' present Loan were less favourable than had been , - received since ,1798 : the war taxes then amounted to 'about four millions, the Sinking Fund was not at that 'time one-tenth of the loan, but now; great as the loan was, the Sinking Fund aiuvunted to one-half. Another great-- defect was ; that of raising so large a suns . by loan, chargeable with so high an interest.— In addition to those ) there were some ex traneous 'circumstances which led to the di gression; the first he should notice was the aid which we afforded to the credit of Ireland. In -the year preceding the Union, Ireland bad, after all deductions; a disposable income of a million and a half, but in 1812 the interest on her debt exceeded her whole disposable revenue ; in fact ; she had no revenue at all. They could not take the diminution of the produce of her taxes as an evidence of the diminution of her prosperity ; foe. • all .testimony concurred in, representing her as , rising every day in wealth and means. He 'in-. staased, the taxes on 'Leather and Malt, to shew• that tliminution had taken place, the one having fallen off nearly one third, and the other nearly • one half, reckoning from fiVe years before the .Uaion to the present period. It became them, therefore, he contended, to look to the whole system and management of that country. He did. not wish' to charge a large body with corruption, but theee seemed to be something like connivance at the evasion - of 'those taxes which were neces sary to support 'our expences. He complimented Mr. W. Pole in warm terms for the exertions be tad made to improve this state of things ; but de nied that it was in the power of any one indivi dual to do all that was necessary. It was full time to See whether it was not possible to adopt some effective system of taxation in that part, of ih4. United Kingdom, called Ireland, Which at this Moment presented ,an instance unparalleled in the history of taxation. In that country there was not o'iie direct tax. He was sure that the Loan fcr this year could have been 'contracted for five per cent. better, if we had• not lent our credit to ire land. But a regulation of the nature he had 'su e t- nested could not be in the most remote des , ree sufficient. He must also imm e di a t e l y proceed to a revision of our .establishments, colonial and do mestic. Still, after every thing was done to elfecl a diminution of our exnences.