The Express.
London, England, 1855-03-20 00:00:00

rG, MARCH 20,_ 1855.

and it singularly happened, three millions being
the excess of expenditure over the estimates, that three
millions was the mess of cash which the boon thought fit
to provide beyood the estimate'. The coneequenee had been
that instead or drawing to the extent of four millions upon
aids granted in saticipation of lazes, the government had'
drawn to the *lust of seven millions. Against
that seven minks" than was a set off of taxes
cot Yet Notion, to the amount of five millions; so that the
whole sum by white the expenditure of the year had *s-
wede! the Freebies made, after the gigantic operation
which tit• , t bed been conducting, and with the
seeessery absenu et issessity—for he was afraid that pro-
lamin wee ea beemeabbellmacteristio of all such opera•
tins, at best Is their sammensinent—the whole excess of
each expenditure over and above the provision made for it
out of taxes, was the sum of two millions; and that was
what the bon, gentleman considered to be an utter, irre-
trievable failure ! Well, the hos gentleman might
think so if he pleased. It was an excess of two
millions. Is time of pesos, he (Mr. Gladstone)
sheeld think an excess of two millions showed a very
gross want dean, both on the part of the Chancellor of the
Exchequer and of his colleagues connected with the expen-
diture; but he would venture to put it to the house, that an
exam of two millions:in time of war, was not a discreditable
account to present, Why, what was the state of things at
the commencement of the revolutionary war ? There was
an excess of expenditure at the end of the first year, when
the efforts made were trilling in comparison to these, more
than doubling the provision which had been made by par-
liameat. The provision made by parliament was about
Gut millions in that year, and besides that there were five
millions, or even a greater sum of debt contracted
by the government at the end of the first year. Nor
did he mean to say there was any fault in Mr. Pitt or
the government of that day, on account of the excess. It
was in the nature of the operations of war that it was im-
passible to control their expenditure as in time of peace—
it was impossible to limit those operations. The Howie of
Commons must be prepared, and he knew they were pre-
pared, to make the meet liberal allowances not,he hoped, far
intentional neglect or failure of duty on the part of the go-
verment, but for the real neenuty of circanistances,whsek
it was impossible for any human forethought or care to cope
with ; and he did say that, as a anti? of retrospect, the
Hone of Commons had not to regret either a failure or on
" abortion " in this matter ; for they had made provision
sufficient in the very remarkable degree for the expenditure'
which had been incurred, and they had great reason
to look back with satisfaction upon the course they had
pursued. (Cheers.)
Mr. DISRAELI said he thought it very important that
the boon sad the country should be favoured, at this
period of the year, with the duancial statement of the Chan-
ced,: of the Exchequer, and regretted that circumstances,
now prevented their reosiving it earlier ; but although the
Chassellor of the Exchequer had now a right to the indul-
ges,* of the house, nothing could be more inconvenient than
that, whilst they were so deprived of the official statement
by the responsible minium, these desultory debates should
arts, with statements that be, for one, was not prepared to
admit were authentic, and not brought forward under any
elressetaaces which could justify the discussion. He did
net sey that his honourable (rind was not perfectly
autherbed to make the remarks he had made, but
the Secretary to the Tensity bad taken ad=
of them to enter into en exposition of the
endition of the country, which was rather astonishingad
the maser in which it was conveyed. He (Mr. D
prebend bearing from the proper officer, at the proper
time.the authenti•c account. The question which bad now
bees bronchi before the house was of a more limited cha-
racter. What was the simple fact before them? There
was no doubt, in apite of the boned words of the right hen.
member for the Univenity, that in March last the Hoses
of Commons were under the impression that there was a
loan of 1,760,000 L Exchequer Bills, of a temporary chem.
I ter, which were to be defrayed from the acereieg revenue of
the year; and that vote was agreed to and parsed with the
full underataading that it was entirely distinct from the
I nand vote of Exchequer Bills, that they were strictly s' bills
of supply," and not to be mixed up with the annual
1 rote of the year; in fact, a temporary provision only.
Hers they were in this condition in March, 1864 ; a cons'.
11 durable vote, not much less than two million of Exchequer
Bills, was taken on the dirtiest understanding by the
hones that it was a vote for temporary aid, and that it w-