The Express.
London, England, 1865-04-28 00:00:00

WAYS AND MEANS.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER. laid en the
table a return of the pew incense and expenditure of the
eouotry for the year ending the Mat of Much, 1865.

THE BUDGET.

The house then (20 minutes to 5 o'clock) went into coin•
mines of wan and means, when
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, who was
received with general cheering, rose to make his financial
statement He aid, Mr. Dodson : Sir, there is upon the
whole a somewhat remarkable contrast between the opening
and the closing circumstances of the present parliament.
When the parliament met we had been involved—although
we did not know it at the time—in • costly and difficult
war with China. The harvest of the year which succeeded
was the wont that had been knows for half • century.
The recent experiences of war had led to extensive, costly,
and somewhat uncertain noonetractiona, and clouds
hung over the continent of Europe ; although the
Italian war had terminated in huh • manner sa to
meate vague and odious alarm in the public mind. Since
that period, sir, these clouds have moved westward, acne.
the Atlantic, and have beast in a tempest perhaps the
wildest that ever devastated a civilised country ; • tempest
of war, distinguished, indeed, by an exhibition of many
mat marvellous and extraoedinary qualities of valour, of
heroism, and of perseverance, and of which, perhaps,
no scene has been so entirely painful as that of
which the intelligence has last reached us, and
which now rand one thrill of horror throughout
Europe. ((ies of " Hew, hear.) But so far
as this country is concerned we have been mer-
cifully spared. We see the state of the public mind
tranquil and reassured, and the condition of the reentry
generally prosperous and satisfactory. The history, how-
ever, the financial history of the parliament has been re-
markable. It has raised a larger revenue thee I believe
ever at any period of peace or war was raised by taxation,
after taking into aeoonst changes is the value of mossy,
within an equal time. The expenditure of the period has
been upon a scale that has never before been reached in a
time of peace. (Hear, hear.) The amount and
variety of changes introduced into our financial
legislation had been greater than within a like number
ofeyears at any former time; and lastly, it has enjoyed the
distinction that though no parliament ever complete.
the full term of its legal existence, yet this is the seventh
time you are called upon to make provision for the financial
exigencies of the country. Now, sir, I proceed to state
the figures of the case, which relate to the year just ex-
pired. The expenditure of the year 1864-5 was estimated
at the period of the budget at 66,890,000/. In the
egpropriate bill that amount was not materially
varied, fat it stood at 67,073,000/. The actual ex-
penditure has been 66,462,0004, or less than the
estimate by the sum of 611,0001. ( Hear, hear.)
It follows then from the figures that between the votes and
the actual aerate they are not of very great ante-
queers so far as the army and navy are concerned, because
the final accounts of the expenditure of the year are not
, yet made up, and will not be made up for a considerable
time. The miscelleaeous expenditure, which was estimated
at 7,638,0004, has reached only 7,237,0001. That may be
saddered as the final result. Bus perhaps it will be of
same interest to the committee to compare that Mileraln•
MIMI expenditure with what it has bees in
fernier years ; end I will add to what makes
up
the amount of civil expenditure, namely
what are called the charges upon the consolidated fund,
charges which do not form any portion of the votes of
this house ; and also those which belong to the packet
esewire; and I will augment those sums a the case of the
year just need with the sum of 174,0001. which was taken
for the redemption of Scheldt tolls. The total civil ex-
panditure of the country under these four heads, which may
be said to represent the siva expenditure of the country,was
10,208,0001. In 1859-60, that is to say the first peat of the
pelmet parliament, the expenditure was 10,820,0004; there-
, 141. that shows a reduction of 617,0004 la 1858.9 it was
lees than that mond, but it was then 10,040,0001., befog
apparently WI bye sum of 163,0004 than in the year just
expired. But as the expenditure of the yes: just expired
was augmented by the sum of 174,0004, under no ordinary
head of charge, but for the special purpose which
I have mentioned, sad connected with the tolls
of the Scheldt, the total ram, for the purpose of conepari_
nos, really stands at 10,270,00 W., about the Name sum
which it stood at for the last year of the preceding pulls.
mast. So that this Hones of Commons is a a sesditien to
say that the civil expenditure of the country has not been
increased during the term of its existence. Now, if we
look at the total expenditure of the country, ad compare
it with former years, in order to make the comparison •
fair one, it is neeemary to make a change in the
arras r they lipped is the amounts from the
Exchequer—it is assamary to add the spread
charge, made under • special act of parliament,
for the erection of fortifioetioes—it is seccessary to deduct
all those charges which, as compared with former yaws,
appear ant in the first year, but which do appear together

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