The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1819-02-12 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE BRITISH PRESS.

The Morning Pod, of February 6, is the leiter
of a T.iitlemian, ul which I beg leave tu tiller a few
remark •

In the first place, I contend, that those persons intod in.
lerested its the chsraetcr Of r Corti Nleilioin (.re flee
.Ifortang Post). air tam moot moot tqatse, of all others, to have
a vote-, soil the legal oleo' vi of atteoliiiii for it i.n Illit-S.
tion of stwirerral interest. and nor one whie b spnhei, snitly
to the trailesmeu and shorkrer /a of the City of London,.
That facilities are atForiled to men of hominess by Hank
Marg. is out .1.114A-861d the• .4, Vat loenetits, tiro, riceived
through this medium, iv skit admitted; but this it., and will
continue to he, one calla.• of the increasing etil
Vl'liateric may have Inset, said of us by one great enemy,
nimairorte, we are not tot !II gli rapidly advancing to it)
"a Flafiffil of shopkeepers;" and if payments in piper are
pryfrrreol by men ill business, from the first I 00000 se in Ilse
city to the lowest chandler's sloop, it would be but fit.r to
let those not in business, at the west end the lone and
in the country, to have a little cleau gold and bilvt r, if they
like it better.

..• -......
If, as the tradesman says, paper is the most easy, safe,
mid esinvemetit medium that could he devised, why have we
seer Ind any thing else, and how is it that other conotries
have not benefited by it to the %Ara,. extent ?—A tradesman's
partiality to paper induces me to believe that he is a trader
in guineas himself.
This writer says, " The value of a note is as it may be
stamped. Clue pound, or tole Iloot sand nosily!.; and this
valise. continues withoisi variation " And again, " That the
preference to the paper will rout 1111 l e to be the general (eel.
iuc, so long as the Hank is solvent."
Now 1 maintain. that the value of the paper currency of
nay comfit.), consixts in the slahilily and good faith of the
• sorernmeet, and of the firm reliance of the public upon the
"Illicionfp of the !rational Bonk to redeem it when called
by a full equivalent, in the legal coin of the realm;
and let us ask, what is the country to think of the Sohn Or",
of thriller, or of the good faith of the other, when the politic
feeling is to be trilled wills, and its hopes and expectations
dem. eyed ?
If, as the tradesman says, a promise, and a clamp, he all
that is itectaissary tic give Willi.' tic ;taper, what hecenie of the
French assignats? and if he will look a little beyond the
city, to learn the fete of Governments and of Einpum, ke
will air it in the dept. dation of a paper currency. In Ike
history of the first Ansertran war, he will find to what dis-
tresses they were redurid by the depreciation of the Con-
gress bills of credit, the selfishness of the farmer. in prefer-
ring British mefullie to American paper money i and which
compelled hull to extort supplies for h.si as my, at the point
of the bayonet —(See Life of IVaskington.)—The
great Washington struggled with his difficulties and dis-
tresses, from 1777 to 1711, when the Americans received
very substantial relief from the King of Fr nice—had it nut
been for which, they must have sul.k under them.
IVllien this writer speaks of " designing politicians, veva
hilionists, and traders in guinea.," he should be told that a
Statesman's hominess is to legislate fur the whole, and out
exclusively for any particular class of nom whatever.
It is too notch the practice of those who are at a loss to
detestd themselves, to vilify the character of their oppo-
nents—and in the present day, all who are net declared. or
ultra Ministerialists, are pronounced jaeobins and levellers,
when, very likely, they compose the largest, the most mo-
derate, and the best it dined part of time community—those
who have the best interests of their country at heart, but
who may, very probably, think that they are to he pursued
by different measures than those at present adopted.
am, Sir, your very humble Servant,
NOT A TRADESMAN.

TO THE EDIIVE oP rms BRITISH PRESS.

York, February 6. 1919.

SIR—I hive long had it In contemplation s.o request you
to he so obliging as to iosett the following few remarks on
*tone of the Asa-seed Taxes, in hopes that some of the !Mem-
bers may be induced to take up the question, sod bring it
Newsiest sit a proper shape before Parliament. The first
I shall take notice of is certainly and generally deemed sos
whom and a vexatious one, and if it could he repealed, it
would be a universal benefit to the country; and why
should not the light of Heaven be so free as the air we
breathe? But as I am no friend to a general sweep of all
taxation, paying all mile most cheerfully, if Ministers
can find no substitute, we must still go on; It is the abuse
and arbitrary power exercieed by the Window-peepers and
Crown Assessors that I wish to check, and to remind the
Commissioner', that in discharging their duty towards Go-
vernment, they are not to forget that they have equally a
ditty to discharge towards the Public; they are to take care
that there be no oppiessive nor vexatious surcharge, and
in all cases which admit of • iluuht, it ought to be given its
favour of the subject, sinless the Assessor chimer to snake
out • case and transmit it to the Tax-office General, or
being the emitter in the folio of an appeal at • Court of
Session; has the Commissioners will seldom in any cam
oppose the Assessors, though often with conviction in their
niimls. The first part of my case is, taxing all wile-trellis
windows its paietries, dairie a, shoe-houses. detached UfliCl a
fur brewing, Sic. with openings fur the admission, of curds
and air—these certainly ought to be exempt. The case of
Venetian windows, I flee!, is to be submitted to the
Judges. from Bath. The next thing I have to observe is the
following case the 20th of April I take a house, to
enter on May-day; a customary ierin•day fur taking At-seises;
I find twenty-three windows iu the house; I send notice to
the Asseweir that it is my inteiltion to block up three out
of that number: its collecting the quarterly or hailyeaely
taxes, I am made to pay for the twenty-three' because my
notice was given in subsequent to the sth of April! Now
I hail nu idea of the house prior to that date ; trip,
shy should I pay fur that which dues not exist % The wit-
dues must be fur the cart eut year of soy occupancy-, and
here let me observe, that the term-day of taxes and of let-
ting houses ought to be on the same slay ; fioni the diffe-
rence (list asibsists,l am liable to a double assessment for six
months, whenever I (-house to remove into soother house,
which is the rare at present. My next remark is upon the
Only on lishabitcel Houses. Ceti it he reasonable to
charge the deity 011 the Gill refit, as on Moil; the one im-
provable and profitable, the other perishable, subject to one
year's rent in five or six )ears fur painting and repairs, and
probably in twenty-one years it will require sevut years'
resit to put a house into compli to repass—l mean ill 0,1
teiwo-hooses, surely one-third should be deducted for wear
mail tear. My last case is a very oppressive lax, moody,
taxing a Romeo Catholic Clergyman, as a Bachelor. First,
Sir, it is well known that they are prohibited from marry.
log; their incomes are too smell to bear such sin
imposition; aid many of them would have to go above go
miles to appeal.
A FRIEND TO FAIR TAXATION.

PRICE OF STOCI

Bank Stork.. etifii
3 per Ct. 1te01..76g 77
3 per Ct. Cons— 78a
31 per tent... 854. 86
4 per (7eni5....941 95
5 per Cr. N. An. 1038
B.'tk L. Au. "20 3.16
3-