The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1806-05-10 00:00:00

hick was to be. ckittfted the value 31 th,e old iron,
which might be estimated at half the magi ral price.
The tax upon L
.It,TSeS' shoes, it had been so.id, would
amount to a penny per lb. weight : to prove the
fallacy of that, he need only observe, that 1 a
per lb. would amount to 91. G.. R t p-r to: ! tie
• thought, with the lion. Ald-rman crittse,s), that
a tax on the raw material WAS not so objedionable
as some gentlemen thought it ; and, con.idering the
floarlehing state of theiron manuladory, and theeager
eye with which fair objeßs of tax.ttion had long been
sought for, he rather Wondered that the tax
had not been before it,iltded. To compensate
for the loss that pioprietors of machinery would
erne:fence, it was in contemplation to remove
many of the restraints impos-d ttpcn the use of
it. The ample drawbar k proposed to be allowed,
which even exceeded the requisition of the iron.
masters, would secure the export trade. B.( wren
the years 1799 and 1891, the price of iron mann-
fanittes advanced 31. per too, without :It all affed-
ing the trade ; indeed, the exportation in the latter
year considerably exceeded the former. This rise
was 11. more than the dirty now prryosed, and was
not ameliorated by a drawback, or any assistance on
the pin of government, towards facilitating the
trade in the foreign markets. nun the iron manu-
fadure of the cuunrry had very greaoy increased,
was obvious from a statement of the exportation of
;rim from St. Petersiirg. In 1734, this counsty
imported thence 2,644,000 tons ; in 1803, only
5t,725 tons. Various measures bad been proposed
by the persons affeded by this tax, as a surcrda-
reLms; amongsfotbers, a tax on coals ; and, to the
farmers, it hal been represented, a tax en horses
would be preferable ; but to these projectors he
would ohly say,
Time* Danner; et doe; ferentel,.

The Noble Lord corcluded by expresain, his con-
•iEhcn, that, of the butlhenc the neces•ities of the

State obliged him to infliet nn the people, this tax,
as it would in the end be dilFused amongst all classes,
would prove least onerous.
Mr. ROSE said, that, eight years ago, this tax
had been fully under the consideration of Ministers,
and every information on the sohjell sought for and
attended to ; the result of which left a full impres-
sion of its inexpediency. The lion. Gentleman re-
viewed, at length, the probable ill effeects of
the tax. As the excise duty was to attach in
the first process of the manufaCtory, he wished
to know whether an exemption ssas not to
ha allowed in cases where accidents arose, which
were so extremely common. When the ore seas
ripe in its bed to he tapped, and ruts into pigs, if
it was not instantly opened, it would burst out, and
there would be " more pigs than teats." (a loud
high !) in such cases, he thought the iron t light
rot to be assessed to the duty by the exciseman.—
The story respeBing the Scotch farm resat d liy the
Noble Noble Lord, he had no doubt had been told
to him as authentic ; hut, it that were really
the case, he suspelted the horses, like the farmers,
went without shoes (aserker ie:ic•i). •He still mair-
tained, what he had forme:ly advanced, that the
tax would be equivalent to le,. a-year upon hus-
bandry horses, and thought that a tax of 7s. ten
those horses, or a much greater duty on pleasure
horses. and male servants, would be infinitely pre-
ferable.
Siri.WROTTESLEY and-Sir R. NIT LB ANK E
Mr. Secretary FOX said, he had certainly, when
the tax was first proposed, felt some objellions
to it, and much weight in the representations of
those velso opposed it ; hut since he had fuliy consi-
dered it, he was at least satisfied that it ought to
go into a Committee. The general eaemption
from taxation el raw materials was an hypothesis
he did net think well grounded ; and already
many articles were tared in that state, particularly
malt and cotton wool. With respell to the draw-
back, which, it was said, could not be properly ap-
preciated and apportioned in the manutaltore, which
contained (otter materials than iron, he did n. t see
why a drawback ad valorem was not as prall,ca.
Lie as a duty ed %a/arm, which had hi en long
enforced. lie was not partial to the excise laws
himself, but they `Fete exercised to the advantage
of the revenue, end our necessities weir now urgent.
As to the suhstitotes that had been proposed for this
tax, he had no idea that farmers and others wcold
steadow the bait held out to them by the Right lion.
Cent. (Mr. Row), and gorge a tax direaly levelled
at them, instead of one which woeld teach them
circuitously, and afFetl them slightly. As to the
foreign trade being airceled by the tax, that was
not likely, as already a larger drawback was allowed
to the exporter, than those who had petitioned on
the subjea asked for. As nothing prefuaLle was
proposed, he thought it right to try how the tax
could be made Lss ohjellionable in a Corr mitt, e
Mr. CANNING !bought it meet ial to contras:ill
what had been advanced by the Right Hon. Secre-
tary, uu the subsel of the drawback to be allowed,
and read a paper from the Committee of iron-
masters in town, which cal. d, that they
hid represented the necessity of Os. per ton being
allowed, but that only (is. WAS granted by the Biil.
lie deprecated the principle of the B. 11; he could
nu: conceive thee:Neel of it, unless it was to involve
the iron manutanory in the shitress that others had
experienced, and to exemplify a late quotation of a
Welt Hon. Secretary (lan. Windham),
saistaini misais who hat all*C &picnic
Bat he could no longer wonder at the patience of
the House, after they had, on a former occasion,
not only with temper. but ultliont laughing, heard
thc assertion of the Right lion. Secretary, that it
was more agreeable to the public to have a hurthen-
same tax doubled at once, than to have it increased
by moderate degrees.
Mr. Secretary FOX." with some warmth, re-
plied, that be bed not said of the Income Tax,
that it was preferable to raise it to 10 per cent.
than to increase it I I per cent ; and no mass of
COMMON •esae could have so understood him (a cry cf
seder! order!)
Mr. CANNING—" I rise, Sir, merely to thank
the Right Hon. Secretary for his courtesyaud spirit."
'I he question was loudly called for, and the gal-
lery cleared, when a division took place: For the
Speaker's leaving; the chair,
Ayes I 19--Naes 109.
The House then rest into a Cornmittee, pre (or-
lo., and the Bill was ordered to be re-committed on
sa..nday.
Adjourned at HALF PAST ONE v'CLOCK.