The Sun.
London, England, 1852-05-01 00:00:00

SATURDAY

1851 the demand had fallen to 30,292,0001 b., but in 1e52,
after the reduction of duties, the quantity rose to
34,680,00011).—(11ear, hear.) The calculated loss of duty
was 176,000/. ; the amount of duty really lest has been
about 112,000/.—(Hear.) It will be recolected that the
Right lion. Gentleman reduced the duty upon foreign
timber, from 15s. to 7s. 6d. on hewn, and from 20s to 10s.
on sawn. The estimated loss was 286,0001. ; the real loss is
126,000/.—(Hear, hear.) I know this is detail that perhaps
I hardly ought to persevere with—(Cheers)—but I think
it due to the Right Honourable Gentleman, and due also
to the subject, that the House should thoroughly under-
stand its position at the present moment—(Hear, hear)—
as they must arrive, of course, with reference to the
financial state of the country, at a very important con-
clusion.—(Cries of " Hear, hear.") I therefore think
it my duty to place before them the effect
also of the reduction as regards timber.—(Hear, hear.) In
1851 we imported 275,000 loads of foreign timber; in 1852,
440,000. Of colonial timber—l am speaking of hewn—in
1851 we imported 619,000 loads; in 1852, 671,000 loads.
In 1851 we imported 352,000 loads of sawn foreign timber;
in 1532 it amounted to 514,000 loads.—(Hear, hear.) In
1851 we had 451,000 loads of colonial sawn, and, notwith-
standing the increase in the foreign, that amounted in 1852
to 526,000. (Hear, hear.) Thus, of foreign, hewn and sawn,
we imported altogether in 1851 only 628,000 loads; and in
1852, that is in the year just terminated, the quantity rose
to 954,000.—(f1ear, hear.) I ought to mention that there
has equally been an increase upon colonial timber, the
quantity (hewn and sawn) having risen from 1,074,000
loads in 1851 to nearly 1,200,000 in 1852.—(Herr, hear.)
But while a loss, though not a very important one, was thus
realized by the reduction of the duties upon coffee and
timber, greatly as the consumption was increased, the
effect of the reduction of duty upon the consumption
of sugar is so remarkable that I feel it right to place it be-
fore the House.—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear," and cheers,
with some laughter.) We imported in 1851, 7,200,000 cwt.
1 of British and foreign sugar; in 1852
an increase of 413,000 cwt.—( Hear.) 7,013,003 cwt.—being
Since the alteration
in 1846, the increase of our consumption has been 1,90,000
ewee—(Hear.) With regard to British sugar—this is un-
refined only—l have the other, but lam afraid of wearying
1 the House—in 1851 we imported only 5,093,000 cwt. ;in
1852 we imported 5,207,000, being an increase in that year
of upwards of 114,000 cwt.—(Hear, hear.) During the last
six years the consumption of, sugar has increased by 93,000
e
tons, being realy 33 per cent. upon the consumption of the
year 1846.—(ar.) The revenue on sugar and molasses
was 4,163,5351. in 1852, being (although we calculated upon
a loss, I think, of 330,0001. or 310,0000 a loss upon the year
leL
of only 309.(Cheers.) I must now proceed in detail with
the income of 1851.52, as estimated by the Right Ho-
nourable Gentleman in February of last year. I have
shown you klytt, instead of the 20,000,000/. which he anti-
cipitated, het %received from the Customs 20,673,000/. He
estimated the T ; le.—
1.. at 14,000,0001. ; we have received
14,543,0001.—(Hear, 'hear.> He estimated the stamps at
6,310,0001.; he received for his stamps—or rather we re-
ceived for him—(Laughter)-6,346,0001., being a slight in-
crease.—(Hear, hear.) He estimated his taxes at 4,348,C00L ;
but, in consequence of the reduction of the window-duty,
and the partial substitution of the house-tax, there has
been received only 3,691,0001., and I am sorry to say that
that 691,000/. will not be received in any half-year subse-
quent to that which the Right Hon. Gentleman has had the
advantage of, because there is half of the window-duty,
which was still received by him. Then we come to the pro-
perty-tax; it was estimated at 5,38e,000/. ; the Right Hon.
Gentleman's estimate was realised only to the amount of
5,283,0001., being a diminution of nearly 100,000/. He esti-
mated the Post-dace at 830,000/. Such was the extraordi-
nary effect (among other causes, no doubt) of the Exhibi-
tion—(A laugb)—the Hon. Member may laugh at my detail,
but 1 can assure him that when he becomes Chancellor of
the Exchequer, which I dare say ha will one day, he will
know what an immense advantage it is to have something
which gives an extraordinary impulse to consumption and
sommunication— (Hear. hear)—the Post-office, estimated at
810,0001., reached 1,056,000/.—(Hear, hear.) But, besides
the effect of the Exhibition upon that branch of the revenue,
there was also the effect of the census ; our postage bill for
the census•office, if I can trust my recollection, was nearly
32,000 e; that item, of course, would not figure in a future
estimate. The Right Hon. Gentleman estimated the Woods
at 160,000 e ;
estimated at 262,000/ ; the " miscellaneous" turned out to be
they gave 190,000/. Tne " miscellaneous" he'
287,000/. The " old stores" were estimated at 450,000/.. but
they realized only
395,000 L I have given before the Right
Hon. Gentleman's total estimate of the income of the year
just ended, which ultimately turned out to be 52,468,000/.
His estimate of the expenditure was 50,247,000/. The actual
expenditure has been 50,291,00 N. It is unnecessary for me
to go into the items of the Right lion. Gentleman's expen-
diture; I have said, I hope, sufficient to place the last year
of his official career fairly before the House— (" Hear, hear,"
from Sir C. Wood and other Members) —and I had on his
behalf the satist action of placing the balance-sheet on the table
at the end of the year, whereon there appeared, of course; in con-
sonance with the figures I have already, given to the House,
a surplus of 2,176,9981.—(Cheer5.) I am now to estimate
the expenditure of another year, in which I am perhaps more
interested than in those figures which I have previously
placed before you. For the estimated expenditure of this
year her Majesty's Government are scarcely responsible;
they have, of course, a formal responsibility, which they do
not wish to escape; but it is known to the House that the
estimates were prepared by our predecessors, and were laid
on the table when we succeeded to office ; and, indeed, our
responsibiiity upon that head has been shared by the House
in passing the great heads of the service. I must, of course,
recal the amounts to the House. The estimate of the ex-
penditure for the year 1852-53 is 51,163,979/,; and it is
thus formed : —the interest on the funded debt is 27,548,0001.;
last year the sum was 27,576,980/. There has been, of
course, this deduction by the action of the sinking fund.
The interest on Exchequer-bills is 402,000/. ; last year
it was 401,5451. The total for the debt, therefore,
is 27,950,0001. ; last year it was 27,978,525/. The other
charges on the consolidated fund are this year 2,600,000/. ;
last year they were 2,614,416/. The total charge on the
consolidated fund is 30,550,000/. ; last year it was
30,592.941/. The army, including the commissariat, is
6.491,893/. The navy is 6,493,000 L, but that includes
870,158/ for the packet service, and therefore the expendi-
ture for the navy is really 5,622,8421. The Ordnance is
2,437,0001. The " miscellaneous," now called the '‘ civil
services" estimates, are 4,182,036/ ; last year the amount
was 4,114,2654 I make a remark upon this estimate, be-
cause to a certain degree it was prepared by the present Go-
vernment, though slightly. The increase in the rniscella-
neone estimates have been occasioned by two circumstances;
there has has been a transference from the Woods and
Forests of charges .to au amount, I think, if I recollect
right, of something like 65,000/. a year, and therefore
Proportionate or approaching a proportionate
in the Woods and Forests, and there is
there
diminution i s
an increase in the charge for the convict service.
The next item which I have is a very sorrowful one;
it is the item for the Kefir, war.—( Hear, hear.) It will be
recollected that very early after we acceded to office I moved
a ,vote of 460,000/. to carry on the Kafir war.—(Hear.)
When that vote was moved I was not without hope that it
would be the last we should have to bring before the consi-
deration of the House; but the information which we were
and it is impossible therefore that I can, with
then expecting unfortunately Was
pervaded by a character
very different from that which We indulged a belief that it
I think becomes a person responsible for the
finances of the country, allow that vote alone to be provided
for by the Committe. unquestionably it is very easy,espe-
cially after having obtained* vote, and in a case of foreign
alvoseundse
War, where there will not be theascertaining the
'sewer of .
asofsuivmheal
state of things as i'a European conflicts, where the scene is
near at hand—it would be perhaps open to me to leave
s )mething to chance, and to draw upon the military chest if
a further supply should be wanted ; but I hope the House
will agree with me in thinking that a very exceptional and
erroneous systein—,r, r, hear)—and that it is much better
to form some—l will enet say extravagant estimate, but
some fair and temperate estimate, of what is absolutely meet the w
ne-
cessary, and to ants -
of the service by a specific
vote.—(year, hear.) Under these circumstances I have
acted. I know thereie
s a great prejudice with regard to the
conduct of wars in th distant dependencies, which are not
subject to the criticibsmutalnd information they are subject to
in places at home ; am bound to say that the commis-
t th
sariat of our army a
eCape is under the immediate con-
trol
Treasury sent of the Treasury, that the
sen out, and is re-
sponsible for, the officers
theY have sent out to conduct the
operations there, that ' all their
dispatches and even their
private journals etreeasent to the Treasury, that it has been
my duty (which 1 ns.9- riled sincerely I have fulfilled)
to duty
(w line that 13 received, and every one of the
journals of the om
private eers employed, and I am most
deceived if t_ h
ese are not men who are animated by
they have accomplished
a
most anxious desire to fulfil their duty to this country.—
( Hear, hear.) I believee
considerable reduction in the conduct of the operations, nor
do I think I am using the language of exaggeration when
I say that a commissariat Was
never carried on with more
efficiency and with greater regard to genuine economy.—
(Hear.) Taking all this into consideration—and I could
prove trio strict truth
_ of my last observation by referring to
the surplus left for this year from the vote taken in the last
year of 300,000/. by the RiBuree,
Hon. Gentleman opposite—
and calculating (which I ft e
en) that the vote of 460,000/., as-
sisted by some surplus which, ,
by the good management of
these gentlemen, we have from the 300,000/, cannot be safely
relied upon for carrying on
further than the end of May or
the beginning of June, I have made umy mind, with the
'V p
sanctionpropose of
an my colleagues, and on the part of my colleagues,
to additional vote of 200,000/. ; and, if the Com-
mittee will sanction that vote; the Kafir war will appear i..
this estimate at 660,000/.--(H
ear. ) There is yet another item
for which we are responsiblein the estimated expenditure of
this year, and that is for
the militia.--(Some murmurs.)
Let not Hon. Gentlemen be alarmed ; the vote I am about to
ask for is not much larger than the majority by which the
Militia Bill was sanetioned.—( Cheers and laughter.) My
estimate for the militia is 350,0001. The total estimated
expenditure for the Year ending the sth of April, 1853, is
51,163,979/., the fie
which I have given before. I next
come to consider the BOerCia of supply; and the house will
perhaps now perceive that the few observations which I
presumed to make on the
_ subject of taxation generally, and
on the temper of this /louse, with respect to it, were not alto-
gether inappropriate. The Customs realized last year, as
must be fresh in the recollection of the Committee,
20,673,954/.; but that was a remarkable year, and the cir-
cumstances which acted on the revenue of the Pest-office—so
much to the astonishment of the Hon. Gentleman opposite—
acted very much, also, on the Customs' revenue.—(Hear.)
The impulse given to the Customs by the groat gathering of
last year is attributable not alone to the concourse of
foreign visitors, but to the increased travelling which took
place, and to the general spirit of enterprise which per-
vaded the whole island. Under these circumstances, Ido
not feel justified in counting on any considerable increase of
the Customs' revenue during the present year, but quite
the reverse. I have also to encounter this year—as the
Committee will remember—a further redaction of the sugar
duty, and although the calculated amount of that redaction
is not so considerable as that experienced by the late Chan-
cellor of the
Exchequer, still I am not sanguine that the
result of the operation will be as triumphantly successful this
year as it was last. I think I must count on some loss from
the reduction of the sugar duties, and I estimate the loss at
something like :145,000/. I hope this will not be a
total loss; for, after the miraculous result of the reduc-
tion of the duty !este year, one is naturally sanguine,
although it is necessary to bear in mind that, as regards
consumption, last year Was an exceptional year.— (Hear.)
The present year will be an average year, and therefore I
think there will be some loss in the revenue derived from
the sugar duties. Taking that fact into consideration, and
taking into consideration also that last year opened out ex-
traordinary sources of consumption, I think it most prudent,
after examining all the figures, and giving the subject the
utmost consideration in my power, to take the Customs' re-
venue at the Caine amount at which it stood in the year be-
fore fore the Exhibition, namely, 20,572,000 e, which israthe
more than 100,0001, leas than the income derived from the
.„
same source in the year just concluded,—(Hea!en.ear hear,) I
new come to the Excise. Under this head it will ue neces-
sary to make some deduction from stage-carriage and rail-
way
duties, which will be lees productive this year than
they were last, for the reason to which I have already ad-
verted, and which the Hon. Member opposite--who has
not given this subject so much attention as he will bestow 1
upon it next year—thinks of little importance. The
Exhibition produced a conaidernble afflict upon the stage- .