The Sun.
London, England, 1853-03-11 00:00:00

this bill would be to accelerate the paying off of the debt,
and.thus to stop the accumulation of interest, thereby di-
minishing the burden upon the London-bridge Approaches
Fund. The hon. baronet said they had no right to charge
the general revenue of the country for local improvements.
That was a very just and sound principle, and this bill was
in no way inconsistent with it. There seemed to be some
idea that they were going to place principal debt upon the
general revenues of the country ; but he had already stated
that the principal debt was now chargeable on the land
revenues of the Crown. The Sovereign, who had a life
interest in the land revenues, had been advised by the
advice of her responsible advisers, to assent to the act
which mortgaged part of the land revenues ; so that, so
far as the period of the Sovereign's life was concerned, a
charge on the land revenues was precisely equivalent to a
charge upon the Consolidated Fund. So far as anything
beyond the Sovereign's life was concerned, he granted that
the case was different ; but he was sure that the house
would never allow the Sovereign to be defrauded of part of
the property of the Crown which had been mortgaged for
a public benefit in which the Crown had no interest what-
ever. The right hon. gentleman (Mr. Henley) wished to
know in what time the debt that had been incurred and
charged upon the land revenues would be paid off, and he
(the Chancellor of the Exchequer) had answered that ques-
tion by anticipation. He had informed him that it was
impossible to define the exact time within which it would
be paid off, because it depended upon the productiveness
of the London-bridge Approaches Fund. Although it might
be very easy to form a fair estimate of the productiveness
of that fund, yet it was impossible to form such an esti-
mate as could be relied upon for minute accuracy, because it
of course depended upon the state of trade in London, the
progress of population, and other circumstances, which must
be mere matter of calculation and not of positive statement;
but he had the satisfaction of saying that it was very clear
that the charge on the London-bridge Approaches Fund
would be paid off some considerable time before the law for
levying the coal-tax expired. He thought he should be
speaking within the mark if he estimated the sum which the
Government might expect to receive annually from the Lon-
don-bridge Approaches Fund at some 150,0001. or 160,0001.,
or so. At present there was a sum exceeding 80,0001. already
available for the purpose of the process to which this bill
related. ; but it was not possible for him to make use of that
sum for the purpose of diminishing the total charge on the
Consolidated Fund, because there were two questions of
priority as to the application of that money which it would
be difficult to solve. He should hope that a 'period of five
or six years, or perhaps less, would suffice to terminate and
wind np the affair.
Mr. HENLEY understood the right hon. gentleman to
say that every day they postponed the passing of this bill
they were increasing the charge on the London-bridge
Approaches Fund, and so delaying the period when the
coal tax would cease. To the extent of 34,0001. (the in-
terest on the 895,0000/. which the right hon. gentleman
meant to repay to the several parties), as that interest
would cease so far, we should be contributing out of the
funds of the country for local improvements.
Sir W. JOLLIFFE asked what was the sum that would
have to be repaftl. to the Treasury from the London-bridge
Approaches Fund before any reduction could take place in
the coal duties levied from the public ? Was it the
895,0001., the 961,0001., or the whole 1,240,000/. ? It was
impossible to make this point out from the bill.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said that he
was now assailed on both sides with regard to this bill;
and he hoped that before the hon. gentleman behind him
(Mr. Alcock) charged him with seeking to increase the
burdens of the consumers of coal, he would first settle his
quarrel with the right hon. gentleman the member for
Oxfordshire, who objected to the bill that it would re-
lieve the London-bridge Approaches Fund of the sum of
34,0001. for interest, which was due to the Consolidated
Fund. These were two contradictory charges, and it was
impossible that they could both be true. It so happened
that neither of them was correct. The bill, by accelerating
the liquidation of the debt, and so curtailing the period
for which interest would accrue, would pro tanto relieve
the consumer, and enable the duty levied from the people
of London and its neighbourhood to be extinguished at
an earlier period than would otherwise be the case ;
but the right honourable gentleman misunderstood the
terms of the bill when he said that the interest was
to be put an end to at the expense of the Conso-
lidated Fund. The matter was exceedingly difficult and
complex, but ho could assure the right honourable gentle-
man, that ho was mistaken in this view. The debt that
had been incurred and the interest accruing upon it was
one thing, and the charge that existed for the purpose of
replacing that debt was quite a different thing. The obli-
gation of the London-bridge Approaches Fund was not to
pay off the debt which the Commissioners of Woods and
Works incurred, and the interest thereupon; what it had
to do was to pay a certain principal sum, namely, 665,0001.,
and interest thereon at the rate of five per ceat. until the
whole was paid off. Now, he was sorry to say that he
could not undertake the responsibility of those who origi-
nally made this arrangement, and he could not answer the
question why, while the sum of 895,0001. of principal debt
was incurred, a charge of only 665,0001. was taken on the
London-bridge Approaches Fund ; but he presumed it
was because there were other assets to look to. On the
whole, considering the complexity and absurdities of the
original operation, he was well pleased to find that the
matter stood as it did, because whilst, if they did not pass
this bill, the accumulation of interest might be so great
that he could not answer for the London-bridge Approaches
Fund being able to discharge it, yet, on the other hand, if
they did pass it, it would check the growth of interest in
a manner which would it perfectly certain that the
Crown would recover all that was due to it, and at the
same time the period during which the consumer would
have to pay the coal tax would certainly be abridged. But
the right honourable gentleman said they were going tab
taeyeefedtl'ilfe wouldl93s(o,oenliaralelh;ceindtewraesette
be at ctresee, and
e
of that interest? (Hear, hear.) Now, the London
bridge Approaches Fund would pay off the 895,000, and
would get no interest ; nor had the land revenues of the
Crown any power of getting the interest. There was the
charge of 665,0001. upon the London-bridge Approaches
Fund, upon which 296,0001. of interest had already accrued.
The proceeds of the sales of grounds rents are estimated at
250,000/. ; and there was also a repayment of 30,0001. ex-
pected from the Westminster Improvement Commissioners.
These were the total assets against the sum of 1,250,0001.,
which was the maximum liability of the London-bridge
Approaches Fund. The honourable baronet asked which
of the amounts was going to be paid into the Treasury—
the 895,0001., the 961,0001., or the 1,254,0001. It was not
the 895,0001. That was an obligation for the recovery of
which they had no claims as such. That was simply a
debt of the land revenues of the Crown, and must be liqui-
dated. But then, the honourable baronet asked, was it
the 961,000/. ? CeAainly that was a part of it—that was
a portion of the assets which were available for the com-
missioners of works, as the law now stood, towards re-
leasing the land revenues of the Crown, and repaying the
charge that had been incurred for interest. It was not the
1,220,0001; that was the maximum of charge upon the
Treasury ; and the assets that would be aavailable for the
consolidated fund, and which he thought might be con-
sidered as entirely of a good and secure character, exceeded
the sum of 1,220,0001.
Sir H. WILLOUGHBY thought that the statement
made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer with respect to
the London-bridge Approaches Fund was quite satisfactory;
but be still contended that the Consolidated Fund did take
upon itself a portion of debt for which there was no se-
curity.
Sir DE LACY EVANS hoped that the object of this
measure was tg reduce the interest upon the whole amount
by one or one and a-half per cent., and that by that pro-
cess the tax upon coals might terminate the sooner, for the
benefit of the metropolis.
• Mr. HENLEY said if the two funds were entirely dis-
tinct, he did not understand why the 130,0001. was to be
, carried to the ways and means of the year.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQ U liR said the land
revenue was entitled to receive as the law now stood, from
the Commissioners of Works the reimbursement of all that
was paid out in interest on the Londdri-bridge Approaches
Fund and other assets. He nowproposed that they should be
reimbursed immediately, instead of remaining longer out of
their money. This was not a payment that had been
made by the land revenues, once and for all and without
return. The land revenues, although they could not re-
cover that payment of interest, eo nomine, yet they were
entitled to that charge on the Approaches Fund. The right
' hon. gentleman (Mr. Henley) said, was it the object of the
• Government to put it to ways and means? Certainly he'
(the Chancellor of the Exchequer) had no object of that
kind. It was a postponed payment on account of revenues ;
and therefore when this bill was passed, the 130,0001.
would come into credit, and become a part of the revenue.
The clause was then agreed to, as were the remaining
ones, and the house adjourned at twelvb o'clock.

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STATISTICS OF EMIGRATION. —Yesterday (Wednesday)
was printed a Parliamentary paper, obtained by Mr.
Hume, of all vessels belonging to the United Kingdom
cleared outward with passengers at the custom-houses of
Great Britain and Ireland, from the 16th of June to the
in-
spection of emigrFartioo2nni,
31st December,
i)..braothcerdsays.
The totals
are undergi
vtehne
forin-
tonnage o'ffilthion,
theth e year
registeredl 852.
in the course of last year,
emigrant ships was 124,856 ;
the officers numbered 762 e•
theB cooks, carpenters, and
t o6t9a
landsmen,stewards,B22ssl; able
boys, 661;
ordinary seamen, 638 ;
emigrants
from
Londonchildren, there were 15,257
registered tonnage
31,247.
n 16,10,67;,
906f4thweonien,
of the
children"' 91.534 ; and
From Liverpool, in the year, the raengdi
ships was 368,294 ; the crews numbered
the emigrants—men, women,
From Plymouth the registered tonnage of the—sh 7'331.
50,957 ; the crews, 335; and the emigrants numbered was
8,443. From Glasgow and Greenock the restere
tonnage of the ships that sailed in the year was 27,850c1.
the crews, 1,278 ; the emigrants, 11,542. From Bel'
fast, 1,560 emigrants sailed ; from Dublin, 4,101 ; from
Galway, 774 ; from Limerick, 7,oo7London-
derry) 4,662 ; from Queenstown, 7,468 ;
_from Sligo and
outports the number of emigrants was 1,816 ; and. from
Waterford and New Ross, 5,135. The total number of
uemndigerratnhtes
ilnasapteeytieoanr
offroemmi-grGraetaiot Britain
noffieera, andwas Ireland,
under
rend,
221,086.