The Sun.
London, England, 1853-04-15 00:00:00

CLITHEROE ELECTION.

A conference was held with the Commons, in which
the managers for the lower house informed their lord-
ships that they had agreed on an address to the
Crown praying for an Inquiry into the state of this
borough.
After a few words from Lords LYNDHURST and CAMP-
BELL,
On the motion of the Earl of ABERDEEN, it was
agreed to send a messenger to the other house to ask for
a coPpy of the report of the Clitheroe Election Com-
Mittee.
Lord LYTTELTON presented a petition praying for
the repeal of the taxes on knowledge.
The Earl of WINCHILSEA presented a great num-
i)er of petitions from different parts of England and Scot-
4i" against the College of Maynooth, and also against
e admission of Jews into Parliament.

THE CRYSTAL PALACE COMPANY BILL.
On the motion of Lord REDESDALE, this bill was
read a second time.

VACCINATION EXTENSION BILL.
On the motion of Lord LYTTELTON this bill passed
through committee.
CONSOLIDATED ANNUITIES.
The Marquis of CLANRICARDE gave notice that
he would call the attention of the Government and the
house to the state in which the question Of the consoli-
Zated
, annuities in the Irish unions stood at present, and
ie.,nat had passed between the deputation on the sub-
.' t,,1 and the Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Their lordships then adjourned.

li°l:3SE OP COMMONS—(YESTERDAY.)
The .'EVER took the chair at four o'clock.
withlll Teignmouth Harbour and Teign Navigation Bill,
-e)adtnents, was considered and read a third time.

I Sever4PETITIONS.
of the
erCrf Q3Petitions were presented against the opening
Sir '8441 Palace on Sund.
.11 •"„DtELLEY presentedays petitions from Bradford,
opaniT7' ,tiuddersfield, and other places, in favour of
fromtoe Crystal Palace on Sundays ; also, a petition
oddersfield, rayin for further inquiry into the
practices at the lastpelectiogn for the borough.
prayirt; REWEN presented a petition from Sussex,
ofl. g for the repeal of the malt and hop duties ;.al.so,
etition from the same county, against the admission
At WS into Parliament.
Neo r. ELACKETT presented several petition from
eecsastle-on-Tyne against the taxes on newspapers.
L •11. WALMSLEY presented two petitions from
other, tA--r, one against the advertisement duty and the
Ivr against all taxes on knowledge.
COWAN presented a petition from Edinburgh,
r°. favour of the Public Houses (Scotland) Bill ; also a
lition from the proprietor of the Scottish Press against
aolvertisement duty.
r
•MUNTZ presented a petition from the proprietor
of the
zm ianghant Mercury, against the duties on ad-
'Liseraents.
• Mr. A. EIASTIE presented a petition from Glasgow
_till favour of the abolition of Scotch university tests ;
Tus° a petition from the same city, praying for the gra-
al reduction of the tea duties.
pa,Mr. W. PATTEN presented a petition from Lanca-
"„re against the admission of Jews into Parliament.
t air. CAIRNS presented a petition from the proprie-
,er of the Belfast News Letter against the advertisement
Y.
Mr. it. PALMER presented a petition from Berks,
paying for the repeal of the malt duty.
Mr. W. J. FOX presented a petition from the Oldham
Lyceum against taxes on knowledge ; also a petition
from Devon in favour of the Crystal Palace being opened
on Sundays.

Mr. M. CHAMBERS presented a petition from the
editor of a Kentish paper, praying for the immediate re-
peal of the advertisement duty.

Col. LINDSAY presented a petition from Wigan
against the duty on soap.
Mr. T. DUNCOMBE presented two petitions from
the metropolis against the occupation of Rome by the
French.
t, r. COBDEN presented a petition from Hudders-
e.l, praying for the repeal of the taxes on knowledge.
Sir G. PECHELL resented a petition from Norwich,
1:181.aPn g for the amendment of the. Health of Towns Act;
red" a Petition from Brighton, in favour of the mutual
uetion of national armaments.
41.4 D. STUART presented a petition, agreed to at
riblie meeting of rate-payers of the parish of St. Mary;
ceoeTi:' complaining of the water companies, and of the
coons tied by the committee of the House of Comd-
PrayBl " 'eh sat in 1852 on the water question, an.
ng for the appointment of a committee to investi-
Sir ti 'etks
th •L.v- ge •
ktleAlnietropolis ANS presented several petitions from
"wiedge. Praying' for the revision of the taxes on
kr, ER OF LAND IN IRELAND.
t'Le sh 'CIILLY gave no ice that on the 10th May
"ue tt.anrlier'llve for leave- to bring in a bill to facilitate
titrp:f land in Ireland.
r T..." 11 SETTLERS IN HONDURAS.
her for VANS inquired of the noble lord the me!n-
-tio44
,w-rve. City of London,i in reference to late negotia-
W hye ttshhhe s theei.s
erUnited or Central American States,
the rights and interests of this country and of
in Honduras and those of our ancient
served 0 'lief of the Mosquito Coast, have been pre-
Lod Tr if modified, to what degree or extent ?
Yaot RUSSELL said, as the negotiations were
to thee" completed, he could not give any positive ansGwef
l'ero,cluestion, but it had been the object of the ?
eoun7eat to preserve the rights and interests of this
n"r7' and the British settlers in Honduras.
the,
SURVEY OF SCOTLAND.
the, tLAIR asked her Majesty's Government whiteh-
reg ucy were prepared to state their intentions with
the to the scale on which the Ordnance Survey of
au southern counties of Scotland was to be resumed ;
still Whether it was intended to apply the survey on a
u laa_rger scale to towns of 4,000 inhabitants and
pThr
Was
~ 'ite ,`-'-'IIA.IsICELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he
Sub. l t aware of the interest which was felt on his
h
obeet Scotland and elsewhere, and he wa:s mhu.c
ged to the hon. and gallant member for giving him
h()PP ortunity of answering the question w
th
e t in a condition o
Btate Put lie was no • • s of the
o, definitively what the intention
Th 'eminent were with reference to that survey.
voic question was one of very great importance, and e in-
Theved the expenditure of a very large sum of mon y.
ecourse taken up to the present time had not been
clear, consistent, nor did it appear certain that it was
a ear, or beyond doubt, what was the best course to pui.•-
ue with regard to the scale of the large map which it
sntended to publish. As to the small map, no
doubtdetermined
existed as to what should be done, it having been
11etermined to publish Aon a half-inch scale. The Go-
vernment were anxious, before they came to a final
settlement upon the large map, to ascertain the opinions
of all the persons who were best qualified to give an
PAinion on the subject ; and they hoped to obtain valuable
'llformation from the county meetings which were shortly
about to be held in Scotland. When they were in pos-
session of that information, the Government would lose
ne time in coming to a definite decision in regard to the
preparation of this map.

TREATMENT OF PICTURES IN THE
NATIONAL GALLERY.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said he
would take that opportunity of answering another
question which was put to him the other night with re-
spect to cleaning the pictures in the National Gallery
with warm water. The trustees of the National Gallery
had the matter under their consideration, and they had
furnished him with reports both from Mr. Unwins, the
keeper of the gallery, and from Mr. Segar, who had the
care of the pictures. Mr. Segar gave a very distinct
account of the proceedings which he had adopted in re-
gard to the pictures, and it was his (the Chancellor of
the Exchequer's) intention to forward his report, as well
as that of Mr. Unwins', to the chairman of the commit-
tee, which was about to sit on this subject. It appeared
that nothing unwise or indiscreet had been done, and
that there was no reason to suppose that any injury had
been sustained by the pictures. It was likewise stated
that nothing further should be done as to the cleaning of
Pictures in the gallery until the present session of Parlia-
ment came to a close.

ECCLESIASTICAL COURTS IN IRELAND.
Mr. GEORGE wished to ask the Secretary for
Areland, whether it was the intention of her Majesty's
re.vernment to introduce any bill during the present
Ecclesiastical
to reform the testamentary jurisdiction of the
-c,eclesiastical Courts in Ireland, or to extend to Ireland
any similar measure that may be brought in for
England.
Sir J. YOUNG said, that in answer to the question
of the hon. gentleman, he had to state that it was not
the intention of the Government to bring in any sepa-
rate measure for the purpose referred to, but when the
flglish bill was brought forward, it would be found to
Include all that was necessary for Ireland.
MISCELLANEOUS ESTIMATES.
Mr. SPOONER wished to ask the noble lord, th-
niernber for London, when it was his intention to pro
eeed with the miscellaneous estimates.
Lord J. RUSSELL said that properly the votes
N,
ould stand for to-morrow. It was, however, his inten-
-11,11 to take to-morrow, first, the Jewish Disabilities
1), and, if by that time the bill of the Chancellor of
the' f
had been sufficiently long in the hands
non. members, to take the second reading of it. If,
4uwever, such was not the case, the house would go into
committee of supply.
CLITREROE ELECTION.
ugh of The liouse held a conference with the Lords ofon the
nect of the Address to the Crown, for a commission
forLae bor „cluiry into the corrupt practices at the last election
o Clith

XVYNOOTH.
tlt'. SP
e" eOONER gave notice that when the miscella-
03tintates came before the house he should move
Colallsfilen of the Maynooth grant,

TAXES ON KNOWLEDGE.
Mr. GIBSON rose to move the following resolutions:—
; "1. That the advertisement duty ought to be repealed.
2. That the policy of restraining the cheap periodical
' press from narrating current events, by rendering it liable
to stamp duties and other restrictions, ' if any public
news, intelligence, or occurrences, or any remarks or ob-
servations thgreon,' be contained therein, is inexpedient,
and at variance with the desire now generally expressed in
favour of the diffusion of knowledge among all classes ; and
it appears also to this house that the law relative to taxes
on newspapers, and other regulations affecting public
prints, is in an unsatisfactory state, and demands the at-
tention of Parliament. 3. That the Excise duty on paper,
while impeding the development of an important manu-
facture, also materially obstructs the production of good
cheap literature ; and the maintenance of this tax, as a
permanent source of revenue, would be impolitic and in-
consistent with the efforts which Parliament is now mak-
ing to promote education among the great body of the
people."
Mr. Gibson said that he submitted his motion to the
house in the form of three separate resolutions, in conse-
quence of having observed, though the three duties or
taxes to which his resolutions referred might appear in the
minds of many to be unconnected taxes, that nevertheless
for the last 130 years they had been dealt with by the
Legislature at the same time, or nearly at the same time,
and he viewed them as parts of a system, and of a policy
which had been enforced in this country for, to a great
extent, the purpose of restraining the press. (Hear, hear.)
These duties had been imposed at the same time, and had
been reduced at the same time ; but he did not now call
upon the house, by embracing the three taxes in any one
resolution, to commit itself by a single vote to the full ex-
tent of his proposition. The -resolutions would be sub-
mitted separately, and a vote for one would not commit
any gentleman to a vote in favour of the others. He en-
tertained his own views on the expediency of dealing with
them all, but he had not presumed to ask the house to go
so far with him as to record its vote in favour of one broad
and comprehensive resolution, embracing the three taxes.
It might be stated, as a preliminary objection, that before
bringing forward this question he ought to have waited
until the house was in possession of the financial views of
the Government, and had heard the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer's statement of the position of the public revenue
and expenditure of the country. He had had some expe-
rience in bringing forward this motion—though not in the
present Parliament, yet in others, He had brought for-
ward the motion before the budget and after the budget,
and his experience did not toll him that he was in the
least benefitted by having deferred the proposition until
after the budget. (Hear.) It appeared to him that the
Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he was about to introduce
any part of this scheme into his financial proposals, would
not be in a worse position by having had a vote of the house
in his favour. On the contrary, he conceived that the right
hon. gentleman's hands would thereby be strengthened.
If, however, the Chancellor of the Exchequer were not
about to introduce any part of this scheme into the budget,
who could say that a vote of that house might not suggest
to the right hon. gentleman's mind that it might be desir-
able to consider, even between the present time and the
period of his financial statement, the propriety of acquies-
cing in the views of the house? He did not imagine that
he was in the slightest degree going beyond the legitimate
functions of a member of that house in inviting discussion
either before or after the budget upon any part of the taxa-
tion of the country ; for, besides the question of the
amount of money to be raised, there was another question
—whether the money was raised in that manner which
best consulted the interests and the welfare of the nation.
(Hear, hear.) There were many ways of raising a given
sum, and the suggestion of better ways than those which
existed of doing so was, of all duties, the one which most
devolved on independent members, and constituted a mat-
ter fit for discussion independent of the amount of money
required. Indeed he had observed that Chancellors of the
Exchequer were always content with "the goods the gods
provided them," and were seldom themselves willing to
look into the mode in which money was raised, if the
country were only willing to have it raised in the manner
hitherto adopted. His first resolution for the repeal of the
advertisement duty related to the small amount of revenue
and he would show shortly that there were reasons for be-
lieving that the revenue would be replaced. His second
resolution raised a question of policy, and could hardly be
said to relate to revenue at all. At all events, he could
show that it might be dealt with by parliament, and no
considerable portion of the revenue sacrificed. He admitted
that his third and last resolution did affect a considerable
amount of the public revenue, something like 900,000/. ;
but if hon. members would consider the working of that
resolution, they would see that it did not pledge the house
to any immediate repeal of the duty on paper. He only
asked the house to record its opinion that to maintain that
duty as a permanent source of taxation, as a good tax, was
a policy that ought not to be sanctioned, and that as early
an opportunity as the circumstances of the country and
safety of the public revenue permitted ought to bo taken
for the total abolition of this duty. It might be paid that
this was an abstract resolution of no practical utility, and
that it was wrong for the house to commit itself for the
future in matters of this description. There was a force
in that objection, but nevertheless they were not to sup-
pose that upon no occasion was an abstract resolution to be
submitted to the house. He had known great and benefi-
cial results arise from abstract resolutions, and he would
remind the house that one of the very first acts of the pre-
sent parliament was to cometo an abstract resolution, with
the consent of both sides of the house, to the effect that
they would maintain and prudently extend the free-
trade policy which did commit them undoubtedly to
deal with the public revenue before the period when
that precise proposition might be submitted to Parliament.
So his resolution with regard to paper merely asked the
house prudently and when the occasion befitted to deal
with this tax as a tax adverseto the moral and educational
interests of this country, and contrary to the policy which
parliament was pursuing for the purpose of promoting
education among the groat masses of the people. He
might point out various mischiefs that arose from this tax
in a commercial point of view, but probably his argu-
ment would be common to other duties of Excise, and
perhaps of no greater weight than might be applied to soap
and other existing Excise duties. But there was a certain
peculiarity about paper, in being connected with the diffu-
sion of knowledge among the people, which did not apply
to other Excise duties. In a commercial point of view
there were also peculiarities about it. Paper was an ar-
ticle manufactured from worthless raw materials, the whole
of its value consisting of the labour upon it, and the money
expended in its manufacture was distributed among la-
bourers; it employed men, women, and children; it was a
rural manufacture ; papermills were spread over the
country districts, and there was no class iu this country so
interested in widening and developing the manufacture of
paper as the residents in the various counties. There was
an uneasiness in reference to the greatly increasing de-
parture of labourers from this land. If they wished to
stay the tide of emigration, then let them open the field of
oinployment at home, and, by removing this oppressive
Excise duty on paper, which prevented the development
of an important manufacture, keep the labouring families
in the agricultural districts by profitable employment there,
and have their labour on the land; but if they allowed the
field of employment to be narrowed by this duty, they
must of necessity lose that labour, which would flee to
other lands where such a manufacture was unrestricted.
(Hear.) And what was going on now ? The refuse from
which paper was manufactured was purchased by foreigners
in this country to send it to lands where no paper duty
existed, where it might be manufactured into paper and
then sent into the British colonies to supply our own
people. (Hear.) Could that bo a wise and judieious
policy? This was no class question—no manufacturer's
or country gentleman's question exclusively; the advantage
would be shared, no doubt, by all classes ; but is reference
to the development of the manufacture it appeared to him
that, inasmuch as paper-mills must exist where there were
pure streams and a country population, the representatives
of counties, of all persons, had the greatest interest in
getting rid of this Excise duty on paper. When the com-
missioners reported on the different branches of the Excise
system, they recommended paper to be dealt with. They
did not then recommend the paper duty to be abolished,
because the circumstances of the country did not admit of
it ; but they took especial care in their report to guard
themselves from being supposed to contemplate this duty
as a permanent source of revenue ; for they said :
" We trust that in submitting as the result of our inquiries
into this branch of Excise taxation a recommendation for the
diminution of the present rate of duty, rather than for its
total repeal, we shall not be considered as conveying any ap-
proval of this head of duty."
And they went on to say :
" Iu the meantime, however, and until circumstances shall
admit of realizing the still more beneficial effects which would
result from a total abolition of the duty, we are satisfied that
the reduction to one-half the present rate of duty would be
very advantageous."
by clip
But the ground upon which he had connected the duty
with his motion was its connexion with the diffusion of
paper had an effect in knowledge
(Hear.) The literature through the country.
Legislatureitrpreliasvedutaidumg itthteedditffhtaistiutnheurfluktuyuwon.
ledge, for iu the ye
That,
as
an
encour
o.tsthertea
Ntvnatse
sofelAausnnee,towthheins tebfrojett_y_
on paper was imposed,
as shall from time to time be
to learning, so much money
printing any books in the for
in the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge,rock,duty on paper, and in
or Oriental languages,
And at the present momenptrtihnoteNaper duty was remitted
shall be repaid."
if
theyin the Universities of
Prin thought it necessary
on Bibles and Testaments
in the Latin, Greek,
Oxford and Cambridge. But,
~eions to the diffu-
prepared to re-
commendto legislate specially for works
or Oriental languages, why were thez..uV
among the great
uernoanswer to
the policy of removing obstructions
large book
sion of knowledge in the English.lan
masses of the people ? (Hear.) It weal
him to tell him that a three-volumed novel
like M'Culloch's dictionary, would not beaeerseptil.rly
cheaper if the duty on paper were repealed. The question
was, whether the diffusion throughout the country of
knowledge by cheap publications should be obstructed by
a duty which raised the cost of that paper far more than
the amount of the duty. He had received a communica-
tion from Mr. C. Knight, a gentleman whose name he had
often quoted before in that house, expressing the pleasure
he felt at this question being again brought before the
House, and he put the case so forcibly iu his letter, that
he (Mr.' Gibson) would read it in Mr. Knight's own
words :
During the last 20 years especially I have been labour-
ing to produce books which should unite literary excellence
with exceeding cheapness. I paid 40,0001. for the copyright
of the Penny Cyelopcedia. When the book was finished I
had paid the Excise 16,5001. upon the paper used in that
work. But the actual duty paid was almost doubled by the
necessary increase of the manufacturer's price produced 1 y
the duty, and by the accumulation of stock. That' great
national work would only have paid its expenses had there
been no paper duty at all.
" But the copyright of that cyclopsedia. remains my pro-
perty, and I am about to produce an improved cyclopredia.
If I produce an expensive edition which would remunerate
me by a sale of 2,000 at a cost of 201. per opy, the paper

vull cost about 5,0001., of which the actual duty will be about
1,0001. But if I rely upon a very large demand, and make
my estimates upon a sale of 20,000 at 61. per copy, the paper
will cost 30,0001., of which the duty will be 6,0001. If I
produce a dear book for the few, the State will tax me 1,0001.
if a cheap book for the many, I shall be taxed 6,0001."

Was that a policy which could be justified, while they were
endeavouring to promote education among the people ?
(Hear.) If they raised the cost cf paper for cheap literature
they struck at the fund from which authors must bo paid,
and prevented the ablest talent from addressing itself to
the great masses of the people. If they had this enormous
sum of the duty on paper to replace by the sale of these
cheap publications, they had nothing left to pay for the
original authorship ; and he would ask whether it was
wiser that the best minds of this country should be able to
derive remuneration from cheap literature diffused among
the great bodies of the people, or should be limited, as they
are now, to the production of expensive works for the few ?
The strongest argument against the duty on paper was,
that it was antagonistic to good literature. Penny publi-
cations they could have, nut if they wished to combine
goodness with cheapness they must endeavour to remove
obstructions in the way of the cost of the materials of
which those cheap publications were composed, or there
would be nothing left with which to pay the author.
(Hear.) He therefore confidently appealed to the right
hon. gentleman the Chancellor of the Exchequer to take
into consideration' when the circumstnnces of the country
should permit it, the oppressive nature of this duty on
paper. Mr. Knight said in one of his works that during
20 years he had paid about 80,0001. to authors and literary
men for their labours, and 50,0001. to the State for paper
duty, in order to give to the public the benefit of the com-
positions of those authors and literary men. So that for
80,0001. worth of intellect and knowledge, before he could
circulate it even in the limited way in which it was now
circulated, he had to pay no less a toll than 50,0001. to the
State, and that in a country which was constantly pro-
claiming to the world the great desire it had of diffusing
knowledge and promoting education among the people.
They were unable, from the difficulties of their position,
to pass educational measures ; they were compelled to re-
sort to all manner of petty expedients and partial legisla-
tion in order to get legislation bit by bit through the
country; but here was a plan at least which they could
adopt, and which was free from religious controversies, as
between voluntaryism and State education • all they were
asked to do was to remove the obstructions which pre-
vented people from educating themselves. (Hear hear.)
How much, too, was the risk of literary speculations in-
creased by the fact that the duty on paper must all be
paid, that there was no drawback, no bonding of paper and
taking it out as it was consumed ! When a man entered
on a literary speculation, he must print the number of
copies of the work he intended to sell ; and, if he failed to
sell them, there was no return to him of the duty he had
paid to the State in the ineffectual attempt he had made
to diffuse knowledge among the people. If he was a dealer
in tobacco or brandy he might pay his duty when ho sold
those articles to the consumer, but if he was a dealer in
knowledge he must pay all the duty on the paper in the
outset ; and it was, indeed, a matter of serious considera-
tion whether he would pay a sum of 16,0001. or 20,0001.,
to be replaced, for paper duty, before he would undertake
a large literary speculation. Many and many were the
works that, even with a good sale, the duty on paper had
prevented from leaving enough to repay the author. He
would not detain the house, or he could mention numerous
instances of particular books and publications which,
when the duty on the paper was replaced, left nothing to
repay the author for his labour, or to encourage literary
men in future to devote their talents to enlighten the
public. That was not becoming in a country in favour of
education, because they ought to do all that in them
lay not only to remove those obstructions to the diffusion
of good cheap literature, but also to remove all the im-
pediments that prevented the ablest men from turning
their minds to the instruction of their countrymen. He
knew no way so calculated to promote the interests of
authors and literary men, and to furnish rewards for good
literary labour, as the repeal or the duty on paper. It
could not be obtained by adding to the price of small
publications. If they wanted to command a large cir-
culation, they must have penny publications. They
could say that, in consequence of the duty on paper, it
should be sold at a penny and a fraction. If they in-
creased the price to 10. or 2d., as Messrs. Chambers had
attempted, the sale decreased, as they had not a sufficient
circulation. They were limited to ld., and therefore they
ought to remove this duty. But, having taxed the paper
as a vehicle of knowledge, the State was not satified. It
said there were two particular kinds of information ; that;
if they were printed on paper, they should each, under
certain conditions, bear other taxes ; the one was the duty
of Is. 6d. on an announcement known as an advertisement
—the other was a tax for the particular kind of knowledge
called news. Was it conceivable that if Parliament had
in former times had nothing in view but to derive a re-
venue from paper, it would, after putting a tax on paper,
immediately impose other taxes to prevent persons from
making use of the paper, and thus lessening the revenue,
which it professed to have in view? (Hear, hear.) If they
put a duty on carriages, would they also put a toll on every
man that got into a carriage, and so make it his interest to
ride in some other description of vehicle ? No ! They
would rather desire, he should fancy, to increase the num-
ber of those vehicles, so that, having taxed them, they
might derive the greatest amount of revenue from "them.
But there was nothing of that kind with reference to the
duty on paper. Take the case of an advertisement. If a
man made an announcement by word of mouth, no duty
was put upon it ; if he made it by the crier, no duty was
put upon it ; if he used an advertising van, no duty was
put upon it ; but if had it printed on paper frequently
and periodically, then the exciseman interposed, and
charged him with a duty of Is. 6d. for each announcement,
thus making it the direct interest of everybody to avoid
making announcements in that manner ; and, as it was
only leviable in the case of announcements being made pe-
riodically, it was a direct hindering of the growth of the
periodical press. If a man advertised in a newspaper one
would suppose he was attempting the most obvious and
rational mode of making known his wants, because it was
a newspaper, of all things, that, from its frequent publica-
tion, gave the frequent announcement so desirable for the
advertiser ; but when he made such announcement he
found the exciseman there, who said it should not be made
without a tax to the State, It was a barbarous tax. Was
there anything more desirable in society than that men
should make known to each other their mutual wants ?
And did not this tax lie at the very root of all commercial
transactions ? It was by this toll that they prevented the
knowledge of commercial tranactions that might be most
beneficial to those who were engaged in them, and to so-
ciety. But what a monstrous thing it was, when the
Amazon steam-ship was lost, or the Irish famine occurred,
and it became necessary by repeated advertisements to
arrest public attention to those calamities, that the excise-
man required ls. 6d. to be paid on every one of those
announcements—(hear, hear)—thus converting the adver-
tisement duty into a tax on calamity, and causing the
funds of the subscribers, who fancied they were contri-
buting to the relief of the Irish famine, or the orphans and
widows of the men who were lost in the Amazon, to
contribute to State necessity, and to pay a portion of
their money to the revenue ! This was a tax which
ought not to be encouraged in a commercial coun-
try, where everything impeding the intercommuni-
tion of information should be carefully avoided by
the State. It was a tax, in fact, worthy only of a barbar-
ous country—a tax raising a very small revenue at the ex-
pensea n d noo ft
nmper
oobf
atbhley odsets
tvraol
yu
ianbgl e iinterests
ways
f the
ac og
rune
at r yt e
r,
amount of revenue than it created. The pressure of this
tax was limited to newspapers ; for, though by law all ad-
vertisements, whether in newspapers or books, ought to
pay-the tax, those published in books were Mowed to
evade the tax. How great an injustice was here ! Take
the catalogue of the Great Exhibition. In that volume,
purcha:.erede
sby3 p
thousands thousandsadsdva:d.tisements
in of persons
not at Is.,
there
which paid the duty ; and, no doubt, in the same way the
catalogue of the Crystal Palace would have its 100 pages
of advertisements, all equally exempt from that impost,
cwi shei ch
owma thes r
jg
isdtlryn
struggling
iancgt e dp
rtoop
rtihe et lastois o
ffarthinga
pb ye r
st h. e Euxe-
held in his hand another illustration of the grossly unjust
competition to which the proprietors of newspapers were
exposed with reference to advertisements. Here was the
prospectus of a railway advertising association :
" The importance of this novel system of advertising can-
not be two highly estimated, when it is remembered that rail-
way travellers include within their numbers every individual
of rank, property, or influence in the three kingdoms, while
the frequency of their journeyings may be calculated from
the fact, that the number of passengers booked at the princi-
pal railways in Great Britain alone in the year 1850 exceeded
60,000,000. It must be borne in m'nd that these immense
numbers—the possessors of the aggregate wealth of the coun-
try—are concentrated, day by day, at the railway stations ;
and the circumstances of each journey are such, that either
on the departure or arrival, or in the course of transit, every
passenger must of necessity become acquainted with the an-
nouncements which present themselves to his notice. It may
be safely asserted, that no other mode of advertising presents
so favourable a means of*rtaching that class which the adver-

tser desires most to attract." '
Now all this might be 'Very true, but was it just to tho
nowspaper proprietor to tax the advertisements in his
columns, and to leave untaxed advertisements published in
railway carriages, under circumstances manifestly so advan-
tageous? (Hear.) The only remedy against this injustice
was to repeal the tax altogether ; its mere reduction would
leave the inequality and the unfair competition completely
unredressed for the newspaper proprietors, to whom the
advertisements should supply the fund mainly enabling
them to diffuse that information which was becoming
more and more emphatically a daily necessary to the
people. He doubted even whether the remedy, if now ap-
plied, would come soon enough to save many of those pro-
prietors from the effects of that injustice to-which they had
been exposed. The repeal of the tax had been opposed on
the ground that we could not spare the revenue it supplied,
but ho was satisfied that its repeal would, in reality, occa-
sion no loss to the revenue at all. (Hear.) The whole
amount of revenue raised from this source was 178,0001.
Even supposing that this 178,0001. were wholly lost, the
House of Commons had on many occasions shown that for
purposes infinitely leas important it was ready to sacrifice
public money to a much larger amount. He denied, how-
ever, that the 178,0001 would be lost to tho public. The
house should bear in mind that well nigh every saw:Also-
meut gave rise to more or less correspondence. (Hear.)
Now, at the present time there were annually published
in reat Britain 2,000,000 of advertisements, or perhaps
somewhat more. In the United States, with the same
population, there were 11,000,000 of advertisements pub-
lished. every year. (Hear.) There was no advertisement
duty in the United States, yet under a free trade system
wo were called upon to compete with a country which had
thus the advantage of being able, without let or hindrance,
to intercommunicate all the mutual wants of its people.
(Hear, hear.) Well, in tho United States there were
11,000,000 of advertisements, in Great Britain 2,000,000 ;
let him ask, was it not probable that in this country,
similar as its population was in many respects to that
of the United States, we might look for a correspond-
ing increase in our advertisements if this impediment were
removed? (Hoar, hear.) Ho had remarked that every
advertisement well nigh gave rise to a greater or less nmn-
ber of letters in reference to it. He held in his hand a
letter he had received from Mr. Edward Baines, the pro-
prietorntcaseumb be
number
i .s
woe theonfhfticht o
t replieshLt Journal,
ehereetedosowtffiohrceeem nl.%vovaas sf informedelBawv,bh:ortuhttho
s•overage of advertisements in his journal requiring answers
each advertisement, a
ns 1,11 ppose
suppose, an
asdrheatphleeksanvto
oewr
oanng
nee
advertisement. But average
sup-
pose, that, the tax repealed, there would be 5,000,000 of
advertisements, thepresent lfeatitrleyrsfor
revenue would speedily be
replaced by the postage on the letters. (Hear, hear.)
illustrations :—A political
association him give some particular
association in Holborn inserted one advertisement in the
Times, paying is. 6d. duty, and received 500 answers,
paying to the Post-office 21.15. Bd. ;W. Byles, of Bradford,
inserted • one in the Leeds Mercury,
H . paying is. 6d., and
4s.
received 50 answers, paying in postage., ,•
-2d
Wat-
kinson, of Spalding, inserted three in the Spcdding Free
Press, Stamford Mercury, and Lincolnshire Chronicle, pay-
ing.4.o, Od., and received 100 answers; paying a postage