The Sun.
London, England, 1847-07-17 00:00:00

JULY 17, 1847.

which it was destined, and in giving to it avowedly that
character of permanency which it had acquired practi-
cally by the prescription of half a century. We thought
this a wiser and more dignified course for the House
of Commons to pursue than to exhibit annually the
surly acquiescence in a niggardly vote,which was equally
open to any just objection on the ground of violated
principle, and which effected no good and excited no
gratitude.
In the course of the discussions which took place on
the Maynooth Bill two questions were put to me—the first,
whether the increased grant to Maynooth was part of a
systematic arrangement which contemplated ultimately
the endowment of the Roman Catholic clergy in Ire-
land ; the second, whether I would give a pledge, on
the ground of conscientious objection, against the en-
tertainment, at any future time, of a proposal for such
endowment.
To the first question I returned an answer on the part
of the Government collectively. I stated explicitly, that
the increased grant to Maynooth was proposed as a
single and separate measure, not intended to facilitate,
in the slightest degree, the endowment of the Roman
Catholic clergy. I knew, indeed, that many members
of the Government, not adverse to the grant to May-
nooth, would offer the most decided opposition to any
proposal for endowment.
In answering the second question I spoke then, as I
am speaking now, for myself.exclusively. I said, in sub-
stance, that I would not give the pledge required from
me; that I foresaw, indeed, very great practical difficul-
ties in the way of endowment—great difficulties, as well
from the declared objections to such a measure on the
part of the Roman Catholic laity and Roman Catholic
clergy in Ireland, as from the strong repugnance to it in
the public mind of this country; that I had no plea for
solving those difficulties; but that I would not fetter my
discretion as a legislator by a positive pledge to refuse
even the consideration of any such plan, at all times, and
under all circumstances.
The occasions are very rare on which it is consistent
with the proper discharge of Parliamentary functions to
enter into specific engagements of this nature.
They might, perhaps, in this case, be entered into
justifiably by those who, after extended inquiry and
mature deliberation, have come to the conclusion that
by allowing a decent stipend to a Roman Catholic priest,
instead of leaving him dependent for the means of sub-
sistence on an impoverished flock, of which he is the
spiritual, and, in truth, also the temporal guide, we
should be confirming an influence already too great, and
obstructing the diffusion of a purer faith—still more
justifiably by those whose conscientious conviction it is,
that by such an act we are sanctioning and adopting
error, and sinfully offending Almighty God, by consent-
ing to the endowment of men who deny and reject
Divine truth.
But I cannot give my consent to either of these con-
clusions.
I feel with regard to the first that nothing can be less
successful in weakening the influence of the Roman Ca-
tholic religion in Ireland than the course we have hither-
to taken—that we have made no advance towards that
object, either by penal laws or civil disabilities, or by a
system of complete alienation from the ministers of that
religion.
With regard to the second, I cannot admit that the
payment, with the sanction of Parliament, of a given
sum to the minister of a religious creed not being that
of the State, is tantamount to the adoption or sanction,
by the State of the doctrines which that mi-
nister may teach, and is subversive of the prin-
ciple of an established church. If it be so, we
ought so to rescind many acts of the Crown
and of Parliament, which are open substantially to the
same objection. Year after year (frequently without one
dissenting voice), we have voted the sum required for
support of the Presbyterian ministers in Ireland,
there being included among the number many pro-
fessing and teaching Unitarian doctrines. We
have provided by Act of Parliament fixed allow-
ances, paid from a public fund, to Roman Ca-
tholics chaplains in attendance on prisons and on
workhouses. In order to facilitate the submission, and
to retain quiet possession of important colonies, we have
not hesitated to guarantee, not only the endowment of
Roman Catholic priests, but the continued establishment
of the Roman Catholic religion.
If, on the ground of conscientious scruples, we are
bound to refuse even the consideration of any proposal
for allotting a stipend to the Roman Catholic priests in
Ireland, if, by entertaining such a proposal, we imply
the sanction of Roman Catholic errors, and justly incur
Divine punishment for our apostacy, is it safe to maintain
our connexion with Canada and Malta, and continue
parties, not merely to the payment of Roman Catholic
priests, but to the establishment of the Roman Catholic
religion, in dependencies of the British Crown? Consi-
derations, political or constitutional, may, no doubt, for-
bid that to be done in Ireland which is permissible in
Canada; but can that which is prohibited in one part of
the Queen's dominions on purely conscientious and re-
ligious grounds, be consistently tolerated and encouraged
in another?
I, for one, cannot undertake, on these grounds, to fat-
fer my discretion for all time to come on the subject to
which I have been referring.
I have thus addressed yon, certainly without any in-
tentional reserve, on the domestic questions which, from
their connexion with religion, are of pre-eminent im-
portance. I approach those (the next in point of interest)
which have reference to our commercial and financial
policy.
When the late Government succeeded to power, there
had been for each of some years preceding a deficiency.
in the amount of revenue, as compared with the expendi-
ture. The amount of that deficiency in the year 1841
was not less than 2,100,0001. An attempt had been
I made in the year 1840 to supply the deficiency by an
addition of ten per cent. to the assessed taxes, and of
five per cent. to the revenues of Customs and Excise.
The increase thus made to the scale of the assessed taxes
answered the expectation with which it was imposed.
But the far greater part of the amount expected to be
raised was to have been supplied by the addition made
to the duties of Customs and Excise—that is to say, by
increased taxation upon articles of general consumption,
and upon the raw materials of domestic manufacture.
The estimated produce of these additional duties was
1,910,0001. They actually realised, on the most favour-
able supposition, not more than 750,000/., falling short
therefore of the estimate by no less a sum than 1,160,0001.
Under these circumstances, it became my duty, as the
chief Minister of Finance, to advise the adoption of
effectual measures for supplying the deficit between the
public revenue and the charge upon it.
As the organ of the Government, I proposed a tax
upon all incomes above a certain amount. I accompa-
nied the proposal of that tax with a partial reformation
of the commercial code, reducing many duties onerous
to the trade and commercial enterprise of the country.
The principal of reformation adopted in 1842 compre-
hended the abolition of prohibitions, and the abatement
of duties of a prohibitory character; the reduction of
duties on raw materials to an amount not exceeding five
per cent. ad valorem, and on articles partially manufac
tured, and completely manufactured, to an amount not
exceeding twelve and twenty per cent. respectively.
The total amount of reductions of duty was, in the
year

1842
1843
1844

£1,092,690
411,821
458,810

£1,963,321
Notwithstanding these reductions, the ordinary re-
venue of the United Kingdom, that is, the revenue de-
rived from the Customs, Excise, Stamps and Taxes, and
Post-office, amounted in the year
1841 to £47,917,000
1844 to
... 48,125,000
In taking the revenue of the latter year, I have, of
course, excluded altogether the receipts from the Pro-
perty-tax,, and also the receipts from casual sources of
revenue, such as the payment of China money in re-
imbursement of the expenses of the war.
The period of three years, for which the Income-tax
was originally passed, expired on the sth of April, 1845.
Encouraged by the experience of the past, the Govern-
ment proposed to Parliament the renewal of the Income-
tax for a further period of three years, and the ex-
tended application of those principles of commercial re-
form which bad been previously acted upon.
The duties on raw materials used in manufactures, on
dye stuffs, on oils, as well as on various articles pro-
ducing little or no revenue, were altogether repealed.
The manufacture of glass was relieved from the duties
of Excise, and from the supervision and interference of
Excise officers. The amount of the duties remitted in
1845 was not less than 4,511,0001.
In 1846 duties were again remitted to the extent of
1,151,000/.
The total amount of taxation remitted between the
commencement of the session of 1842, and the resigna-
tion of the late Government in 1846, was 7,625,0001.
The ordinary revenue of 1841 was 47,917,000/.
That of 1846 (again deducting the receipts from Pro-
perty-tax and casual revenue) was 47,554,0001.
A portion, however, of the receipts of this latter year,
amounting to 416,0001. must be attributed to the in-
creased revenue from sugar, in consequence of the re-
duction, by the present Government, of the duties upon
foreign sugar. After making duo allowance for this
increase, it will be seen that the reduction of taxation
effected by the late Government, to the amount of
7,625,0001., were accompanied by a diminution of re-
venue to the extent only of 779,0001.
The result of these two experiments has therefore
been that, in the years 1842, 1843, and 1844, the whole
amount lost to the revenue by reduced taxation was more
than replaced. In the two years, 1845 and 1846, nine-
tenths of a far larger reduction had already been re-
placed. But the case does not rest here. Notwithstand-
ing the disastrous circumstances of the late harvest, and
the depression of trade, the revenue of 1847 again ex-
hibits a considerable increase on that of the preceding
year. The last published balance-sheet of the United
Kingdom is that for the year ending the sth or April,
1847. If we compare the ordinary revenue of that
year (after deducting the Property-tax) with the ordi-
nary revenue of the year ending
sth of April, 1841, We
find
Year ending sth of April, 1841 £47,218,178
1847

Difference in favour of 1847 ....`943419
This difference in favour of the latter year far ex-

- -
needs any increased receipt from the admission of foreign
sugar.
A statement published on the 6th instant carries the
accounts for Great Britain down to the present time, viz.,
to sth July, 1847, those for Ireland being not yet com-
plete. It exhibits for this portion of the empire a total
increase of ordinary revenue, as compared with the year
ending sth July, 1846, of no less than 2,615,8711., of
which (notwithstanding the remission of the duties on
corn), 1,812,773/. comes under the head of Customs and
Excise, or, in other words, arises from increased con-
sumption.
The whole effect, therefore, of the measures of the
late Government had been to remove more than seven
millions and a half of taxes; while the ordinary revenue
of the last financial year, for which they were called upon
to provide, has considerably exceeded the ordinary re-
venue (derived from the same sources) of the financial
year that immediately preceded their accession to office.
In the foregoing observations I have made no reference
to the reduction of duty on wheat and on those other I
kinds of grain which were included in the Corn Bill of
last year. The amount of seven and a half millions of
taxation, to the reduction of which I have just referred,
does not include any advantages which may be derived
to the consumers from the reduction in 1842, and pro-
spective repeal in 1846 of these duties.
I have already mentioned to you the general objects
contemplated by the reformation of the tariff—the abo-
lition of prohibition—the reduction of prohibitory duties
—the repeal of duties on the raw materials of manufac-
ture; but I am desirous of calling your attention specially
to the removal and relaxation of duties levied on the
import of articles from abroad, which enter largely into
the consumption of the people as articles of subsistence.
You are all well aware that it was upon this point that
the greatest difference of opinion prevailed, and that the
proposal of the Government to repeal, at an early period,
the duties upon foreign grain, was the main cause of its
dissolution.

I wish to place before you, in the clearest and most in-
telligible form, the extent of the several measures pro-
posed by the late Government, for the abatement and
the repeal of the duties to which I have above referred.
The first column of the following table specifies the
amount of duty on the several articles payable on the Ist
of January, 1842 ; the second column the amount of
duty on the Ist of August, 1846:

RATE OF DUTY CHARGEABLE.
Ist Jan., Ist Au
1842. 1846.

Animals living, viz., oxen. cows,
sheep, &c Prohibited ... Free,
Meat, salt and fresh
£ s. d. X s. d
Bacon, per cwt 1 9 4 ... Free.
Butter, per cwt
Cheese, per cwt 0 11 0 ... 0 5 0
Cocoa, foreign, per lb 0 0 6 ... 0 0 2
Coffee, foreign, per lb 0 I 3 ... 0 0 6
Currants, foreign, per cwt 1 3 2 ... 0 15 0
Hams, per cwt 1 9 4 ... 0 7 0
Lard, per cwt 0 8 0 ... Free.
Rice, per cwt 0 15 0 ... 0 1 0
Spirits, per gallon 1 2 10 ... 0 15 0
Sugar, per cwt. (British Colo-
nial)
With respect to the corn-laws, there were in force on
the Ist of January, 1842, rates of duty on the importa-
tion of foreign corn, varying according to the average
price in the home market.
When wheat was 625. a quarter the duty was 245. Bd.
If 68s. a quarter „ 165. Bd.
735. a quarter „ ls. Od.
Corresponding duties were levied on the same prin-
ciple on the import of other descriptions of grain. On
barley, for instance, and on Indian corn, when the price
of barley was under 345. the quarter, the duty on the
import of a quarter of barley, and also of a quarter of
Indian corn, was 12s. 4d.; when above 41s. the duty was
reduced to ls.
These several duties were reduced in the session of
1842. In that of 1846 provision was made for their
total repeal on the Ist of February, 1849.
Of the various proposals made by the late Govern-
ment for the reduction of duties on articles of subsistence
and general consumption, that which contemplated the
ultimate repeal of the duties on foreign grain encoun-
tered the moat decided opposition.
Let me recal to your recollection the circumstances
under which the proposal was made.
In the months of September and October, 1845, there
were indications in many parts of the United Kingdom
of that mysterious disorder which has effected to so
serious an extent the potato crop. There was great
alarm, in Ireland especially, as to the consequences.
From various authorities in that country entitled to
great respect representations were :received calculated
to make a deep impression on the minds of those who,
as servants of the Crown, were responsible for the adop-
tion of every reasonable precaution against a threatened
scarcity of food. To some of the representations I will
briefly refer.
The Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, writing on the 20th
of October, stated—" Tee accounts of the potato crop
continue to be of the most discouraging nature. Pota-
toes dug up to all appearance perfectly sound, after a short
time begin to decay, and very soon rot altogether.
Under such circumstances it is impossible to form
any decisive opinion as to the amount of the calamity."
On the 24th of October the Lord-Lieutenant wrote—
" We constantly receive satisfactory reports of the
state of potatoes when dug, and learn a few days after-
wards that they have all rotted in the pits. We do not
know, and cannot know, the extent of the evil."
The secretary of the Royal Agricultural Association
(an association formed of the chief landed proprietors in
Ireland), writing about the same time, observed—
" When I issued a circular about a month since to the
secretaries of 120 local societies in connexion with the
central one, I got several answers from persons stating
that the disease was not apparent in their immediate
neighbourhood ; but I have since received letters from
most of them stating that, upon digging the crop, they
found the disease in almost every quarter ; and I may
safely say that at present there is not a county in Ireland
that is not more or less affected by it. I shall barely
add that the greatest panic appears to exist in all parts
of the country."
At a public meeting, held in Dublin, on the 31st of
October, 1845, at which the Duke of Leinster presided,
it was resolved, " That it has been ascertained beyond a
doubt that famine, and consequently pestilence, are im-
mediately imminent, unless the Government, without
hesitation or delay, take the most prompt measures to
provide for this people." It was resolved also, " That
we respectfully call upon the Lord-Lieutenant of Ire•
land to order the ports of Ireland to be opened for the
importation of Indian corn, rice, and other articles suited
for human food."
We thought it possible that reports even from such
authorities, sent from the spot at a period of great ex-
citement, might be unduly influenced by the prevailing
alarm. We dispatched, therefore, to Ireland, in the
month of Octeher, two men (of the highest eminence in
the departments of science to which they belong), hav-
ing no local connexion with Ireland—Professor Lindley
and Dr. Lyon Playfair.
We sent them to Ireland for the double purpose of
suggesting, if possible, some remedy against the threaten-
ed evil, and of conveying to us their impressions as to its
real extent.
Their report was more unfavourable than any other.
They stated "that they had consulted persons acquainted
with the facts of the disease ; that they had visited the
district lying between Dublin and Drogheda, and in-
spected various potato fields and stores in the counties
of Dublin, Louth, Meath, Westmeath, and a part of
Kildare ; and that judging from the evidence thus col-
lected, and from what they had seen of the progress of
the disease in England, they could come to no other
conclusion than that one-half of the potato crop of Ire-
land was either destroyed or in a state unfit for the food
of man."

It was no doubt possible that all these parties might
be, in some degree, mistaken—that events might subse-
quently prove that they had magnified the extent of the
evil, but place yourselves in the position of those who
were responsible for the public safety, who received such
reports at the commencement of winter, without a hope
of additional supply from internal sources for the 10n,.,
period of nine months, and you will not be disposed to
m
for
pronounce a harsh judgment on their motives
advising that increased facilities should be given
for the
importation of food from other countries.
You will bear in mind that the visitationuf wthaseaLvoerrdy.
peculiar one. "That," to use the wourdds
extent Lieutenant,
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The point on which there was, and still is, the greatest
conflict of opinion, was the proposal to reconsider the
ulti whol
mate e question of the corn-laws, with a view to their
When I proposed to the Cabinet on the Ist November,
1846, the temporary suspension of all duties on foreign
corn, it became necessary for me at that time to decide
whether I could undertake to support, after the period
of suspension should have expired, the restoration of the
pre-existing law. Such an undertaking imied, ot
course, resistance with the whole weight
and auplthority
of the Government to any proposal that might be made
in Parliament, by others, for the modification of that
law in its principle or in its leading enactments.
I found it impossible, consistently with my sense of
public duty, to give an assurance to that effect.
In justifying my decision in this respect, I have no
desire to take any undue advantage of events which have
since occurred. That terrible scourge which has
.simrce
afflicted Ireland, which has demanded an extraordinary
advance advance of ten millions of money, for the purposeimust
averting from that country the horrors of
famitaken in
not, be,igp,aded as a vindication of the course
January. 1846. -, tot,.
But, Gentlemen, noprudettg tritititQr deciding on that
exclude from his con
course at that time, could safely
sideration the probability that
had affected the potato crop 0-r
1845 .
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