The Sun.
London, England, 1823-03-08 00:00:00

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

At half-past three the Douse was sumMoned to attend tha
House of Peers to hear the Royal Assent given by Commie-
sion to several Bills.
11ITSCEMA NEO US. •
Mr. POYNTZ presented a petition from certain Ilop-
growers in the parish of Woodyntore, in the county of Sussex,
against the Hop Duty.—Ortlereti to be printed.
Mr. It. COCKBURN presented a petition front the Wand
of Ely against the Insolvent Debtors' Act.--Oidereil to be
printed.
Mr. CUItTEIS presented a petition from the parish of
Battle, in the county of Sussex, praying for a repeal of the
mime tax.

Mr. PELHAM made a few observations, which were in-
audible.
The Petition was ordered to be printed.
Mr. II UME moved Jo renew an order of last year relative
to letter-carriers.

Also for a return of the names, and residences of all Sur-
veyors of Taxes who have been allowed to follow other oc-
cupations at the time of holding melt offices.
Also for certain Returns,connected.with the taxes in the dig-
trict of Kensington.
___

ASSESSED T.AXES,
Mr. lIUSICISSON presented a Petition from Liverpool,
which he stated to have been agreed to by a large and respec.
table body of Shopkeepers in that city. They prayed a repeal
of the Assessed Taxes; and, in addition to a further reduc-
don of the Tax on Shop Windows, they asked to be re.
Belied from the pressure of the House Tax upon houses em.
played in trade. lie wished be could, consistently with his
own judgment, support their wishes, and endeavour to per.
suede the house to adopt them also; hut he thought that even
the Petitioners would soon be persuaded themselves that they
had proceeded on a wrong principle in making this demand.
As such houses were inhabited as dwellings, they could not.
justly be relieved without a total repeal of the tax. lie re-
grette4 that he could not suppOrt the Petition ; but, he could
assure the Muse that it came from a most respectable body
of men.
Sir W. DE CRESPIGNY, made a few observations upon
the unequal assessment of such houses.
General GASGOYNE said that his Right lion. Colleague
had mistaken the object of the Petition, as to its praying a re-
peal of the Aseessed Taxes. What the Petitioners wanted was
a revisal of them, and the alteration of certain parts. There
was one regulation of which they particularly complained, as to
the tax upon persons employed in shops. As the law stood
they were all exempt under tho age of fourteen ; but that was
an age at which they were of little use, and the Petitioners were
anxious to have the period extended to eighteen. lie was
aware that, as his Bight Honourable Colleague had stated,
there could not be an alteration in the House Tax without a
total repeal. But what Was chiefly felt as a grievance was the
circumstance that merchants' warehouses were exempt, when
the only difference between them was, that from the goods
being of a different nature,: they were obliged us sleep in the.
house to take care of them.. lie did not auk Government to re-
peal more than they had repealed in amount, because he was
satisfied with what they had done ; but by attending to the mi.
nuthe Of these regulations, great relief might be atlorded with-
out loss of revenue.

Mr. HUNIII thought the Right Hon. Gentleman could not
have read the :petition with attention, or he would better have
understood the meaning of the Petitioners. Ile wished to ask
the Chancellor of the Exchequer upon what principle he refused
to take off a potion of the House Tux from shops, when he
had already taken off part of their 'Window Tax. The distinc.
tion betwixt Merchants` warehouses and the poor man's shop,
because the former could aftbrd another house to live in, was
moat unjust and oppressive.
Mr. HUSK ISSON rose for the purpose of setting himself
right in respect to the charge which had been suede by the
Hon. :Ileml.)er for Aberdeen. Ile had not only _read the Pea,.
Hon with the greatest care and attention, but likewise the Re..
solutions upon which it was founded. These were put into his
hands when he was recently among his Constituents, and they
pointed out the reduction of the Tax upon Shop iVindows.._..

The petition WM orcLred to be printed.
Sir T. ',ETU BIDGE rose.to move for leave to bring, in a
Bill to enable Magistrates assembled in Quarter Sessions, to
define the divisions of Counties, and thereby to facilitate the
free administration of justice.
The SPEAKER informed the lion. Member that his mo-
tion could not have precedence of the orders.
Sir T. LETIIBRIIAID said, that he had inquired of an.
Hon. Secretary opposite, whether his motion- could take prece-
dence of the orders, and had received his assent.
The SPEAKER observed, that he had only interfered to
protect was. for the Muse to decide as it thought
proper.,-The motion was not pressed.

KING'S MSSE.
Mr. E AG
r. Secretary PEEL moved the order of the day for the
House going into a Committee upon the Royal Message relat-
ing to the Lands and Property of the Crown.
The House having resolved itself into a Committee,
Mr. Secretary PEEL rose to move that the Chairman be in-
structed to move for leant° bring in a Bill, the object of which
he should briefly state to the House. By an Act, passed in the
reign of Queen Anne, the power of the Crown to alienate real
property was restricted. By a subsequent Act, passed in the
year 1799, the restrictions of the former Act had been removed
as far as regarded the private property of certain description.
That Bill had been found defective, and the object •of the one
now proposed was to suppls, a remedy for its defects. The
King might be possessed of property when he came to the
throne, anti there was this anomaly in the existing law—that it
disposed of property which the King had acquired, not only
as King, but as a subject before his accession to the throne.
The object of the present Bill, therefore, would be to give
the same right to the King over property which he had pos.
sesscd as a subject, as
.that which he had over private pre-
perty acquired as Every one must see the reasonable•
ness and justice of this measure, and he should therefore con-
tent himself with moving—'.' That the Chairman be directed to
move the House for leave to bring in a Bill concerning the dis-
position of certain property belonging to his Majesty, Isis heirs,
and successors."
Mr. HUME referred to a question which he had put to the
Right Hon. Gentleman last Session, as to the disposal of the
property of his late Majeety. He was eventually told that
a will had been made, but that it was not considered
legal.
Ile wished to know whether that was to be considered in
the same point of view, or to be distinguished front private
property which had been acquired, such as the pavilion s.t
Brighton.
Dir. Secretary PEEL was glad the question hid been put,
because it was necessary that there should be a full and clear.
understanding of the measure. The property enjoyed by his
Majesty from the late King, would not be treated as property
privately acquired, because it was property which he pool-
s:stud jure aquae ; and it would not therefore be affected ay
the present pleasure. • •
After an Inenclible remark from Mr. SCA/ILE:TT, the House
resumed, and leave was given to bring in the Bill.
it Message from the Lords, announced their • Lordships' as_
pent to cernim
Mr. 11. SIT3INER presented a petition froth the Parish of
St. John? HorselydoWn, preying for leave to bring in a
regulate its Vestry.

'..NA V V ESIMTES.
Sir a. CLERK, gave 'oder,T A that he should bring forwatd
the Navy Estimates in the Committee of Supply on Friday
next.

COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY.
Upon the Order of the Day beings read for going into 4
Committee of Supply to consider the Army Estimates,
111 r. CItEEVEY said, that as above six millions of money.
were about to be voted away by the thinnest House which he
had seen during the Session, he thought it right to makesfew observations before going into the Committee. And. he
should first remind the House, that the country was at present
afflicted with a dreadful eakunity, called Agricultural Distress.,
That every day saw thousands upon thousands going to ruin.
Nay, tens of thousand upon tens of thousands, he might lass,,,
In fact, there was a complete revolution of property going fore
ward. The prayers of the people were constantly offered up
for retrenchment and economy, for relief front the distress oe..
casioned by the changes in the currency., for the abolititin of
all sinecures and useless offices. He considered that there conics
be no prayer so reasonable, and no time for reminding the
'louse of such prayers ; is when they were called upon to vote
six millions for the millitary expenditure of the-year, whereas
the expenditure of 1792 only amounted to two millions. The
Ministers had the means of reducing this sum by cutting dowo,
sitiecures, anti by accommodating salaries to the fall of priete
owing to the alteration in the currency. De wished to put his
sentiments to this'efXects upon the Journals, and he sheep
move an Amendment for that purpose. The lion. ,earlier
then begged leave to propose an amendment, by moving the
_Resolution, which he would now rend :
" Itesaleed—That it appears in this House, from the estimates
laid before it for the service of the Army fur the present year;
that they amount w 6,0114,8981. 24.10 d., exclusive of the Anny
Extraordinariet, which of late years have amounted to
1,000,000/. more, whilst the sti,splies for the Army in 1792
amounted only to 2,3;f1,1491.; that in the present stet.' tine
paralleled distress and ruin in which the Agricultural Inter:ate
of these kindonis are involved, it is the bounden duty of this
Douse to reduce the Estimate* for the different puldic services
of the year. to as near the attiount of 1792 as the safety of tale
State wilt admit; and above all, that it is the bounden duty of
this Douse to accede to the universal prayers and petitions cd
the people, in reducing all salaries or allowances, of whatever
description, which were augmented in consequence ofthe late
depreciation in the value of the cur:ency, in abolishing all rise .
curee and useless offices, in reducing the gaieties of all such
offices as are overpaid, end in regulating, upon priociples of
the strictest economy, all such other offices, the duties of
are now performed by Deputy."
In desiring to record thus. Resolution, he did not think Ili
was asking for any unreasonable concession. Ile had no truer.
tion of opposing the motion for going into tlic Committee of
Suktply beyond this..,tefear !)
Sir I'. LET/1141(1(31E could not qoite agree to eat Ito fax es-
the Hon. %Icniher. He did not believe that the military for4ie
of the country could lie reduced any thing near to whet, they
were in 1792: That the greatest possible economy was graves:-
nary to be entertained by the lit uric her was fully ecnivineed,
het the Hon. Member roust make out Abetter oust befere he
could justify himself in tramping the military energies of the
empire., upon dio. port which regarded _the eugmentatloto of
salaries, and the neeei,sary reduction. undtr existing eireogn,
*tames: he enterusined strong feelings. Ile did 'not think Vie
redections had been -equal to those eirturnotances. With regard
to the sacrifice made from another quarter, it Witt. quite ten-
siiatt<ast thtetharacter of the Illustrious Personage. 'Tis..;
luntary giving up of ton per cent. was thete au net of to il3.
cent andcontlettemding consideretion of the distreettee of the
country. Ittit.for -the ittinisters wasp, different thing. Thore
was stiff time, and it would be a great boon to the cootitry, it'
they would make a further reduction in the amount of salitnee.