The Sun.
London, England, 1848-02-26 00:00:00

COMMITTEE OF UI)?LY:

On the motion of the CHANCELLOR of the
EXCHEQUER for the House going into Committee
of Supply for the purpose of taking a vote of
1,100,0001. fur the Kafir war, and 245,410/. 19s. 7d.
for the iavy excess,
Mr. HUME said he was sorry that an imperative
sense of duty called on him to offer an interference with
the service of Government, but he would_appeal to the
House, whether, when it was agreed to advance
3,700,000/.. on account of the army and navy, it was no,
distinctly understood that they were not to be called on
to vote any further sum until the Select Committee hai
been enabled to meet, end to examine and report upon
the expenditure. It was proposed on that occasion to
take a vote on a distinct estimate for the excess in the
navy expenditure of last year, which was pronounced
to be one of the most objectionable votes that could hay,'
been proposed, and when that estimate was withdrawn,
the vote on. account was granted under the arrangement
to which he had referred.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER begged
to state to the Hon. Member that he had, on being toll
that the vote granted last Monday was only on account
distinctly said that on that understanding he should
bring forward the two votes for the navy excess and the
Kafir war on the next supply night.
Mr. FIUME had no doubt whatever, since the Right
lion. Gentlemen had asserted it, that the fact was so.
But he objected to any estimates being brought forward
until the House saw how the matter stood with respect
to the expenditure—how far it was necessary to impose
new taxes for the purpose of increasing the establish
ments of the country. His object, therefore, was to
pledge the House to grant no additional tax until the
Committee had reported on the expenditure—(Hear,
hear.) In ,the year 1835 ho had protested against the
additional expenditure which was incurred then. lie
said on that occasion, the time w _mid come when they
would all be brought up, to nee a common expression,
and the time had now arrived. In the present state of
commercial and manufacturing depression how could the
Noble Lord attempt to impose new taxes ? And yet he
spoke of the matter as if he was performing some most
creditable task, and that the people bad only to listen to
him to yield, and to pay any tax he pleased to propose.
The Noble Lord stated with great sangfroid, that in the
year 1835 the army numbered 130,000 men, and that in
1847 the numbers had increased to 138,000, without
telling them why this increase had been made, or offering
any reason for its continuance. The Noble Lord also stated
that the ordnance had been raised from 8,420 men in
1835 to 14,000 men in 1847. He was not surprised at
petitions such as had been read in the House being pre-
sented against tho income-tax from Liverpool and
London, or that the people should endeavour to arrest
the Government in their intentions, and stop their ca-
reer of extravagance. It would be a charity to stop the
Ministry in their downward course.—(Laughter.) The
Noble Lord ought to hare furnished the details of the
dockyard battalions, the pensioners, and the police
force, all of whom were armed, amounting to a fierce of
250,000 men, and actually showing that the Govern-
ment had converted a peaceful commercial community
into a warlike, threatening nation.—(Hear, hear.) He
had hoped to have heard from the Chancellor at the
beginning of the session that he was prepared to remove
taxes and not to impose new ones. The Government
had been asleep—it was time to awaken then. It had
been asserted that the revenue had decreased, and that
there must be more taxes imposed to support public
credit. How fallacious that statement was he would
presently show. He had always been a strenuous ad-
vocate for maintaining the public credit, by keeping
faith with the creditor, and though he had aeon a
proposition published with the signature of one of her
Majesty's Privy Councillors attached to it for wiping
off 25 per cent. of the National Debt, he never was for
sanctioning such a scheme, and he protested against it
at the time. But the way to maintain public credit was
by reducing the expenditure within the income. And
as the Government was responsible for the imposition of
the taxes, so they ought to be made responsible for
their expenditure. From the returns of the income and
expenditure between the years 1822 and 1845, it would
seem that the latter was exactly the same in both years.
It certainly did seem extraordinary that, after so many
years of peace, the same amount of expenditure should
be required that was called for during the war. When,
from year to year, the question was put, why is this enor-
mous expenditure still kept up, the answer always given,
from 1822-25 to 1826 was, that the state of the continent
was still unsettled, and that France had not settled down
under her monarchy. He had always been opposed tt,
intermeddling in the affairs of foreign nations, for such
interference had always produced rancour at;tl
—(Hear, hear.) And was it now that, after the
downfal of a dynasty of seventeen years' standing,
England was to be so foolish as to suppose that her
army had ever tended to settle the differences which
existed amoegst the French people ?—(Hear, hear.)
So far from this, he thought the very contrary effect was
produced; and, if all the accounts ho had heard were
correct, it was probable that Louis Philippe would soon
make his appearance in England. He would toll the
Government that it was not in the power of any army to
support a monarch on his throne against the wish of his
people; and Louis Philippe now found that, after ex-
pending 60,000,0001. or 70,000,0001. on his forts round
Paris, ho was not a bit the nearer securing the perma-
nence of his dynasty.— (Hear. hear.) What a lesson
did not the recent events in Paris offer to Governments?
Who were the authors of what had occurred there ?
The middle classes—the same classes on whose behalf
he now appealed in that House against the impositions
endured by them. Why was it, let him ask, that there
were between 30,000 and 40,000 more men in the army
now than there were in 1833 ? In the year 1822 he
wasted six weeks in trying to reduce the navy
and military estimates, and ho took no less than
from seventy to eighty divisions on them. He then moved
an address to the Crown, praying that the establish-
ment of the country should be reduced to the standard
of 1792. Mr. Bankes moved an amendment on his
motion, making a very trifling alteration in the words,
and that was.carried. The result was, that the estimates
next year were reduced by 3,000,000/, and the number
of men in the army was lessened by 10,000. He said
now what ho then stated, that it was the duty of the
House to compel Ministers to retrace their steps, and to
reduce the army and navy establishments. But the
House and the country had been told, as an excuse, that
the successive additions to the army and navy had been
sanctioned year after year by the House of Commons.
That the fact was so he admitted ; but be attributed it
to the corresponding fact that the country had not been
represented in the House of Commons. It had likewise
been universally asserted that the revenue had de-
creased. That was not true. During the years 1833, 1934,
and 1835, the revenue had always exceeded the expendi-
ture, and the reason was that the finances were never
better managed than during those years. The amount of
the revenue, after deducting drawbacks and expenses of
collection was during those three. years on an average
50,524,5451. In the year 1846 what was the net amount
of the revenue ? Not less than 57,589,0001., showing
an excess of taxation; during the latter period over 1833
of 7,064,0001. He, therefore, protested against any
Minister asserting that the revenue had decreased.
Revenue had not failed, but every increase of receipt
had been met by increase of expenditure. The increase
had been mainly in the navy, and he should be able to
show that in that department one half the present ex-
penditure and one-half the number of ships would be
amply sufficient for all useful purposes. It was on these,
grounds that he had brought forward the present m(t;
tion—a motion which pledged the House not only
against increased expenditure, but also to an immediate
and active course of retrenchment. There were many
points in which a Committee might find room for
retrenchment. There were, for instance, the enormous
brevets, of fate so frequent.—(llear, hear.) But the
items were numerous, end, if properly curtailed, the ne-
cessity for an increased income-tax might be altogether
avoided. By a cheaper mode of collecting the Customs,
by a better management of the funded and unfunded
debt, by a curtailment of sinecure incomes, ho would
make the estimate of 1846 amply sufficient for all pur-
poses. Among other things the Irish estimates required
revision. In a few years they had increased to the
amount of 180/. per cent., and were principally items
with which the consolidated fund had, properly speak-