The Sun.
London, England, 1802-12-11 00:00:00

FINANCE.

THE CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER moved
the Order of the J) for the House to resolve itself
into a Committee of Ways and Means; which
being read and agreed to,
He-moved, that the amount of the produce of the
Permanent Taxes for the year •18oz, be referred to
the said Committee.—Ordered.

The House having resolved itself into a Com-
mittee of the whole House, Mr. ALe_xAWDex•in
the Chair,

The CHANCELLOR °jibe EXCHEQUER said;
that,- before he entered on the Statement of which
he had given notice, he was desirous of laying be
fore the Committee, the grounds on which he pre-
sumed to solicit their attention to the two, Points
of which, he had given notice, as appeared by. the
Order Book now upon the Table ; he had by that
notice apprized the House of an intention to move
in a Committee of Ways and Means for granting
four millions, the growing produce of the Consoli_
dated Fund. It also appeared, that he had given
notice of laying before the House a statement of the
Financial Situation of this Country, as far as it
could be stated with accuracy at the present period.
The consideration which led him to cali the then_
. tion of the House to the first point, was the proba-
Pility of our beingjn a prosperous situation, and,
at the same time, an embarrassed .one ; *namely,
that in consequence oldie rapid increase of our Re-
venue, there. might be a larger sum in the EXche_
quer from the produce of Taxes, than that for which
Credit had been taken by Government; and with-
out the authority of Parliament, His Majesty's Go.
verntnent would not be able to apply to the Public
Service of the Country, the redundancy of its
-wealth. Up to the sth of April, 1803, he had
.taken credit for 4,500,0001. as the growing Pro-
duce of the Consolidated 'Fund. On the sth of
06tober, it had amounted to 3,800,0001. If he
was to abstain from asking the House to ap-
ply this Surplus, or if Parliament were not: sit-
.ting, that considerable sum would lie dead in
the Exchequer. The reason for the second part
of his notice was this, that as the House had
voted, and as he was 'justified in concluding would
vote the proper Supplies of the year, that it was
desirable to convey to the Public satisfadory infor-
mation of its Ways and. Means. It was on tho,e
grtiunds that he conceived it to be his duty to take an
opportunity, before the Christmas recess, to ask
the House its opinion an the subjed of the Coosa-
dated Fund, and to lay before it the State of the'
Finances of the Country. But before he adverted
to the Ways and Means for produCing it, he would
ask permission of the Committee to -advert to the
current year, 18oz. It would be recolleded by
many Gentlemen present; probably by all he was
addressing, that in the course of. the last . Session,
arrangements were made for providing for a
Capital of 97,000,0001. of Stock :-56,000,0001,
constituted the amount for which the Income
Tax was mortgaged ; permanent provision was
made for the interest of that sum ; the amount of
the Loan was to be added to it, and, the Exchequer
Bills funded at the commencement of the last Ses-
sion of Parliament, made in all ,a capital stock.of
97,000,000 : for this, the interest was 3,100,0001.
but it was not only admitted by him, but stated
as a probable event, th,-et there. would be r awn
produced by the Taxes then laid on, exceeding the
interest of. the Funded Debt—when, he said, he
admitted this, he meant to refer to a charge made
by an Honourable Member, of his imposing ,TaxeS
beyond the immediate purpose for which they were'
required. He did admit the charge, and he 'then
made a Statement which had'been more than realized
by the event. It was, that .the produce of the last
year would not be short of 1.,000,0001. He had!.
now to state, that the first quarter in which they
were produetive, in Malt, Beer, and the Tonnage
of Shipping, yielded 9z0,0001. To this there
was a new Duty on Houses and Windows, which
he was entitled to take at 250,0001, the actual re.
sult would therefore be, for thatiqbarte,r, 1,170,6001.
Now it would he remembered, that he had
stated on a former day, that'one effect of the
provision made for the PUblic Service in the
course of the last year, was to enable Govern-
ment to take out of the market no lesa a sum
titan • i 8,1).qo,000l. 18,000,0001. of Unfunded
Pebt was thereby redeemed in the course of the
current year. He should he able to•state, that, the
grants of the last year, with the exception of the
Army Extraordinaries, as far as they were able to
fotm an estimate at present, which could not be
expected to be accurate until the' expiration of the
year, would be found' sufficient to provide for all
the Services of the year ; but, as he had said al-
ready, with thq exception Qt 'the Amy EAtrit.

ordinaries. There were many Gentlemen present
who would do him the justice to say, that
he. had stated, he did not consider the vote for the
.:Army Extraordinaries. Indeed it was impossible
to state-the amount of that head of service at that
period, from the circumstance of a very considerable
part of our Army being on Foreign Stations.—The
excess in this particular, he was concerned to state
the excess, it was probable, would be something
more than one million. But he had- the satisfaEtion
of counteraeting that impression, by stating that
the whole amount of the Army Extraordinaries of
- the -next year, are not likely to be half the amount
of the Army Extraordinaries of the current year.—
The Navy Debt had been reduced one half, that was
from 9,000,006 to 4,500,0001.- The Unfunded Debt
at the commencement of the last Session of Parlia.
tnent aMounted to 37,377,2601. The present Un-
funded Debt was 19,580,0001. including 4., goo,oool.
which he had already stated- tope the amount of the
Navy Debt ; but he was not able to state this
with precision, the Returns having been made up
only to Michaelmas, and therefore he stated this as
the probable amount of the whole year, calculating
on the Returns which had already been received:
Of this Unfunded Debt 15,800,0001. consisted of
Exchequer Bills, but of these 900,0001. was pro-
vided out of sthe Land and Malt, and ,3,000,0001.
on which no Interest is paid nor payable, nor are
they in the Market, being a Payment made by the.
Bank on account of the renewal of its Charter.'

He then came to the statement of the Supply ,for
the year, and the Ways and Means for raising it.
. The Committee would recoiled that so,ooo Men
had been voted for the Service of the Navy, which
at the rate' of 71. a man per month, amounted to
4-450,0001. The Ordinaries and. Extraordinaries
ut
.the Navy were 1,218,2381. The Estimate for
building Ships, &c. amounted to 90 t,14.01. making
the whole of the Supplies of the Navy for the en_:
suing year 6,669,3781.
For the Army there had been voted a sum of
5,500,000. The Extraordinaries of the Army,
including the Surplus, to which he had already' al-
luded, of the current year, amounted to 2,000,0001.
making together the sum voted for the Army,
7,500,00017_

For the Ordnance the Estimate was 787,94.71.--
For Corn 13.iuniies; sz4,s73L—The Miscellaneous
Services for 'Englatij and Ireland were esiiinated at
i,o6o,oool.—and the Irish Permanent Grants at
363,3391. making-altogether the sum to be jointly
contributed between England and Ireland,
16,84.5,2.371.

He now came .to state the separate charges to be
defrayed by Engl•Jtid only. . They were, first,- to
pay oil_ Exchequer Bills issued on the aids of 1801,
2,784,0001. "fo pay ()A- Exchequer Bilis issued on
the aids of 1803, 1,500,0001. There was to be
made to the East India Company a, repayment of a
Atm.) advanced by them, and on which there was an
Account between therm. and Government; arising
out of advances Made by the Company to carry .on
Military efforts in India, and on which the Com-
pany would have a substantial demand on Govern-
ment to the amount of one million sterling.. The
next was. an article of Interest on Exchequer Bills,
which. was 600,0001... To this was to be _added the
-sum- annually appropriated to the: reduction of the
National Debt, the
.sum of 100,0001.; making
the whole of the separate charges to be defrayed by
Englani, 5,981,0001. This sum added to that of
16,84.5,23.71. which he had already stated as the
amount of the joint contribution to be defrayed by
England and Ireland, would make the whole amount to
22,826,2371. From this sum was to be4deduaed
2-17ths of the sum of 16,845,2371. beitig the part
to be contributed by Ireland, . which amount-
ed to 1,981,7921. and 2- i7ths of the sum of
1,20040 LI. fur the Civil List and other charges on
the Consolidated Fund, not relating.to the Public
Debt, to be also paid by Ireland, amounting to
41,2231. these two sums together would make
2,123,0151. which being to be paid by Ireland,
would leave the whole of the Supplies to be pro-
vided for by England 20,703,2z21.
The
.whole of the Supplies would then stand thus—
Navy, 50,000 Meil, 'atql. per Man, 4,550,000
Ordinfry.ankl:tyxtraordinary, 1,218,238
Sc.e. 901,140

----;-- 6,669,378
Army, - - - 5,500,000
£xtraordinaries (including Sur-
' plus tktraordinaries 18o2,), 2,000,000

---- 7,500,000
Ordnance, - - - - • 787,947
Corn Bounties, - - - - 524,573
Miscellaneous—England, ? - x 0300,000
Ditto, Ireland, S - -
Irish Permanent Grants, - - 363,339

To be cOntributed jointly between England and
Ireland ', - 16,345,237
ENGLA.ND's SEPARATE CHARGES.
To pay off EXchequer Bills on Aids 1801 2,781,000
Ditto, Ditto, on. Aids, i8..)3, (Bank) 1,500,000
Repayment to India Company i,000,000
Interest on Exchequer Bills Discount,
Scc. - - - - - - 600,000
Redudtion National Debt - - 100,000 _

5,0t,000

• Total Supplies - 22,82,6,z37
*. Two-seventeenths of the above sum
of J6,845,z371. are to .be contribu.tett
by Ireland ' - - 1,9E1,792.
Add for Ireland two-seventeenths of . • -
1,z00,400. for Civil List, and other
Charges on the Consolidated Fund, •
not relatitt to the Public Debt - 141,223

On Account of Ireland -

2,123,015

On Account of England - 20,703,222

He'observed, that great refieClion on the subject,
had only tended to convince him of the propriety of
a sentiment which he had formerly expressed.—lt
was fit the 411oUse should hear it, and the Country
know it ; anctiisnytais this :—That provision should
be made_ for tli_.P.-eirnanent Charges of this Country
—That Charges;of a permanent nature, must be
provided for out of a permanent Revenue :—That
we should look our difficulty, whatever it might be,
fairly in the face, and compare our wants with our
'means :,—,-That we myst not accommodate our
Expenditure to. our Revenue, but must raise our
Revenne to our Expenditure; and if this could
not otherwise be. done, he should not think he
did his duty, if he did nor ask of the- wisdom
atid.fcir the Fortitude of the House, to make up its,
mind to c 4 on the Public to bear an addition to our
permanent burthens, it was
_an opinion which he
liacl already extpreisecl, and it w 44 an opinion

• ft
he was happy in beffeving to be the oPino'act
of the House, and of the Country: --He ':
not felt it necessary to make any such proposition
now, and he trusted, that it would not be necessary
in the course of the present Session of ParliaMent'„
He trusted, that no Financial preparation would 'of
' necessary, and that there would not be any glut
Exchequer Bills in the Market, for that was Cec
tainly agreat Public inconveniesice7- anti-tore"'
which, he should, at an advanced period of the Seri
sion, propose to. fund from six to eight. iVlillions!:
'Exchequer -Bills, if that operation could be -made
oo
'advantageous terms, of which he had no reason t
doubt '; but if that could not be done, a Loan must be
provided to that amount. But he was not aware, there
would be any difficulty whatever in the operation 01
the funding Bills.to that amount, which would O'
tainly be convenient to the Public. We were
creasing in prosperity, with a rapidity which bare',
ly any one would have ventured to forerel. The
Surplus' .Produce of the Consolidated Fund 0'
this year, very nearly double. that .of the last.'"
He then proceedec). to make a comparative Estimate
of the produce of the last with those of former yearsj
ley which the increase of the prosperity was ptar
in the most sitisfadory manner; he observed,-01-
t course of Rich statement, the stoppage of,tilec
Distilleries had greatly kept down , the produce of
the last year, since..they had only begun workinglinl
.a part of it, -and consequently that -that fruio
:source of-Rev-end6' had'riiif-had its effea in times
operate on the Revenue direaly at that period,- 0°t,
now that prolific source of Revenue was operati4
,with great force. --

He then- proceeded to state the Ways acid Megs
for raising the Supily. which he had already stated'
They were first, the Land and Malt 2,750,0001'
The SUrplus of Consolidated Fund, being little
less than double that of the last year, amounted tO,
6, 5°0,00°1. The. Exchequer Bills 1;060,0601`
and the.. Lottery sooictool. making together,
20,750,0e01. •a • sum Which the Committee tvoula.
observe was greater iffah 'the 'Supplies
,voted. 5o
that-the Ways and Means stood as follows: •
Malt
SiEuxanl ,r(ll)letaqinsudCer't -kFisu .t 6,5Q0,0° 4- . 2,7s°'°°.
_ li,poo,o°°
Lott,..ty_ , - .5‘,0,c0d,
•
fte—trren'prWeeided fa- itateilie amain ortl!
ItripOris and ExpOrts of the ctinent year, cOloPisint
them with those of former years, by which it wj",
manifest that they .had greatly increased since tho
conclusion of Peace.
Muck-had .Ixtettt.4o.4he_sia)jea,of.the sripping.
of this Country, and of its decrease 'since the ter'
urination of the War. He, had, on a former occasion)
stated, it was impossible to get 'the Returns upon
subject from. the diffetent Ports ; but with re"
sped to. the Port of London; he had been able to oh",
tain it, front which it appeared that the number ng
Ships that had cleared outwardS and entered inwards;
were; in the year 180 I, 1762, and the amount of t"
Tonnage was 45,861 tool; "firigoa-,-the number
of Ships was 21.69, and the amount Of the 'Tonnage
was 574.,000.—The ,number Of British Seamen. 'l3-
1801, Was. 23,696, and in 18oa, it was 33,7471
The number of Foreign Ships had decreased lv,
proportion to the increase of the British, narnelf''
from 3385 to 5149. -
• 7 He then proceeded nearly as follows: " I°ll,
fully. aware it is impossible for me to add, by ar:10
comment of mine, to the satisfaction which tll
a.
must .derive from the statement which has
been submitted to them—lt has made an impresstol
which I will not attempt to strengthen, because
believe that would be very difficult, since a state'
ment of fads cannot be liable to error, and rea-
soning may often be inconclusive in the Inin‘,
of others, however it 5,t may carry conviction to ut'e -
own mind. I inay,bowe.ver, express some satisfaai°a
on looking back to the period to which this sta!ego
ment applies, as a justification of what I ventured ig
state both in .the last and in the present year. ,•,
was expressed that there would be an immediate de
ficiency in the Revenue after Peace, but now e'ero
,/
is proof to the -contrary, and I trust that -ev,.erri,
man who is capableef feeling a wish for the
of his Country, will rejoice at this staternertt, t,
can there he in many parts of Europe any so-short,
sighted as•not to see that this statement of the Situa-
tionr,
of this Country is interesting to the Continedne
Let it not be supposed that what we gain by 1,," „a's;
is lost to others ; or that the pre-eminence of ur%,
Britain, blessed
.by Providence, and'guided by le
dom of Council, which has made her
~trade t f
atonisinnelit- 6-f-fhe-iirOritt,- has the state)nY
others ; on the contrary, it has made her, not °
the ProteCtress of the Civil World, but paradoxie'
as that may seem, that very greatness of this king'
a°
'P
dom has teen the means of the increase.of the 0
and Commerce of the rest of the world. I will, lig
further, and say, that .whatever her motives lag
have been, ,income of the contests in which she t
4r
been engaged, •or -whatever might have beenoi
views of some of the parties, .yet it is my of
conviction, that it is chiefly to the exertions
pars`
Great Britain on the Continent; the different flog
of Europe owed their independence during the I
century,—whatever the motives may have been,
00
assert .that Such has been the et-redo( our exerliv,;
—such has been the importance of Great Britair oe.
and. now it • may fairly be expected to be W.,
I will not therefore look forward with any apt
prehension . to.: the revival of the Manufadure:vas
renewal, ak the trade of other countries. if we ,
well said, that we had the start of them all, then ~1
shall easily maintain our pre-eminence by our 57/10
by our Capital, by our Character and Credit•l';:.,.
is my conviction. There is one great_ instnslnr`ri
which has been the conservation of this
under its greatest difficulty, particularly arthe-,95,
elusion of the late War. In the year to
when my Right Honourable Friend proP°%n of
the House that great measure for the redo-I'oooi,
the Debt, which was then, I think, 238,0°°'oti, of
the sum applied to. the Reduction, was 4e the
the interest of it. At the present moment, "'" ,
,000 i.
charge for the Interest of the Debt is 18,0°°eli, is
the sum applicable to the reduCtion of, d'e lord.
6,Qoa,ciool. which, instead of a Lenin, •
ect of
Let the' Committee reflect what is to be theenualaily
this, . It is a sum of six IVlillioes brought 'i,till laid
to. [ls:Wish the industry.,, and assiss• the CaP_c'
outage
out in Trade jn this country, to aid an.

OR

,ad

LI

iry

:r•
:nC

the spirit of enterptite of this Cottntry, Which
must have the died of increasing the popti.
lation as well as .the riches of the Country, and
tvtdening continually the channels of our Commerce
- ...the benefits of which a't'e increasing rapidly.--r
flaying stated circumstances)so highly favourable
to the
, • present situation of ehe-Revenue, it is itt..
Pssible for me not to say a few words• on what I
am sure Will be matter ,of satisfaction to every
Gentleman, who hears me—l mean the rapid increase
of the prosperity of Ireland—l am convinced there
never was a more solid presumptive proof that the
improvement of Ireland has grown out of the mea-
sure of incorporating the two-Kingdoms, than that
‘eitich I am now going to state :—ln August last the
Revenue of Ireland was increased by 900,0001.
.-witichis a progress greater in proportion than our
e'svn ; a difference. which nobody would be sorry
for, but at which every one will rejoice. Having
stated the situation of the Country, I would observe,
that if exigency should require more produce, means
Must be found for that purpose, to make the Revenue
equal to the exigency, and that of providing, for it
must be prompt and immediate, that is, as soon as
the amount can be ascertained, for that a system
of Loans in time of Peace would he ruinous. I have
given as much attention to the affairs of Indli4,
as, with many. other avocations, I have been
able, and from that view I do declare, that the state
those affairs fully justifies what my Right Hon.
'(Mr. H. Downes) has repeatedly declared
--:°A that subjet% that those concerns are now in
th more prosperous state than they`ever were, and
at are increasing daily.
" Having stated these matters of faa, and not
elevriny thingghazarded any thing on conjeure,a but urged
on solid and sufficient grounds, I am
unwilling to trespass further on the attention of the
Committee, and yet I must solicit its attention for
a few moments. In stating the causes which have
• led to our present situation I might say much-, but
will not expatiate ; it is sufficient ,to say, that
much is owing to that wisdom which had pre-
' /ioasly presided over our Finances, and much
to the fortitude of that House, and to the
good sense and firmness of the People of this
Country. With respea to myself, I do not pre-
. tend to have any one merit, but that of haVing en.
- deavoured to follow up the example that was set me.
however, 'I might be permitted to address a
Ferson who has commented upon my 'conduct, per.
paps I may think with; some. severity, I would ask
with that good humour which he recommends
to flue, whether I have,,itt the transaitionseo which
lie alludes, been so devoid of energy. and vigour,
and wanting in those qualities which he seems to
"fed, and in which he is pleased to seer my elm-
Lifter is deficient ? It is a delicate subjea to be
touched on, at least by me ; but the Committee
:t7ill) I am sure, do me the justice .to say, that I
am not, forward on these occasions. I think it was
admitted on all sides that there was no, want
Of energy and . vigour shown in the prosecu-
ti" of the Ware nor any want of firmness in
meeting
all our _ That state of. our
finance which I have exhibited to• the Commit.
tee
arises Chiefly from that_rneasure. which has long
Itettectieeltvr;eydthe4 approbation of this House and of this
an', a hid'. I can only claim the merit of
aving pursued. There was another sentiment ex.
pressed by the Noble Person to Whom: have al-
luded., which I must beg pertnisSion to notice, it
'was, that I was grown' confident - otaftly in pro_
Portz( n as I had lost the confidence of the Country.
1
• "is is a charge against me, of great presurription;
It certainly is one that I .was not prepared to ex-
letl, and permit me to add, that it is one which I
d'
° not think comes with. a peculiar -grace from that
quarter. Whether I deserve the confidence" of the
Country or not, it is not for me to say ; but I know
ofserve a !es-
tu and generous People, who will judge
, me by my conduit, and not by the language
.101 others. I may be• charged with 'having too
!Illicit confidence by others, but I- certainly do feel
l't et', Hence which arises from a consciousness
that I Live in my situation aCted at least with zeal
and fidelity'. , I feel a satisfaalion in knowing, that
-1 have never, in an office to which I was called- by
Zly Sovereign, been governed in a single instance
Y-any thing but a motive of public duty. 'I have
'.''',
°'-ebjeal upon earth but the public Welfare, in
the first instance, and the public approbation
to the second. This is the first time .that 'I have
presumed to call the attention of the House to 'the
e°oaideration of the charakr.ler of an individual so
h
vium, hie as myself, and I hope it will be the last.
,`"lth regard to every thing that constitutea-prospe-
-I'4' in our State at present,. and our hope'sfur elle
t9tnre'sfa , I do not see any thing hut grounds for -se.inion. I do not see any danger threaten-
ng this Country. I do not say this by the
time of under-rating dartget. I am Speaking at a
time when we have great -means and'great advan.23es. When I see a rapidly increasing Revenue,
"'sing from causes which I know to be solid and
tPermanent—when • le see its increasing- Manufac-
:re', 'when I see its extending Commerce, when I
" a Navy already provided capableof giving se-
u'ity to this Country; when I see a Fleetinedual
.'7'-itence, capable of defying any force that may be
otought against it--I do not like to speak the lan_
l'atge of defiance, and therefore I would say equal
to the Naval Power of the Universe; when I know
at We have a Militia in the United-Kingdom of
i°e°oo Men, and an Armed Yeomanry ; and when'
es_Know) that there is a disposition to. use all those
z'i'ic_aun,s with promptness and vigour; when occasion,
• ° render it necessary; I think I:am justified'
r that I do not apprehend any danger to
ktngdom. The People of this Country are, I'
- animated with a strong spirit of Loyalty, with
icil'eexception only of a few contemptible individuals,
ean contemptible in point of strength and len-
cert:mee, but not so contemptible as to justify
lan"ernment or Parliament in abating their vigi-
. lance
ter 'may nits_
'Peak of persons, who, tho' they ns_
these s_stemrig in a tavern would be weak in the strand.
are the considerations on which I found
Illy
of di' Pes, I would say confidence. The people
adeatlS Country, possessing this loyalty and-these
pose itnages,. do not wish to use them for any pur.
geed f. • aggrandizement ; they wish to preserve
Prtnei
aith with all the 'World; to adhere to the'
oar b,ePisof Justice, and to maintain Peace, if it-
done consistently .with their lionour,"—

having,to die .Coriimitiee for haViiig
detained them sd long, be concluded with moving
his Resolutions, which were agreed in, and the
Home being resumed,. the Report Wks drddrtd:to 4
received on Monday. '
The CHANCELLOR of ilte E3OI4EQUETt gave
notice, that he should on Monday, in the Com-
mittee of Supply, move for a Rim of r,500,0001.
to make good sums advanced by the Bank, Bcc.
The Indemnity Bill was read a third time and
passed.

Adjourned at half past six o'clock, till Monday 4

MAILS.

ARRIVED. DUI.
Holland 0 - _ _ _
French - .. -- ----
Hamburgh - - - . -

PRICE OF STOCKS,

THIS DAY AT TWELVE O'CLOCK.
Consols 70ja71 a7liil 0111114H11 - Si a7i disc.

THE SUN.

SOLLM QUIS DICERC FALSUM AUDLAT ?