The Sun.
London, England, 1867-05-17 00:00:00

THE PARIS EXHIBITION.

Mr. GREGORY asked the Vico-President of the Com-
mittee of Council Whether it was true that all the news-
papers and periodicals published in England had been sent
for exhibition to Paris by the Department of Science and
Art ; whether all the Blue Books printed for the use of
both Houses of Parliament had , also been sent ;
whether-the plaster of Paris cast of the pulpit at Pisa has
also been sent ; what is the cost and object of these under-
takings; and whether any of the objects in the French
Exhibition have been purchased, or are to be purchased,
and on whose responsibility; and whether by special
grant, or out of the ordinary estimate.
Lord R. MONTAGU said it was true that one speci-
men of every newspaper had been sent to the Exhibition,
and also a few blue books, but certainly not the whole of
those already published. The expense of taking
two casts of the pulpit at Pisa had not
been much greater than that which would have
been incurred in taking one, and the reason the cast was
sent,to Paris was to show what had been done by this
country for science and art. (Laughter.) They ha d been
collecting specimens of this nature for the use of schools,
and it was hoped that when that became known there would
be by other countries an interchange of casts which, could
not but be most beneficial as far as art was concerned.
The cost of sending • the newspapers and blue-books had
been nothing, and the cost of sending the cast had not ex-
ceeded £5O. There was no intention of purchasing any
thing at present, but if such should be done it would be
out of the grant made to the Exhibition .°

An HON. MEMBER asked who had the control of that
grant ?

Lord R. MONTAGU said the administration of the
grant made for the South Kensington Museum was under
the control of the Lord President of the Council.
THE SCOTCH REFORM BILL.

Mr. D. GRIFFITH asked the Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer whether it' was his intention to' be understood,
with respect to the Scotch Reform Bill, that in order to
provide increased representation for Scotland it was the
intention of Government to add to the present number of
the House of Commons.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said no
reduction would be made in the number of members for
England and Ireland. With regard to Scotland it was
intended to make a fair representation, and the hon. mem-
ber must have confidence in the enlightened wisdom of
Parliament.

THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE BILL.

In reply to Mr. FOSTER,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said as two
hon. members who had notices on the paper for to-mor•
-
row had courteously given way,ihe thought they
.could
proceed with the committee on the bill. Ho believed
it would be necessary for them to take a vote or two
for the civil service in committee of supply, but he did not
think they would embrace any subject that would lead to
discussion.

NATIONAL DEBT BILL-DUTY ON FIRE
INSURANCES.

On the order of the day being read for the second read-
ing of the National Debt Bill,
Mr. 11. B. SHERIDAN moved the following reso-
tiop,:7—" Ttiat a further reduction. of the duty on fire
ifisniances, 'to which this house is already pledged,
would be a better mode of disposing of a portion of the
surplus of Ways and Means for the present year than the
creation of terminable annuities proposed by the present
bill."

Mr. HUBBARD seconded the amendment, and while
agreeing with the policy of paying off debt, impeached the
bill on the double ground that terminable annuities were
an unwise mode of discharging debt, and that to obtain
the means for paying these annuities by such a tax as the
Fire Insurance Duties was unjust and injurious. In sup-
port of his first proposition he compared this scheme very
unfavourably with other terminable annuities, insisting
that it was a sinking fund in disguise, and that the same
end could be more cheaply attained by the issue of Exche-
quer Bonds. Ho argued strongly against the Fire In-
surance Duties, and suggested that they should be reduced
to 9d. after June, and to ld. after April next.
Mr. lIANKEY supported the bill as a very good bar-
gain for the public, inasmuch as by paying £1,720,000 for
17 or 18 years we should get rid of a permanent charge of
£720,000 per annum.

Mr. LAING preferred the policy of redueing taxation
and leaving the money to fructify in the pockets of the
people to paying off debt, and denied that there was any
analogy between private and public obligations in this
matter, inasmuch as the National Debt was merely ,an en
gagement to pay EO much interest a year, not to pay off
the capital sum. He showed, by reference to'the Trade
returns, that under a system of applying surpluses to the
reduction of taxes our debt since the great war had consi-
derably diminished, while our means of paying it had
augmented threefold,.and at the same time the comforts of
the people had been inestimably increased. We certainly
had not arrived at that millenium of taxation when there
were no objectionable taxes left, and he insisted there
were many, such as the Fire Insurance Duties, the duties
on locomotion, and the Licence Duties. For instance,
if half a million were applied to reducing the Fire
Duties to 61, in six or seven years the revenue
would have recovered itself; while by applying it
to"ihti 'reduction or debt we should in the same time
be relieved of no more than £150,000. Ile condemned
the scheme as new-fangled —a sinking fund in disguise—
and based on a desire to do something sensational, after
the manner of the United States, whose recent financial
policy he gave some reasons for believing would not be
altogether so successful as was anticipated.
Mr. GLADSTONE made an animated reply to Mr.
Laing, commenting particularly on the epithets "new-
fangled" and " sensational," to which he objected very
Strongly, and defended the bill as a modest attempt to
carry out what for many years had been our fixed policy,
shoiwing, in reply to the Sinking Fund argument, that the
terminable annuity being made part of tho permanent
charge, of the year, was. provided fer regularly in each
Budget as a matter of course. Concurring with Mr. Laing,
that there were many duties which called for reduction or
remission, he denied that the Fire Insurance Duties hail
the strongest claim, characterising the assertion that the
revenue would be replaced in six or seven years as purely
visionary, and preferred the claims of the duties on loco-
motion or the tax on corn, the operation of which he said .
prevented this country becoming the great entrepot for all
the markets of the world, and the Licence Duties. In an
elaborate argument he defended this mode Of wiping off the
£24,000,000. Book Debt, maintaining that it would not
involve any loss to th 6 State, and insisted on the impor-
tance to the national credit of not passing over a favourblo
opportunity for reducing the debt.
SCOURFIELD supported the bill, and
Mr. T. CAVE condemned the time of introducing the
bill, and its inadequate mode of dealing with the debt, and
suggested the imposition of a tax of 21d. per ton on coal,
which by the time the whole of our supply wag exhausted'
would have paid off the National Debt.
Mr. GORST regarded the scheme as a sham bargain
between two officers of the Chancellor of the Exchequer's
department—which would not be binding, for if there was
a deficit the terminable annuities would be reconverted
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