The Sun.
London, England, 1804-05-01 00:00:00

HJUSE OF COMMONS.

MONDAY, APRIL 30.
Mr. Serjeant BEST presented a Bill tor the Relief of certain
Incumbents within the City* of London, which was read a
tirst, anti ordered to be read a sccpud time. •
The Scots Canal Bill was, on the motion of Mr. H.
BxowNE, reeda first time, ant! ordered far a second reading.
The Dalkeith Porter Duty Bill .was read a third time, and

passed.,
Mr. Hs NRY LASCE I.L Ls brought up the Bill for the better
Regulation of the Woollen Trade- in the County of York.—
T Bill was read a first, and ordered to be read a second time.
A Petition was presented from several Merchants and
others, against the Liverpool DoCk Bill.
Tile CttANCELLoIt or the EXCHEQUER moved, that there
be laid before the House an Estimate of the probable Aiintials
Produce of Duties unposed by •the Ad of His present Ma-
jesty, granting a Contribution on Property and Professions,
so far as the same can be made up to the 6th of May next.
Ordered. The Paper was accordingly presented at the
Bar, and ordered to lie on the Table.
Mr. p, LLvv deferred his promised Motion relative to ex-
empting the Irish Catholics from certain penalties, until
Thursday next.
Mr. ALaxANore brought up a 13111 for granting an Allow-
ance to the Subaltern Ogicers of the' Militia while disem-
bodied, which was read• a first time, and tne second reacting
was fixed for To.morrow.
Mr. FosTaa moved, that the Petition on the subject of the
Linen Mannfadure of Ireland, be referred to a Committee of
the whole House to-morrow.• Ordered.
The Right Hon. Member then brought up a Bill for di-
rediug certain Public Accounts concerning the• Finance of.
Ireland, to be annually laid before Parliament. Read a first,
.and ordered to be read a second time to-morrow. •
Mr. Secretary YORKL, staled, that the Volunteer Bill, as
amended by the Lords, was not yet printed ; he therefore
moved that the Report on the Lords! Amendments to that
bill should be. postponed to'Wednesday next.
Lord CAST LER EA G H gave notice, that on Wednesday next
he should call the attention of the House tattle circumstances
conned.CA with our late success in India.

vice :

Country tte means of carrying on the War without
aey permanent accumulation of burdens noon. the
Public. It .happened immediately after the vim-
meecernent of the last War, that the Country ex,
perienced a considerable interruption, in regard to
its commercial concerns, by the large pressure of
West India Stock upOn the market. Had it not
become a matter of the utmost necessity, which
prevailed neon the House to• afford certain indi-
viduals engaged' in trade, considerable internal
accommodation, he contended that the asy.
don of such a measure could not have been justi-
fied. Though Parliament on that' former occa.
sion aEted wisely in granting such an accommoda-
tion, yet, in his opinion, they ought not, by so doing,
to create too great a degree of expectation in the
mind, of commercial men, that whenever the day of
difficulty comes, itawas to Parliament alone they
were to look for' relief. He contended that it
was of importance that no encouragement ishould
be given to such expectations, but that Merchants'
ought, in the moment of prosperity, to at with cau-
dee .and prudence, in order to enable them to endure
difficulties when necessary. He had been led to ad-
iert• to this matter, because he was desirous to have
it understood by the House, that those commercial
difficul ties were surmounted by individuals, bymeans
of the benefit derived from the interleience of Par-
liament. It was not his intention to press the be_
nefits which might still result from such a System in
partiCular instances ; he was only anxious to show
that a degree of success, fully equal to expedation,
had attended the measures which had been adopted
by Parliament. In the Committee of Ways and
Means last year, he had proposed to raise, under the'
description of War Taxes, 12 millions and a half for
the service of the year ; that is, 8 millions by means
of additional duties laid upon Excise and Customs,
and 4. millions and a half, as the produce of the
Property Tax, providing at the same time for a pro-
bable defalcation. If 'ten millions additional had
been raised in consequence 'of those taxes, his hopes
'would have been gratified. The House, however,
in its
,wisdom, had at that time determined to grant
very considerable exemptions to persons possessing
property under the amount of 1501. pet annum.
This was expeded to occasion a very large deduc-
tion from that Tax. , Stich exemptions were wisely
allowed by Parliament ; but the radical effect
'had been, as was expeded, a diminution of
the produce of the Tax to the. amount of aibt
less; he believed, than 1,000,0001. That tax,
which 'he had deeined • as likely to produce
4.,500,0001. could not, therefore, be said to have
produced more tha'n 3,500,0001. He, however,
foreseeing this defalcation, had not calculated upon
any more than 10,000,0001. altogether, but, in fad,
only 9,000,0001. had been produced. He then stated
what was the net produce of the 'Faxes according to
their present state. By the returns which had been
made, and the best information that had been ob-
tained, he might caiculete nun 3,200,0001. as
.the
amount of the Customs and Excise. He was desi-
rous to mention the future grounds on which he cal-
culated as to the Tax upon Property. He had great.
satisfadion in stating, that the Assessments upon £.36,5'0,000
Property amounted 120,000,0001. instead of
80,000,0001. as stated in the Income Tax ; and that The CHANC ELLO Rof the EXCHEQUER
the Assessment on Commercial Profits, exclusive of then said, that if the Committee felt the extreme itn-
others, was double of the supposed amount in many portance of such provisions, they would acquiesce in
places. The gross assessments yielded .at present the necessity .of making an addition to the War
6,000,0001. annually ; and if he allowed for the de. Taxes, of 1,000,0001. It would he recolletted that
duttions adopted by Parliament, he might calcu_ he had formerly proposed a duty of 201. per ton up-
late, without -exaggeration, a probable addition of on. Wine ; but, in consequence of various represen-
-4,800,0001. He considered himself, therefore, as Cations made to him on account of the failure in tilt
entitled to calculate the probable produce of those vintage of the preceding year, and other circum-
Taxes at 10,000,0001. but which he should only stances, the duty charged was only ix,. per ton.—
call 9,000,0001.- He should not be disappointed in He proposed now to charge every ton of \Vine with
a future year If he now estimated their produce at a Duty of 19 Guineas, which, including the former
12;700,0001. that is, the amount of the Cus. Tax, would yield. 200,0001. He proposed to,duuble
wins and Duties of Excise at' 8,z00,0301. and the the Tax upon Imports, with the exception of Tea,
Tax upon Property at 4,500,006. He had been Wine, and Cotton, instead of imposing additional
sanguine in having stated formerly the probable Durjes in a different manner. These additional Du-
amount of the War Taxes at 4,500,0001. but it was ties would yield 800,0001. making, in the whole,
well known that great and unfortunate delays had an addition' to the War Taxes,, of 1,000,0001.—
taken place in the Tax upon Property, notwithstand. He then stated to the Committee, that he had that
ing which, the adual produce of the War Taxes;.up morning entered into a Contract with several con-
y
to this da, (30 April) for the last half year, was, siderable Bankers, for the Loan of the present year,
only 112,0001. short of their estimated amount; . amounting to 14,000,0001. and a half, for. the Ser.'
An apprehension had been very reasonably expressed, „vices of Great Britain and Ireland, 10,000,0001. of
that the effects of adopting such. a system, might which were for the separate services of Great. Bri-
be to interfere with the amount, of the Permanent taro. It had been contracted for in the 3 per Cent.
Taxes, but he was bound to admit that a fair exile_ Consols and 3 per Cent. Reduced Annuities. The
timent of that particular had not yet been tried. We I terms upon which this Loan. had been contracted
had seen,' during the shorn period of six months, j were': 'for every 1001. sterling—
no less than 4,500,9001. cullededS During the osol. Three per Cent. Reduced, at 55 . £.SS o o
period of negotiation, and on the recommencement to Three per Cent. Consels,.at 56
- - 45 IS 9
of the War, there 11„J. been an unusual' stagna-. This testified that the Public Credit of the Country
dun of commerce, yet the aggregate was sariSlatory. • stood high, and, at the same time that it held out a
to a great.degree ; but it would have been greater, considerable, profit to the Subscribers. The amount
"had its progress" not been interrupted •by -various----4f- the lowest will he 546,0001. _which, together
causes which he had alluded to. He Shen entered with the attendant charges of management, &c.
upon a comparison el the same 'Taxes raised in the woold amount to 736,1901. Now, as to the merle of
year ending Jan. ,1803, and in that endig Jan. 5, discharging that interest, he might observe, in the
1804. The first he stated at 5.425,000. and !Lie first place, that in the course of last Session some
latter at 15400,0001. being a deficiency of 25.0001 s arrangements were made for the purpose of sim.
The duties upon Sugar varied very much,. owing to plifying the leading branches of the Public Revenue.
the amount of the drawbacks being sometimes When theSe improvements were adopted, it had
greater, and sometimes less ; being alts ays Paid at' -.been found 'impossible to apply any regulation which
the tertnination of the year. There was last year tended to render thle Stamp Duty less intricate ;. that
overpaid for drawbacks out of the COnsolidated was the only remaining part sal the duties which had
Fund, no less titan 416,0001. The produce of the undergone no material alteration, so as to render
Permanent Taxes did not therefore suffer in a degree the colledion more simple, and it was from that he
that was comparatively worth mentioning.: He next hoped, vteithout imposing any considerable pressure
solicited the attention of the Committee to a compd.. upon the Public, to obtain a sum large enough to
rison of the protioce of the Permanent Taxes for the l provide for the Interest of the Loan, which he had
same years. He found that the total amount of stated to the Committee. Duties were at present
Taxes in Jan. 5, 1803, was 213,259,0001. and for chargeable upon Stamps used in legal proceedings
18044 30;676,000h Dededing then the Duties -and transfers of property.. The numerous illeonVe.
,A hien had been imposed during these two seve- piencies attending. the Duties on Stamps in summer-
end years,' that is, in , 18oz, 1,977,0001 s nod in 'dal proceedings were well known, and their number
1804, 4,773,000'. the total plostuce of the Per.; and intricacy had become so great that they already
manent Taxcs, ending sth January, 1802, would amounted to, about three hundred different sorts.—
be found to be 26;252,0001. ; and for the year These last he proposed to class in such a (harmer,
with the addition of as that every per-son might 'easily know what was
ending sth January, 1804 (
whot was overpaid fur drawbAcks). 2,6,369,0001, the real amount of the Stamp Duty he ought to pay,
exceeding, in the former year, the whole amoun't of i and to facilitate them by an arrangement of that
the /,,fro4,,,ent ,123ces., The produce of the Parma- icle,,suc,r,,itt),teiish, that he hoped would tend to counter-
vent Taxes, was, therefore, thuaiucreihiree, and :'ad- balance, in a great degree, any inconvenience which
not at all suffered from the pressure of War; an'l, ; might arise trout the-additional duty. He did not
aunt viatc the ex
indeed, tht.re was as yet no indication of. a"Yo,dc" l'")4"se to make a very considerable addition, he.
crease beit.g Troducrd frorn that csesee The,-rtr- 'conceived, that whatever tended to alle_
m ment 1 axes ;arrived at an unpreeeeeroad
other `ter of pence of a Court of Justice, was a mat.
dot ing last War ; a! the saute time that everygreat importance to the Public; for thatirea.
part ef n e Financial System was invigorated and sun the addition :0 that species of Stamps shoUld be

advanced. He had stated these preliminary rircom.
stances and observations, for the purpose of justify-
ing the measures which the House tad adopted .dur-
ing last Session'ofParliament, and for the purpose
if necessary, and exhorting and im
°pl nOcrinc"gsiVnl House to adhere to that system as the
basis of its -Public Credit, as the ground of confidence
at home, and as the means of raising that convitlion
abroad, that our Public Finances were not, to be ex-
hausted by any warlike exertions we any feel diS-
piised to adopt. '• He next proceeded to enumerate
:the particulars of.the Supply and Ways and Means
for the service of the year, as follows