The Sun.
London, England, 1817-11-14 00:00:00

IRELAND.

We have often- stated that,.. considering this
Country as an essential and vital part of the Bii-
tish Empire, we shall always 'feel a strong interest
in its welfare. We have inserted many articles ,
respecting the proposed WINDOW TAX Contm tr TA -
TION, which have shewn
,that the.. objec-
tions to it were founded, in ignorance or
mistake, and were strengthened by artifice and
malevolence: Matters of more pressing import-
ance have prevented us from inserting' the sub-
joined letter before, but we now present it, to our
Readers, trusting that, from the high respectabi-
lity of the writer, as well as the facts and the rea-
soning which it contains, it will shew.*
fal-
lacy of those objections. We must, however;add a
few words respectingMr.VANSlTTAliT. It is evident
that this Gentleman felt ,a strong anxiety for the
%velfare of Ireland, and therefore was determined
to visit the country, in order to obtain all possible
information that- would enable him to lessen the
burthens of its people. It is not often that Mi-
nisters will thus risque their lives, for the passage
to Ireland has sometimes been fatal, to ascertain
the truth, for the purpose of benefiting their fellow-
subjects.—But this is not all, for when he arrived
there, his inquiries were directed to all quarters,
and he consulted with the best authorkies. The
result has been, the arrangment of a measure that
will materially promote the comforts of the
middling and lower order of the pe6ple
Ireland, without injuring the Revenue. At
all events, it is more likely that the Revenue
will suffer than the People. It is evident, that
if Mr. VA NSITTA RT had not felt this truly laudable
zeal for the People of Ireland, be !tight fully have
relied upon the judgment, the knowledge, the in-
tegrity, and the experience of nr. PEEL, for the most
ample information, but be was determined to see
nothing by deputy, and therefore, while he is the
object of general esteem and admiration in this
Country, he is peculiarly entitled to the gratitude
and respect of Ireland.

" Dublin, Oct. 14.

" have had the honour of your letter of
the 2(1 inst. requesting to know, on the part of
the parish of Drumbeg, what description of houses
and buildings were to be valued under the pro-
posed Commutation Tax, in particular whether
bleach, flour, and corn mills were to be included
therein, and generally any other information on
the subject, the communication of which 1 might
deem material.

"lam sorry to observe, that upon many occa-
•sions this measure has been much misrepresented ;
its object is not, as has been stated, to augment,
the general amount of the public burdens, or,
under the pretext. of modification, to
now
a
greater revenue than the Window Tax now pro-
duces, but to distribute the charge arising from
that Tax in a more fair and equitable manner, and
more in proportion to the probable means of indi-
viduals to defray, than can be effected by a mere
reference to the number of windows a dwelling
house may contain ; nay, so far from any increase
of taxation being • the object of Mr. VanSittart,
he had under his consideration, previous to the
Rent Tax being at all in contemplation, a sche-
dule of the Window Tax at reduced rates, con-
taining also modifications favourable to those
classes of society upon whom that Tax, as it now
stands, may be thought to press too heavily ; to
the liberality of his intentions in this respect 1
can testify, having 'that document in my posses-
sion, and knowing him to be sincerely desirous of
affording substantial relief wherever it seemed to
him to be required. With regard to the proposed
substitute, whatever objections may be raised,
against it, the principle upon which it proceeds,
of making property the criterion of contribution,
cannot be justly impeached : and it would, in my
opinion, be a greater improvement in the &tan—
cial arrangements of this conntry,contributing ma-
terially to the comfort and health of its inhabi-
tants, if a similar commutation was extended to
the Tax upon Fire Hearths, the closing of which,
by preventing internally the free circulation of
,air, is so much calculated to create and preserve
infection.

" In England the Rent Tax is chargeable on.
all inhabited houses, according to a scale of rents
without any reference to the nunther of windows
the house contains, and with it are to be valued
all offices appertaining thereto, and also 'shops,
courts, yards, awl gardens, provided that no more
than one acre of garden shall be included in such
valuation; warehouses, which are solely fur the
purpose of storing goods, wares, and merchandise,
and manufactories, both being separate and dis-
tinct buildings, and no part or parcel of the dwell-
ing house or shop attached to it, are not to be in-
cluded in the valuation, notwithstanding they may
adjoin to or communicate with such dwelling-
house. or shop ; under this regulation, therefore,
all the different species of mills referred to in your
letter, also distilleries, breweries, and the like,
would not be the subject of valuation.

" To what extent -houses, not now liable to the
Window Tax, would be affected by the Rent Tax,
it is impossible for me to say, as that will entirely
depend upon the scale, of rents that may be esta-
blished, and the rent or annual value of each par-
ticular dwelling-house ; the fixing of that scale
and of the rate of the tax applicable to each gra-
dation of rent may, I submit, be safely confined
to Parliament, who will not, it may be fairly pre-
sumed, suffer a measure intended for relief to be
made the instrument of oppression or injustice to
any class of society; unless, however, the Chan-
cellor of the Exchequer be furnished with a fair
return of the annual value of the several dwelling
houses, as recommended in my circular letter, it
will be quite impossible for him to make a satis-
factory estimate of the probable produce of the