The Sun.
London, England, 1819-06-08 00:00:00

[PRICE SEiri;NPENCTI

,
at the prospect of undergoing theM the stoutest
heart Must have` ieeti appalled. This observation
was applicable tiit Great Britain as well as to Ire-
land. %Viten the enernious Sums., which it was
necessary to raise by loan during the war, were
considered, every one niust feel them to be such
as it would have been impossible tO calculate upon
beforehand. IVhettier with a view to the capa-
bilities of the country, all the arrangements which
had been made were such as, upon a knowledge
of its resources, would have been most advisable,
it was now quite useless to inquire. But this
much was certainly known of the state of Ire-
land—that raviolis to 1798, when the disastrous
tvai broke forth, the taxes in that country
were so Hof, that it would have seemed untair
to propose any addition to the debt of that coun-
try, wishaiut providing a revenue for its liquida-
tion. This, however, Was not the course pursued,
and the consequence was, that while in Great Bri-
tain a great part, of the supplies were raised
through the year, Ireland had recourse to loans.
This produced a very important difference in
+ the state of the debt of the two countries as ac-
cumulated during the war. In the period which
elapsed between the Union of the two Kingdoms,
anti the consolidation of their Exchequers, the
National Debt of Great Britain had increased in
a proportion of four to seven, while that of Irea
land had increased nearly eightfold, or in the pro-
portion of 15 to 92. The inevitable consequence
of this was, that the consolidation imposed a
great additional charge on Great Britain. The •
atnonot of this charge as in the resolution was
1,885,4721. The third Resolution stated the
amount of the supplies already voted, or to be
voted, far this year at 20,500,0001. The fourth►
stated the amount necessary for the supplies et
the year which it would be necessary to raise by
loan ; and the frltit mentioned that the Sinking
Fund, applicable to the rediotion of the debt its
the present year, might he estimated at about fit-
teen millions and a half, a sum which exceeded •
that required for the service of the year by about
2,000,0001. The next Resolution stated, that for
the purpose of supporting the public etetlit, and
providing for the progressive reduction of the
public debt, it was 'expedient that a Sinking Fund
of not less than 5,000,0001, should be provided ;
and this was followed by a Resolutlon, that tots
this purpose the revenue, should he increased by
the haposition of new takes to an amount of not
less than 3,000,0001. Such was tire general viewv
presented by the sate of our finances, atot the
measures proposed, with a view to the estaldisha
went of the public credit. Looking to the minima
of taxies from whirls the country bast ace-n teliear-
ed since the war, the greatest and most important
of them was the Property Tax. lie was far :root •
arraigning the decision of the House on this soh-
jest, altough it was contrary to, his ewoi opiaion ;
nor indeed email he, its his couscienee, say that
eonsiderable beiteilt had not bran tell $0 mails, re-
spects of great importance from that derision
and he certainly hoped that the lelief which had
been thereby affoded to the public, nas annona•
the eauscs which led to the restoration of public
credit, end the reuovatiou of industry throughoot
the country, after the great depression whieh hart
been experienced just after the termioation of the
war. But at the sarue time he ¶!jd not believe
that the industry of the country could be in
any way so well supported as by placing the pub.
iic revenue in such a state as should give a con-
siderable surplus above the expenditure of each
year, applicable to the reduction of the debt al-
ready incurred. What he now wished was to
place the revenue in the same state as it would
have been at the time when the Property Tax
would have expired, if, instead of being giving up
in 1816, it had been continued ea tire modified
plan which he soggesed for two years loner. If
that plan had been adopted, at this time about
'18,000,0001. of the debt would have been dis-
charged. But the decision of the House madelt
necessary , to pursue a different plan ; and or
the measures then resorted to he must he allowed
to say, that he considered theta the best which
the sitnation'of the country afforded. They were
indeed to be considered rather as temporary ex-pedie»ts,; but they had brought the country to
its present stale without any ditnintnion of public-
credit, without any hiss of character, arid with-
j out any severe financial pressure. But the plan
of temporary eapedients must in time come to an
earl'—(Hear, hear, from the Opposition.)—When
those which the repeal of the property tax hid
rendered necessary were resorted to, there were
only two resources open to the Government.—
The one was the afrear of war taxes, not then re-
ceived, which amounted to a very considerable
sum : the other arose from the facility (which.
the public convenience in other respects celled for)
of resorting to the Bank of England for rut advance
of money. In 1815, the debt due by the public
to the Bank was redutte.l to such a degree as was
thought necessary, for theporpose of allowing the
resumption of cash payments, without datiger or
inconveoience to that establishment. Bot in
ISIS, the Treasury havhtg been then unavoidably
drained by the war, it was thought iedispensible
to resort to the Bank, as affording the most con•
venient and the most economical means of pro-
viding the sum which was required to make tip
the supplies for that year. The state of the coun-

try at that time matte this measure the most att-

valitaecoos that could be adopted ; fer it was then
18;joui fug owlet the want of circulation. in such.

a state of things, thy• loan from the Bank con-
tribute(' to revive public confOetice, an►l afforded
the means Of considerable relict to ►he mercantile
interest. So strongly was this felt by Parliament
at that time, that a million and a halt of Exche-
quer Bilis Was isstied under its approbation for the
(e-lief of this body of tl►e community. nes the
zaedas which bad been resorted to uader toe. cit;-