The Sun.
London, England, 1845-03-04 00:00:00

WAYS AND MEANS.

On the motion for reading the order of the day for
going into Committee of Ways and Means,
Sir W. CLAY having presented a petition from a
number of sugar refiners, relating to the change in the
sugar duties, said, the amen‘lment, of which he had
given notice, would be most appropriately moved on the
third resolution, and he trtuted the Chancellor of the
Exchequer would not press them through so rapidly as
not to afford proper time for the discussion of his amend-
ment.
The order of the day was then read, the Speaker left
the Chair, and the House resolved itself into a Com-
mittee of Ways and Means.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said,
that in addition to the notice he had on the paper with
respect to the sugar duties, there was another to which
he wished shortly to call the attention of the House;
it was with respect to the Consolidated Fund Bill.
In consequence of Easter falling at so early a period
of the year there would not be the necessary
funds, and as the resolution was an ordinary vote, and
one to which there was no objection, he hoped, as that
resolution was the foundation of a Bill, the House would
allow it to pass without any opposition.
WIND ")W-TAX.
On the question that the resolution that 8,000,0001. be
granted to her Majesty,
Mr. HUME rose. He wished to know whether the
Right Hon. Baronet, upon the Committee moved fir by
the Hon. and Learned Member for Batt' being appointed

to inquire into the window duties, he Would hitve.a.ny ob-
jection to allow that Committee to take into its consi-
deration the propriety of substituting a house-tax for it?
He had looked lately seriously into the question, and he
felt no doubt that the most serious consequences arose
from the window-tax.
Sir ROBERT PEEL said that the question
was one. of great importance, and one that he
could not satisfactorily discuss in answer to a
question. It must be remembered that there were
in existence at the same time a house and a window
duty. The House had at that time the option of taking
off the window or the house duty ; it preferred taking
off the house duty. He did not think it would be wise
to discuss the question further now.
__ _ _ _

Mr. HUMS said it should be recollected that when

half the window-tax was taken off; it was promised the
other half should be taken off also at a future period.
He, therefore, thought that was no ground for the
Right Hon. Gentleman declining to answer the question.
Captain PECHELL wished to know if the Hon. Gen-
tleman had any objection to lay before the House the
number of appeals which had been made against the
window duty ?
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said
such a return would be attended with so much difficulty
and trouble, that it would be almost impossible to make it.
Mr. HUME expressed his surprise that no return
was kept at the tax- office of the number of appeals.
Were there no records kept of these matters ? If
not, there was something wrong in the management.
He would respectfully submit that if those documents to
which he alluded could not be had, there was something
seriously wrong in that department. He conceived that
a correct record ought to be kept, for he was aware that
a great deal of vexation and trouble attended this mode
of taxation, and therefore, on that ground, he was the
more surprised that no record of the discipline he men-
tioned had been kept.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER said it
appeared to him that the Honourable Member was
not aware of the state of the law in this respect. Until
a very late period the parochial authorities were not
obliged by law to keep any such records ; and, there-
fore, not having kept them, it would be impossible to
supply them now satisfactorily.
Mr. BERNAL said, as the House was on the sub-
ject, he would beg t,) call the attention of the Right Hon.
Baronet at the head of her Majesty's Government to the
subject of the general mode of collecting the taxes.
—(Hear, hear.) There was a crying evil in
the shape of what were called "surcharges." This was
a great cause of complaint • but those who were the
victims of it were often compelled to bear with it, and
submit to the sacrifice, as their business would not
permit their attendance and loss of time required by an
appeal. Then, with regard to the collectors of the
assessed taxes, he knew several of them who, though
they paid but sixty or seventy pounds a-year as a per
tentage, paid as much to a deputy, which the
collector explained by saying he undertook the
office with a view to procuring a few addi-
tional customers. This was his reason for asking,
why should any man undertake the responsible duty of
a tax-collector unless there was some inducement to
him much stronger than the remuneration he received?
and hence the abuses of the present system,
which he conceived ought to be inquired into.
He thought the whole system was bad, and ought to be
revised.

Mr. ROEBUCK thought the present system of collec-
tion was bad. In one case which respected himself, when
he asked where he should pay in the tax, he was told that
the collector attended in his office only once a week, and
when he inquired why that was so, he was told by the
collector that he was only paid by a small per centage,
and could not afford to devote any more time.
Mr. HUME thought that no collector ought to be al-
lowed to appoint a deputy. He knew in his own parish
that when the collector sent in the amount of the tax,
he wrote on the other side that he had tea, or salt, or
candles, or something else to sell, and in this way he
thought he could get customers. He thought this ought
not to be allowed. He thought that the appointment
should be made by the Government, and that there should
be no intermediate appointment by the Commissioners.
"tie hoped that some Hon. Member would make a motion
on the subject.

Mr. W. WILLIAMS was surprised to hear his Hon.
Friend complain that these taxes were collected too
cheaply. If the Government could get proper security
for the safety of the money, he thought they were per-
fectly right in getting the collection made as cheaply as
possible. He did not see how the Chancellor of the
Exchequer could prevent persons from endeavouring to
promote their own business while engaged in the col-
lection of the taxes, and he was moreover of opinion that
he had no right to do so.
Mr. HUME had not objected to the cheapness but to
the mode of the collection. What he complained of
was that those persons who did not deal with the tax-
gatherer were liable to be surcharged.