Star.
London, England, 1801-01-06 00:00:00

SCARcirr.

SIXTH MORT TIMM THE COMMITTEE Artemirrsp
TO CONSIDER 01 THE PRESENT HItH ELKS OF

IPROVISIONS.

The Committee appointed to confider of the
prefent High Price eProvifions ; and to whom fo
much of his MAJE melt gracious Speech from
the Throne to both Houfes of Parliament, as re-
lates thereto; and alfo the feveral Petitions pre-
fen Led to the Houfe, complaining of the High Price
of Provilions ; were referred
Have proceeded further in the matters to them
referred; and have agreed upon the following
Report:
Your Committee having Rated, in their Firß
Report, the rearms which induced them to direa
their attention, in the firft inftanee, to fuch mea-
lures as appeared bell caftulated to alleviate the
prefent preflure, and as were capable of being car-
ried into execution during the estiflenee of this Par-
liament, have fubmitted to the wifdom of the
Houk, in that and in their fubfequent Reports,
fuch foggeftions as have appeared to them to fall
within that defcription. They have been anxious
to discharge with diligence the talk which was
lm-
pofcd upon them, andhave continued their Sittings
without intermiftion, from day to day, from the
period of their appointment to the prefent moment,
when their proceedings are interrupted by the ne-
teary termination of this Sellion, in confequence
ofthe Union with Ireland.—Notwithllanding their
bell exertions, fo mnch time has been unavoidably
occupied by the contlderation and difentfion of
matters conneded with the different meafirres
above alluded t., which appeared to your Com-
mittee, in every point Of view, the moll important
as well as the moll urgent, that they have found
it impoffible to enter, as fully as they could with,
mon other parts of the exceptive and complicated
fubjed which the Houk has thought proper to
refer to them.
The manner in which the Commerce of Grain
is carried on, has, however, engaged no fmall
proportion of their attention ; but even upon this
branch of the fubjed, the information which they
have hitherto obtained, is far from being fufficient
to enable your Committee to lay before the Houfe
any correa flatement of fads, much lefs any well-
confidered opinion refulting from them. To form
filch an opinion, requires the attentive confidera-
tion of a great body of exifting Laws, and a mi.
nute acquaintance with an extenfive fyilem of
Trade, together with all the variations which have
taken place, either by the authority of the Legit-
lature, or by changes of pratlice arifing from an
alteration in the habits of the people, or from the
growth of Commerce, and the increafe of wealth.
The fubjeB alto is of nature which requires pe-
culiar caution, from the danger which might at-
tend an erroneous judgment, milled, on the one
hand by popular prejudice, or, on the other hand,
by plaufible theories, formed without fufficient
examination of fads.
Your Committee have alto confidered, that the
interval will be very fhort between the conclufion
of the prefent Seftion and the Meeting of the Par-
liament of the United Kingdom, wen the inquiry
into this, and other parts of the fubjea, may, and
(as they humbly conceive) ought to be immedi-
ately returned. They think it, therefore, more
conlitlent with their duty, to leave whatever in-
formation they have colleded, as the groundwork
of future and more complete inveftigation, rather
than to hazard any hefty fuggeftions or Ratements,
upon a matter of fo much delicacy and difficulty;
and they are perfuaded that the delay which may
be thus occafioned, will be amply compenfated by
more mature ditcuffion, and a more deliberate de-
ciflon.
Your Committee, upon reviewing the different
;matures which have been adopted during the pre-
fent &Rion, have thought it might be fatisfadory
to the Houle, if, before they conclude, they were
to take fume general view of the probable amount.
of the fupply or faving which may be obtained
from the various fources which they have pointed
out, compared with the deft: icy of the crop of
Wheat. It is unnecelTary to obferve, that fuch a
flaternent mull be in many refpeds conjedural, and
deficient in prccifion ; but it may, perhaps, furnifh
a general ellimate, capable in fume degree, of
guiding the expcttations, and of relieving the
asxiety of the public.
The quantity of Wheat confumed in an ordi-
nary year, cannot be afcertained with any accu-
racy ; but your Committee conceive, that, after
allowing for the proportion of the population coin-
monly fubfifting upon other grain, the nfual con-
fumption of Wheat cannot be ilippofed to exceed
7,000,000 quarters per annum. Upon an average
at ten years, including the very deficient harvests
. of vole and 1799, about 3te,000 quarters of this
quantity have been furnilhed by importation from
foreign parts. The produce of an average crop
may therefore have amounted to about 6,700,000
quarters; and the produce of the late harveft
would, upor) this ruppofition, have been about
5,000,000 quarters. The deficiency to be cover-
ed, in order to enture the fupply of the country
for twelve months, from the 111 of Odober, 1800,
to the t II of Oftober r 8o r, may be about 2,000,000
quarters ; of which, according to the average im-
portation above Rated, about 300,000 quarters
might be expeded to he drawn from abroad. It
is alfo to be übfcrved, that in this mode of Rating
the account, whatever part of the lall harveti may
have been confumed before the beginning of Oc-
tober, is fuppered to be compenfated by the pro-
portion of the next harveft which may•cozne into
safe before the correfponding period of the enfuing
year, and that • the eftimate is formed upon the
confumption of twelve months only.
A contiderable proportion of the grain imported
fame time previous to the oft of ()Etcher, mull,
undoubtedly, have contributed to the fubfiftencc
pf the country fine that period : but in the point of
view in which your Committee have confidered the
fabjeft, credit is taken only for the fubfequent
tm-
poroition. The accounts are compkat to the aotl;
of December ; but adding thereto what has beer.
farce received in London and Hull, up to the ;tit

•ot beeemiser "matifires 'Ate amount of Wheat int-
ported, exchilive of Floor, is near 170,000 quar-
ters, befides 60,000 quarters of Barley, and I 26,c00
quarters of Oats, 4400 cwt. of Rice, and between
14 and 15,000 quarters of other grain and pulse.
Setting alitle, for the prefent, the confideration
of the further fupply of grain which may be re-
.ceived from Europe. the firft objeft to which your
Committee will advert, is the importation from the
United States of America. There is a peculiar ad-
vantage attending the Ripply from this quarter,
that fome part of it may be expeaed to arrive,
during the next month, and will continue during
that period of the year when the importation from
Europe is ufnally interrupted by die frog. Ac-
cording to the Ludt information, the crop m the
United States has been uncommonly produCtive,
and has been nearly free from the ravages occa-
tioned in former years by the Hefhan fly. The
greaten quantity ever exported from that country
(except in 179 a, when it is faidto have amounted'
to near 1,500,000 barrels) is Rated to be between
t,soo,cioci and 1,3000000 barrels of Flours each
weighing to6lbs. and confidered as equal to about
five buniels of Wheat. This exportation took place
during the time when that idea continued to do
confiderable mifehief : it may therefore reafonably
be expeaed that the furplus of American produce
may now be greater than itovas at that period;
and that the high price of Flour in England, toge-
ther with the encouragement held out by Parlia-
ment, may bring to this country much the greaten
proportion of that furplus. Suppofiug, however,
the furplus to be no greater than the quantity be-
fore Rated, and that only three-fourths ofit fhould
be fent to the Bririfh Market, the fupply derived
from this quarter would be about 940,000 barrels,
which, according to the ufual Eftimate, is equal to
about 580,600 quarters.
The harvell in Canada is Rated to have been
abundant, and an importation may be expeaed
from that country, amounting at 'call to 30,000
quarters.
In addition to this fupply of Wheat and Flour,
a confiderable quantity of Rice maybe drawn from
different parts of the world.
From the fouthern States of North America,
your Committee arc informed that a fupply may
be obtained of 70,000 barrels (each weighing
,
cwt.) of which a part will probably arrive is
January, and the remainder facceEvely in the en-
Cuing months.
From India a much larger quantity may ulti-
mately be expeded ; but, as little, if any, of what
may be obtained from thence by the means of
!hips which have failed from this country, can ar-
rive before the beginning of Odober, 1801, your
Committee have confined their eftimate, in this
view of the fubjea, to that part which may be fent
from India in country or neutral !hips, in confe-
quence of orders difpatched from hence in Sep-
tember laR. This has been Rated at from 7000
to to,ooo tons, (equal to from aB,OOO to 40,0ta0
barrels of 5 cwt. each). The latter quantity is
reprefented as the moil probable of the two ; and
if fufficient fltipping fhould be difengaged in India,
it may rife to a much greater amount. It (gams
therefore not unreafonable to exped from that
quarter, in the months of Auguß and September,
about 35,000 barrels, which, added to the impor.
Cation from America, will amount to 105,000 bar-
rels. Each barrel may be confidered as more than
equal, in point of weight, to the Flour of all
defcriptions extraded from twelve bufhels of
Wheat, but in point of nutriment to a much larger
quantity. On this fubjea your Committee have
alreadyfubmitted to the Honfe the refult of various
experiments. From the experience of 5 years at the
Foundling Hofpital, itappears, that when applied to
the food of children in the manner in which it has
been there prepared, one pound of rice will go as'
far as eight pounds of Sour. Many other inflances
have been Rated to your Committee, where this
article Las been extenfively ufed. and where the
increafe has been in nearly as large a proportion :
and even when mixed with flour in making bread,
the produce of rice appears to be more than three
times the produce of an equal quantity of flour.
Your Committee therefore think themfelves fully
juftified in Rating, that the quantity of rice above.
mentioned will, by adopting proper modes of pre-
paration, which are now very generally known
and pradifed, afford more food, efpecially for
children of all ages, than four times the fame
quantity of wheat; and may therefore be confi-
dered as fully equivalent to a fupply of 630,000
quarters of wheat.
The Importation of Indian corn has alfo been
encouraged by the profped of a liberal bounty.
The excellence of that grain, as the food of man,
cannot be doubted, as it forms the chief fubfillence
of the Southern parts of the United States of Ame-
rica. The ufe of it here has, hnwevet, been
hitherto fo little known, that it is difficult to ani-
mate either what quantity may be expefted, or in
what proportion it may be introduced into the
confumption of this country ; but as it is alfo ap-
plicable with the greaten advantage to the food of i
rattle, hogs, and poultry, it cannot fail to oper-
ate, either directly or indireftly, as a valuable ad-
dition
to the gent •Al Rock of grain.
The quantity of wheat which will be Paved for
food by the prohibition of the manufacture of (larch
from that grain will be about 40,000 quarters.
In confequence of the floppage of the diftillerics,
at lean 500,000 quarters of barley, which would
have been confumed in that mann/allure, will re-
main applicable to the fithfiftence of the people •
but as tt may be fuppoled that eleven bufhcls of
barley are not more than equivalent to one quarter
of wheat, thiseat only be stated at about 360,000
quarters.
Having Rated to the Houle the bell ellimate
they have been able to form, of the direct fupply
which may be derived from the fource to which
they have here averted (of which the fupply from
pan importation, and from the llorpage of the
manufaftures of fpiiits and (larch, may be con-
fidered as asetually realif:d). your Committee will
proceed to take fume view of that important and
extcnfive refource which may be furnilhed by the
non ceconomical nfe and application of the pro-
duce of the country.
The teeing to be deriicd from the introduBo

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