Star.
London, England, 1819-05-01 00:00:00

Board to procure a remis:.ion of the Ene.
plaint was made to the Board of ti-c ,
Offi eer, when Mr. Hitchihs was censur,,:;
remained au Officer of Excise. He shouid
the catduct of the Excise toward. those
1..17:
them information. A certain individual 11;.1.
information to Mr. 'filet, a Cemmisioaer
when one htmdred stills were seized in c:
The name of the individual was allowed tc
and he war almost beaten to death. When
to bCd in conseque:ce of ,he bruises h,had r
the whole of his cattle had been seized. 1'
recovery he applied to be indemnified from the
of his gaqty neighbours. The cattle sere accc
seized upon his information, and as he wat
them away, the Excise Officer, of the name
quhoun, disclosed the name of the informer,
same system still continued. A person of d
of Logie called on Mr. Newman, a Corn:, •
Excise, to /earn if any fines were due frrrn
that het intended to take ; and was nicotine
the fines had been paid. But soon after, ;;;
were seized en account of the fines that had
been paid. The cattle, though amo.,-risl• •
siderable number, had only brought in t.; ;
county had CO pay thirty guineas to the'
The'law had completely tailed; and th.a
dent, from a Report by Mr. Terry, a
tof gataisg, from which the Honourahh:
read; all extract. In consequence of the
iky had ao hesitation to take a false oath
and the innocent, to protect thee,.
66mi:friars the consequences of an
An Excite officer had been tried on a chaq
ceiving a bribe of half-a-guinea to allow
article to pass unseized ; and though it was
on the trial, that, had the article been
would have been entitled to £2, the Jury
guilty. Soon after he wascalled upon by ,
Jury while in prison, who told him they were
convinced of his innocence, but that they were
mined always to return a verdict against an
the Revenue. The sentence upon this mail
a year's imprisOnment, and a fine of tv..e.lt,
The death of Mr. Baker was a clear la ooh
fects of the presert system. That unfo: twiare
man had been most active, both as a Ma,,istrat
a landlord, to put down illicit distill:l:l6n, -
been inhumanly murdered in the view of
tenantry and dependents. Wietout an armed
the law was wholly inoperative. The .
Gentleman here 'read a letter tti him from.
Pletcherotating his opinion to- be wholly
the present system, and ffin 'he had had
portunity of seeing its inefficacy. The M:
Mints and the President- of the -Board of
were both hostile to that system, He conci
a-quotation from Sir J. Davies, that there
tion more attached to equal and impartial
than the Irish ; and if the Chancellor of
quer should not deal tut equal and impartial
he would be responslle for the con,,:lur
GOD and Mari.

Mr. LESLIE FOSTER said, he should
opinions bet facts, and should look at the
both in A financial and in a moral point of
a financial point of view it was deter
'that the amount of the Reienue from ,
£1,300,000, being one-fourth of the whole
of Ireland, and had increased 19 per cent.
last year. The Malt Duty amounted to
and had, within the same time, increased
cent. so that of a revenue of five millions, •
and a half arose from the Spirit aad
In the course of the last year 1300 illicit,
been put down ; but in the course of the yea:.
1811, and 1812, before the present system I.
revived, no fewer than 19,000 illicit stills!
destroyed. The number in the first of those
being • 6,538 ' • in the next, 6,649 ; and in
5,816. For that purpose an armed force
needful, and much tnorc violence had been
than under the system that had since been acted
Still the evil continued to increase, and the'.
Ireland had in% manner become an immense
lery. It was found that the great distillers c
carry on their trade on account of
and a most respectable Committee of that House 41
reported, that to put a stop to the practice of iincit
distillation, it was necessary to fine town lands,—
In consequence of that Report being acted open,
great blow had been given to illicit distillation. It
the county of Longford, the number of fires had
1814, been 80 ; in the next year 81 ; but in thelet
year had only been nine. In the county of Cavan !!-e
fines had in the last year been only 36. In the conuty
of Fermanagh,' .the number of fine; in 1814, was
144 Fin 1515; 143 ; but in the last year only 41.—
The case had been similar in most of the other
counties, with: the'exception of Tyrone and Donepi.
In the lattel-,•ln 1811, the fines had been 717, in the
next year 960; and.in the. last year 550. InTytner,
the fines in 1811 were-176, and in the last year Iti6.
Upon the whole, the timber of fines in 1814 LP
been 3554;'*-irt. the last year only 1102. Out cl
thirty.twer counties illicit distillation had bean almot
wholly put down in twenty-three, and in the oda
nine was confined to the mountainous district;. It ar
neared from the evidence of Mr. Logic and Mr. Cub:,
that 5i illi& • stills had been voluntarily given uo
and that agreements had been entered into to prase-
cute offenders, should the present system be alloyed
to remain in fore. In I SIG, a man of more zeal thaa
discretion, had been appointed by the Board of
ho
cise of Donegal, and acts of oppression had been cow-
mitted. But since that time lie and two more, WO
had imitated his ex:tmple, had been disaikse,i.--
The amount of fines f.or illicit distill.oion in ;i.:
county of Doneval been C 481., Ishii: the anion,
of cess duty inyosed by the Grand Jury
meat, h•td, in the same time, been 4:3i!,00J. :;
the moral effects, the account of Justice Fletcher ay.-
peared to him to he overcharged, and certainly di:-
kred from his own experience. The expense
formerly amounted to .C. 50,000 a-year, was then on.(
fifteen thousand pounds. •
Sir IL PARNELL thought anew plan ought to
adopted.
Mr. W. POLE contended that illicit distillciies
had increased under the present system.
inion.
Lord MOUNTCHARLESwasofthesame op
Mr. V. FITZGER A LI) defended the present s•
tern. Should a qUestion of revenue and morals come
in conflict, no doubt could arise 2s to where the p
fel-snce should be given. A Committee of tlEtt 11041_,•
most numerous and respe'c—rable, !I id called!

ne. A•
• r
)r, •
--c
ray, ,fit
lould
ese Wilt)
:al :Jae sr
net of L..
in
'd to . 1
Vhen 1
' had re.
ed.
from • z
re actor
svz, d • '
name of
.
a of the ,
liis,islte
frrrn ;
informed '
ter, I:is Li.
at !tad alr
a...ing to
I I:1; an l
the tidal,
I that tans E!
bl (leaflet'.
f the law, •
e oath to
ect their nri
info . • • '
I charge,;
allow as •:
it was „
men seized,
fury limed
rl by two of ..
hey were fur
hey were de:e
nst an ofFILT:
s man had .
meaty pot
proof of the
IrtunateG
Nlagistrate
,11:16n, and h
ew of his ,
to armed fcr.
he Itnnotiralf
from..loi,
7holly averse'
had arnpk
Master cf
rd of Con '
le concluded
here was no ea
mpartial jastin
r of the Each',
npartial justice
!quer.ces both:,
hosld state r.
at the 'nest;-.
lint of vier.
lying of r.otice.
rt the Excise wz
e whole term,
r cent. since is
ed to 0..939,000
termed 30 pc:
llions, a milli
ad Malte
illicit atiN ha 4
• the yeas 1810,
system bad ban
: stills bad bas
t of those yea"
and in the. le,
l force bad km
I been emplovel
been acted tip.
snd the whole ci
immense 2.isi!•
stillers cenlJ uct
licit distillat'ts;
• that House i!al
tactice of iincit
town lands.—
rxted open,
distillation. 11
of i.•:es 1;206
; but in thelet
sty of Cavan !).-e
1. In the county
in 1814, WAi
eelfi:eethanaer onlyn7oodvponerii,erin4l.lret;
50. ln-Tyrear,
le last year 10;.
ses in 1814 lapil
r 1102. Out cl
had been almost
id in the sac
Aistrict;. It ar
e and Mr. Cubit,
tarily given uf,
xi into to passe-
stem be allowed
lITIOTe zeal than
le Board of
1 had been coal-
two more, wi.r,
en
in ;i.•
hit the arnoi,.;.
I Jury Pitv2l.;.,
3",000. :•1
ice Fletcher