Star.
London, England, 1821-02-09 00:00:00

remain in that state, as the number of unemployed
hands was increasing daily ? Should the Noble Lord
go fairly into the Committee, he should have his
support. But he feared that the time was coming,
when the majority of the country, having nothing to
lose, would have nothing to fear. He asked for no
partial boon to the Agriculturist that was not equally
beneficial to the community at large.
Mr. W. PEEL stated, that the town of Birming-
ham was in a most distressed state, and if inquiry was
wished for b'y the Petitioners, it ought to be granted.
Mr. ROBINSON said, that the opinions that had
been delivered tended to overthrow a solemn Act of
Parliament, passed two years ago ; but to repeal that
Act would be neither wise nor safe. Another plan
approved by the Honourable Gentleman opposite
was of a fearful nature—to reduce the interest of the
Public Funds. It might produce a temporary ad-
yantage, which would be followed by irreparable
mischief. It was not the duty of Government to pro-
pose such measures, or to undo what had been done
by solemn Acts of the Legislature.
Mr. BARING was surprised that the Right Ho-
nourable Gentleman had not stated his opinions more
fully, though he fully agreed in what had fallen
from him. There was neither honour nor honesty in
seeking for relief by a fraud on the public creditor;
if one part of the public property was touched, the
whole must become insecure.
Mr. tURWEN said, he would be the last man to
recommend a breach of faith with the public credi-
tor, if it could possibly be maintained.
Mr. BARING resumed, and stated that the Peti-
tion had properly been treated in a general manner,
as the distress was by no means confined to Birming-
ham. In the sixth year of peace there was no pros-
pect of things returning to a settled state, though it
would be unfair to impute that to the existing Go-
vernment. The local distress- of Birmingham was in
a considerable degree to be ascribed to the falling off
in the American market. Whatever Parliament in-

tended to do, it was of the utmost importance to
know from whence the distress arose. His own opi-
nion was already made up ; but when he said it arose
from our paper currency, he hoped he should not be
understood as wishing to return haitily to an unli-
mited payment in cash. The price of corn did not
depend upon anything but the depreciated state of
our currency. The quarter of corn now at 50s. would
produce as much in shoes and clothes, &c. as it did
v..:,en it was at 80s. It was owing to the depreciated
currency of the country that the farmers, who had
made fair speculations, were now in jail, which he
knew to be the case in many parts of Somersetshire.
Ile had seen comparative statements of the consump-
tion of castle slaughtered in Birmingham, and it was
evident from those, that the consumption of the arti-
cles of toOd had decreased. The Petitioners stated
these facts; but they added, that there seemed to be'
an increase in the consumption of Exciseable articles.
The real fact was, that the increase in the Excise
arose fiom the new taxes, and from the increase of
the unproductive over the productive consumer.—
The fact was, that unless they knew the real situation
in wl:ic:1 they stood, they never could expect to get
cut of that situation. The first thing they should
look Iv. was the expenditure of the State. If they
said that
.60 were equal tts 80 in the price of corn,
their object should be to try to get back from 80 to
GO in expenditure. They could never get the cur-
Leacy to anything like the old standard, but by a
diminution in the expenditure. A great part of the
distress of the country arose from Gentlemen keep-
ing up their rents, expecting that things would mend.
This was not a very pleasant truth to be told to Gen-
tlemen of 1 lige landed property, or even to himself.
What he wished was a Committee of the whole House
to inquire into the best mode of restoring cash pay-
ments without hurting the paper currency. He
thought he should then be able to shew that the
pound sterling was considerably above its par value.
In Ireland paper was, in reality, three per cent. above
par value. These evils should be cured gradually.
Mr. ‘VESTERN implored the House, in the first
place, to inquire ioto the truth of the allegations con-
tained in this Petition, which stated that the consump-
tion of articles absolutely necessary had decreased in
no less than thirteen different articles. These facts
proved incontestably the union between Commerce
and Agriculture. Whenever agriculture flourished,
commerce and manufactures revived. He could not
conceive how a reduction in the Landholders rents
could have any effect in relieving the general dis-
tress of the country ; and he was sure that he would
be borne out in this, opinion by the great bulk of the
tenantry of the country.

Mr. iticanno had just risen ; when, from the ex-
cessive and unnatural heat of the House, from the
concealed flues, General PAXESHAM fainted, and was
at last carried out into the SPEAKER'S garden.
Mr. RICAItDO then went on.—He knew that the
distresses of the country were attributed by some to
excessive taxation, by others to a depreciated cur-
rency, and by others to a sudden transition from war
to peace. For his part, he thought the fall in the price
of corn had dccurred in a strange and extraordinary
manner. The alteration in the value of the currency
had only been from six to seven per cent. and it was
totally impossible to say that such a difference could
have arisen from that cause in the price of corn.
Wine had fallen, he understood, twenty-five per cent.
and cotton had fallen considerably too, which shewed
that this extraordinary decrease was not peculiar to
this country. His great object always had been to
have a fixed value of currency, rather than to restore
it, that it might not depend upon a Company of
Merchants, however respectable they might be, to
alter it almost at pleasure. But even during the
utmost fluctuation in the value of the currency; there
vas no particular distress in the country—(Heer.)—
lie would, therefore, beg his I lonourable Friend (Mr.
Baring) to consider well, whether lie could fairly
attribute the present distress to the state of our
currency alone. All taxes, he contended, fell on
the article produced ; and if they did not fall on any
other than the consumer in the end, what right had
the grower of the corn to raise the price of his com-
modity ? If, however, it should be necessary (which
• he hoped would never be the case), to reduce the
interest to the Fundbolder, he trusted it would
be done fairly and openly, and not by paying him
in a depreciated currency, or in any other underhand
means. The cause of the fluctuation between gold
and silver in price arose from the wavering timidity
of the Bank. lie did not believe that a single