Star.
London, England, 1818-05-14 00:00:00

eluded with enumerating the different reductions and
etemptions that had already been made in favour of,
Irelsla.
Sir JOHN NEWPORT, in reply, defended his
vadat in 1806-7, respectin the continuance g of the
Window Tax; one ground of which was, that more
ego one-third of the amount of the existing Taxes
ols calculated to be derived from the proper regu..
lion of them. But what he might have dote or
done at that period, was no reason why he should
stet any time propose such reductions as he thought
opublic exigencies demanded. He had acted COlll-
- at all times, and no considerations of false
popularity should ever induce him to act otherwise.
Mr. C. BUTLER thought Ireland to be in such a
?char state, that any other sort of Taxes would be
better for her than the Assessed Taxes. He could
sot, however, venture to suggest any substitutes, but
vas nevertheless of opinion that some might be dis-
covered. Ile gave a statement of the enormous di-
vitiation that had taken place in the last three years
in the different sorts of taxed Carriages.
Mr. V. FITZGERALI) defended the necessity of
the Assessed Taxes on the same grounds as Mr. Peel,
aid said he could prove that there was hardly any
one tax that Parliament could imeose on Ireland that
would not press much more severely than 'any that
were proposed to be repealed. The fair way to look
at the question was not to measure it by the state-
ments that Gentlemen might hear from their consti-
tuents, or from the Petitions on the table of the
Hotase ; int by the general state of the two countries,
snd the necessity or providing for their, burthens.—
Ile lamented as deeply as any man the miseries,oc-`
visioned by distress and disease in many parts of /ie.-
bnd ; but it was not on these distinct and solitary
Bounds that such an important question ought to be
conceded. The Right Honourable Gentleman con-
tinued to argue at some length in sup pmt of the pro-
position of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and
against the Amendment. It was the duty 4 the
Chancellor of the Exchequer to propose an increase
((those taxes at the time they were increased; and
should be recollected, if they had not been in-
ceased, to what a state Ireland would have been
sihjected. If it had not been for this provision, the

oisolidation of the Union could not have taken
lace as we were then paying 17 millions of war
aces, of which Ireland did not pay a farthing.—
There had been no tax laid on Ireland since 1815 ;
alt some had been remitted ; and but for the con-
solidation of the Exchequers, Ireland would last year.
lure been obliged to find nine millions of charges,
sith only four millions of revenue. The balance
sae from Ireland was 1,750,0001. last year, so that
to total deficiency, as shewn by his Right Ho-
nourable Friend, would be this year 6,800,0001.—
Therefore when it was seen that the whole of the
Assessed Taxes, if imposed in the last year for the
irsttime, would not have paid the interest of the
debt that Ireland must have incurred but for the ar-
rangement that had taken place, it was not fair to
ciarge Ministers with avidity for continuing taxation
h that country. After many more arguments in fa-
roar of the reduction as proposed by the Chancellor
eche Exchequer, the Right Hon.. Gentleman con-
cluded with observing, that the people of Ireland
ere too generous to believe that those who wished
e relieve them were less sindere than others, althoX
ey could not go so far ; and that, when more c
at be consistently given, we ought not to be charged
kith having done less fot Irelstnd.than for other parts
is the empire, when in fact we had done more.
?Jr. SHAW repeated thei-sentimeuts he had ut-
teed in a former stage of the measure, and read
again the extracts from Mr. Corey's speech on the
llindow Tax in 1800. He toot a comparative view
tithe increasing deficiences in the Hearth and Win-
im Taxes in the last two years, and asked if it were
psssible, by persevering in a tax so falling off, that
say thing equal to what was expected would be cle-
aved from it ? The deficiency in the Hearth .and
Window Tax for the last three years amounted to
110,0001. or 111,0001. The insolvencfes in Dublin,
on account of these taxes were, in 1816, 220/.; but
is the year ending the Ist January, 1818, they were
1,7911. besides considerable arrears of the preceding
year, never likely to be got in. He therefore thought
tvould be advisable to agree to the amendment.
Mr. L FOSTER defended the good faith of Par-
liament respecting the Window Tax. He was sure
:galling would give more heartfelt pleasure to the
Chancellor of the Exchequer than to relieve Ireland
is far as was consistent with his paramount duty to
the country at large. The working classes, it should
se recollected, were intended to be relieved of the
endow tar, not to the amount of 25 but to 90 per
I".nt. by taking it off of all lodging houses of a cer-
'n description, and there was a clause for the ex-
. ,'ion of the manufacturing part of the population
.11for all warehouses for linen. What classes then
ould the Right Hon. Baronet propose to have ex-1
ftpted? The entire amount of the Assessed Taxes
01817 was 601,0001. of which the Window Tax
tpplied 356,0001. and now a fourth part of this was
reposed to be remitted, which would make a mate-
. *al reduction in the total amount. He thought it
sold be a more difficult task for the Chancellors of
to Exchequer to excuse himself to the people of
ingland for not making the exemption extend to
Lem—(hear, hear.)
Mr. CHICHESTER supported the Amendment
FRANCIS BuRDErr said, it was natural
'.at the people of England should be jealous, if those
-17 eland were not taxed to the full extent, and that
ktter should have the same sort of feeling ; but
ere was very little ground for jealousy on either
K.; as none could complain of taxation not being
lekit out to them to the utmost pitch of endurance.
u:__t,he strong point of the question was, whether
I":indow Tax was not a most cruel and oppressive
producing misery, disease, and death ?—(Hear,
Td Then it was not saying whether a few thou-
4ads more or less should be collected, but whether
()tight to be obtained by such an abominable
Num! A tax on light was the most obnoxious
at r,4d repulsive that the mind of nian could invent.—
talkin' of the generosity of England towardTsTed, in relieving her of her burthens, the fact
4* that Ministers had made the people of En4ind
! the debts they had incurred in the name ot'l. the ;'"Ple of Ireland. When Ireland was compelled by :
r,,ce to submit to the Union, she had no debt ; it
it"±4letet.ore nonsensethe debt of Ireland.
4„: the debt whichto Ministers had incurred-1
,cculd met tax Inland noose ii they

would, nor could they collect the taut already im-
posed. Under pretence of doing their duty to the
State, they would compel that country to submit to
pestilence, disease, and death, because they say they
cannot propose any substitute--(Hear, hear, hear).—
It was the business of the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer to find out such taxes as the country could en-
dure. But Ministers seemed to forget that the people
had a right to demand a cessation of all taxes, and
the adoption of some efficient system of economy.
And he would ask them why our great military ests.
blishment, which could not be required for any good
purpose, was not reduced, as well as sinecures cut
down, so as to render obnoxious taxes unnecessary?
They had no right to seek for taxes till such a system
is-as adopted. As to the Irish Window Tax, he
should havebeen better pleased if it had been pro-
posed to abolish it altogether, in-order to allay that
distress and misery that threatened the destruction
of the country—(hear, hear).—The repeal of this
tax might be the means of reducing the unnecessary
military establishment in that country, and other
measures might be taken to suppress illicit distilla-
tion, and allow the people to drink good whiskey in-
stead of bad. He would rather that less should come
into the Exchequer, in order that less might go out
of it, to support a system hateful to the country.
Lord CARHAMPTON was of opinion that the
continuance of the Window Tax was the continuance
of pestilence and famine. Ile- would suggest as a
substitute, that the Hearth Tax should be levied on
the whale population of Ireland. He related a prac-
tice to be prevalent between Gentlemen and their te-
nants in Ireland of keeping a running account of the
Hearth 'fax, and striking a balance when they came
settle ; but of which, when in favour of the tenant,
he scarcely ever saw a farthing.

• Lord CASTLEREAGH said nothing would be
more gratifying to him, or to his Right Honourable
Friend, than to be able to propose some measure of
relief for Ireland ; to be able to offer her some boon
of indulgence after the period of extreme pressure
which she had passed through, in a manner which
would never be forgotten in this part of the empire.
But the question now before the House was not
merely an Irish question ; it was one which concerned
all parts of the nation. For the argument of the Hon.
Baronet, that to do without taxes it was only neces-
sary to abolish sinecure places, to diminish pensions,
and reduce the army—these might be very good ge-
neral topics, but on these the House had already de-
cided in the manner which they thought best for the
good of the country, though not in a way that exactly
corresponded with the ides of the Hon. Baronet.—
He shewed, that the war which had been brought to
a successful conclusion by the course which Parlia-
ment had judged it most wise to pursue, had thrown
burdens on Ireland as well as on the other parts of
the Empire, which it would be long ere she could
be relieved from. But he shewed that the pressure
of the Taxes was not peculiarly severe on the Sister
Kingdom. The Window Tax had not caused the
fever in Ireland : this had been seen by what occurred
when the Irish Government had given permission for
all windows to be opened free of expense which had
been closed to avoid paying the Tax, the shutting of
which was found to be injurious to health. That
Tax, he would farther remark, had been in operation
ever since 1799, and no fever had been said to arise
from it before last year. It was therefore not liable
to all the objections which had been urged against it
by the Honourable Baronet, who on this, as on other
occasions, had been pleased to attribute that which
was one )f. the visitations of PROVIDENCE to the mis-
conduct of Government. He was not aware that the
Window Tax was less applicable to Ireland than it
was to Scotland ; and that it was levelled particularly
at the poor man, he denied—as, in Ireland, every
house that contained fewer than seven windows was
exempted from its operation altogether—(Hear!)—
Tha reduction now called for could not be made in
favour of Ireland without imposing taxes to a simi-
lar amount in some other way on the population of
the country, unless the House should think that they
could, consistently with legislative justice, relieve
Ireland by imposing additional taxes to a corres-
ponding amount on the people of England. This
plan he did not conceive could be adopted. But no
plan had been suggested for,imposing new taxes on
Ireland, and the question therefore became one not
of substitution, but of mitigation. Now, though lie
admitted it might be policy for a time to spare the
weaker country, and though in England there was
no wish to squeeze the last shilling out of Ireland,
yet it was felt that that country ought not to press on
this for assistance beyond what was reasonable and
just. It had already been stated that the debt oflreland
at this day was no greater than it had been at the time
of the Union, and she was now assisted by contribu-
ti:ms from England amounting yearly to 500,0001.
Under all the circumstances, he was anxious to
take his full share of the unpopularity which would
attach to resisting that relaxation now claimed, as in
his conscience he could not think Ireland entitled to
it. No country had ever so successfully and so cheaply
passed
through a war as she had done. Had she
been
left a separate country, she must have been lost
to England, and in that case she must have been lost
Ito herself, or she must have borne heavier burdens,
and have greatly increased her debt. That amount
Hof relaxation which it was proposed to afford, was
as much as could with propriety be allowed to Ire-
land in the present state of things, and he was sorry
it was not accepted in such a way as might make the
people of Ireland content with it.
Sir G. HILL supported the original motion.

The House divided, when there appeared—
For the Motion - - 80
For the Amendment - 55
Majority in fevour of the propooltinn of the
Chancellor of the Exchequer - - 25

A conversation followed, in which Sir J. NEWPORT,
Mr. HusitissoN Mr... P. GRANT, Mr. V. FITZGE-
RALD Sir M. W. Rtst.rv, and Mr. BABINGTON, par-
ticipated, in the course of which the duties on car-
riages were discussed, and the relief proposed to be
granted, The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER finally
moved that the duty on one male servant should be
reduced to two guineas, wkich was agreed to, as were
resolutions fixing the duty on a single carriage at 10/.1
on two carriages at 221. on three at 331. on four at'
4-I!. on every additional carriage the further sum of
12/. ; on every .two.wheeled carriage drawn by one
horse, 5!. 5.. and on every jaunting, car, 21.25.
The other Orden of the Der were then disposed of, And the
House ,adjourucd At One o'Clock.

THE EVENING STAR.

LONDON.

THURSDAY, MAY 14, 1818.
THE FUNDS.
PRICE Or STOCKS Tiffs DAY AT Tn'TLyn o'cr.oCK :
Reduced 79f I—Consols 8080 f—for Acc.
4 per Cent. 961 f —Navy Anns. 1071 f
India Bonds 98 100 pr.—Exch. Bills 18-21 pr.
Omnium 11; prem.

A Message from the PRINCE Rgc.xst was delivered,
yesterday, to both Houses of Parliament, intimating,
that he had given the Royal Assent to the intended
union of the Duke of KENT with the widow of the
late Prince of LYNANGEN, and sister of Prince Leo-
POLD, and trusting that Parliament would enable
him to make a suitable provision for the same. The
precedent established in the case of the Duke of CANI•
BRIDGE, will, probably, be followed, in determining
the amount of the additional pecuniary grant to be
made to the Duke of KENT upon this occasion. Her
Serene Highness will be thirty-two years of age in
August next. She has a son and daughter by her
deceased husband. The son is in his fourteenth year,
the daughter in her twelfth. The Princess herself has
an establishment and dower, amounting to between
four and five thousand pounds sterling per annum,
which we fear she will lose by her union with the
DUKE.

The Bill which has passed the American Senate,
of which we yesterday laid a copy before our
Readers, shuts, from the 30th of next September, the
ports of the United States against every vessel the
property of a British subject coming from any port
in the dominions of Great Britain which is closed
against the ships of the United States ; and exacts a
Bond from every British vessel outward-bound from
American ports, laden with American produce, that
the cargo shall not be landed in any port closed
against the ships of the United States.—That is, all
direct commercial intercourse between the British
West India Islands and the United States is inter-
dicted—the British laws prohibiting its being carried
on in American bottoms, and the American law, in
retaliation, prohibiting its being carried on in British
bottoms.

Thetffect will be, that any of the products of our
West India Islands, required by the Ameribans, viz.
rum, sugar, and molasses, must now be carried in
vessels belonging to other nations ; and on the other
hand, the supplies of provisions and lumber required
by our Islands, must be carried in vessels of the
same description.—or the Americans may supply
themselves from the islands of other Powers, and
our islands from Canada and Nova Scotia.
It remains then to be seen who is to be most bene-
fited by this new system. One point is obviously
gained for British subjects by the operation of these
laws—namely, an increased commerce between the
British Colonies in Notch America and our own
Islands, which cannot but prove highly advantageors
to the former ; and the only question to be ascer-
tained is whether the loss of the subjects of the United
States as customers more than counterbalances the
other advantages ? We think that, probably, the
general gain to our entire dominions will more than
compensate for any loss occasioned by this new order
of things. In fact the order which will thus ensue
is precisely what existed before the American war :
the commerce was then direct only between the Bri-
tish ports and the British colonies—the French,
who had formerly had colonies there, being entirely,
excluded.

The New York Papers which we received yester-
day, furnish the following confirmation of the . ac-
counts from Madrid, of the defeat of the Republi-
cans under BouVAR :

" LAGUIRA, FEB. 29, Half-past Six P.M.
" GLORIOUS NEWS FOR TILE SPANIARDS.

" An expreis has just arrived, by which we have recerve d
news of a most terrible action having been fought with the Pa-
triots, in which General Mostaco was victorious. The parti-
culars of this new are not yet fully known, but to-morrow we
shall have them."

A farther series of American Papers to the 21st
ult. arrived this forenoon.

The Navigation Bill, of which we have spoken
above, was on the 11th April passed in the House of
Representatives by a large majority, and returned to
the Senate.

The defeat of the Patriots of Venezuela is still
farther confilm •d by the following accounts:

BOSTQN, APRIL 15.
A letter from La Gnayra, of the 20th February,
received in Baltimore, has the following :—" An
express has just arrived, by which we have news of a
terrible action being fought, in which Morillo was
victorious. A salute is now firing : all are overjoyed.
Particulars not yet known : to-morrow we will have
them, and I will advise. Suffice it to say, it is such
as to completely restore tranquillity."