Star.
London, England, 1826-05-13 00:00:00

SONO= CORN MAL.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER moved that the
Bonded Corn and bnpottation of Corn BiU s►ould be committed.
Mr. BENETT, after a few words, moved as an
Amendment, that the Bill should be referred to a Com-
mittee of the whole House, in order to consider of the
amount of duty to be levieJ on the Corn now in Bond.
In the course of his speech he took occasion to observe
that this, though an attempt to relieve the lower, and particularly
the manufacturing classes. must fail of ever reaching them in the
way of lowering the price of bread; and that the only persons bone-
Acted would be a set of gambling speculators in the Corn Market.
He pledged himself to divide the House on the Amendment.
Mr. HUSKISSON regretted that the Hon. Member
should have permitted himself, in the warmth of his
ob,ervations on a subject particularly interesting to
himself, to have stigmatized a set of ♦ery respectable
persons as gambling speculators, whose only offence was
that they de .1t in corn like any other merchants in any
other article, not prohibited by law, from whence they
expected to derive an advantage. This was the more
objectionable as applied to them, because in fairness the
H4.n. Member should take into account that the greater
part of this corn had bees in bond, or embargoed he
might say, ever since 1522. The price of foreign corn
at Rotterdam at the period when this mea,ute was list
introduced was above Sss. per quarter, and if to that
were added the expenses of shipping, carriage, unload-
ing, and warehousing, it would be soon seen that, with-
out taking into consideration any deduction by the loss of interest
In consequence of being unable to sell their corn, there could be
but a moderate profit on corn imported by them poisons who had
been so very harshly characterized by the Hon. Member for Wilt-
shire. Three parties also were now compelled to bring out all this,
cern between this and the 15th of August, or hose their chance of
disposing of it. Under these circumstances it was coo much to
contend that a duty of 17s. should be levied on this corn, which
was alter all only set at Minty to suit the rirposes of the public,
and prevent scarcity.
Mr. BARING, if be thought the difference of 601
duty would ever be allowed to reach or relieve the
wet king classes, or lower the 'Nice of breai, would not
throw any interruption in the way et the Right Hon.
Gentleman, except perhAps to move that the duty
should be lowered instead of being entreated. But

the idea teat a mistwiti that any one would reap it),
benefit from it except the speculatota in corn. At the
present prices_ abroad, corn court be imported and
warehoused hem at 475. which corn, considering the price it woultf
fetch here, must yield the dealers in cern a very large profit. This
article, in his mind, could, bear a higher duty, and 201. 17s. or cer-
tainly 13s. would leave a vety fair profit still to the dealer, and he
should strongly advocate the 17s. duty, beciuse he thought it would
at all times afford a fair profit, and secure us a very abundant supply
for all purposes.
Mr. HUAKISSON read the extract of a letter, to prove that
Corn, on the Ist of May, the day this measure was introduced, bore
no higher price at Rotterdam than 354. Id.
. Mr. ELLICE. was apprehensive of the consequences of a Axed
high rate of duty. The real subject of alarm was that hereafter, at
no distant day, we should be obliged to give a bounty to encourage
the importation, instead of Axing duties to circumscribe our supply.
In proportion to the restriction of the currency the pike of Corn
must be reduced to the price of all other relative articles of value,
and especially articles of general consumption.
Mr. F. WILSON wished the Hop. Member for Taunton to re-
collect that the House bad already tampered with the Corn Laws,
by the resolution lately passed, and thus interfered with the ordi-
nary supply through the corn dealers, on their own account: The
higher duties now suggested he must object to, because he was sa-
tisfied that Government had pursued the safest and soundest prin-
ciple, and adopted the most prudent rate of duty.
Mr. W. W 11 I rAIO ILK said, it would be highly imprudent to fur-
ther limit the supply of foreign corn to this country by higher duties.
Mr. MONCK justified the conduct of Government, in thus
adopting the lower rate of duty, and be trusted the measure would
be accompanied by another equally desirable, and be was sure equally
efficacious mode of reaching the distresses hut too general out of
doors, namely, the reduction of taxation generally.
Mr. BENET l', in explanation, disclaimed any intention of
wounding •the feelings of that respectable class of our mercantile
men, who traded boa fide in corn ; his observations were only sp.
plicable to those selfish persons who turned even public scarcity and
distress to their advantage, by upholding exorbitant prices.
The Gallery was then cleared amidst cries of " Question."
The House, however, dial not divide. On our readmission to the
Gallery, the House was in a Committee on the Bill, and
Mr. HUSK MON explaining to the Committee, that, in this
arrangement for letting out the bonded corn, they must take into
the account that a considerable portion of this corn, by lying so long,
was not adapted for general purposes, but only fit for being made
into starch and other inferior purposes. The rest did not exceed
210,000 quarters; there were 227 quarters also of oats, which
were about equal to the quantity that came into this country from
foreign ports in the last year. There was also a very small quan-
tity of barley.
In answer to a few observations from Sir Joux Batmen and
Mr. CIIIATLIS,
Mr. HUSKISSON observed that a great part of the supply of
food distributed to the distressed manufacturers of Manchester at
present consisted of oatmeal—( Hear.) The clause for fixing the duty
at Its. was then agreed to.

Mr. STANLEY ruse to propose the amendment of
which he had given notice on a former evening. The.
object of his mction was to effect only a change in the
law, corresponding precisely to the redress of the evil
complained of. The evil this law was intended to re-
dress was only felt by a small portion of the populati"n,
and that principally in a limited district. The impor-
tation of 500,000 quarter: of wheat must lower the price
of corn, and proportionably that of ether articles, neces-
sary for human subsistence throughout all classes. It
was desirable to restrict the boon. To make this mea-
sure for releasing the bonded corn available, to relieve
the distress in those districts in particular, he would
therefore move as an Amendment-4 That en a certificate, signed
by three Members of any Committee, acting for the relief of the
present distress, that beaded corn had been bought by them for
that purpose, the corn so bought should be, on application to
his Majesty's Treasury, exempted from all duty whatever, and the'
sum so saved by the remission of duty should be applied to the fur-
ther relief of distress in these districts."
)Jr. HUS K I SSO N said, if a precedent was established of taking
of the duty on foreign corn u a relief to distressed manufacturers,
it must lead to most embarrassing results, and would lead the people
to look on the Corn Laws u the cause of their distress. There was
distress at present all over the manufacturing districts of England
and Scotland, and to make the proposed relief general, Committees
should be allowed to purchase corn in all places, and pay them a
SUM equal to the duty that was to be remitted on the purchase of
foreign corn. He was confident that he could find agricultural
districts in which the poor-rate was fourfold what it was in any
town in Lancashire.

• Sir JOHN WHOTTESLY said, he had not met any person
from the manufacturing counties who did not think that the pre-
sent distress was, in a great degree, caused by the measures taken
for changing the currency ; and he was afraid the consequence of
that measure must be to Increase the distress. Theduty on the
bonded corn, howev-r, formed a fund of 41100,000 which Parlia-
ment might apply to the relief of the general distress.
Mr. PEEL thought it would tend to cast a stigma on the tax on
corn if it were to be applied at present to the relief of the mane
facturers who would be led to suppose it had been the -cause of
their sufferings.
Mr. BARING said, an extreme case should be made out before
he would consent to an application of the public money for the relief
cf local distress.
General GASCOYNE said, that general principles were against
affording this kind of relief, but general principles were equally
opposed to the discretionary power about to be conferred upon
Ministers. He thought the same emergency which justified one
measure would fully vindicate the other.
Mr. STANLEY withdrew his clause. _ _ _

Ti. House resumed, the Report WAS brought up, sad ordered to
be received on Wednesday.

Mr. ARBUTHNOT obtained leave to bring in a Bill for Im-
proving the pavement of certain parts of Westminster.
Mr. BRIGHT, in moving that the Report of the Debtor and
Creditor Arrangement Bill be brought up, said that he would
at the third reading of the Bill move to add a clause, by way of
rider, to extend its provialons to Ireland.—'llse Report was then
received, and the Bill ',Meted to be read a third time on Wednesday.
Mr. A RBUTIINOT brought In the Westminster Pavement
Improvement Bill, which, after a few words from Mr. liens,
was read a first and second time, and ordered to be committed on
Wednesday next.
Mr. HUSKISSON moved that the House at its rising do ad-
journ till Wednesday next.
Mr. HUSK ISSON moved for a return of the quantities of Fo-
reign Grain of every description imported Into this country up to
the Ist Mays 11126.