The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-06-06 00:00:00

FINANCIAL REFORM,

A numerous and influential town's meeting was held in
the Sessions-house, on Wednesday, in pursuance of a re-
quisition addressed to the mayor, " for the purpose of pe-
titioning parliament to take immediate measures, by wise
and prudent retrenchment, and a just revision of taxation,
to equalize the ordinary expenditure with the ordinary in-
come of the country.

His worship the Mayor took the chair shortly after the
hour of noon, and opened the proceedings by a short ad-
dress, pronouncing the object of the meeting to be most
legitimate—none more so.
Mr. FERGUSON then rose to move the first resolution,
which, with the others, will be found in an advertisement.
The question was essentially a tradesman's question, he
said, hence the prominent position he occupied before the
meeting. He depicted at length the sufferings and the
depression which weighed upon every branch of mercantile
affairs. Speculation was at an end—speculation, the life-
spring of commerce. He detailed the sufferings which,
locally as well as generally, had been experienced, and
which had caused thousands of the artizans of Liverpool
to pawn their little goods. The list of bankruptcies were
enormous ; the extent of pauperism, and the cost of
its maintenance, was also enormous ; and among the chief
causes of all this was the Bank Act of '44, which was a
ditgrace to legislation. But the supreme cause was the
unjust system of taxation. He exhibited its partial and
preferential operations upon the rich, as compared with
the poor man ; and strongly urged (with the sympathy of
the meeting) the axiom that the expenditure must not
exceed the receipts. He justified the loyalty of the inha-
bitants of Liverpool, but whilst they were loyal, whilst
they were resolved not to countenance sedition, they were
determined to procure an adjustment of expenditure and
taxation. "Justice to the overburdened people" should
be their cry.

Mr. C. HOLLAND seconded the resolution. The state
exchequer was now virtually going on in a bankrupt state ;
the Ministers had not the courage or had not the ability
to come forward with some measure of amendment. Yet
in France what results had attended the prostration of the
finance affairs of the state ? We were threatened with a
deficit of £5,000,000 by the ensuing year ; and what if
the Chancellor of the Exchequer had then to go the Bank
of England, that foul monoply upon which the merchant
was forced to rely and seek advances ? They must de-
mand from the Government some better system. They
absolutely now had none. The Chancellor wished to in-
crease taxation : they were determined to reduce expen-
diture ; and in order to promote their view they must
dismiss from their minds the war humbug, which he fully
exposed. Financial grounds had been the cause of revo-
lution in Europe, and the distresses and embarrassments
of the continent were our guarantee for peace. The
security of this country was her large population, and it
was an injury to their interests—to the interests of their
trade and commerce, to extract annually from their capi-
tal the enormous sum of £18,000,000 for our war estab-
lishments. He denounced the waste on account of our
Coburg marriage intrigues, the results of which had been
so briefly dispelled by the financial convulsions that waste
tended to increase. The African armament ought, he
maintained, to be dispensed with. Shipmasters feared
the approach of our vessels of war in foreign ports. inas-
much as it was an incitement to the seamen to be turbu-
lent and discontented, because of the premium they could
then obtain by shipping in the service. The United
States had no such large armaments, yet their interests
were fully protected. The speaker then denounced the
secrecy preserved in the miscellaneous estimates. Finan-
cial reformers, he said, were outnumbered by scions of
the aristocracy. The bias was against the people, and
they must support their members. Not the aristocracy,
but the masses, paid the greatest proportion of the taxes,
and vet they were scorned and treated with derision, as
was Mr. M`Gregor. He denounced the insulting conduct
of the Prime Minister as that which the people would not
allow. The members for Liverpool, he urged, especially,
now wavering, must be confirmed and convinced of this.
The people of Liverpool had been powerful to stop the
income-tax increase ; they would also now procure a re-
trenchment. Partizanship he deprecated. It mattered
not whether it were Sir R. Peel (as was not unlikely), or
whether it were the dogmatic Minister who now ruled.
Agitation, though considered by some useless in the pre-
sent constitution of the Commons, must be carried on.
The adjustment of taxation upon capital and labour was
better than the French system of Communism ; and these
reforms must be yielded. They were necessary to the ex-
panding population.
_ _

- Mr. JOhit TAYLOR expressed his concurrence in the
motion ; and he appealed to all present if it would not
have been for the benefit of the merchants of Liverpool
had the Mersey been blocked up during the last two
years—(a laugh.) He had seen many bad times, but he
remembered none like the present. He hoped the recent
convulsions on the Continent would turn out advan-
tageously in the end ;. but the people of England must
never forget that if they expected to realise any benefit
from the Government of the day, they must fearlessly and
unitedly assert that the time for imposing heavy taxation
had passed.
Mr. C. ROBERTSON said, it was to be regretted that
when the labouring classes were so deeply suffering, they
should have such an objectionable Administration. He
thought it was a Government without principle ; which
would move only on compulsion. It had converted a sur-
plus into a deficit revenue ; and so far from remedying an
unjust burden which weighed upon our interest, by re-
moving its inequality, its plan was to equalize it by plac-
ing an unjust burden upon another class. Such was its
proposition to increase the income-tax ; and rightly had
the attempt been met in Liverpool overthrew it. If there
was a deficit, the Executive was to blame. They would
not submit to injustice. The Government, he said, was
the friend of the democrat, and aided his case. He de-
nounced the vile system of unmerited place, uncalled for
pensions, purient commissions, and other glaring abuses
of the state—the hangers-on of the court—of whom he
thought the Queen would be happy to be rid. The buck-
hounds would be better attended to by some respect-
able groom than by an aristocratic lord. It was a menial,
contemptible office. The war establishment absorbed the
life-blood of commerce, it regarded men as brute beasts,
whose tendency was to destroy and to blood, and was op-
posed to revelation ; and he for one would rather take
the risk of invasion than pay the present enormous pre-
miums. It was frightful to see so many millions of
money dancing mysteriously before a man's eyes. The
number of admirals, he thought, ought to be sufficient
for the two hemispheres, and a few odd planets; the
generals, he thought, were more general than special ;
and the non-effectives were decidedly non-effectives.
Government ought rather to pension retired shareholders,
who had facilitated the transit of the country, than retired
incapables. There was the diplomatic staff—gentlemen
paid to draw the country into disputes which incurred a
a little dock-yard bill—John Bull paying the piper. Then
there were attache's, who danced and feasted for the
advantage of Britain at foreign Courts. Justices and the
repression of crime, miscellaneous estimates, &c., were
all of the same description. How long was this state of
things to be continued ? So long as the people—the
heads, hands, heart of this country, would fight for party
matters, and allow these monstrous grievances to exist;
—so long as they failed to send men of business to Par-
liament—men neither to be bribed nor to be sneered
down ;—and until the whole people ranged themselves
under the banner of justice. The question was not a
mere question of £s. d. It was a question of the rights
of Government and governed—a question of a Govern-
ment which undermined the source of its own power.
He concluded by moving the second resolution.

Mr. A. H. WYLIE rose amidst applause, and proceeded
to show, that though parliament was now sitting, no plan
of finance had been brought forward ; and he rejoiced in
the movement now making. He referred to the rebuff
Liverpool had administered to the Government on the
question of the budget, and denounced the Bank Act.
The evidence against it was most conclusive. The expen-
diture of the country was unjustifiable ; and, in proof, he
entered into a statement of the various items of the esti-
mates. He denounced the squadron on the coast of Africa
as useless, though maintained at an enormous cost. He
depicted the increased sufferings to the slaves which it
caused. He did not wish to curtail the comfort and dig-
nity of a Sovereign so beloved as ours. He was sure she
did not lend herself to the waste they saw. Far other-
wise. He thought it was derogatory to a nobleman to
superintend the buckhounds. The appointments of the
Ministry he also denounced. lie did not see the analogy
between the buckhounds and the Board of Trade, which
fitted one man for both. Ministers evidently thought the
people cared not for these matters. He referred to the
spectacle of Lord J. Russell sitting in the house, whilst
his brother, as Sergeant-at-Arms, sat at the door, though
he did so receiving " a large emolument." He referred
to the small expense of the United States Government,

and exhibited the various items, contrasting them with
the miscellaneous votes in England for palm-houses, re-
pairs of palaces, residences for ambassadors, &c. We
paid for our consuls in China more money than the whole
vote for American diplomacy. He referred to its external
expenditure, and contrasted the small expenditure per
head in Ohio with the large expenditure here in England.
He showed from the progress of Ohio what the energies
of untrammelled men would achieve, and contrasted that
also with the slow advance of our colonies. He judged
from the articles in The Times. generally well informed,
that some large scheme was about to be propounded, and
expressed his gratification. _ _

Mr. LAWRENCE HEYWORTH denounced indirect tax-
ation, and showed the many evils to the labouring and
industrial classes, of which that system was the parent
source.

Mr. R. V. YATES thought it most iniquitous that the
people of this country should contribute £70,000 towards
the payment of the London police, and £36.000 towards
the payment of the Dublin police, whilst Liverpool and
other towns supported their own.
Mr. JEFFREY explained, at great length, his project for
wiping off the national debt. He asked how they could
expect the financial condition of the country to be other-
wise than unprosperous, when they had such a man as Sir
Charles Wood as Chancellor of the Exchequer ? Had a
Liverpool merchant, acquainted with business, and the
details of money transactions, been placed at the helm of
monetary affairs, then indeed the country would place
confidence in him, and good management might be ex-
pected._ _ _ _

Mr. FRANCIS BOULT showed the evils of indirect tax-
ation, and congratulated his native town upon having been
the first in the country to demand a revision of the pre-
sent unjust mode of taxation, and a retrenchment in the
national expenditure.
Mr. FARRELL adverted to the enormous expenses of
the Custom's and excise departments, and detailed to the
meeting the origin of Probate and Legacy duties.
Mr. Councillor ROGERS briefly seconded the resolution.