The Statesman.
London, England, 1823-03-04 00:00:00

pie sod 64th years of the reign of hie said Majesty, for the
gotemption of the Land Tax, shall be charged upon the
poi Consolidated Fund.
That it is the opinion of this Committee, that Ris ex-
rellentthat the several Acts for the Reduction of the Na-
oast Debt should he altered and ascended." •
The first Resolution having been read by the Chairman.
Mr. LEYCESTER was of opinion, that instead of in-
volving themselves in useless and speculative calculi'•
one the house would do its duty more faithfully to the
people if it were engaged in sympathizing with their '
satkings. He condemned the maintenance of a Sink-
ing Fund, in the present circumstances of the country.
to its origin,the Sinking Fund was an excellent plan,
but at the present crisis of the affairs of the country, it
deserves no better name than a financial folly. It was
unreasonable—it was useless, and created only a neces-
sity for continuing freash burdens on the people. He
could understand that the threatening attitude of France
st this moment was a reason fur continuing the Sinking
Pond. Bet he warned the house against imposing L
lasting evil on the country to seize a temporary advan-
tage. If it was necessary that the country should exhi-
bit itself in a tituation capable of resisting aggressions,
he should recommend that strong, unfailing resource—
tbe sinew of war—the properly tax.
Mr. ROBERTSON adverted to the different cirenm-
stances molar which the Government was compelled to
borrow fluting the late protracted ear from those under
which she borrowed seventy years ago. The mode in
which thietlovernment now proceeded in their financial
cperatione war rstetel hint in saying. however singular
tee amortion might appear, that the more the country
paid, the more it had' to pay. To solve this It was only
in to state that for every small sum the Govern-
ment borrowed, they promised to pay a much larger one.
He stated, on a former occasion, that seventy years ago
the Go/cement borrowed money at a much more be tie-
facial rate than at present. Fur every 100/. actually paid
lute the Exchequer, they paid 3/. interest. At present
they borrowed at 5 per cent. promising to pay for every
1001. actually paid in:o the Exchequer 1661. Daring
eVery saceeisire period of 7 pars, the teriuson which we
burrowed became more and wore infra:ow aisle to us. I o
ISI3 um.herrnated twenty-seven millions, and promised
to pay 45 millions. In .1814 we borrowed 24 millions,
peel ptone'weed to pay 32 tailbone. In 1815 we borrowed
mill:one, an i promised to pay sixty-six
mfl-
.The last into was funded at M. and a ho
us
was given to the contractor of 2/. 13s. 6a1., reducing the
stud paid into the Exrheqtter to 511. 6s. 6d., for which
we engaged to pay 1001. Sib that, it would he seen,
we leave borrowed at a rate of 6 per cent. Allusions
hod been matte to the Sinking Funds of other countries
as a proof of the excellence of tne system, but lie thought
without sufficient reason. Allus'on bad he. n made to
America, but it should he recollected, that though Ame-
rica, in 1813, borrowed 18 millions and a half at 6 per
cent., not being able any longer to get money on such
good terms, consented to give 1001. for 901., with the
same interest; and afterwards, when the President
named money, opt wishing to continue terms so disad-
rantageons to the public, issued Exchequer Bills, and
with the assistance of these, terminated the war. As to
. Fleece, and that was her sore side, she was obliged to
borrow from this country when she wanted, and pay 15
or 20 per cent. Russia had a debt of 48 millions, fur 26
el whit It she paid no interest, till the Netherlands awl
we, with our Usual generosity, consented to pay half of
it, anal yet these were the countries instanced to us of the
creel effect of Sinking Funds. In three years we bad
contracted a debt of 53.000,0001., which was much
greater than the debt of Holland or Iberia, and three
times greater than that of America. This system greatly
, injured the country, by adding to the burdens of the pro-
') ple. Ile preferred the evil of a Sinking Fund, because
it kept down the rate of interest, and thin enabled our
manufacturers, notwithstanding the great burden to
Jrhich they were liable, to surmount competition on the
"Coutinent. Ills great ohject was to remove the absurdity
of borrowing a small sum of money at .a high interest,
and paying a larger stint. Until such a system were
alone away with, the country world go on in a I oars.
which would ultiMately end in her ruin. He had already
mentioned that it was his intention to give notice of a
motion for the removal of this system. and he thought
the present a proper time to state his view of it, that
every Member might come to consider it with his mind
duly informed upon the subject. He, for his part, could
not adhere to a system of error—a system which held
out that the debt was decreasing, ashen in fact it was in-
creasing in the same ratio. To such a system no prin-
ciple of integrity or morality ought to induce them to
adhere—a system which would end in the sebversion of
eocial order, and eventually iu the subversion of the
throne itself. because if once the aristocracy went, the
throne would follow, and he was satisfied such would be
the effect of this system, if continued. It was said that
we could no do this, and at the same time adhere to pub.
lie faith ; but this he denied, because we should wily
consider a hat would have been just at the time the delft
was contracted, and take this sum along with the com-
pound interest front that time as the fixed capital to he
paid off. This would do away with the evil of stock.
jobbing. It was well known how ingeniously the ma-
nes eel num played their parts. it was in vain for the
Chaucelkir of the Exchequer to think of contending with
men who had been always trying to put into practice the
suggestions of their selfish passions.
Mr. Ill: ME said, that before the Resolution was agreed
to, he felt it necessary to offrr a fete observations to the
Committee. He lead beard with muck surprise the state►
ment made by the Right Hon. the Chancellor of the Ex-
cheqner ; that statement was entirely contrary to the do-
cuments which had been laid on the table ; he hoped,
however, that the Chancellor of the Exchequer would
take an early opportunity of laying upon the table the
clarninents from which he made up his accounts, in order
to give members an opportunity of comparing them with
those ale ady on the table. It was impossible to attempt
surthing like argument with respect to the Sinking
Fund, while the public accounts were kept as they were
at present; for be would undertake to prove, if a Coin
tette e were granter!, that there were not only three, but
hoer or live sets of public accounts, each of which was
at variance-with 11. e others. The Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer had stated this amount of the Debt at two pe-
t..ous, Jan. 1816, and 1823. For his part, he was at
a loss to know whether those s'atements were correct, in-
. eunuch as lie knew of no documents for the year 1816,
which, including the Irish Accounts, contained the ne-
eessary items; indeed, up to 1817 no such documents had
been published, except perhaps cne of the Accounts
which lie bad mord for, and which was masked No. 35,
of the Accounts presented in 1819. He assured the Com-
mittee, and be was prepared to prove the fact before a
Committee, that the diminution alluded to was by no
meansse great as it bad been stated to he. " He was pre-
; erect to show that the greater part of the stain said to
have been cancelled' by the operation of the Sinking
Fund since 1793. wont,' base fallen in by the dropping
ctf of yensiois and annuities, even haul vo Sinking Fund
existed. It apps ared that the interest and charge of the
pehlic debt had been at the former period, 27,000,0001. :
added to which, the interest of Exchequer and Irish
Treasury Bills, being upwards of three millions, made- a
total of 30,450.0601.; while at the latter it was
33 8.74.0001. ; here then was an increase of expenditure
amounting to upwards of three millions. This was so es-
ilitoreiinary a difference, that he took an opportunity of
inquiring at the Treasury about it, and in fairnew lie felt
hound to state that the difference arose from a mistake to
the amount of 2,100,0001. made in making np the ac-
counts; but even making allowance for that mistake,
there was still an increase of upwards of 1,000,0001. He
would nut take the y. ar 1816 as a fair comparisou with