The Statesman.
London, England, 1822-04-04 00:00:00

sigma the' MAO nrsieldlle Mee. "imillt4 le • wield be
found that thesteeeMet ea. bat 11/6114 circulation was elm* Milt was sees* •
at
.athinhtitietlhfri.jes"tilletPrial"wasailikratall*sielabl:pbew:Biblisi. aid'
Gentleman opposite <1&. PesVilts sftpsedi of the
currency was et ilk Blight. He formed this *pinkie
open the sties edgers fa 1518. aid he had alert MR
that the pries agohl, sit inseam of the d WI • "
Ihkillirahslicha fMillr.ilisstaodserrfronsit warehbilmt.to tons estimate.
le 1618 the debt due by' the public to the Basic wai• et
Its greAest amount. is 1518 the flank **entities was
at its height, and also the Owsntry-banks' paper was itr: -
iti greatest-abundant* both le Seetland and &stand.
This was a proof that is that year the currency wasitita
npecroeessf tltryatiogooMbsvermas •aulotata
*tiptop:
trb:taparntrde,arlret
arrwai
greatest depreciation, patties gold eat of ibe snesticui.
Ac a
only
we. fluctuating from eleven sinless to sem, the ram-
tiotid_n the price of gold was not greater than 5 per
cenV" He differed therefore frost his Het. Friend W-
bind him. the Member for Portarlingtoe (Mr. Ricardo.)
in the views he entertained on that subject. At the time
in which the change in the currency he alluded to was
made, his opinions were treated with very little cere-
mony. He had predicted what would follow from the
measure of the Right Hon. Member for Oxford (Mr.
Peel.) He hid foretold that the pries of provisions
would fall, but that the wages of liboar would not fall
with them. This being the case; bow were the creditors
no the land to be paid when there was then a tax of 40
per cent, on it ? He agreed in the opinion of Ministers
so far as that the remission of taxes to the full amount
of the Sinking Fund would not give effectual relief. He
knew of no relief but the repeal of the Bill of the right
Hon. Gentleman opposite (Mr. Peel,)and that be 'never
could agree to; or reducing the scale of the taxes to a
level with the proportionate increased valise .f 'motley
consequent on the measures of 1:415. He wo' perhaps,
stagular ih his opinions, but he tad predicted thtt t?•..i
depreciation in the value of property would he ones
third, which be believed was exactly what it had come
to. He agreed with his Honourable Friend behind him
(Mr: Ricardo) that the evil hail been aggravated by a
forced importation of gold. 'flit 'lon. Member then
proceeded to point out the muss to be pursued by the
House in making up fur the omissions of the Committee.
It was true, that if that Committee had looked into the
causes of the present distresses, they weighd have sag-
geared considerations, even if any Governmest would
have entered into them, which the Bowie could not bare
examined in the space of one Session. The only cause,
therefore, which-veinsined for the House to pursue, in
what was left of the Session, was to reduce titedaxes as
low as they could without interfering with the public
auditor, and to exercise economy in every branch of the
medic expenditure. In Ittls, the income of the landed'
interest was estimated at thirty-one millions; but now
that the landed interest was reduced olio-third, and als
lowing about six millions of incombrance. there was not
MON than eighteen or nineteen million left, no the._
,whole income of the landed kit , whilst the public -
creditor received double that amount. Any one. who
leaked at the history of the country, might form a Judi:-
moot as to how it would be able to bear the threatening •
increase of the price of corn, projected by the Agricul-
tdral Committee. He assured the Horne, that he felt.
most deeply the distressed sitoatiou of the agrirultorists'
and any plan of relief that should not go to pladi is
burden on the shoulders of any other elms, be world
most cordiolly support. Beyond that, however, he cool,/ •
not go.
A 31essage from the Lords here nanounced their Lord-
ships concnrrence in certain Bills. for which see the
Lords' Report; and requested the House would (tumid'
then with a copy of the Report- of the•Conemittee which
had sat upon certain Petitions, complaining of agricul-
tural ilistres.
Their Lordships' Messengers having retired,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER moved.
that the House comply with their Lordships request;
which having been agreed to, the sftssengers were again
called in, and informed that a copy of the Report in
question would be transmitted to their Lordships.
Mr. F. LEWIS then rose to address tile Hoitsa on
the subject of the Petitibil under consideration. lie
began by observing, that the present Was not the titre
for entering into discussion upon the grive matters atitl
verted to by the Honourable Member for Coventry
(Mr. Ellice:) Bat as that Honourable Gentleman bah
so strongly animadverted upon the muscled of the Comat
mitten, of which he had the honour to be a meaiber, lie
felt himself called upon to say that lie was- cenvinceil•
that neither the House nor the Gormley, when• theite•
port came before them, would be found to agree in th-.
strong censure of that lionoureblefientlitlan.—(Hear)
He principally blamed the Committee because they
not gone into an investigation of the causes which hail
coutributed to produce the present distresses. Amongst
diem he enumerated the changes in the currency effect- •
ell by the measure of 1519. The consideration cf this
had been proposed, but the Committee absolutely refused
to adopt it. and for good reasons. They had heard that
question discussed over and over again in. that House, •
ie. order to estimate the amount of distress consequent
upon it ; but no one had ever been found to recommend
that that measure should be disturbed, and in this crest
the Honourable Gentleman (Mr. Ellice) .coincided. If •
therefrre no practical result was to be obtained from.
investigating this branch of din subject, filly rip op
that which was sore to be productive of se much alter-- •
cation, and to involve to great a wasterif time ?—(ll..ar,
hear.) As to the other notions of the Honourable Hen-
dewlap, he ,n '-t say that it would have been an instil- •
don of power altogether unwarrantable is the Coin- ;
mitre, to have attempted to seek out the mode of remit.
ting taxes—a duty beloiming to the House, and whirls
I was so large, that even with the mutant attomlort it
I paid to it, it was scarcely able adeiptately to fulfil. It •
was not a duty imposed upon the evni...ttee t and evep,.
had they attempted it, they most have failed.--.(Hear. •
hear.) 'This Committee was but the sequel of that of
last Sessi r . That Committee had pouted out the ,
canoes, the nature and the probable remedies ;or the dis-
tresses of the times ; acid agreeing as the Committee. •
did with the scatiments and views of that Committee. .
they thought it quite unnecessary to travel over the
whole of the ground niter them. They were not there-
fore entitled to the censuroof the Honourable ~iliember
for Coventry. 11, would say no snore at peanut on the
subject, as an early opportunity would arrive ior rein.;
farther into the qt 11471011; bat he bad thought hluise f ' e
called upon to disclaim on his own pad, and ou behalf
of the Committee, that it was any part of their dutir,l
to examine the matters alluded. to. by the Ronoorable
Ilentleinan, of that it had beam *hit ohjeet.trersise the
price of corn' in the recommendations they hail glove.
fur the regulation of the importations of toreign core.
It was trite that some In the Coninii•teettiia fauta nun ea
with, what they had done on that head. They t.., not,.

(Vor continweion itf I (bate see lust pate.)