The Statesman.
London, England, 1821-08-31 00:00:00

Tarr STATES At

LIVEITTAHhE CONSF:QUENCES OF THE
FUNDING SYSTEM.

Noir Ylnat:the existence of great distress, and im-
minent danger to the country, are too apparent to he
denied, there is amongst anise who think little or su-
perficially on the subject, a general expression of sur-
prise that these things should be so, and a difficulty in
accounting for the grounds of such distress and danger
consistently with the app .arances of prosperity still
maintained amongst the higher classes of soriety—
the known wealth of many individuals, and the im-
mense accumulation of riches in the hands of great
capitalists, whose extent of property, and number,
are both greater than ever. Snell persons are n
aware that these things which possesses tine glare, the
splendor, and the appearance of prosperity, arc only
symptoms of thatdisease which afflicts tine country. They
do not reflect su:fieiently to perceive that a county luny it-
self be rich, and yet the community at large be poor, and
the commonwealth be endangered. But besides this, the
surprise of the many, anti the still continued disbelief
of a few, argues a total inattention to the experience
of the past, as well as to the warnings of the future.—
Our readers will be at no loss to remember the time,
when those who, from principles unerring, demon-
strated that the system of government pursued in this
country must, if persisted in, issue in those evils,
which all now begin to feel, were facetiously denomi-
nated croakers by some, and malignantly designated
as disaffected by others.
On the part of those thus unjustly stig:natised, the
publication of unpleasant truth was therefore the more
meritorious, in proportion as the taunting, of in-
credulity anti the rage of party spirit rendered it a duty
disagreeable in all cases, and do/Igo-nes in. s‘nne.—
Yet, in the estimation of the disinterested, the consci-
entious, and the reflecting, these thins were not to
be put in competition with considerations of higher
impost ; with a regard to the real happiness and tran-
quillity of tine country, or with real, unpretentled,
anti genuine loyalty to the Constitution, and to the
King, as an integral part of that Constitution. They
could never forget, and all who presumed to give an
opinion on the subject ought to have known, that th_•
system so long pursued by Ministers outraged every
principle of political justice, every dictate of sound po-
lity, and the, bite unrestrained indulgence in
riotous and licentious courses, and unbounded ex-
pense, in private life, it must sooner or M.or ac-
cumulate difficulties and distresses on the nation.--
Ministers themselves mast have known this, or
they must have been the most ivzorant as well as the
most calpa;le of pretending statesmen. Without refer-
ence to party politics, the celebrated Isis:ori-n, !hone,
(hiosself a tort',) long ago said, frith a knowledge of the
subject and a warning voice which ought not to have been
neglected, " It the abuses of treasures be dangerous,
either by engaging the state in rash enterprises, or
making it neglect military discipline in confidence of its
riches ; the abuses of mortgaging are more certain, and
INEVITABLE ; port...lg, impottive, and so Vectioa to j;,-
reign porrers. According. to modern policy seer is cc.
tended wit:s erery destractiz.e cirrumatibtee ; 'loss? cf
arca, increase of taxes, decay of endmscree, dissipit7,n
et money, decathlon by sea awl his icohtitittes
he) very tempting to a Minister to employ site an ex-
pedient as enables him to make a rt figure tiering
his administration without ever burdening the people
with taxes, or exciting any immediate clamours against
himself. The practice, therefore, of contracting debt,
will almost infallibly he abused in every government. It
would scarcely he mere iiisprodeat to DIVE A pRODIOAL
SoN A CREDIT rx Ernnt li.txtiit's sit:re IN LONDON
THAN TO EMPoWEI: a Sr AT woo ‘N To sinew LILL% IN
Tuts MANNER t; P.'S Posits:rev." .1 nil tine late Arthur
Young, (himself a spectator of what was passing) says
in his travels, "It appears that France, under tine
old goverment pursue:l the ruinous system of
mortgaging its revenues as regularly as any other
country. This syste.a, however, almost unaided
by any other cause, lox nrrterned 1l It gm.era
meet by means of the most extraordinary revolntion
upon record. After this memorable example to other
countries, it remains a subject of infinite curiosity to see
how far the infatuated atol blind spirit of fending will
now be pursued. Every hour after the great event in
France, will snake it metre anti more c(itiers!, and will
INEVITABLY involve in its train nem re,ot,tio.ls, PER-
HAPS OF A COMPI.ViIoN MORE DANGE::OI•S TO ESTA-
BLISHED PAMILIES, THAN ANY WE HAvE PEEN IN FRANCE."
This was written and published in the year 1;92, forming
of itself a most impressive commentary on the writings
of Muse, Smith, and Price, who demonstrated that tine
same system had involved in ruin every state in Europe
which lad been insane enough to adopt it. Thus were
Mr. Pitt, his colleagues, and disciples, forewarned—but
precept anti practice, theory and experience, were alike
presumptuously disregarded, and the consequences are
such as the country is snow doomed to suffer and to de- ,
plore. If the true principles of political economy had I
been more generally understood, the career of ignorance
and profligate expenditure had been sooner stopped ;
even now, the tine want of their knowledge is affording
an unfair advantage to error and knavery ; and we shall
therefore endeavour to demonstrate in a fen, words,
what are the principles anti necessary effects of
THE punue EEBTS AI)N T.l \E$.
When a laene is advanced to Government, in itself
it neither increases nor diminishes the public wealth;
it is a value which passer from the hands a indivi-
duals to the hands of tiovernmeet—a simple transfer;
and, if the transaction ended here. all might be well :
hut. as the principal of the loan, or capital advanced,
is generally consumed in consequence of this transfer,
public loans produce an improductier consumption, a
destruction of capital. If this capital had not been
advanced to Government, it would liars. been lent to
these wino would have made use of it, or they would
hare employed it themselves ; thus the capital would
have been consumed reproductively instead of Unpro-
ductively. It may be said that this capital is not im-
productive, since the party who entranced it receives
interest front the Oorernment to which it was advanced.
'if his is true; but it is also true, that the tiorernment
is obliged to lery taxes in order to jay this interest or
dividend; and, without the produce of these taxes le-
vied on the country, the person advancing the loan
could be repaid nothing. He knows that his capital
is consumed, spent, gone; and, in proof of the fact,
if proof were wanting, he also knows that if taxes
were nut levied to pay him interest or dividend, as k
is called, or if the taxes so levied should fail in theft
produce, Inc must go without kis interest also. Hence
it follows that those who lose, whilsrthe interest con-
tinues to be paid to the Loan Jobber, are the peons,
who are called upon to pay the taxes wisereseith it is
paid. Instead, therefore, of two Incotnes, which there
was originally, namely, that of the money advanced to
Uovernment, and that of private funds, from which
time same amount is paid in taxes, there remains bat
one, that is, the last, which is in fact transferred

from the payer thereof, in taxes. to 114 public creditor,
through lie medium of Government. From this it
will be clearly seen, in the first place, that what Go-
vernment borrows must, for the most part, be entirely
lost to the country—loans substituting a nominal for
real capital; and, secondly, that the interest of the
debt paid to the public creditor, even though that cre-
ditor was uniformly a native and lived in the country,
is of no advantage whatever to the community, be-
cause That interest is first wrung from the pockets of
the Community at large, in order to he paid over to
the public creditor. Nay, instead of a benefit, the
operation caused thereby is positively injurious; in-
asmuch as the public pays the expences of collecting
the taxes, as well as the taxes themselves, whereas
only suck a portiJn as is necesury, is paid over to the
public creditor; and it, is now well known, that the
expense of collecting the revenue at present amounts
to several millions of ,none.,—to wore than the
whole Government of the country cost at the period of
the Revolution!! ! From these dais, which we defy
any one to invalidate, the following important con-
clusion, amongst others, may he drawn, viz.—That
the two thousand millions of money, taken from the
pockets of the people, and expended by the Pitt fac-
tion in wars, and other costly gratifications to that
monstrous system, have been, for the most part lost,
totally lost, to the country. For if this money had
remained in the hands of contributors, it would either
directly Or indirectly, have put in activity an equal
' quantity of industry. It is therefore for this reason,
that a realty good governwnt makes no expenditure
which has not a vsrful result : and it may be consi-
dered as an unerring maxim, that "TUB HcoNosty or
NATIONA Ii EXACTLY TUE BASIS WITII THAT OF INRI-

VIDLALS."

THE OBJECT OF 'I:IIE_ALVITS MIT TO

IitEG.IND.

The King is now engaged in an interesting and it
portant experiment upon the affections of a sensitive
and warm-hearted people, and believing as we sincere-
ly do, that a live:e.-:1 monarchy is the form of govern-
ment which ably and honestly administered, best con-
ilnces to the happiness of the people, we rejoice to see
how snecessfillly the experiment proceeds. The tran-
qnillixation of Ireland, if it can be effected by visiting
his Irish subjects, is indeed an effort worthy the Royal
mind, and the people of that country have entered into
his Majesty's views with a vivacity and warmth that
accord with their natural temperament. Thus far the
business is fortunately begun on both sides—but let
not the world deceive themselves upon this head. The
useful part is besiae.v.e, not p:easnre—not a proces-ion
through the streets of Dublin, nor a series of well-de-
vised entertainments and illuminati:ms. These still
do very well to furnish forth a newspaper description
--*o amuse thereat and little personages engaged in
then, and as they give an impulse to trade, they will
also be so far beneficial. But the grand end must be
compassed by very different steams ; and whatever of
congratulation or of triumph there is in the magnifi-
cent spectacle of a whole people surrendering their pre-
judices to pay the tine homage to the person and the re-
ception of their Sovereign, (and surely there was never
a more affecting demonstration of loyalty) the solid por-
tion of the snperstractiwe remains to be erected, by
measures of benefit to the country. By such only can
the King or the elopiie be permanently advantaged.
Ireland will naturally expect a retur► for the vast dis-
play of grateful feeling she is now engaged in making,
and unless much is done for lif-r,t he ardour of the pre-
sent intercourse between the King and his Irish sub-
jects will be followed I►y a corresponding bitterness.
Ireland, to be advantaged at all, (mint, if we under-
stand its condition) be, as it were, renovated. The
character of its internal policy m•tst he almost entirely
changed. Its proprietors must be allured to a resi-
dence upon thair estates, and to an interest in their
own affairs and their own dependants. The wild sys-
tem of life, now lint too prevalent, must be reduced
to an orderly prosecution of steady plans fur the ame-
lioration of the moral spirit and co"tlition of the lower
classes, by the introduction of regular industry amongst
them. Religions persecution, and that inferior spe-
cies of clan-ship, which frequently leads to such hor-
rible crimes, must be softer.ed don n. Information,
useful information must be diffused, habits of fruga-
lity inculcated, and general order recommended by
example. These are the benntits which Ireland has a
right to expect from an enlightened liovernment ; and
unless the Royal visit be followed up by such political
measures as may tend to the establishment of these
principles, as well as by uthers, which the admitted
nefarious and corrupt state of the administration of
her affairs imperatively demands, these thews of attach-
ment to his Majesty's person will be as momentary as
they are vivid and full of delight to the Monarch.—
Every man who knows any thing of the temperament
of the Irish would have anticipated exactly such a re-
ception of their King as their King has experienced.
But the grand question remains, will his Majesty's pre-
sent servants be prepared to follow up the personal
triumph of the Sovereign over the affections of his peo-
ple of Ireland by wise and salutary provision?

PRINCE ESTERHAZI AND SUITE.
Early on Sunday morning last (the 25th inst.), his
Excellency Prince Paul Esterhazy, Micister Extra-
ordinary from the Emperor of Austria to compliment
his Majesty on his Coronation, accompanied by the
Prince Nicholas Esterhazy, Count Metternich (son to
the Prime Minister of Austria), the Baron Fiord, and
a medical Gentleman, arrived at the Tontine Hotel, his
Excellency and snite having crossed the Irish Chan-
nel from Donaghadee to Port Patrick in a steam-boat.
At ten o'clock in the morning the Prince was waited
upon by the Lord Provost and Mr. Cleland, when bib
Excellency expressed a desire to visit the manufac-
tories, and some of the public institutions. Open car-
riages were then ordered, and the distinguished
strangers visited and examined the principal manu-
factories, &c. till four o'clock, when the Magistrates
and the Professors of the University had the honour
of being introduced to his Excellency. in the Town-
hall, where an elegant collation was laid out. The
Lord Provost and Mr. Cleland, who accompanied the
Prince and his suite to the several manufactories, bad
the honour of dining with them in the evening.
His Excellency (who wore the rich orders of the
Golden Fleece and the Oulph) was cheered by great
crowds of people wherever he went. After assisting
at Mass yesterday (Sudsy, 26th inst.) in the embolic