Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1817-06-06

MS Ndrt OF tuc tNpdSfiutht bV'"SS' US
but he thought we had right 10 know
from him, when he had performed the
conditions imposed upon us by the ire,i-
tv, IN spirit and in letter, why he had
wholly omitted TO perform his conditions.
So biggoted were the government ot this
country TO the cause of Ferdinand, that
he (Alr. u } ilad seen Il memorial present
eel Ia our government by three respecla-
bic merchants, WHO having come over TO
nSland from Bucuus Ayres on CONNER
Ciai business, and having completed their
arrangements, were on the point u! re-
turning. when they were st"nped by an
order signed by one of the under Score
tarles oi State, refusing them ave to pro-
cced on their voyage until they had also
obtained the permission of the Spanish
Ambassador ! This was one of the fruits
Of that blessed measure, the alien act, aud
afforded proof of the soundneSs of the
argument urged 10y the opponents of that
measure, that II might be used as a poll
teal engine, and IN particular eases, to
crafty the wishes of foreign Sovereigus,
fhear, hear, hear Last of all, in order
TO shew our attachment To the cause.
even beyond the letter and spirit of the
treaty, which bound It's To il, and our de-
termination, by every means possible, to
ty and independence in the Spanish CO.
lonies, a representation had LAT " been
made III The American Congress, that the
British Minister al Washng ion had inter
tered 20 endeavor 10 prevent shipments
being made TO those colonies by Ameri
can citizens hear, hear II lie would ask
the House, If tho were prepared 10 pat
roniZe 50 in onsistent, so unsouuh, so op-
prcSsiNe policy as that which, after hav-
ing kept British commerce out OF all the
markets of Europe, would refuse to allow
ii 4 market III another quarter of the world
because thereby the despotic tyrant of
Spain would be gratitied, hear, hear,
hear He had already said, that our
trade at home was depressed by excessive
taxation. The House, he was persuad-
ed, would give him credit for entertaining
no disposition 10 argue this question on
the ground OF popular ciamor merely
Tie only wished 10 show that the unparai-
leied amount of our domestic taxation.
necessarily kept our commerce in state
of thraldom, which the CONNER of no
country ever before endured In addi-
ton to the fallacy of supposing that il
:Gattered not what impost might be laid
Oh oar goods sent to foreign markets.
since its only effect would be 10 raise the
price of foreign goods brought to those
markcts, was the fallacy ofsupposing that
because the money raised by taxes In the
country, was spent iii the country, the
evil OF taxation was not so great DIS ii was
generally believed to be. 1t was said.
that If we raise forty four millions to nav
the stakeholder, the stakeholder expend-
ed these forty-iOur millions among us.
But, first of all, let the House recollect
thai these taxes were taken from one quar-
ter to which they did not generally re-
turn. For instance, when tax OF TWEEN
ty-seven sbillingS cwt. was raised Oh SUI
gar, that did not return 10 the consumer
of sugar, by whom il was paid-i vent
principally TO those who in no vay con
iributed to the benefit of the community.
The hundr DIS of millions of which our
debt consisted, were lost forever 10 the
country. They formed a capital taken
out Of the hands Of those who employed
1t protitabiy, and put into the hands of
those who employed IT unprofitably. He
would state TO the House few facts IL
Illustrative of the evils resulting even to
the revenue from our excessive taxation {;
and he thought the right honorable gen
tleman opposite would find from them
that we had gone far to kill The goose that
had been laying golden eggs, and that
there was great truth in the assertion of
Swift, " that III the arithmetic of the Gus
tOnl-house two and two did not always
make four" lie would begin with the
sugar duties. The dates ON sugar had
been raised from Ids. to 27s. and if the
price should be 40s. to 3Os. cwt. it
would be found OH examination, that in
three wears, from 1903 TO 1896. duties on
sugar, amounting TO 80 per cent. on the
former duties, had bcen imposed. The
fl,,t Il
duty, was 2,778, COOL. In 1906, instead of
being augmented, the produce fell to lit
tie more than $500, O00l. Then with res
pect to glass. In ten years the duties on
glass had been nearly doubled the pro-
duce however, remained nearly the same
Ii was evident, therefore, that there had
been d dImInutlon OF a half i'll cOnsump-
ton, and an attendant diminution of ev-
cry thing connected with the trade, and
Of all the other taxes which would have
grown out of larger consumption. The
House had recently had a history Of the
wine trade laid before them: Since 1892
the wine duties had been trcbled. 1t APP
peared, however, that even IN the last year
the produce of those duties in the port
of London alone, had fallen OFF, by
338, O0Ol. as compared with the two pre-
ceeding years. Here. therefore, there
was great ammunition OF general trade,
great abrldgment of the comforts Of the
people, and after all the revenue suffered
by direct as well as by all indirect di-
intuition. When MIR. Pitt, by wise and
polite measure i'll the year 1884, diminish
ed the duties on tea from So TO - per
cent. the consumption was thereby so
much increased, and smuggling so much
pat down, that Notwithstanding the dimi-
mutton in the rate of the duty, the reve-
pue resulting from if, rose considerably.
Whom I'M l7S1 the dmlY ON wine and srir-