the lucubrations in question might have passed quietly to oblivion. But, the authors of this work are men of distinguished talent; and, though belonging to a profession, which in this country, has, in a mass, become tainted with servility, they, at least, assume the garb of independence, and play the assumed character so well, that, to persons unacquainted with the real facts, they must appear to be perfectly free from all undue influence. In the Review for October last, at page 541, the Reviewers take the title of a pamphlet on Finance by Mr. Walter Boyd, tell us the number of pages it contains, and the person by whom it is published; and, then they enter upon an article of their own, which they bring to a conclusion, at the end of ten large and well-packed pages, without ever, from first to last, saying one word of, or quoting one word from, the pamphlet of Mr. Boyd. They appear to have regarded Mr. Boyd's production as wholly unworthy of any examination on their part. They, in action, say to their readers: "Never mind Mr. Boyd. Listen to us. We will give you something worth the trouble of reading." Authors, who treat other authors in this supercilious way, should be very sure, that their own matter is of a very superior quality. They ought not especially upon the same subject, to expose themselves to the charge of a want of sufficient knowledge. And yet I will venture to say, that the public has seldom seen, upon this, or upon any subject, an article worse written, or more destitute of clearness and correct notions than that, to which I am now doing myself the honour to solicit your attention. The Reviewers, after a long and greatly confused train of observations on the expenses of the late wars, the burdens which those wars have left behind them, the distress which those burdens have created, and the happiness which would have abounded, if such burdens had not been imposed, proceed to what they propose now to be done in order to better our condition." This is the part of their article which alone is worthy of particular attention. They propose that the war taxes shall cease; that the other taxes shall continue; and that seven millions a year shall be taken from the Sinking Fund for the purpose of carrying on the Government. We will now read over the passages which contain the reasons, upon which this proposition is founded. 66 "The best ground for claiming it, a ground quite sufficient and wholly irresistible, is the fact which no man can deny, that the people are sorely "oppressed with their heavy burthens. Every straw, therefore, that can by possibility be taken off their load, must forthwith be taken off. Let us cast our eye for a moment over the state of the account which the prospect of peace แ seems to present. There were levied during the year 1814, the last for which 66 accounts have been laid before Parliament, taxes to the enormous amount of "76,893,9137.; the net produce of which was 68,781,2387. Of this sum 24,562,0731. are war taxes; which were originally imposed, upon the ground that the "exigencies of the war required them; and paid, upon the faith that with those exigencies they should cease. There remains of net permanent revenue "44,219,1607. The expenses of the national debt for the same year amounted to $43,033,2377.; but taking into the account outstanding demands and the loans “and unfunded debt of the present year, before the war can be wound up, an "additon of a million and upwards must be made to this annual charge; so that "the whole permanent revenue will do no more than pay the interest and other "expenses of the debt. It may be said, then, that the continuance of the war taxes becomes a matter of necessity, and that they will do little more than pay "the peace establishment;-and perhaps not even that, according to the magnificent ideas which some people entertain of what is fitting for so great "and so rich a country. But this inference must not be submitted to without "examination. Of the 44 millions and a quarter, which is the estimated expense 46 "of the debt, a large portion viz. about 15 millions, belongs to the sinking fund. "Let us, however, take it at 12, after making the deduction for the operations "which have lately been practised upon it. Can any man devise a reason against "taking seven millions of this sum in aid of the public necessities?—This would "leave a sinking fund of five millions, which would, gradually, perhaps as quickly "as is either advantageous or safe, in time of peace pay off the debt.' 66 "The breach of faith with the public creditor will hardly be urged against this necessary measure, after the ease with which the inroads of 1813 was suffered "to be made upon the sacred fund; and besides, it must be recollected, that the "question is one of necessity, and only presents a choice of evils; the faith of "Parliament being pledged to the people, that the war taxes shall cease with the "war, in fully as solemn a manner as it ever was to the loan contractors, that "the sinking fund should remain untouched till the debt should be extinguished. "Can any man pretend, that the people of England would have submitted to the "Income Tax, if they had not been told that it was for a season-and that beyond the moment of urgent necessity, no attempt would be made to enforce it? "Surely, if there be a preference, in such a dilemma, they should be spared whose "claim rest upon what they have so long endured, rather than they who have "all the while been driving a trade with Government; and that, like other "trades, attended with some risk, but ending in great profit.-The persons who "have contracted for loans, and they who have subsequently, by purchases, come "into their places, deserve every degree of respectful consideration; they have "rendered inestimable services to the country in the course of its struggles; and "to them the country must again look, should fresh struggles become unavoid"able. But if so large a fund as five millions be left to accumulate, without any new loans, it seems only asking them to bear their share of the general difficul"ties, if the rest of the fund is employed in the relief of the community at large. "Besides, it must be remembered, that sooner or later, some modification of the "fund will be absolutely necessary upon other grounds. Were it allowed to "accumulate until nearly the whole debt stood in the name of the Commissioners, "35 or 40 millions a year must be suddenly thrown loose, in a manner extremely "detrimental to the national capital-for this change must, of necessity, take "place at a time when wealth will have greatly increased, and the channels of employment been much narrowed-so as to render the difficulty almost "insuperable, of finding means to invest such annual sums as we are supposing "to be instantaneously set free. It seems a much wiser thing to diminish the 66 powers of the funds, at a moment when the revenue is so urgently wanted, "and when no other means of obtaining it, compatible with the public safety, "can be devised. * * * The fund to which we have been referring as "the only one that, properly speaking, remains within our reach, is seven millions a year. To something like this, then, the expenses of the country should be "reduced. ** This is the language of necessity, and ought to be "spoken from one end of the country to the other, as often as any attempt is "made to plunge again into extravagant courses. In the mean time, much may "be done towards reducing the expense of the civil establishment; and if that "and the military together should exceed the seven millions which we have to "spend, recourse must be had to the least exceptionable of the war-taxes-that "is, to a small part of the excise and customs. As for the Income-Tax, it is on every principle so oppressive, so contrary to the principles of the constitution, so destructive of, individual security and comfort, that we cannot suppose a "free people will endure it one instant after the termination of the crisis which "alone justified it." Do you not wonder, Sir (I do), that the Edinburgh Reviewers were not ashamed to publish this last sentence? That they were not, after all that we have seen during the last 20 years, ashamed to talk about the people's not enduring the Income-Tax? About the free people's not enduring "the Income-Tax, because it is contrary to the principles of the consti"tution?" However, I will say nothing further upon this subject here, though I certainly shall in another place. I will here confine myself as closely as I can to the subject of finance. As to the measures now to be adopted, the substance of what the Reviewers say is as follows: That the people ought to be immediately eased of as much of their burdens as possible; that the war-taxes ought to cease; that there ought to be a very low peace establishment; that the Fundholders ought to be paid the full amount of their interest; and that seven millions ought to be taken from the Sinking Fund to support the peace establishment. The account, they say, stands thus: The net produce of the whole of the taxes, in 1814, was.. Amount of the net permanent revenue .£68,781,233 24,562,073 The expenses of the National Debt for the same year, including the additional interest on loans made during this year, and also including 44,219,160 the annual expense of the Sinking Fund (as nearly as possible.).... 44,219,160 The sum annually collected in taxes to support the Sinking Fund.. 12,000,000 7,000,000 The sum to be collected in future to support the Sinking Fund...... 5,000,000 Nothing can be plainer! How neatly the account is made out for you! Who said that you had any embarrassments to struggle with? A single ray from these Northern Lights opens your eyes in a moment. Goldsmith tells a story of an impudent pretender to skill in pictures, who, in criticising the works of the most celebrated masters, would sometimes go so far as to take a brush out of his pocket and affect to improve the tints. And, really, when you look at the above, why should you suppose this to have been an imaginary character ? These Reviewers seem in good earnest, to imagine, that the Sinking Fund is a parcel of real money; but, of that more by-and-by. Let us first remark on their notion of the taxes. The war taxes, they say, may cease, and then they have left 44 millions of permanent taxes; or, as they term it,"permanent revenue." Now, though the jargon of the Treasury is certainly well enough calculated to mislead and confuse people in general, we might have expected, that these sharp sighted gentlemen, these scrupulous meters of sentences and weighers of words, would not have been, by mere sounds, led into conclusions so grossly erroneous. By permanent taxes is meant, taxes imposed by laws, which have no limit as to their duration; by war-taxes, such as are imposed by laws, which end with, or soon after the war. But into whose imagination did it ever before enter, that, because the law is permanent, the sum yielded by the tax must also be permanent? Yet, that this is the notion of the Reviewers is clear, else all that they have said, all their calculations, their account, and all their subsequent reasoning, are not worth a straw. It is quite clear, that they look upon it as certain, that the permament revenue will, as a matter of course, continue to produce 44 millions. This is the. very basis of their proposition; and yet I will bet their worships (and so will you, I am sure) the worth of all their wigs and gowns, that if wheat continue to sell, till next harvest, at the present price, these taxes, permanent as they are, will not, during 1816, produce 30 millions. The " permanent revenue," as it is called, consists of Customs, Excise, Assessed Taxes, Stamps, Post-office Taxes, and a few others of insignificant Is it not clear to every one, except to the Edinburgh Reviewers, that the produce of these taxes must depend upon the quantity of money in circulation; or, in other words, upon the different degrees of prices amount. current in the country? Does any man suppose, that, when wheat sells for 6s. a bushel, the farmer will have as much money to lay out on taxed articles (the taxes continuing the same), as when wheat sells for 12s. a bushel? I have in my sixth Letter, explained this matter so clearly, that I will not dwell longer upon it at present. Here, then, is an end of all this fine remedy at a single blow; for the 44 millions not being produced (if that should be the case), you have not the means, which these gentlemen have had the generosity to provide for you. They have pared you down to seven millions, instead of the 19 that you calculated on, for the Civil List, Army, Navy, and other expenses of Government; but, whence are even these 7 millions to come, if the permanent taxes do not yield more than 30 millions? If, however, the 44 millions be not quite enough, they say, that they would permit a trifling part of the Customs and Excise war-taxes to remain. Generous indeed! They do not perceive, then, that the Customs or Excise can, by any possibility, yield less than they did in 1814. Prices and Paper-Currency are things of too little consequence to attract the attention of their enlarged and profound minds. They observe, further on, that "the fund of 7 millions is the only one, which, properly speaking, remains within our reach." Properly speaking, this is no fund at all. Properly speaking it is 7 millions which were, last year, raised in taxes to pay part of the sums turned over to the commissioners who purchase stock for the Government. Properly speaking, this 7 millions may not be gotten, next year, from the same source, or from any new source; and, therefore, "properly speaking," it is most wretchedly absurd to represent it as a fund at all, more especially as a fund always within our reach. If I proceed further in pointing out the errors of these writers, it is not to insult you by seeming to suppose, that you do not clearly perceive them, but to show to persons not so well informed upon such subjects, that these are guides, who, with all their pretensions to superior light, are, as to matters of political economy, at any rate, not to be im plicitly relied on. In adverting to the pecuniary distresses of the agriculture of the country, they observe, without the smallest hesitation, or qualification, that, were it not for the expense of the late wars, and the consequent burdens they have left behind them, "the overgrowth of corn would not have afforded the smallest cause of uneasiness. At present, the landowner and the farmer are distressed, because grain "is cheap while every thing else is dear. The price of every thing "which the landed interest buy, is made up in more than one-half of "taxes. Were those removed, they never could feel the injury arising "from cheap corn; for, in a very short time, that would be balanced by "the lowering of all other prices in proportion; in the present unnatural "state of things, prices may lower a little, till they reach the part which "consists of taxes, but there their fall must necessarily be arrested." " In another part of their Number, these Reviewers observe, during their criticism on what they call Irish oratory," that orators, as well as poets, have their licenses; and, it would appear, Sir, that critics have theirs also; or, it will be very difficult to justify the liberties here taken with grammar. Talk of bad writing, indeed! They thus talk in the case of Mr. TwEDDELL; but, can they produce us, from the pen of Mr. Tweddell, or any body else, writing so bad as this? In one part of this same number of their Review, they affect to trace the origin of a new coined and foolish word to "the American dictionary." I wonder in what dictionary they have found the word "lower," as used by them. In the Scotch dictionary, I suppose; for, never did it find its way into either an English dictionary or into English conversation. However, it is not of their writing, bad as it is, that I complain; it is of their erroneous, their vulgar, notions; of their want of knowledge of their subject; or, more properly speaking, of their boldness in treating of a subject, of which they were so much wanting in knowledge. The "overgrowth of corn," they tell us, "would not have afforded the smallest ground of uneasiness." And, has it "afforded" any such ground? Certainly not, except amongst very foolish persons. For, Sir, what is it to me, whether I grow 100 quarters of wheat at 47. a quarter, or 50 quarters at 8l. a quarter? In the one case quantity gives me what price gives me in the other. Into what head did it ever before enter, that a good crop and a fine season were injurious to the farmer? And, if, in any case, they can be injurious to him, why should they be more injurious to him on account of the taxes? Will not 4 quarters of 41. wheat go as far in paying taxes as 2 quarters of 81. wheat? What, then, is the meaning of these profound political economists, on the other side of the Tweed? The next sentence tells us, that "the landowner and farmer are distressed, because grain is cheap, while every thing else is dear." Now, Sir, the wool, the meat, the hops, the flax, the cheese, the butter, and some other articles of produce, far surpass the grain in amount, when sold; and, if all these be dear, the cheapness of grain cannot be so very serious a cause of complaint. But, the truth is, that they are all cheap; or, correctly speaking, they bear an exact proportion, in general, to the price of grain. However, suppose our Critics to mean (for it will not do to tie them down to their words), that every thing is dear, which landowners and farmers have to buy. Is this true? Certainly it is not. Labour is their most expensive article. This has fallen in price more than a third. Horses have fallen in price more than a half. The seed, the horse-feed, the two other great articles, must always keep pace with the price of grain; for, indeed, they consist of grain. What, then, are the things which the landowner and farmer buy at high prices? Tea, sugar, coffee, tobacco, iron, leather, soap, and candles, salt, wine, beer, stamps? And do not all other descriptions of persons buy these at as high prices as the landowner and farmer? Where, then, is the ground of that distinction, which confines the distress to the latter? There is a great blunder, too, in supposing, that the same quantity of these taxed articles will continue to be consumed. Less will be consumed in consequence of the low price of corn, or, the price will be lowered. Thus, in the case of tea, which has an ad valorem duty, less tea will be consumed, or less of the tea of high price. This is the way, in which the payers of taxes will save themselves; and this is the way, in which our Northern Critics will find their " permanent revenue to be diminished. Here, Sir, we would leave them to the enjoyment of their profound reveries, but their notions respecting the Sinking Fund are really too curious to be suffered to escape without more particular observation. After telling us, that the burden of taxation ought to be lightened of about one-third of its weight, and that 7 millions of the Sinking Fund ought to be applied to the expenses of the year, they say, that the Fund |