Irish members, who made various observations on the subject. The several resolutions of the Chancellor of the Exchequer were then put, and agreed to.

Irish Budget. Mr. Wellesley Pole said, that he rose for the purpose of calling the attention of the committee to the Ways and Means of Ireland, which he would en deavour to do as shortly as possible at that late hour. In the first instance the supply was, 1,794,000l. being the contribution of 1811, there was due of the quota of 1812, 7,611,000l. Irish currency and the interest on the debt of Ireland, up to the 5th of last January, was 4,496,000l. making a total of 13,902,000l. He should propose to meet this, in the first instance, the surplus of the consolidated fund, amounting to 2,775,000l. He next proposed to take the revenue of the current year, which he took at 4,300,0007. The nett revenue of the last year 4,170,000. The repeal of the bounty on retail spirits 40,000l. The regulation of tobacco duties &c. 417,000l. The profit on the lottery he calculated at 150,000. the payment of seamen's wages 150,000. The loan 1,500,000l. and 50,000. by treasury bills; making 2,000,0001.; and a total of 13,982,000l. being an exceeding of 82,000l. It was now necessary for him to state the mode of providing for the interest of the loans and the sinking fund, which amounted to 449,0007. The loan had been raised by 5 per cent treasury bills, and the manner of providing for it was by a tax, which had been rather ludicrously alluded to by an hon. gentlemanhe meant by a tax on spirits, which

he trusted would be found by its produce to cover the loan. He would state to the committee the grounds on which this tax would cover every thing. It would be recollected that a tax had been levied on Irish spirits, amounting to 2s. 6d. a gallon, which, being doubled, now produced 5s. British on the gallon. The consumption of spirits in Ireland, for the year ending on the 5th January, 1812, had been 655,000 gallons; the quantity exported 792,000 gallons. The consumption had been diminished one fifth by the operation of the duty, leaving 461,000 gallons, which at the rate of 5s. 5d. Irish currency, produced 1,248,000%. being 260,000l. more than last year. He was aware that it might be said, that this statement would not hold good, as distillation was stopped in Ireland; but the committee would recollect, that, previous to the levying of the duty, another measure had been taken to prevent the exportation of spirits, by which a considerable stock remained on hand, the duty on which according to the best information he could procure, would amount to 270,000l.; so that there was actually 270,000l. of the 449,000. Taking then the stock in hand at the above sum, he had to state, the hope of increase from the power granted by the act to the Irish government, to open the distilleries on the 1st of November, in the event of a good harvest: and according to the best information, there never was a more abundant promise; so that it was almost certain that the distilleries would be opened at the time contemplated in the act, namely, the 1st of November. Having stated

thus

thus much, he was not inclined to add any more, but was prepared to answer any question put to him. He, however, could not sit down without claiming permission to offer a few observations on what had fallen from the right hon. baronet, and his hon. friend. He denied that because the revenue had not covered all the debts since the Union, that it necessarily followed that disorder and corruption prevailed through the whole system. He would be glad on all these occasions, to come to close quarters with the right hon. baronet, when he had no doubt of being able to refute those vague and general attacks, which he so frequently in dulged in. The taxes which had failed did so from unavoidable causes, which ought to be gone fairly into; but the right hon. baronet every session was prepared with a string of accusations, which he threw out against his right hon. friend (Mr. Foster) during his ab

sence.

Sir John Newport rose to repel the charge in the most direct and positive terms. He had frequently made those observations, which he felt it his duty to make, in the presence of the right hon. gentleman, and would not suffer himself to be vilified.

Mr. Pole said, that he only meant to observe that it had been the constant practice of the right hon, baronet to reiterate those charges which had been already decided on, while he overlooked the improvements which had been made. There was not any branch of the revenue that had not been inquired into, and probed to the quick. It was maligning the officers of the Irish government to

It

say they had not done their duty. The revenue of Ireland had been increased in the last year. In 1811, the customs were collected at 25/. 4s. 4d. and in the present year at 207. 18s. The revenue of the post office was collected at 217. per cent. He was sorry to say they were collected at a greater rate than he wished; but this country paid nearly the same. Some irregularities had taken place with a distiller in Limerick, and four revenue officers there were dismissed from their situations. Some improper transactions took place in the stamp-office, which caused eleven of the persons in situations to be discharged. was the intention of the Irish government to consolidate the stampoffice. There was not the same facility in collecting taxes as in England. They ought not to tax Ireland as this country-she was shooting, and, if not oppressed, would come to maturity, and be able to bear all the burthens in proportion with her sister isle. Any person who proposed that an income tax should be laid on in Ireland, must either not know any thing of that country or be a maniac. He concluded with moving, "That towards raising the supply to be granted to his Majesty, a sum, not exceeding 500,000l. be granted to be raised in the issue of treasury bills."

were then

The Resolutions agreed to, and the report was ordered to be received to-morrow.

Of the taxes proposed by Mr. Vansittart, that principally opposed in parliament was the additional duty on leather, When the motion was made, June 26th, for bringing up the report of the

excise duty, Mr. Brougham rose to state his objections not to the amount, but to the nature, of this tax. He showed by calculation in what degree it would press upon husbandry, and upon the lower classes in society, who, by their greater consumption of leather for shoes than persons in the superior ranks, would have to bear the chief burden of this impost.

Lord Althorpe spoke to the same purpose, and moved, as an amendment, "that the bill be taken into consideration on this day six months."

Sir Thomas Turton said that he had been instructed by the tanners in the Borough to show how severely this tax would affect them. They had now a stock of 18 months upon hand, and would be undersold by the Irish tanners, who paid no duty.

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After other members had declared their objections to the tax, the Chancellor of the Exchequer rose to defend it. He said that no increase of duty had taken place on the article in question for 101 years, during which almost every other article of use and luxury had undergone a gradual increase of taxation. He then proceeded to reply to the particular objections which had been advanced, and pointed out mistakes in the calculations on which they were founded. He ended with affirming that he was not one of those who concurred in the soundness of the principle,

that the rich alone should be subjects of taxation as the rich and poor have a common interest in the country, a common system of taxation should, if possible, be applied to both.

On the division for bringing up the report, there appeared Ayes, 66; Noes, 40: majority, 26.

A division took place on the third reading of the bill, in which the leather clause was carried only by the majority of 8, the votes being, for the clause 86; against it 78. The bill then passed the Commons.

When introduced to the House of Lords, the tax on leather encountered an opposition on similar grounds as those maintained in the other house; and was defended on the same principles. Earl Spencer having moved, as an amendment to the bill, the omitting the clause relative to that article, a division took place in which the amendment was rejected by 32 against 12.

The only other debate on the taxes occurred on the order for the third reading of the assessed taxes bill in the House of Commons, June 30th. The clause imposing an additional duty on horses employed in agriculture was opposed by Mr. Westerne, who moved its omission. It was also objected to by other speakers, as injurious to husbandry, and oppressive to the lower class of farmers. On division, it was however carried by 6 votes against 43.

CHAPTER

commercial embarrassments prevailing through so large a part of the kingdom, was that of exciting an extraordinary interest in the approaching expiration (in May 1814) of the India Company's last charter. All the out ports, debarred from a participation in the East India trade, and many of the manufacturing districts which conceived that new sources of demand for their commodities would be opened by a free exportation to the vast countries included in the company's monopoly, concurred in the resolution of urging, on the present occasion, what they regarded as the just claims of all citizens to share in the public advantages; whilst the company itself, and those bodies which were connected with it by a common interest, prepared to take measures against the menaced attack.

This matter was brought into notice in the House of Commons as early as February 6, when upon Mr. Wallace's motion for a select committee to inquire into the present state of the affairs of the East India company, Mr. Creevey objected to it on the grounds of the incompetence of such a committee to furnish the requisite information, and proposed in its stead a committee of the whole house on the subject. In

Gascoyne affirmed that the merchants of Liverpool expected that a great alteration would be made in the arrangement of the carrying trade to and from India, that all out-ports were violently agitated on this point, and would probably make applications either to government or to parliament, and he hoped they would not be precluded by agreements between ministers and the East India company. On the same day a petition was delivered to the house from the merchants and traders of Greenock, praying for the removal of the restraints on navigation within the exclusive privileges of the East India and South-sea companies.

In the House of Lords, the approaching expiration of the East India company's charter being mentioned, March 23, by Lord Grey, who expressed his surprise that no document on the subject had as yet been laid upon their table, Lord Melville stated, that a discussion was going on between the court of directors and government, which he believed would be produced soon after the recess.

The port of Liverpool, the second in the kingdom with repect to commercial importance, was not backward in taking its part in this great question. On March 23, General Tarleton presented to the

House