that the lift should thus be brought to be confidered, as the reward of paft fervices, and not, as now, a ftigma and a degradation. The motion was fupported by fir George Howard, fir William Molefworth, Mr. Martin, Mr. Drake and captains Macbride and fir George Collier. It was oppofed by Mr. Grenville, iord Hood and Captain Berkeley. Upon a divifion the numbers appeared, ayes 133, noes 1. The refult being fo favour

able, Mr. Baftard was encouraged foon after to bring forward the queftion in a different fhape, and to move as a refolution, that it was highly injurious to the naval fervice of Great Britain, to fet afide in the promotion of admirals officers of diftinguifhed merit and approved fervice, who were not precluded by any orders of the king in council. The propofition was rejected upon the previous queftion, ayes 169, noes

220.

V.

the fifth of May, the house of commons being in a committee of ways and means, Mr. Pitt entered into an explanation of the revenues and expenditure for the year 1788. He ftated, that, notwithstanding the extraordinary expences of the arma, ment, the debts of the prince of Wales and other temporary articles, the prefent year had afforded a clear furplus of 27,cool, exclufive of the million appropriated to the finking fund. Other extraordinary articles would fill occur; and he feared that two years muft elapfe before we could come at our permanent peace eftablishment. But we fhould in all probability be able to meet every demand of this fort without the impofition of any new burthens upon the country. The permanent peace eftablishment Mr. Pitt flated at 15,524, ool; the expenditure being increafed from the fum at which it had been calculated by the committee of 1776, by the additional Weft Indi

an establishment, and the fubfidy of the landgrave of Hefle. The permanent revenue he estimated at 15,792,0 cl, which fum was the exact produce of the effective year ending with the fifth of April 1788. Mr. Pitt defired to fuggeft to the houfe the progreffive opulence of a country in time of peace, and particularly of fuch a country as England, as a matter, not of mere fpeculation, but which experience demonftrated to be true. Thus the receipt of the permanent taxes, exclufive of the land tax and the malt tax, had been in the year 1783 10,184,000l, and in the year 1787 13,000,000l. We had therefore every motive for exultation, and none for despair.

There were a few other circum.

ftances, which neceffarily entered into that day's bufinefs. It was in contemplation to impofe an additional duty upon the licences to Scottifh diftillers, and upon the licences for felling fpirituous liquors, and,

though

though the former of these in particular had for its object rather the benefit of the fubject than of the revenue, they would both of them be fources of additional advantage to the finances. There was alfo an article of expenditure to be provided for, which by its nature was per⚫ fectly detached from the permanent eftablishment. This was the compenfation to be granted to the American loyalifts, which Mr. Pitt propofed to pay by inftallments, and to provide for by a lottery with a capital of 48,oool, the profit of which would be 260, cool. This refource must be annually repeated, till the claims of the loyalifts were entirely difcharged, which would take place in a term of feven or eight years.

Mr. Sheridan animadverted upon the reprefentations of Mr. Pitt. The minifter had contrafted the flourishing state of the English revenue with the embaraffments of the government of France. Mr. Sheridan was an entire well-wisher to that part of Mr. Pitt's argument; and he hoped, that the French finances would always be found in as bad or even a worfe fituation, whenever Mr. Pitt should have occafion to repeat the comparison he had now made. But how had they been reduced to that miferable fituation? By doing that, which we had done, and were perfifting to do. The French had not faced their fituation; they had endeavoured to impofe upon themselves, and to make it appear better than it really was, till the continuance of the deception had eafed to be practicable. Mr. Pitt was guilty of a deception, when he took the produce of the year 1787 as a ftandard of our revenues instead of taking the average of 1786 and 1787; in which cafe the revenue would have amount ed to no more than 15,250,000l,

and, inftead of affording an excefs, have fallen fhort of the expenditure by the fum of 374,000l. Mr. Sheridan particularly excepted to the article of ordnance in Mr. Pitt's eftimate of the permanent establishment, which took no notice of the expence of fortifications, though the minifter himfelf had formerly admitted, that the fortifications in the Weft Indies alone would amount to between two and three hundred thousand pounds. Mr. Sheridan excepted to certain other articles in the expenditure; and conceived, that an addition ought to be made to the estimate, exclufive of the fortifications, of between four and five hundred thoufand pounds. In the articles credited on the other fide of the account, he particularly animadverted upon the fum of 5 co,oool. to be paid by the Eaft India company. This was a debt, the juftice of which was difputed in every part, and which the company was neither able nor willing to difcharge. From this circumftance Mr. Sheridan proceeded to notice the commutation act, which, he faid, had failed in every circumftance, for which those who fupported it stood pledged to the public. The company were required to have a year's fto k before hand; and this requifition they had never performed. He did not charge this upon the company as blameable; their finances had not enabled them to do it; and did government nean by their prefent extraordinary claim, to render their capital more equal to their engagements? Mr. Sheridan concluded, that, in the prefent real ftate of the finances, and evident inefficiency of the commutation at, there was no reafon why a duty of two or three hundred thousand pounds fhould not be raised upon the article of tea. Mr. Fox inforced, the obfervations of Mr. Sheridan, by remarking, that Mr.

of two fhillings and nine pence per gallon upon all Scottish fpirits imported into England.

claimants; fince they had quitted their country, in confequence of a treaty of peace agreed to by the legiflature, by which Florida had been ceded to a different government. Their loffes amounted to 114,~00]; and the liquidation of the claims of the American loyalifts upon the plan he had fuggefted would require the fum of 1,228,00cl. The propofal of Mr. Pitt, was received with general applaufe, though Mr. Fox expreffed fome difference of opinion from the fentiment of Mr. Pitt and Mr. Burke, who contended that the propofed compenfation was not a matter of ftrict justice, but that the claim of the American loyalists refted upon the generofity and compaffion of parliament. Mr. Burke expreffed fome degree of fatisfaction, that America had not had the honour of compenfating the loyalifts for their loffes, which would, he said, have been a way of fetting up for themselves, that would have done them the most eJential credit.'

Mr. Pitt introduced his proposal for a compenfation to the American loyalifts on the fixth of June. For the better adjustment of their claims he diftributed them into feveral claffes. In the first clafs he ranked all thofe, who had refided in America at the commencement of the war, and whose eftates, in confequence of their retreat from the difaffected provinces, had been feized upon and confifcated. To thefe loyalifts he meant to repay the full amount of their loffes to the value of 10,000]; and, where the lofs of any perfon exceeded that fum, to deduct a percentage upon the excefs, of ten, fifteen and twenty pounds refpectively, in proportion to the greatness of their loffes. The fecond clafs confifted of perfons, who, having refided in England during the war, had exhibited claims on the fcore of lofs of property in America. To thefe perfons he alfo propofed to repay the full amount of their loffes to the value of 10,00ol; and, where the lofs exceeded that fum, to deduct a percentage, from twenty to feventy pounds refpectively, in proportion to the greatnefs of their loffes. The next clafs were perfons, who having enjoyed places, or exercifed profeffions in America, had, in onfequence of their loyalty to this country, been obliged to withdraw themfelves, and had loft their incomes. To thele perfons he meant to affign a provifion in the way of penfion, of fifty per cent upon every income not exceeding 40cl, and of forty and thirty per cent refpectively upon the excefs above 40cl. There was still a farther divifion of claimants, the proprietors in Weft Florida, who ftood in a very different predicament from the American

Among other confiderations, that were stated by Mr. Sheridan upon the fubject of the general revenues of Great Britain, he had obferved, that the commutation act of the year 1784 had entirely failed in the objects, upon account of which it had been originally recommended. Upon this fubject a fort of polemical challenge was exchanged between him and Mr. Pitt; and Mr. Sheridan moved for feveral papers for the fupport of the arguments he intended to allege. But the difcuffion did not take place in the courfe of the fellion. The points Mr. Sheridan undertook to demonftrate, were, that the Eaft India company had ne→ ver had in its warehoufes the quantity of tea required by law; that we now fent to China 1,50,000l annually in fpecie, instead of 400,000l, which we had before been accuftom

ed to fend; that the foreign fhipping to that country was four times greater than it had been at any former period; and that the contraband trade was likely to prevail under the operation of the act to a greater extent than ever. Mr. Pitt declined entering into the examination of these affertions; till the fubject were regularly before the houfe. Another question of finance, that excited fome degree of difcuffion, was occafioned by the vote of 25,000 for the buildings of Somerfet Place. Upon this occafion fir John Miller propofed to vote a committee of enquiry, to examine into the propriety of the expenditure. He stated, that fir William Chambers, the architect, received a profit of five per cent upon the principal of the difbursement; and charged to government the long credit price of the old board of works, at the fame time that, having always an advance of the public money in his hands, he was enabled to pay for every thing with ready cafli. The original eftitnate of the building was 250,00cl; and at this moment, though 316,00cl had been actually advanced, the plan was for from its conclufion. The very foundation of the victualling office, which was to conof five houfes, had not been laid. The five per cent profit upon the capital expended was a temptation, perhaps irrefiftible, to extend the duration, and create the coft of the undertaking; and fir William had actually invited applications from various government offices for accommodation in the new erections. The late board of works had been directed to examine and report fir William Chambers's accounts; and they had actually audited one or two of thofe of the earliest years, but had refufed to pafs any more, expreffing much diffatisfaction with

the loofe and general manner in which they were ftated, and complaining that fir William refufed to produce the proper vouchers and acknowledgements accompanied with dates. Mr. Keene, late furveyor general to the board of works, inforced the remarks of fir John Miller; and stated, that lord North, towards the clofe of his adminiftration, had determined to in ftitute a full inveftigation into the proceedings of the architect. The motion for a committee was farther fupported by Mr. Pulteney, Mr. Huffey, fir Matthew White Ridley, and Mr. Drake. At length Mr. Pitt moved for the previous queftion, and the house divided, ayes 21, noes 76.

The miscellaneous bills of the prefent feffion were by no means numerous. Lord Stanhope's election bill, which had been brought into parliament in feveral preceding years, and the nature of which has been explained in our former volumes, was now, in confequence of the removal of its author to the houfe of peers, introduced by Mr. Bearcroft, and at length received the fanction of parliament. In the houfe of commons it was fupported by Mr. Pitt and Mr. Sheridan, and oppofed by Mr. Powys and Mr. Young. In the houfe of lords it underwent feveral alterations, which furnished Mr. Young with a new ground of oppofition. He obferved, that it behoved that houfe to regard with peculiar jealoufy the amendment of the lords in a bill deeply affecting the rights of their conftituents.

Another bill, connected with the fubject of election, was introduced. by Mr. Grenville, the object of which was to establish farther regu lations for the trial of controverted elections, in addition to the celebrat

cd