surplus was L.2,000,000. The whole history of this progress was to be found in the 11th report of the Committee of last Parliament, and the first report of the Committee of this year. In the first year of peace there was a considerable deficit. In the income for the year ending the 5th of January 1817, the expenditure was L. 54,200,000, and the income L. 51,300,000, leaving a deficiency of L. 2,000,000. In that same year, too, but for the arrears of the property tax taken into account, we should have had a deficiency of L. 3,000,000. In the next year, (1817), the expenditure had been L. 52,956,000, and the income L. 52,302,000, leaving a deficiency of L. 654,000. In 1818 the expenditure had been L. 52,875,000, and the income L. 54,563,000, making a surplus of L. 1,688,000. In the present year the income was calculated at L. 54,000,000, and the expenditure at L. 52,018,000, which would make a surplus of nearly L. 2,000,000. He had now to submit to the House, whether upon a sinking fund of L. 2,000,000 they could satisfy the public creditor, preserve the stability and dignity of the country, provide for such emergencies as might arise, and hold out to the public any prospect of the smallest relief from their present burdens. It was, he contended, quite impossible to afford any relief, while our expenditure exceeded L. 50,000,000. First of all, then, he would ask the House to consider what they owed to the public creditor. He knew no duty more solemnly and imperiously called for. In 1793, when Mr Pitt had begun the series of loans which now formed the whole of the national debt, he had arranged that a fund of 1 per cent. should be provided for the reduction of every loan. No obligation could be more sacred than our

obligation to provide for the payment of this debt, contracted as it had been for the preservation of the country and under the sanction of the national faith. His plan, therefore, was to raise the L. 2,000,000 to L. 5,000,000, without any loan taken into the account. His object was to have a real sinking fund of L. 5,000,000. The nominal sinking fund was to be reduced L. 13,000,000; that sum being proposed to be applied to the service of the present year, instead of a loan to the same amount. Whether this was to be done as authorised by Mr Fox's bill or by any other means, would claim their consideration afterwards. Not less than L. 5,000,000 he considered necessary to satisfy the just claims of the public creditor. Hitherto there had been no means of providing L. 5,000,000 of a real sinking fund. But this sum, if now provided, and if allowed to increase as the sinking fund had done from 1786 to 1792, would very rapidly improve from L. 5,000,000 to L. 8,000,000, which would be something more than 1 per cent. of a real fund for the reduction of the public debt. This improvement might be expected, partly from the operation of compound interest, partly from improvements of the revenue, and partly from the increase in value of funded property. He must, however, say, that he was not very sanguine in expecting that funded property would increase in value, when he considered how little it had increased since 1815. His object, then, was to raise the L. 2,000,000 to L. 5,000,000 by adding L.3,000,000 to our income. The mode of raising this addition could be discussed in detail when the report of the Committee of ways and means should come under consideration. When the House should have come to con

cur in the general outline, they could minutely consider the particular parts. Those who disapproved of the outline might entertain different opinions of particular parts; and even those who might approve of the general plan might not approve of every part. All that was essential and important was, that the House should make up its mind for a great effort. When it should have been determined that L. 3,000,000 must be raised, then it would come to be considered how to apportion this burden on the various classes and commodities, so as to occasion the least possible inconvenience. The first resource which he had in view for raising this sum, was the consolidation of taxes. Under this head the article of foreign wool would be subjected to a tax, which was expected to produce L. 100,000. The remaining part of this branch, including L. 200,000 under the head of customs, was expected to produce L.400,000. The next source was a malt tax. This had been one of the taxes repealed in 1816, and he now was for resorting to that article for a considerable part of the sum required. The repeal of the war tax upon malt had been expected to benefit agriculture, to increase the revenue, and also to lower the price of beer, a beverage of so much importance to the labouring classes. In all the three points the expectation had wholly failed. Agriculture had experienced no relief; and with respect to the revenue, he could state the effect produced. In the last year of the war tax, the quantity consumed was L. 26,200,000 bushels. In the first year after the reduction of the tax the quantity was only L. 17,000,000 bushels. It was true that it had been a bad season, and it would been found that it was the

variation of seasons, and not any variation in the tax, which occasioned every variation in the consumption of malt. In the next year the consumption was L. 26,400,000 bushels. But the quantity consumed since 1816 was not at all larger upon an average than before that period. With respect to beer, it was now at as high a price as when the tax was highest upon malt. He proposed, therefore, to lay upon malt, one half of the war duty, that was 1s. 2d. per bushel. This would afford a justification for the present price of beer, but no justification for a higher price: He here begged to refer to a most important statement in the report of a committee which had inquired into this subject last year. A gentleman of the highest respectability and of the greatest professional experience on the subject-he meant Mr Barclay-had given evidence that in May, last year, malt was 81s. per quarter, and hops L.24 to L.25 per cwt. At present malt was only 63s. per quarter, and hops L.8 to L. 10 per cwt. The brewing of a quarter of malt, which in May last year cost L. 9:16:8, would now cost only L.6:17:4. He proposed to take 9s. 4d. for the public, leaving a difference of L. 2, 9s. in favour of the brewer. From this tax he calculated upon a revenue of L. 1,400,000. The remaining articles were under the head of customs and excise. The greatest inconveniences had been found to arise from the union of customs and excise, which increased the expences of both; and the Government hoped the greatest improvement, at least they were resolved to try what improvement could be made, by placing this pro

vince under one rather than under both. Many articles of our imports were known to be subject to adul

teration and fraud. The officers of the revenue had no means of preventing this fraud, after the articles had been given out of the warehouse; the excise possessed means of detecting afterwards any adulteration or fraud. The articles proposed to be taxed under this head were, tobacco, coffee, tea, and pepper. Such a tax would be imposed upon tobacco as would add L. 500,000 to the revenue, and still it would, he hoped, be sold as cheap as at present. Coffee would, by an increased tax, yield L. 130,000. By raising the tax upon tea 4 per cent. that was from ninety-six to one hundred, a revenue of L. 130,000 might be expected. From the proposed tax upon pepper he expected L. 30,000. These taxes would produce no variation on the consumption of the commodities. At present the utmost vigilance was necessary to prevent adulteration and fraud. That vigilance would, he trusted, be exerted with effect. The temptations would not be increased by this arrangement, and a saving would be produced to the consumer by means of greater and more effectual vigilance being exercised. One article only remained to be stated, upon which it was intended to raise the duty, and which he conceived might be done without any inconvenience to the public; at all events the experiment would be one worth trying: it was a tax upon British spirits. This, he calculated, would produce L.500,000.

The

total, then, of the increased taxes, would be L. 3,190,000; but, making an allowance for incidental deficiencies in collection, he would estimate it at L. 3,000,000. He would not then go into the detail of each of the articles he had mentioned, as a more proper time would arrive for that purpose: and when it should come, he should be willing to go into any

Making on the whole, L. 3,190,000 He could not too seriously impress upon the House the necessity of adopting measures which would support public credit upon a solid and permanent basis. It should be borne in mind, that for three years resort had been had to temporary expedients, in order to make the income and expenditure meet. Having minutely examined into all our sources of income-having inquired into our expenditure (not, he trusted, without effect) so as to see what could be spared consistently with public security-having come to the determination of, and made preparations for restoring our metallic currency, it was now, he conceived, full time, to adopt such measures as would place our revenue upon a sure and permanent footing, and to restore a permanent system of taxation. In all human probability we might calculate upon a continuance of the pacific relations in which we stood towards foreign nations, and of course a continuance of and increase in that improvement which a state of peace brought along with it. There might, however, be some little additions to our present amount of expenditure which could not be avoided. For instance, it would be necessary that our militia should not be long without being placed in a state of efficiency. But though this

might be looked to on the one hand as in increase, there were circumstances to which we must necessarily look for a decrease of our expenditure. There was the falling in of pensions, and other annual allowances, which would cease with the lives of the present holders, so as to produce a gradual decrease of our expenditure below our income, and of course to add to the sinking fund the sum he had already mentioned of L. 5,000,000, by which not only the present loan, but the whole debt would be put in a fair process of liquidation. It was true the loan of the present year would increase the amount of the debt beyond the sinking fund; but then it should be considered that L. 5,000,000 of it would take up that amount of Exchequer bills, and L. 5,000,000 more would go to the Bank. He admitted that the stagnation of trade already experienced was lamentable; but he had reason to hope, from the recent symptoms of improvement, that such stagnation would be found to decrease daily. The improvement in our trade was very considerable down to the 5th of April. At that period there was an increase of L. 1,000,000, compared with the corresponding quarter of last year. From that time down to the 4th of June, there was some diminution, which, compared with the corresponding period of the last year, amounted to L. 107,000, or about two per cent. upon the whole; but in that period (the similar quarter of last year) there were some extraordinary payments, which, if taken into account, would make the diminution of the last quarter appear very small. Having said thus much upon the situation of the country with respect to its resources, and laid before the House the means by which his Majesty's Ministers had proposed that

VOL. XII. PART I

the revenue should be placed upon a permanent footing, he would not now trouble them further, reserving to himself of course the power of explaining on another occasion any matter upon which such explanation might be required. He could not, however, sit down without saying a few words upon the great responsibility which Ministers took upon themselves in proposing new taxes at such a period of peace. He would admit that responsibility, and that it brought with it the strong obligation to the most rigid economy which could be followed consistently with the necessities of the public service. He would fully agree that such economy should be observed; and in order to satisfy the house that it was intended so to be, he was ready with a resolution calling upon the executive government to adhere to it in the strictest sense. The right ho nourable gentleman concluded by moving an additional resolution, "That with a view of accelerating the arrival of that period at which relief may be afforded to the country from a part of its burdens, this house doth confidently expect that a continued and vigilant superintendence shall be exercised over the expenditure of the State in all its several departments, and that a minute investigation shall be instituted into the mode and expence of collection and management in the several branches of the revenue, in order that every reduction may be made therein which can be effected without detriment to the public interests."

The whole of the resolutions formerly proposed were then put from the chair. On the reading of the first, Mr Tierney rose, and began by expressing his surprise at the mode which the right honourable gentleman had adopted. After all

D

the reductions which it was said had been made, and all the professions and promises of further economy and retrenchment which the house had heard from him and his colleagues in the course of the present session, he now came, and (proposing new taxes) said, "Do you, House of Commons, advise us to be thrifty and economical, and we shall promise to follow your advice most submissively." If the right honourable gentleman thought that they (the Ministers) were disposed to retrench as much as possible, why did he consider it necessary to call upon the house to advise them to that course? It was in fact, if it had any meaning, an admission that they had not done as much as they should; or that they were unwilling to do more, unless called upon by the house. He would not now follow the right hon. gentleman through the resolutions. Indeed, the first two he did not understand. It might be owing to his own dulness, but he could not see what bearing they had upon those with which the right honourable gentleman had concluded. He would not stop to inquire into the question, whether the abolition of the property-tax was a blessing or a curse; nor would he follow the right honourable gentleman into the nature of the new taxes he had proposed; but, in the few observations he had to make would confine himself to the abstract question of the three millions of new taxes in the fifth year of peace. He was not making an objection to the principle of increased taxation, whenever that should be required by the urgent necessities of the State. Whenever such period had arrived, or should arrive, he was and would still be prepared to take his share of unpopularity in supporting them. But he objected to this tax

ation, and to the mode in which it was to be carried into effect. (Here the right honourable gentleman read the first two of the resolutions given above.-He could not exactly comprehend how these two bore upon the question before the house. But it seemed to him, that after all the vapouring about the sinking fund, after all that had been said about its inviolability, and the confidence which its existence inspired in the public creditor, we now had this melancholy fact-that Ministers were driven to a direct breach of faith with that public creditor. All the assurances which had formerly been given, were now, it seemed, lost sight of, and the public were to forget them as if they had never been made. The right honourable gentleman had once said that he looked to the promises of Mr Pitt with respect to the sinking fund; he should refer back to what his own opinions were upon the subject in 1813. He had then argued, that it would be dangerous to touch the sinking fund; that it would so lessen the interest of money, that God only knew what would become of the country, or what it would do with its surplus capital. Since then, however, L. 5,600,000 had been taken from this fund for the benefit of the country. It was said, that great advantages would arise therefrom; but now, when those advantages were expected to be derived, the right honourable gentleman turned round and said, "There is an end of any such advantage. The sinking fund, after all, is in fact only L. 2,000,000, and Parliament must make it L. 5,000,000, in order to make some provision for the future payment of the debt." This he (Mr Tierney) conceived to be unfair to the stock holder. It was holding out to th