could not help wishing he had shewn | was one which pressed particularly that sympathy either by supporting hard upon the great body of the peothe measure before the House, or by ple, and though the repeal of it might proposing some practical measure for not afford any immediate relief to the their relief. After such a body of evi-agricultural classes, it could not fail to dence had been laid before the House, be ultimately beneficial. The Agrihe thought it utterly impossible for cultural distresses did not arise, as had them to separate without adopting been stated in another place, from some measure for the relief of the over-production, but from under-conAgriculturists. Some relief might, sumption. The present measure was undoubtedly, be afforded by a modifi- calculated to increase the consumpcation of the Poor Laws, but the plantion, by lowering the price of barley, of the Honourable Gentleman would and could not, therefore, but have a be found quite impracticable. The beneficial effect upon the Agricultural Honourable Gentleman made no dis- interests. tinction between the situation of the Mr. BENETT said, he was as anxious Fundholder and the Landholder. Now, to support the trade as the agriculture the Fundholder of 1,000l. a year re- of the country. So intimate was the ceived that income without the reduc- connection between the two great pro tion of a single shilling, but what ductive classes of the community, that was the situation of the Landholder, it could never be sound policy to supeven in times of comparative prospe-port the interests of one in opposition rity? He paid 20 per cent. to the to the other. With regard to what Poors' Rate, 5 per cent. for County Rate, 5 per cent. for Repairs of the Highways, &c. and two and a half per cent. for Collection, amounting in the whole to 32 per cent. upon his whole income. He declared, that if the Taxes upon Leather, Soap, Candles. &c. and those Taxes which pressed more immediately upon the necessary articles of consumption, were repealed, he should be ready to give his support to a Property Tax of 5 per cent It was quite impossible that the cruntry could go on, unless a system of tax-ficial effect of this measure would be, ation were adopted which pressed more equally upon all classes of the people and the Fundholder was bound in justice to pay for the protection of his property as well as other classes of the community. With regard to the Tax now proposed to be repealed, it

had been said on the subject of the public debt, he was as anxious as any man to preserve the national faith; but, in order to preserve the national faith, it was absolutely necessary to reduce the present system of taxation. With regard to the measure before the House, he confessed that he did not believe it would afford all the relief to the agricultural interests which some Gentlemen imagined. It was calculated rather to relieve the consumer, than the grower of barley. One bene

that it would enable the labouring classes of the community, who were the great consumers of this commodity, to brew beer in their own houses; a comfort of which they had for many years been deprived, and a return to which, by removing the temptation of

resorting to ale-houses, would tend materially to the improvement of their moral habits. He gave his hearty concurrence to the repeal of the Tax, as there was no man more anxious then he was to place Ministers under the necessity of putting into practice some of those principles of economy which Gentlemen on his side of the House had so repeatedly, but vainly, called upon them to adopt.

preserve to the nation that renown and prosperity, which, by its great achievements, it had in the opinion of Europe acquired. He was convinced; that by shortening the money of Government, and by that alone, could they oblige Ministers to become faithful, vigilant? and economical guardians of the public purse [hear, hear!], But it was said on the other side of the House, that to act in this way, was 'to begin at the wrong end, as they had at first voted the men required by Government, and then refused the money. It was, however, to be recollected, that there were other Estimates to come before the House; the Navy, Ordnance, and Miscellaneous Estimates were not yet voted, and he hoped the repeal of the tax would have the salutary effect of forcing Ministers to curtail those estimates to the amount of finances reduced by the abolition of this enormous. malt tax. It was on this principle that he should vote against the tax. He did not entertain the opinion that the agricultural interest was more distressed than the commercial; all the interests of the country ought to be regarded as one and the same; they laboured under the same distress, and

Mr. K. DOUGLAS said, that he would not follow the Honourable Member who spoke last into the irrelevant topics which he had introduced, while he scarcely touched upon the particular question before the House. He (Mr. D.) was as sensible as any man of the extreme distress of the agricultural interests, but he did not think that any material relief could be afforded them by the repeal of the Malt Tax. It was not of any importance to the farmer, as he could not derive any benefit from it, for the Return made to that House of the consumption of Malt, proved it to be as great as at any former period. On the whole, he considered it one of the most equal and least oppressive taxes that could be devised, as its operation extended over the whole community.could have but the one remedy [hear,

hear!], and that was economy, It was this alone that could restore Great Britain to the proud station which she had

Mr. BRIGHT stated, that he did not vote against the tax on the ground that it was partial and unequal; on the contray, he did not believe that it over-filled in modern Europe. The Honourlaid any particular kind of industry, able Member then proceeded to argue or injuriously affected any of the ne- against those who objected to the Poor cessaries of life. But he felt himself Laws and Tithes as the greatest griev called upon, at the present moment, ances to land-owners, aud unjust imto vote against it, that Government positions upon their property. He obmight, upon its removal, feel it neces-served, that the payment of tithes was sary to carry into effect that vigilant part of the original contract by which and strict economy which alone could land was held, and for the support of

shew that the removal of the duty could not affect the price of beer, to the amount of one farthing a, pot. If this Bill was passed into a law, the Honourable Members who made war upon the finances, would run the round of all

the noblest institutions of the country the Ecclesiastical Establishment. The imposition was as fair and legal as, the title deeds that descended to gentlemen from their ancestors, and was part of the fundamental tenure of their estates. But he would entreat Gentlemen to the taxes; one would have the Wool abandon all partial interests, and man-Tax repealed, another the Tax upon fully to set about redressing the com- Husbandry Horses, and a third the mon grievance of the country. He Window Tax; in short, if all the pro hoped they would imitate the Honour-positions for economy were to be atable Member for Aberdeen (Mr. Hume), tended to, nothing would be left to and the consequence would be that the Government to economise [hear, hear, estimates which were to be submitted hear!]-No greater injury could be to the House next month, would un- done to a State than to break down its dergo a considerable diminution. income. As to what had been said of Mr. BENETT and Mr. BRIGHT mu- the Sinking Fund, he would merely obtually explained.

serve that it was pledged to the public creditor, not only for the payment of the interest, but the gradual reduction of the debt, which was incurred by the State in the course of that great struggle, which the gallantry of our soldiers and sailors had brought to so successful a termination. There was, in point of time, an additional reason, for considering the proposed measure as not quite fair. There was a Committee now sitting upon the subject of Agricultural Distress, and the promoters of the

Colonel WOOD observed that the agricultural and commercial interests were common and inseparable, and nothing could be more injurious to the nation than to represent them as separate. He could not, however, agree with the Honourable Member who had just spoken in his extraordinary opinion, that to beat down the finances of the country was the way to restore it to its proud position in the eyes of Europe. He concurred with those who stated that the Malt Tax affected the agricul-measure should have waited until they tural interests; he believed that there brought in their proposition, which he was no tax that pressed upon those in- believed would not be a half measure. terests more severely, or trenched more Much had been said of a Property Tax. upon the comforts of the poor in toto, He was of opinion that Parliament had but the present Bill was not calculated committed a fatal error in having aboto afford them any relief, as the brewers lished that Tax, As to himself, he were not likely to reduce the price to would vote for the repeal of the whole the consumers; they would say, as Malt Tax, if its place was to be sup they did on a former occasion, that plied by a modified Property Tax, not they apprehended the Chancellor of a tax on trade and income, but one on the Exchequer would lay it on again. landlords and the funds; such a tax He then entered into a calculation to would do more for the country in its

The Stamp Duty, in the various forms in which it operated, was much more oppressive.

Colonel Wood explained.

difficulties, than any other measure. I considered the Malt Duty as the most Gentlemen had not acted wisely in oppressive tax on the landed interest. throwing the burden offits own shoulders, and laying it on the poorer classes of the community. But though he did not like the present tax for many reasons, he would vote against its repeal, because it would deprive the State of 1,500,0001, which could not be easily supplied, while, with reference to the country at large, it was but a bal measure not likely to do any good.

Captain GORDON corroborated the statement which had been made in that House of the agricultural distress existing in the North of Scotland. He did not conceive, however, that the present Bill would go to its relief.

Mr. SMYTH strongly recommended economy, both in our military establishments and in the expence of collecting the revenue. The best preparation for war was to husband our resources in peace. He should certainly vote for the repeal of the tax.

Lord CASTLEREAGH, before he made the observations which occurred to him as necessary on the subject, requested the Clerk to read the Resolution of the Committee of the whole

Mr. F. LEWIS said, that he considered it decidedly wise in Parliament to have got rid of the Property Tax, as it was highly objectionable, both on account of its amount and the manner in which it was levied. On the other hand, the Malt Tax was diffused over as wide a surface of society as possible; but if its repeal was likely to afford relief to the agricultural interest, that consideration would have with him considerable weight. But he could never vote for one interest only. While he had a vote in that House, he would give it in conformity with the wisest, the most just and collective view which he was competent to take of the general interests. The repeal of the Malt Tax could not serve those general interests, and therefore he would oppose it. He calculated that the reduction in the price of porter, which the remission of the tax would occasion, would not amount to a farthing a pot. Undoubt-lions; and that in order to secure that.

edly, with reference to the general principles of political economy, that remission would in the long run benefit the agricultural interest, but it could not effect that sudden relief which the advocates of the repeal considered to be indispensable. He by no means

House in 1819.

The Clerk accordingly read the Resolution, which was to the following. effect:"That to provide for the carrying on of the Public Service, for the payment of the interest of the National Debt, and for the future diminution of that debt, it was abso-, lutely necessary that there should be a clear surplus of revenue beyond the expenditure of not less than five mil

surplus, it was expedient to increase the income of the country by three. millions."

The Resolution having been read,. the Noble Lord proceeded to state to the House the grounds on which he should vote on the subject. He could

assure the Honourable Member for those by whom such sentiments were Essex, that in rising to redeem his uttered, suddenly recoiled from their pledge when the Bill was introduced; avowal, and endeavoured to explain namely, that he would give it his most them away. He was not afraid that strenuous opposition, he did so with a British Parliament would ever forgreat pain. It was no inconsiderable get those principles of justice and source of regret to a person standing good faith by which this country had in the situation of responsibility which been so long upheld. But what they he occupied, to resist, at a moment of had to guard against was being induced pressure, a suggestion from so respect- to do that indirectly which no consiable a Member, which had for its ob- deration would tempt them to do diject the diminution of the public bur-rectly. It would be as great a breach dens. But he felt that in doing so on of honour-it would inflict as great an the present occasion, he was discharg-injury on public credit-it would be ing an important public duty to all as destructive of national prosperity, classes of the community, and to none to allow the revenue to be undermined more than to that great class of the in such a manner, as to render the paypeople who were now peculiarly under ment of the interest of the debt dependcircumstances of difficulty. Arduous ent only on precarious loans, raised on and painful as his task was, it would the security of a Bankrupt Exchequer have been still more so, could he per-[hear, hear, hear!]. At the outset, suade himself that the repeal of the duty in question would really give relief to those for whose relief it was intended. But while on the one hand he was convinced that the interest of the community at large was the true interest of the landholder, so on the other hand he was also persuaded, that if the country were in a situation to allow of the remission of any Tax, the Duty on Malt was not the Tax which ought to be selected for that purpose. He had listened with great pain to many of the topics which had fallen from Honourable Gentlemen in the course of this and preceding de-vidual would be conscious of, and He thanked God, however, that the time was not come when sentiments injurious to the credit of the country, or subversive of the great principles of public faith, would be listened to with favour. He even endeavoured to persuade himself, that

bates.

therefore, he warned the House, at a moment when the surplus of the revenue was not sufficient to allow of any progress being made in the reduction of the Debt, and when the House was quite unable to redeem its pledge of 1819, to guard the public credit against the calamity which a bad year of reve nue might suddenly inflict. The line of duty was strictly compatible with the best interests of the country; for it was demonstrable, that the question of relief which the proposition of the Honourable Member for Essex would afford, would not be such as any indi

therefore would not carry with it any consolation for an infraction of those principles, the maintenance of which the public credit demanded. He would inquire, first, if the country was in a state, with reference to its revenue, its expenditure, and its obligations