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large a fum, is irkfome and painful to him, and that he has been difappointed in his views. That he has disappointed us by this unexpected application, I most readily admit; but what particular disappointment the Right Honourable Gentleman may have experienced, which compels him to have recourfe to our liberality, after the recent and m ft convincing proof we have already given of it, or which can juftify his applying for this enormous fum, I am, Sir, at a lofs to conceive. Does he forget the language which he used in this Houfe on the 7th of laft December, and muft he be reminded, that 18 millions then advanced were given not fo much with an idea of profecuting the war, as with an earneft hope of enabling him to forward the great and defirable work of peace? Can it be neceflary for me to recal to him the public withes at that period for a speedy termination of the war; and that the Loan was accomplished on the general hope of a fuccefsful iffue to Lord Malmesbury's embafly? He told us then, that the advance of 18 millions was an ample fupply, for fuch were his words, for the exigencies of the state, and adequate to the preffure of every circumftance. Yet no difappointment has fince happened to induce him fo fuddenly to repeat the experiment. I can not for my part perceive any difappointment which can have compelled him to this unprecedented application, except the ftate of Ireland alone, and the fum required for the embarraffments of that kingdom amounts to a million and a half. What other disappointments the fanguine expectations of the Right Honourable Gentleman may have fuffered, he has not condefended to inform us. I clearly expofed the illufions with which he amufed the Houfe when he called on us to provide for the last Loan of 18 millions and the event has fully verified what I then preffed so earnestly on the attention of Gentlemen.

"With refpect to the statements made in the report of the Select Committee, of the produce of the permanent taxes for the years 1793, 1794, and 1795, I am willing to give the Right Honourable Gentleman every benefit he may wish to derive from that report, however I may differ in opinion with the fubject matter of the report, and object to the documents on which it is founded. In fpeaking of the produce of the taxes in 1796, as stated in the report of the Select Committee, on which he builds his calculations, (I ftop here for a moment, and requeft it may be remembered, that I do not agree to the extent of that part of the report, or to the ufe which he makes of it). Not knowing the amount of the hat and legacy duty, I allow them to produce what he himself thinks fit to ftate; but when I come to the wine duty, there, Sir, I beg leave to obferve, that I differ both with the Committee, and with the Right Honour

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able Gentleman. The ftock in hand cannot, in any respect, be confidered as an annual tax, and, indeed, the Right Honourable Gentleman feems, by the very arguments which he introduces in favour of that opinion, to admit, that it cannot be viewed in that light. The fair way to eftimate the produce of the wine duty is to calculate it for 1796, on the fame ground as if it was confidered in 1795; and I will, Sir, by a parity of reafoning, argue for the produce of 1797 by the experience we have had of the preceding year. Thus, having given the Right Honourable Gentleman full credit for the hat and legacy duty, and admitting that a duty of 20l. per ton will produce in 96 what it has produced in 95, I still maintain that there remains a deficiency of no lefs a fum than 357,000l. in the produce of the taxes brought forward by the Right Honourable Gentleman. I will not argue that because he was minus 357,000l. he should have immediately proceeded to provide for it; but I will contend, that for him to maintain that he had a furplus when he was actually minus 357,000l. is an allufion of too grofs and palpable a nature to impofe on the understanding. But if even the taxes of 1796 produced the fum it was intended they should, there would still be a deficiency of 88,000l. and that according to the report of the Select Committee. Let us then confider, that at the beginning of the Seffion we were 357,000l. fhort; that in October the Right Honourable Gentleman funds his Navy Bills, and immediately after, in December, makes his Loan; fhould he not then have faid that the intereft of the taxes was not equal to meet the public exigencies? Instead of the taxes which have been propofed, it appears that a fum of 1,800,000l. in taxes would not be too much for the various calls of the prefent moment. The deficiency on my calculation amounts to 470,000l. and not to 210,000l, as ftated by the Right Honourable Gentleman, and in the Report of the Select Committee.

"And here, Sir, I think it neceffary to declare, that the report of that Committee does not merit the eulogium which has been lavished on it. I believe it has originated from, and has been conducted with good intentions; but that it is particularly clear that it is founded on convincing documents, and that it is fupported by evident and accurate calculations, I can by no means admit. For I beg leave to afk, what has been the line of conduct purfued by the Members of the Committee? They fent to the public offices for the calculations in the respective departments and on these papers, fo fupplied through the very channel of Government, they proceeded to form a decifive opinion; and here I must notice, that in delivering their decifion to the House, they have merely grounded their proceedings on the authorities furnished inconteftibly by Government, and

which alone we are thus called upon to fanction In stating the produce of the permanent taxes, they have recourfe to the toppage of the diftilleries, for the purpofe of accounting for the deficiency which took place in them, and proceeding on the fame fyftem, they also allude to the bounties granted to feamen in 1796, when it cannot be denied, that thefe bounties were in reality iffued not in one year, but within a year and a half. This conduct was therefore prejudicial to the produce of the permanent taxes in 1795, and to that of other years. They say, that the ftoppage of the diftilleries between June 1795, and November 1796, must have materially affected the amount of that part of the produce which arifes from the duty on British spirits. They do not venture to ftate the precife deficiency, but on comparing the produce of the duties on British ipirits in 1796, with the average produce of the fame duties in the three preceding years, the deficiency is faid to be 557,7931. They immediately after admit, that upon this computed account of the lofs upon the diftilleries, an allowance fhould be made in confideration of any increase of duties upon beer which may have taken place within the fame period; but what the amount of that allowance may be, they do not attempt to point out.---Thus, Sir, it is evident, that they eftimate a deficiency in one inftance with refpect to the ftoppage of the diftilleries, on the fyftem of a computed average, and reject any fubftitute for that deficier.cy in the inftance of the duties on beer, which they clearly admit have increased, but which they do not think proper to estimate by comparing it with the average produce of other year, as they have done in the cafe of diftilleries.

"Let us for a moment take the average produce of the beer tax for the three preceding years, and we shall find, that there arifes a fum of 270,000l. in favour of last year, which has been entirely overlooked in the Report of the Committee, This fum, I therefore contend, ought to have been added to the produce of the permanent taxes. They have alfo, Sir, ftated their eftimate of the Navy Service for the enfuing year to amount to 12,935,000l. but the Right Honourable Gentleman differs in this very material confideration from the Committee, and fixes it at 12,661,000l. to which if we add, as we are juftified in doing, the floating arrears of 1,500,000l. the eft mate will then appear to be 14,161,000l. Thus the Right Honourable Gentleman, instead of making his eftimate, as he fays it is, lefs by 1,100,000l. than that furnished by the Committee, will in fact make it greatly exceed that which we find in the Report. I wifh to know, Sir, on what principle he has calculated the probable increase of the Navy Debt for the enfuing year. In my opinion the beft, and certainly the most fatisfactory way would

be, to calculate it by the experience we have had of the expences incurred in that department of the public fervice during the laft year. I must obferve, that in every estimate of this nature he has been always difappointed, and the caufe is obvious: he has continually acted on erroneous principles, and has therefore been continually miftaken. What is the line of conduct then which he fhould adopt? Why, Sir, inftead of confining himfelf to narrow and circumfcribed statements, inftead of implicitly regulating his judgment by the standard of official accounts and trifling calculations, he ought to take matters on a larger, and unqueftionably a more fecure bafis, fince it is cftablished by the experience of the paft. Let us take a fhort view of the effect of thofe estimates on which he prides himself. On the 7th of December 1795, the Right Honourable Gentleman ftated, that the probable increafe of the Navy D.bt would be 24 millions, and this he called a very ample eftimate. Then it arofe to 4 millions: then to 7 millions; and now, in the month of April, which feems to be a fixed term for bringing forward a fecond Budget, he calls for 8,764,000l. more. The Right Honourable Gentleman next tells us, that he has all his documents from the respective offices; and this I believe to be true: but he ought to fuppofe an increase not merely from official papers, but from the conftant experience of facts. The expences of the Navy are at this moment on a much larger fcale than any time during the war. 110,000 men were voted for the fervice of laft year, we have this year voted 120,000. Inftead, therefore, of making the increafe less than it was, he should make it proportionably greater and it ought to be 6 or 700,000l. more than what it is now fixed at. With respect to the Army Extraordinaries, the Right Honourable Gentleman fays, they are included in the common estimate, but will he not admit that many after payments have frequently taken place? And if fo, is it not very likely that fuch expences will be incurred on future occafions? I feel myfelf juftified in declaring, from the various views which I have taken of thefe important fubjects, that notwithstanding all the heavy burdens, and all the dreadful taxes we are about to impofe this day, we have still one million more to provide for the exigencies of the public fervice.

"On the fubject of affording pecuniary fuccours to the Emperor, the Right Honourable Gentleman expreffes his defire to have a certain fum referved for that purpose, and in that point I perfectly agree with him. Yet, what is not a little extraordinary, he wishes to have 200,000l. voted as a Loan to his Imperial Majefty immediately; nay, Sir, if I rightly understand him, he wishes to have the measure agreed to this very night. I hope the Right Honourable Gentleman will fet me right, if

I have mifconceived his intention, or if I mistake what I take to be a most alarming proceeding (Mr. Pitt here fignified his intention of moving the 200,000l. in the courfe of the night.) Then, Sir, I maintain such a proceeding to be a direct infringement of the declaration made by the Right Honourable Gen. tleman, that he wished to have the pecuniary fuccour intended for the Emperor, referved to a convenient opportunity. I will not pretend to fay how far the credit of the country may be hurt by the measure, but let me afk, is there any material difference between exporting 200,000l. fterling, and not receiving 200,000l. which this country was to receive? Did the Right Honourable Gentleman speak of this extraordinary manner of paying the intereft of the Loan, when he asked us to be fecurity for the House of Auftria, and when he extolled the good faith of the Bank of Vienna? But having in compliance with his arguments and intreaties guaranteed the Loan, he now with fingular feeling laments, it is extremely hard to think that the Emperor could pay the intereft, as he fays, to a day. To a day, Sir !With more propriety may the Right Honourable Gentleman fay, it is hard to fuppofe that the Emperor can difcharge it to a year, or to a far more diftant time. But when will it be paid? The Loan was made to him in critical circumftances, and yet he is not to pay the interest because he is now in critical circumftances. There has not been hitherto one fhilling of the interest difcharged, and I fear this country will ever have caufe to repent lending money to the Emperor. The Right Honourable Gentleman must be aware that if the intereft remains unpaid, he must come to the House and provide taxes for the fum guaranteed by us to his Imperial Majefty, and thus add, by more permanent taxes, to the burdens already too heavy to be borne. With refpect to the fpecious argument which is held out that the restoration of peace will, by reftoring commerce to its full extent, alfo make the produce of the taxes more confi derable; I, on the contrary, maintain that peace is much more likely to diminish than increase the amount of our taxes. For when we look over our taxes, we find upwards of one million arifing entirely from articles which could not be taxed in peace. I cannot agree that the state of our manufacturers is more flourifhing than it was laft year, for the affertion is pofitively contradicted by the manufacturers themselves. When the Right Honourable Gentleman propofed last year to lay a tax on landed and perfonal property, he ftated the landed rent to amount to 25 millions fterling. I am, however, one of thofe who think he undervalued it, but taking it at his own eftimate, I feel myself juftified in faying, that when we have paffed the taxes now propofed, and when, after the winding up of the war, we come to

a ftate

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