The estimated deficiency of this £2,570,000 duty of 5s., besides the assessed taxes on | I have been compelled to enter. I have coachmen and guards. On railroads, no laid before you, without reserve, the whole corresponding taxes are imposed. I shall plan of the Government. I have given propose, that stage coaches be subjected you a full, an explicit, an unreserved, but to a uniform mileage of 1d., that the I hope, an unexaggerated statement of the licence be reduced to 3s., and that the financial embarrassments in which we are assessed taxes on coachmen and guards placed. There are occasions when a Mi. be taken off altogether. This propo- nister of the Crown may, consistently with sition, if assented to by Parliament, will honour and with good policy, pause before lead to a loss of revenue amounting to he presses upon the Legislature the adop61,0007.; but it is a loss which, I feel tion of measures which he believes to be persuaded, can be vindicated on princi- abstractedly right; he may have to enples of strict and impartial justice. I also counter differences of opinion amongst propose to take off the duty imposed upon Colleagues whom he esteems and respects; persons who are in the habit of letting job he may sincerely believe it to be for the carriages, and this will lead to a loss in public interest that the Government of the revenue of 9,0007., making a total loss which he is a Member should retain in the revenue of 70,000l. on account of power, and that, therefore, he should stage coaches. I will now shortly review not hazard its existence, by proposing a the whole of the financial arrangements measure which might not ultimately sucwhich I have detailed. ceed, and thereby endanger the safety and security of his Government; he may, on comparing the consequence of exciting and agitating the country by discussion upon a measure in which he may not ultimately succeed, think it possible that there 270,000 is a disadvantage in proposing that which 170,000 he believes to be abstractedly right, for the 600,000 evil of fruitless agitation may possibly countervail the enunciation of a right principle. But there are occasions, and this is one of them, upon which a Government can make no compromise-there are occasions, and 70,000 this is one of them, upon which it is the bounden duty of a Government to give believes to be right-to undertake the rethat counsel to the Legislature which it sponsibility of proposing those measures which it believes to be for the public advantage, and to devolve upon the Legisla ture the responsibility of adopting or rejecting those measures. I have performed on the part of her Majesty's Government my duty. I have proposed with the full weight and authority of the Government, that which I believe to be conducive to the The reduction in the various ar- The loss on coffee I estimate at The repeal of the export duty on And the reduction of the duties 100,000 public income, in consequence of the proposed reductions of £3,780,000 The loss of 3,780,000l., deducted from the estimated revenue to be derived from the new taxes, and which is calculated at 4,300,000l., will leave a surplus of 520,000l. to meet the increased estimate which I may have to propose on account of India; to meet the increased charge which may be necessary to prosecute the war with China; to meet any increased reduction of duty which it may be neces-public welfare. I now devolve upon you sary to propose on account of the completion of commercial treaties with other countries. I believe I have now concluded the task I have undertaken. If I have been enabled clearly (which is all I have aimed at)-clearly and fully to develope the views of her Majesty's Government, I am greatly indebted for that success to the very kind and patient attention with which the House has listened to the exceedingly long, and, I am afraid, in some respects, tedious details with which the duty, which properly belongs to you, of maturely considering and finally deciding on the adoption or rejection of the measures I propose. We live in an important era of human affairs. There may be a natural tendency to overrate the magnitude of the crisis in which we live, or those particular events with which we are ourselves conversant; but I think it is impossible to deny that the period in which our lot and the lot of our fathers has been cast the period which has elasped since the first outbreak of the first | you now are called upon to meet. If you French revolution-has been one of the have, as I believe you have, the fortitude most memorable periods that the history and constancy of which you have been set of the world will afford. The course which the example, you will not consent with England has pursued during that period will folded arms to view the annual growth of attract for ages to come the contemplation this mighty evil. You will not reconcile and, I trust, the admiration of posterity. it to your consciences to hope for relief That period may be divided into two parts from diminished taxation. You will not of almost equal duration; a period of adopt the miserable expedient of adding, twenty-five years of continued conflict- during peace, and in the midst of these the most momentous which ever engaged indications of wealth and of increasing the energies of a nation-and twenty-five prosperity, to the burdens which posterity years, in which most of us have lived, of will be called upon to bear. You will not profound European peace, produced by permit this evil to gain such gigantic the sacrifices made during the years of growth as ultimately to place it far beyond war. There will be a time when those your power to check or control. If you countless millions that are sprung from do permit this evil to continue, you must our loins, occupying many parts of the expect the severe but just judgment of a globe, living under institutions derived reflecting and retrospective posterity. from ours, speaking the same language in Your conduct will be contrasted with the which we convey our thoughts and feelings conduct of your fathers, under difficulties -for such will be the ultimate results of infinitely less pressing than theirs. Your our wide-spread colonisation the time conduct will be contrasted with that of will come when those countless millions your fathers, who, with a mutiny at the will view with pride and admiration the Nore, a rebellion in Ireland, and disaster example of constancy and fortitude which abroad, yet submitted, with buoyant vigour our fathers set during the momentous and universal applause (with the funds as period of war. They will view with ad- low as 52), to a property-tax of 10 per miration our previous achievements by cent. I believe that you will not subject land and sea, our determination to uphold yourselves to an injurious or an unworthy the public credit, and all those qualities contract. It is my firm belief that you by the expedition of which we were en- will feel the necessity of preserving inabled ultimately, by the example we set to violate the public credit-that you will foreign nations, to ensure the deliverance not throw away the means of maintaining of Europe. In the review of the period, the public credit by reducing in the most the conduct of our fathers during the years legitimate manner the burden of the pubof war will be brought into close contrast lic debt. My confident hope and belief with the conduct of those of us who have is, that now, when I devolve the responlived only during the years of peace. I sibility upon you, you will prove yourselves am now addressing 'you after the duration worthy of your mission-of your mission of peace for twenty-five years. I am now as the representatives of a mighty people; exhibiting to you the financial difficulties and that you will not tarnish the fame and embarrassments in which you are which it is your duty to cherish as the placed; and my confident hope and be- most glorious inheritance-that you will lief is, that following the example of not impair the character for fortitude, for those who preceded you, you will look good faith, which, in proportion as the these difficulties in the face, and not empire of opinion supersedes and prerefuse to make similar sacrifices to dominates over the empire of physical those which your fathers made for the force, constitutes for every people, but purpose of upholding the public credit. above all for the people of EnglandYou will bear in mind that this is no I speak of reputation and charactercasual and occasional difficulty. You the main instrument by which a powerwill bear in mind that there are indications ful people can repel hostile aggresamongst all the upper classes of society sions and maintain extended empire. The of increased comfort and enjoyment-of right hon. Baronet concluded by moving increased prosperity and wealth, and that the following resolution :— concurrently with these indications there exists a mighty evil which has been growing up for the last seven years, and which That, towards raising the supply granted to her Majesty, there shall be charged, levied, collected, and paid upon every gallon of spirits ESTIMATE OF INCOME AND Expenditure, | taken from the printed accounts, Nos. 87 and SHOWING THE PROBABLE DEFICIENCY FOR 438; those in the second column from No. THE YEAR ENDING 5TH APRIL, 1843. 268, of 1841, with the exception of the year £ 50,819,000 1842, Expenditure Probable deficiency.. 48,350,000 That deficiency will arise on the votes for the year. The real deficiency will exceed it. The estimate of the expense for China for 1842-3 cannot be less than 1,200,000%-may be 1,500,000l. Take the lowest sum The estimate for this year £ 1,200,000 Canadian fortifications 100,000%. a-year, provided for Indian finance. (No. 5.) An ACCOUNT of the DEFICIENCY of the INCOME of the UNITED KINGDOM, for the Years ending the 5th of January and 5th of April, 1838, 1839, 1840, and 1841, with the estimated AMOUNT of the DEFICIENCY for the Year ending the 5th of January and 5th of April, 1842. Years. Ending Jan. 5. Ending April 5. Was £ 2,758,590 275,859 3,034,449 6,209,119 1843 (certain deficiency) 7,502,638 2,570,000 A RETURN, showing the amount of DUTY collected on each of the undermentioned articles retained for HOME CONSUMPTION in the year (ending the 5th of January) previous to the reduction of the duty on such articles respectively, and the REVENUE collected thereon in each of the seven years following the reduction, WINES, TOBACCO, COFFEE and HEMP, reduced in 1825. From 9s. 11d. to 4s. 9 d. 2,153,112 1,424,326 1,600,587 1,700,051 1,473,546 1,524,168 (a)1,535,484 1,715,812 From 4s. to 3s. 3,378,537 2,658,769 2,826,379 2,793,875 2,849,706 2,924,265 2,964,592 3,080,599 Coffee From 1s. to 6d. 336,570 399,690 440,245 420,988 498,951 579,363 583,751 598,038 Hemp From 9s. 2d. to 4s. 8d. 236,191 104,456 104,460 95,051 84,841 83,268 108,717 (b)27,473 (a) The rates of duty on wine other than French were increased, and that on French wine further reduced in 1831. (See the article on French wine below). (b) The rate of duty on hemp was again reduced in 1832. |