tity of grain in feeding their fwine the difufe fhould be made general and cattle, which, perhaps, would by a prohibition. not fall very far fhort of that which would in the first inftance be confumed in the diftilleries; and your committee cannot avoid obferving, that in either of thefe cafes the price of meat must be expected to rife confiderably, fo as very materially to affect the lower orders of the people, who are now deriving extenfive relief in the metropolis, and in many parts of the country, from the eftablishment of foup-fhops, and to bear with ftill greater preffure upon thofe claffes of the community which are immediately above them.

Your committee have purposely avoided stating the effect which the flopping of the diftillery might produce on the revenue, being anxious that no confideration of revenue fhould interfere, provided the expected relief could really be obtained; but when they confider how fmall would be the quantity, and how inferior the quality of the barley that could be faved, and the effect likely to be produced on the prices of other articles, and the courfe of other trades, they cannot fee any advantage that would refult from it fufficient to juftify your committee in recommending it to the house.

Your committee have omitted to fubjoin any propofal for prohibiting the ufe of wheat in the manufacture of starch, conceiving it to be a very inconfiderable object; and being farther informed that measures have been taken to procure a fupply of this article by importation from abroad, and that the principal manufacturers have voluntarily relinquifhed the ufe of it. They, however, think, that, in juftice to them,

Your committee have great fatiffaction in ftating, that the measure adopted by the legislature, for prohibiting the fale of any bread which had not been baked twenty-four hours, has already produced the most beneficial effects. By the declara tion of the mafter, wardens, and of court of affiftants of the company bakers, annexed to this report, it appears that the confumption of bread in the metropolis is reduced, in confequence of it, at least one fixth part.

First Report of the Committee of the
Houfe of Commons, on the prefent
Scarcity of Corn.

The committee appointed to confider of the prefent high price of provifions, and to whom fo much of his majefty's most gracious fpeech from the throne, to both houfes of parliament, as relates thereto, and alfo the feveral petitions prefented to the houfe, complaining of the high price of provifions, were referred:

Have, in proceeding to the confideration of the important and extensive subject referred to them, thought it their duty to direct their attention, in the first instance, to fuch meafures as might be propofed, for alleviating, as fpeedily as poffible, the prefent preflure; without entering at this moment into a detailed inquiry relpecting the various. caules which may have concurred in producing it. Your committee conceive that, by fo doing, they fhall beft execute the intentions of the houfe, which has already fhewn, by

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its

its proceedings, that it confiders the deficiency of the stock of grain at the commencement of the late harvest, and the high price which now prevails, as fufficient inducements for adopting, without lofs of time, the moft obvious remedies. With this view, laws have already been brought forward for encouraging the importation of grain; for empowering his majefty to prohibit the exportation of every article of provifion; for permitting the importation thereof free from duty; for prohibiting all diftillation from grain, and the ufe of wheat in ftarch; for permitting the barley, which was damaged by wet, to be made into malt, without being fleeped during the time now required by law; for allowing fugar to be used, inftead of malt, in the brewery; and for lowering the duty upon the importation of hops.

Your committee were confirmed in their opinion of the propriety of this order of proceeding, by confidering that no minute inquiry into the state of the crop, or the flock now in hand, could be made without great delay, even fuppofing that any mode had been fuggefted for conducting fuch an inquiry, which afforded a reasonable profpect of fufficient accuracy in the refult, and which would not be attended with great, if not infurmountable objections in the execution. Your committee alfo fee no ground for believing that any refult, attainable by the moft detailed inquiry, could lead to any practical conclufion, applicable to the prefent emergency. At the fame time having many documents before them which could be examined without much delay, and which,

checked by the very extensive information of members from diffe rent parts of the country, appeared likely to enable them to form a general estimate of the crop, your committee have thought it right to avail themselves of those materials for that purpose.

numerous returns to thofe inquiries Thefe documents confift of very which different departments of government have directed to be made by the receivers of the land-tax; by various officers under the boards of taxes, ftamps and excife; and by thofe amongst the clergy to whom circular letters for that purpose had been addreffed by the bishops in each diocefe. Though the returns yet the omiffions, on the whole, are are not complete from every county, neither numerous nor important.

Your committee are fenfible, that this nature, taken feparately, no upon the accuracy of accounts of pofitive reliance can be placed; or, at least, that the weight to be given according to the opinion enterto them muft vary in each inftance, tained of the dilligence and information of the perfons by whom they are made. Your committee obferve, however, that the general refult of the returns made by each defcription of perfons is nearly the fame; that refult is ftrongly confirmed, upon the whole, by the information of members from almost every part of England, founded vation, and correfpondence. Wheupon their local inquiries, obferther the average is ftruck from the ftatements of the crop in the feveral counties, without regard to their fize, population, and productivenefs, or by throwing them into different clailes with a view to those important

buted, in many places, to delay the thrashing out barley and oats, and may have had a fimilar temporary effect on the price of these articles.

It appears to your committee, that these circumftances might be expected to have produced a very high price at this feafon, even if the late harvest had been abundant; that the degree in which it has been deficient must naturally have added to fuch price, whether with or without the concurrence of any other caufes, the exiftence and effects of which your committee propofe to investigate in a farther stage of their proceedings. Your committee, therefore, think it may reasonably be expected, that the price, produced in fome degree by temporary circumftances, will, when thole circumftances have ceafed to operate, experience a reduction; efpecially when it is generally known, that, on the refult of all the information that has been collected from every part of the kingdom, there is no ground to fuppofe that the deficiency in the crop, below the usual average, is greater than what your committee have already ftated; and when it is alfo feen to how confiderable an extent we may confidently expect that deficiency to be remedied by the double operation of importation and economy.

With refpect to the former of thefe objects, your committee obferve, that within twelve months, from September 26, 1799, to September 27, 1800, there have been imported into Great Britain no lefs

than

This happened under the unfa vourable circumftances of a harvest abroad uncommonly deficient in tity, and of the late period of the quality, and not abundant in quanfeafon when the bounty was granted by parliament.

mittee by feveral of the principal It has been ftated to your comimporters of corn, that the wheat of the prefent year, in the north of Europe, is, by all accounts, far fuperior in quality to that of last year; in Germany, it is reprefented as abundant; and though fome lefs favourable accounts of later dates have been received from other parts, yet it is ftated, that little reliance is to be placed upon them, as they have only become lefs favourable fince the deficiency of the crop in this country has been the fubject of fpeculation abroad. All other grain (except rice) has been uncommonly abundant parts of the continent of Europe. on moft The harveft in America, both of wheat and rice, has been unufually plentiful. The indemnifying bounty, now propofed to be given, is confidered, by thofe importers whom your committee have examined, as much more fatisfactory than what was granted in the last feffion, and as likely to afford ftill more effectual encouragement.

to doubt, as far as depends upon There feems therefore no reafon the state of the harvest abroad, and the probable exertions of foreign and British importers, that the fupply may be fully equal to that of last year in wheat and flour, and in oats it; and that in other articles to and rice will confiderably exceed which encouragement may now be extended, particularly in barley and Indian corn, a large additional fup,

ply

ply may be expected. Amongst large quantities of fish and other falted provifions may be added to the fupply of the market, at fuch reafonable rates as may afford a material fource of relief. Your committee mean to proceed immediately in this part of their inquiry, and will as early as poffible ftate the refult to the house.