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promote that decrease, had, on the contrary, been attended with an increafed confumption of that article. He proposed to the houfe a tax which would make an addition of fixpence a bottle to the confumer. This would amount to 20l. per tun, exactly the fame as the former tax, and would produce annually 600,000l. As he wifhed for a fum of ready money to pay the bank their share of the navy debt, &c. he should make it attach, like the former tax, immediately on the vender according to his stock in hand, which he calculated to produce between 350,000l. and 360,000l. From 900,000l. to 1,000,0col. would therefore be the produce of the prefent year towards the fum permanently necef. fary to defray the fum borrowed; a confiderable portion would not be paid in the prefent year, particularly on extraordinaries; there would therefore be a large furplus of cash in the prefent year, applicable to the purpofes hereafter to be mentioned.

Upon the fubject of a scarcity of money, the chancellor of the exchequer allowed there had exifted an inconvenience from the increafed demand. This fcarcity, he contended, was rather the refult of the increased commerce of the country than of its decreafe, and of the poverty of the nation. One of the caufes of the prefent temporary fcarcity was the fupport of our foreign allies, and our army extraordinaries: but there were other caufes not connected with the difficulties of the country, but connected with its large growing refources and rich increafing profperity!!! It was a well known fact to deep and acute politicians, that the circulating medium of a country muft bear a certain proportion to the extent of

active capital, and to the extent of commercial fpeculation. The remedy he propofed for this fcarcity of cash, was the funding of the unfunded debt, because, under fuch circumftances as the prefent, there would naturally be a confiderable demand for discount at the bank, and the large unfunded debt would make it impoffible in the bank to fupply the merchants fo much in advance, as they might do if the debt were funded. He therefore propofed the funding of 3,500,000l. of exchequer bills, for which an additional interest of two and a half per cent. would be to be provided, and alfo to find cafh for the 500,000l. of navy bills held by the bank. The feven millions and a half, which he propofed to raise, would be applicable to affift the bank, whilft it provided for the different fervices incurring and incurred. He obferved that the two objects of providing for the remaining fervice exifting or foreseen, and for giving that relief necessary from the general ftate of credit, would produce an increase of intereft of the annual fum of 575,000l. a year. It was therefore important, for the purpofe of raifing the just hopes of this country, and of diminishing the hopes of our enemies, that we fhould fhew that our refources were equal to meet the fervice and all the exigencies of the prefent year.

The chancellor of the exchequer alfo ftated to the committee the increafed charges in the army, ordnance, and navy, which it might be neceffary to provide for, and which had occurred fince the statement of the budget at Chriftmas; as alfo the fervices which were not at that time foreseen, and the mode which he meant to propofe for defraying them.

That

That mode, he faid, was conheated with another object, viz. that of giving relief to the general ftate of credit in the country, and to the demand for accommodation in the commercial world. The measure was to take out of the mar

ket a great proportion of the paper conftituting the unfunded debt, and by that means to relieve the bank from the advances which they had made, fo as to enable them to allot a larger fum of money to commercial discounts.

Charges to be provided for, and which had occurred fince the statement of the firft budget.

Of services not provided for under the head of army extraordinaries, which had occurred fince the 31ft of December

Of ordnance

The additional fum required for building barracks, eftimated at

The fum for fecret fervice, above the fum included in the laft eftimate, and including relief for the clergy of France.

£.535,000

200,000

267,000

100,000

And the fum which, in the laft ftatement, the ways means were fhort of the supply

and

177,000

Thefe fervices made together

1,279,000

To which he added a fum which he felt would be neceffary to make good the further army extraordinaries up to the end of the year 1796

1,221,000

Making, in all, of new fervices above the statement opened in the month of December laft for the fervices of the current year, the fum of

He next proceeded to the provifion which it was neceffary to make for the funding of fuch parts of the increase of the navy debt during the war, as had not been provided for in the courfe of the preceding years, and not to leave any which had not been provided for of that debt incurred fince the commence ment of the war, or rather fince the first of December 1791.

The fam for which intereft was found in the courfe of the year 1795, amounted to 3,594,000l. because it had been the cuftom always to make provifion in the pre

£.2,500,000

ceding year as far as may be calcu lated; to that must now be added 1,640,000l. of navy debt already incurred.

He next stated what debt it might be found neceffary to incur, fuppofing the war to continue to the 31st of December 1796. He had mentioned it before Christmas as likely to amount to 2,500,000k. but as that debt had ftretched out by the operation of unforeseen caufes to the amount of above 1,600,000l. more than was then expected, the other additional expences of the prefent year he estiL 2

ma.ed

mated at 1,500,000l. which, in addition to the former computation of 2,500,000l, would produce a navy debt, up to the 31st of December 1796, of 4,000,000l; and he further remarked, that though he had stated a farther increase of the extraordinaries of the army to the amount of 1,200,ocol. yet, if under all the circumftances a further increase of 800,000l. fhould be unexpectedly incurred, he begged to inform the committee that there were refources to provide for the whole amount.

He next obferved, that, as it became neceffary, under the prefent circumstances, to diminish the unfunded debt, by taking 3,500,000l. in exchequer bills out of the market, it became alfo neceffary to borrow

that fum. Intereft for this fum, to the amount of three and a half per cent. had been provided alrea iy; but in order to fund this debt, it was neceffary to provide two and a half per cent. to make up the deficiency of the intereft; this two and a half per cent. upon 3,500,000l. would amount to $7,500l.

There was one more contingent fervice which he mentioned as likely to occur in the prefent year: this was a probable allowance of 1,000,000 for bounties on corn to be imported. He told the committee that he had no doubt but that we might now look annually to the Eaft India company forthe 500,000l. which had been fet down as the eftimated participation of the public in their profits.

From the foregoing heads, the fum to be permanently charged upon the country was as follows:

The intereft of the fum of 2,500,ocol. of fervices added. to thofe in his former statement, including the one per cent. towards the finking fund, was

The difference of the intereft on the navy debt unfunded

was

Intereft on the 4,000,000l. of navy debt

The difference of the intereft on the fum of 3,500,000l. of exchequer bills above the rate of intereft already previded for them

Making all together the annual fum to be provided for by taxes, of

£.150,000

98,400

240,000

87,500

575,900

And the amount of the money to be raised by loan in order to make . the operation immediate for the benefit of the commercial world, and to be appropriated in the manner which he had stated, was this: The amount of the extraordinary fervices for the year

1796, was

The fum of exchequer bills to be bought from the bank,

2,500,000

or from the market, was

The fum of navy bills to be bought from the bank was And the fum to be repaid the bank for the advance they had made in exchequer bills, on the fecurity of the confolidated fund, was

3,500,000

500,000

1,000,000

Saking together the fum to be borrowed by a new loan, of £7,500,000

The

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The chancellor of the exchequer this fecond loan of feven millions stated to the committee the terms and a half. These were as folupon which he had been enabled low: to raise fo large a fum of money as

L.120 0 0 25 0 0 56

3 per cent. confols. at 671. amounting to
3 per cent. reduced at 661.
Long annuities, which at 181 years' pur-
chafe, amounted to

By this bargain, he faid, the bonus was only 11. 19s. 9d. the leaft, he believed, that had ever been given for any loan in this country.

To this was to be added half the ufual discount, in confequence of the more rapid payment of inftalments, which were all to be completed in half a year from the prefent time. The amount of the difcount, which might be ftated at the rate of 3 per cent. per annum, or at the rate of about 11. 7s. being added to the furplus, above the ftate of the funds, made, in the whole, a bonus of 31. 6s. 9d. He contended that the facility with which this money was raifed demonftrated the flourishing ftate of our refources, and the confidence of the monied men. He faid, the imports and exports in the most flourishing year of peace in this country, in 1792, amounted to 29,509,cool. and in the year 1795, the third year of the war, they amounted to 27,270,000l. This, he faid, went beyond the theoretical fpeculations of gentlemen on the other fide of the houfe, and spoke the true ftate of the country to Europe and to the whole world. He pointed out the ûnking fund as an increafing fum of gradual liquidation, which would fave to the country a perpetual tax of 4,000,000l. for the expence of this

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war, and convert it into an annuity that must be redeemed in 40 or 50 years. He could not, he faid, refift the impulfe he felt to fhew that nothing thould difcourage us from perfevering in a war whofe end was fo laudable, and which involved our dearest and most complicated interests. He did not mean to allude to a late tranfaction, the propofal of Mr. Wickham to the directory; but he was convinced, from the abject manner in which the refources of this country had been ftated by gentlemen, that the enemy confidered themselves warranted in keeping up their haughty tone, in dictating terms to this country. He pointed out the ruined ftate of the finances of France, and concluded by exclaiming, "The ultimate iffue of the contest must be glorious, if we are not wanting to ourselves! We fhall, by the bieling of providence, deliver our. felves from the worst of dangers, and at the fame time tranfmit to pofterity a most useful leffon, that a bankrupt, turbulent, and lawlefs nation, cannot measure itself with the fpontaneous and well-regulated conduct of a free and loyal country!!!"

The fubject of the fecond budget produced a long and ardent debate. Mr. Grey took the lead on the oppofition fide of the house.

He faid, that if Mr. Pitt had come forward to ftare that by a diminution of the expence of the public fervice, an alleviation of the public burdens was become practicable, inftead of coming forward with a budget for the third time in the fpace of fourteen months, then he might, with fome degree of juftice, have affumed the air of triumph with which that evening he had fo vainly attempted to cover his inability and mifconduct. On that day of humiliation to the country, the house had fome reafon to expect a confeffion of contrition becoming his fituation. He had been obliged, however, to confefs, if not in words, at least virtually and in effect, that formerly he had not fairly and candidly unfolded the true ftate of affairs; to avow to that houfe of commons which had difmiffed, without inquiry, every propofition that had been ftated, every fact that had been maintained upon the fubject of finance, that it was now neceffary to adopt fome meafure to remedy the mifchiefs which the folly of his conduct had occafioned, and to acquiefce in the existence of evils, which, but for the prudent conduct of others, might have produced the most fatal confequences.

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The bank, by withdrawing their difcounts, had forced him to the declarations he had juft made, which ought to convince the houfe of their error, in having repofed fuch implicit confidence in his former ftatements. Mr. Grey then obferved, that in fome inftances the arguments of the chancellor of the exchequer, refpecting the flourishing ftate of our commerce, were fallacious. It was no uncommon practice, to prevent mistakes, for merchants to enter the goods which

they export, oftener than once; and when it was taken into confideration, alfo, that the amount of the exports was confiderably increased by the expenditure of the war itself, his reafoning upon this head would not prove fo fatisfactory as the house at firft might be apt to conclude. But, however that might be, an increased commerce afforded no excufe for an increased extravagance; nor would it ever fuperfede the neceffity impofed upon that houfe of inquiring into the amount and the fairness of the burden to which their constituents were fubjected.

Mr. Grey then proceeded to take notice of the expences incurred fince the opening of the budget, and the means which had been proposed for defraying them. With regard to the tax on dogs, as a fubstitute for one on cottons, if it would produce 100,000l a year, he had no objection to its taking effect. He was ftruck with furprise at the eftimates for unprovided fervices, which had occurred fince the laft budget. The additional extraordinaries of the army were estimated at 535,000l. the demands for the ordnance at 200,000l. the expence of barracks at 267,000l. the deficiency of the civil lift, arifing from fums applied to fecret fervices, at 100,000l. and the eftimated deficiency of taxes at 177,000l. amounting in all to 1,279,000l. In February 1795, he faid, the chancellor of the exchequer received a loan of unparalleled extent. In September he was obliged to have recourse to new and unufual modes of raifing money. In December he came forward with a budget, in which he affured the house and the country that he had made abundant provi

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