chancellor of the exchequer should have made it proportionably greater; it ought to have been 6 or 700,000l. more than his eftimate. "Notwithstanding all the heavy burdens," faid Mr. Fox, "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." With refpect to the propofed loan of 200,000l. to the emperor, to enable him to pay the intereft of a fum which he had formerly borrowed of this country, Mr. Fox obferved, that this was very different language from that held out by the minifter when he applied to the people to be fecurity for the houfe of Auftria, and when he extolled the good faith of the bank of Vienna. The loan was made to him in critical circumftances, and he was not to pay the intereft then due because he still remained in critical circumftances. The houfe was called upon near the end of April to provide 18 millions additional. Three payments only had then been made good upon the loyalty loan, and there were ftill feven-tenths to be paid, which amounted to 12,600,000l.; fo that, between then and the first day of the next January, the enormous fum of 30,600,000l. was to be collected for the public exigencies. In 1796 the fubjects were burdened with new taxes which produced the annual fum of three millions; but the taxes impofed for 1797 amounted, by eftimate, to feven millions and a half. What arguments were ufed to reconcile them to bear quietly fuch a load? Indeed, they had been told very rhetorically, that "they had not been scratched by the war," but he feared thefe new impofitions would lead them to conclude that they fhould be defperately wound eu by it. Mr. Grey faid, there was an article in the report of the felect committee which he wished to have explained. There was a fum of 1,500,000l. ftated to be unfunded debt, unprovided for. He wished to know, whether certain fums had not been foecifically granted last seffion of parliament for the payment of this charge, the money for which had however been diverted to other purposes? If this were the cafe, the right honourable gentle ran had violated the acts of appropriation, and diverted the money granted to parliament in a manner highly criminal. The chancellor of the exchequer replied, that the objection which had just been made, was founded entirely in mifconception. The fum alluded to had not been granted by parliament for that specific purpofe, nor had there been any violation of the appropriation act. When the loan was made for the purpose of paying off the debt on the exchequer pills, the bank had not availed themfelves of the opportunity to fubfcribe, and there was power by the act of appropriation to pay them in cath. This at the end of the year, made the grant exceed the fupplies, and the fum of 1,500,000l. mentioned by Mr. Grey, fo far from being concealed, was comprehended in the laft budget, and was paid out of the fupplies of the year 1797. The refolutions were then put, and all agreed to without a divifion, except that which impofed an additional tax of 1d. on newspapers. On this head the house divided - Ayes 151- Noes 43. The feveral bills for impofing the new taxes propofed by Mr. Pitt in his statements in the two budgets for the current year, were regularly and fucceffively brought into both houfes of parliament, and most of them were paffed with few alteraD 2 tions; tions; but near the close of the feffion, on the 30th of June, the houfe of commons having refolved itself into a committee, the chancellor of the exchequer rofe, and stated to the confideration of the committee, certain fubftitutes for the deficiencies which had taken place in the eftimated product of the late taxes. In the first place, it would be neceffary to find a fubftitute for the propofed toll duty, which had been eftimated at 450,cool. but which, Toll duty from fome ftrong objections to the mode of collecting, had been given up. The tax upon the transfer of property had been estimated at 170,000l. but he now took it at no more than 80,000l. The propofed duty upon advertisements had been given up, which created a further deficiency of 40,000l. The whole deficiency, therefore, for which he then propofed a new provifion, ftood as follows: Inland navigation duty, by fome new regulations, would cause a deficiency of Newspaper advertisements Transfer of property Total deficiency £. 660,000 These deficiencies Mr. Pitt propofed to fupply by the following new taxes: Surplus on Scotch fpirits. On horfes employed in agriculture Mr. Sheridan ftrongly oppofed the tax on horses used in hufbandry. Mr. Burdon contended for the neceffity there was of the landed intereft coming forward, and fhewing they were willing to take their fhare of the burden. He wifhed to fee an additional land-tax upon a more equal fcale, in which he was feconded by Mr. Dent. The committee divided on the horfetax-for the refolution 83-against it 8. The other refolutions were carried, and the bills paffed with little variation. On the 29th of April, the chancellor of the exchequer prefented to the houfe of commons a meffage from his majesty, recommending it to them to enable his majefty to make remittances from time to time, to be applied to his fervice in Ireland, in fuch manner as fhould be approved by the parliament of that kingdom, to an amount not exceeding 1,500,000l. on provifion being made by them for difcharging the intereft and charges of a loan to that amount; and alfo to confider of guaranteeing a loan on the account of his ally the emperor, to be applied in making good the advances to the amount of 1,600,000l. which had been been made to his imperial majesty, and to defray the charge of fuch further advances as might be made to him in the course of the current year, to an amount not exceeding 2,000,000l. The houfe, in a committee of fupply, took this meffage into confideration on the ift of May, when the chancellor of the exchequer obferved, that he thought it unneceffary to make any obfervations upon that part of the meffage which respected the proposed aid to Ireland. Refpecting the remittances to the emperor, much had been faid before; but feeling it to be almoft the general opinion of the house, and of the country at large, that it was defirable that we should have the vigorous co-operation of the emperor in the war, and knowing we could not expect that co-operation unless we afforded pecuniary aid to his imperial majefty, he fhould move a refolution, to enable his majesty to make advances, from time to time, to the emperor, to the amount of three millions and a half, to be repaid by his imperial" majefty, so that the fum then propofed to be advanced, was about 1,880,000l. and this fum was moved for accordingly. Mr. Fox obferved, upon this occafion, that it was impoffible for any man who had examined the matter, to entertain a doubt that the fending of money to the emperor had been one great caufe of the fcarcity of cafh which then prevailed. He contended, that we were about granting money to be fent to the emperor at the very moment when it was doubtful whether he had concluded a peace with the French, or not. It was notorious, that an armistice for fix days had been agreed upon between the contending armies; and the empe ror, in alluding to his hopes of peace, had faid "he trufted that the enemy would at length confent to accept equitable conditions." From hence Mr. Fox pointed out the probability there was of the emperor's making peace without confulting the interest of Great Britain. We ought to wait the confequences of the impending negotiation at leaft, and not vote away the money of the people in the dark. Suppose the war fhould be continued, it would be neceffary to know the grounds upon which the negotiation had been broken off, and whether the war was continued for points which might be confidered as material to the interefts of Great Britain, before the money was granted. For any thing the houfe knew to the contrary, thofe two millions which they were called upon to vote to the emperor might be for the attainment of objects which might be detrimental to the general interefts of Europe. He ftrongly urged the neceffity of waiting three or four days to know the iffue of the negotiation between France and the emperor, before the money was voted; the armiftice terminated on the 16th of April, and there were letters in town from Vienna, of the 15th of the fame month. The chancellor of the exchequer contended, on the other fide, that a mail might reach Vienna in ten or twelve days, with the account of the vote which he then proposed to the committee to pass, and that if the negotiation was then pending, it might materially affect the terms in difcuffion. In reply to what Mr. Fox ftat. ed, that the committee might perhaps be voting a fum to enable the emperor to conclude a feparate peace, he recommended a discretionary power to be vested in government to stop D 3 the 54 the fupplies upon the fuppofition of fuch an event taking place. Mr. Grey and Mr. Sheridan fupported the arguments of Mr. Tox. When th houfe divided there appeared for the original refolution 193-against it 50. A refolution alfo paffed the committee that a difcount of 5 per cent. be allowed to fuch fubfcribers to the new loan as fhould anticipate a part only of their payments, as before the difcount was allowed only to thofe who completed their whole payments. During the intervals between the feveral ftages of the loan bill, intelligence had been received by the minifter that preliminaries of peace between the French republic and the emperor, were either figned, or in great forwardnefs; this induced him to ftate to the committee of fupply, on the 5th of May, that he fhould move for provifion to be made for the repayment of the advances which had then been made to the emperor; but that it was not his intention then to make any provision for further advances to be made to his imperial majefty, according to the ground which he had for forming his opinion at that moment. Having ftated the arguments made ufe of in the commons, for and against granting a further loan to the emperor, we proceed to ftate what paffed upon the fubject of the Irith loan in the house of lords; but the arguments enforced in both houfes being very fimilar, a brief account of the latter may fuffice, On the 9th of May, on the motion for the fecond reading of the bill for granting to his majefty four teen millions, five hundred thoufand pounds, by way of loan, the earl of Suffolk begged leave to afka queftion of the fecretary of state. (lord Grenville), which was, whe ther any part of the money to At the end of a defultory debate the loan bill was read a fecond time. The next fubject of finance was the portion given with the princefs royal on her marriage with the hereditary prince of Wirtemburg, On the 3d of May, the chancellor of the exchequer introduced into the house of commons a message from his majefty, announcing his royal confent to a marriage between his his eldest daughter and his ferene highnefs the prince of Wirtemburg, and that he did not doubt but the house would concur in making the ufual provifion for the marriage of the eldest daughter of the royal family of England. The addreis was agreed to nem, con. The meflage was taken into confideration on the 5th of May, when the chancellor of the exchequer moved, that the fum of 800,000l. be granted as a portion to the princefs royal on her marriage. Mr. Curwen faid, he would not oppofe the refolution; but could not help obferving, that, confidering the heavy burdens which had been lately impofed upon the people, he fhould have been happy if the king had provided for this marriage himfeif. He was as willing as any other man to exprefs all neceflary affection for the throne and for the different branches of the royal family, but at a moment like the prefent it would have had a good effect if his majesty had come forward and defrayed that expence himself. The refolution was then put and carried. The fubfcribers to the loan which Ir. Pitt obtained near the begin. ning of the feffion, commonly called the loyalty loan, having difcovered that they were liable to incur a confiderable lofs from the fubfequent depreffion of the funds, not withstanding their former preten. fions to difintereftednefs, prevailed upon the minister to apply to parliament to make them a recompence. The chancellor of the exchequer accordingly, on the 31ft of May, moved the house to that effect. He faid the perfons in whofe behalf he applied, could not fail to be regarded by the house with a favourable eye, becaufe it was obvious that they had been actuated in a great degree by a zeal for the public fervice, and by that zeal had incurred the loffes which it was his with the houfe fhould make good. He confeffed, at the fame time, that the fubfcribers looked forward for fome chance of advantage from a favourable turn of affairs. He did not wish to keep from the view of the committee, that the fubfcribers had no ftrict ground of right to reparation, but contended, that they could not have looked forward for fuch a heavy lofs as that which they had fuftained fince the period of their fecond depofit. He ftated, that, previous to the fubfcribers having made their firft depofit, they fuffered a lofs by the fall of the funds, of full 3 per cent. and, af. ter that, the lofs they fuftained a mounted to 8, 14, and 15 per cent. At that time they stood at a lofs of 14. The circumstances which led to thefe loffes were the unfortunate events which had taken place on the continent, &c. all of which had a fhare in depreffing the stocks far beyond the natural expectations of any one at the time that loan was made. On thefe grounds he thought it would be proper to alleviate the pref fure upon the fubfcribers. He propofed to allow them 51. in every 100l, in the fhape of a long annuity of 75. 6d. on every 100l. On mature confideration he found it impoffible to frame anydiftin&tion in the allowance between the fubfcriber and holder; the only way, therefore, was to fettle the general amount, and to leave it to the holder and the fuofcriber to fettle their respective claims, and this could only be done by allowing this fum to thofe only who pro. duced the original receipts. The amount of the whole he stated to be an annuity of between fixty and feventy thousand pounds a year. He concluded with moving the refolution "That 7s. 6d. per cent. longannuity, be granted on the faid loan." D 4 Mr. |