imported previous to the reduction of the what was the probable surplus which the duty was 48,000,000 lbs., and now it had balance-sheet of 1847 will exhibit. They risen to 74,000,000 lbs. It had been also should be introducing an element foreign exceedingly gratifying to him, in going to the subject if they took into consideration through the table, to find that there had any other sums than those required to be been an enormous increase in the import voted for the service of the current year. and consumption of those articles, such as The statement of the additional expenditure cattle, cheese, tea, tobacco, &c. on which of the constabulary of Ireland had been the great body of the people lived. The omitted because that was a charge on the increase in the revenue during the last Consolidated Fund. The six weeks upon year was mainly in the Excise, the Stamps which the calculations had been made, corand Post Office, and not in the Customs. responded exactly with the same period There was an increase of 1,186,000l. selected last year. The hon. Gentleman in the Excise, while the increase in the had declared, after taking a view of our Customs was under 200,000l. There had financial state, that it would be necessary been a diminution in the import of white to look to some other source to keep up clayed sugar, the amount imported being the revenue. When, however, he found only 31,300 tons. The differential duties that the net produce of the Customs and had kept out about 85,000 tons of that Excise, exclusive of the corn duties, producsugar. He hoped some change would be ed in 1842 something about 32,000,0007., made in those duties, unless the House while they produced in 1845, 33,500,0007. was prepared to maintain the income tax. -although the amount of taxes remitted, When the income tax was first intro- on the lowest calculation, was 5,000,0007. duced, he had opposed it, but he after-when he considered these things, he did wards voted for its continuance, in order to cover the experiment then proposed. He trusted that when the differential duties on sugar would be again brought under the consideration of the House, they would be done away with altogether, otherwise the income tax must be maintained. MR. CARDWELL could not help feeling surprised that the right hon. Gentleman should take so gloomy a view of the future. He (Mr. Cardwell) should have thought that when the hon. Gentleman found that the removal of taxation pressing on the industry of the country had been productive of great prosperity to all classes of the community, and also of a corresponding increase in the revenue, he would have come to a conclusion respecting the future more analogous to the past than he had done. not think there should be any serious apprehension entertained on the subject of the revenue. It might, however, be right, not merely for the purpose of finance, but for other reasons, to limit themselves to the income stated in the balance-sheet of 1847; at the same time there was the hope that present measures would impart an elastic energy to all their commercial relations; and he had no doubt that future years would present not only the same increase as past years, but even considerably more. He had not, therefore, the slightest apprehension but that the anticipations entertained by his right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer would be fully realized; and he confessed that he drew the same conclusion from a part of the speech of the hon. Gentleman who preceded him, and who appeared to have adopted the same premises. The Chancellor of the Exchequer had confined himself entirely to those items of expenditure which were anticipated to MR. WILLIAMS observed that he had occur within the current year. The Esti- been disappointed as to the extent of the mates before the House were only for proposed expenditure for the next year. three-quarters of a year; and in confining He thought that it would be materially themselves to that period they were follow-reduced. Taking an average of the years ing precedents which it was desirable they should observe. The money voted in the year was expended in that year. In the Estimates which had long been before the House, the fullest details had been given; and it was from those Estimates the hon. Gentleman had obtained all the information he possessed on the subject. The House should confine itself to the simple consideration of the present financial year, and 1834, 1835, and 1836, he found that the expenditure over that period was annually not more than about forty-four millions of money, less, by six millions, than that proposed for the expenditure of the next financial year. The hon. Gentleman went on to contrast the expenditure upon the army and navy of this country with that of the United States, and to express a hope that the relations between the two coun The two tries might soon be put upon a more satis- | in general very satisfactory. factory footing than that on which they sides of the account were too nearly banow stood. A Commission to inquire into lanced to be the source of any cause of the collection of the revenue had at one congratulation either to the House or to time been appointed; but he was sorry to the country. He felt great disappointment find it was not now in existence. Govern- when he discovered there was so little done ment ought to look into this subject, with to relieve the people from hose taxes which a view of reducing the expenditure, for it still so heavily pressed upon them. He was enormous. By a return which had did expect that a speculating Ministry lately been obtained, he found that within -a Ministry which was so fond of indulgthe last three years and a half there had ing in utopian speculations, would have been in this department no fewer than 600 done something in the way of effecting a new places created, with salaries to the reduction on tea and other articles of geamount of between 70,000l. and 80,000l.; neral use by the poorer classes of society, and this was totally unconnected with ex- in order to carry out their own favourite tensive additions which had been made in principle, which was to rely for an increasother departments of the public service. ed revenue on an increased consumption. He found, for instance, that four places He greatly feared the general consequences had been created with salaries of 6,000l. which would result to the country from the a year each, two at 5,000l. a year each, present measures of Her Majesty's Governone at 3,000l. a year, one at 2,500l. a ment. In the first place, it would be imyear, ten at 2,000l. a year each, fifteen at possible for them to make any calculation 1,8001. a year each, eight at 1,500l. a year as to what would be the probable amount each, two at 1,2501. a year each, thirteen of the income for the present year; no one, at 1,2007. a year each, twelve at 1,000l. a in fact, could tell what might be the effect year each, sixteen at 800l. a year each, of those great changes which were about and thirty-one at from 600l. to 750l. a to take place. As to the Estimates, that year each; being 113 places at salaries must be purely a matter of speculation. amounting to 149,500l. and all created As to the general expenditure of the within the last three years and a half. country, that demanded a serious reduction. Could it be wondered at, then, that there It was the duty of that House carefully to was a great increase in the expenditure? look after the state of the revenue, and He also found a great increase in the ex- minutely to inquire into every item of the penditure connected with the Woods and public outlay; and which inquiries might Forests. He considered that when the very possibly lead to useful retrenchments. expenses of living had been so much re- The Chancellor of the Exchequer made duced as of late years, the salaries of what was apparently a very fair speech: public officers ought to receive a corre- it might, perhaps, be looked upon as one sponding diminution. Until, however, the of a series of "prosperity speeches." He House devoted itself seriously to consider- might be permitted to call the speech just ing the expenditure of the country, it was concluded the first prosperity speech of the of no use for him or others to complain. Chancellor of the Exchequer of the day. Ministers would always be ready to make That speech certainly treated largely of all estimates if they thought the House was that prosperity which flowed over this ready to vote money. The taxes were in country for the last four years-a prosvalue now 10,000,000l. more than they perity which might be attributed to various were in 1814. He could not, however, causes. Reference, to be sure, was made but admit that the Chancellor of the Ex- to the good harvests which had prevailed chequer's statement had been most clear-well, that might have had some influence and comprehensive. on the general prosperity; he, however, MR. HUDSON, at that late hour was would refer to the years 1822, 1823, and unwilling to occupy the House at any 1824, when there were abundant harvests length; he would therefore confine himself and when there was an abundance of capital to a few general observations. The House in the country. How was that capital apshould feel much indebted to the right hon. plied? Was it applied to the internal imGentleman the Member for Portsmouth, in provements of the country? It was not; having called their attention to the very on the contrary, it was exported in bullion important omissions of the right hon. the to South America. He would come down Chancellor of the Exchequer; whose state-to the years 1833, 1834, 1835, and 1836, ments he (Mr. Hudson) did not think were when the money of the country was not expended in its internal improvements, as had been the case within the last four years, it being embarked in the construction of railroads and canals in the United States. Good harvests were a blessing, and their continuance might be the means of a nation's prosperity; still it was quite possible for a crisis to occur, to meet which the nation should not be unprepared, and which he feared might be the case from the measures lately propounded by the Government. The whole of the speech they had heard was very laudatory of past policy, and very complimentary to Ministers, who, it appeared, were rather oblivious of an old copy line often written by himself when a schoolboy-and which it would not be amiss to bear in mind-" Self-praise is no commendation." He did not much admire the former Government, but he neither admired the proceedings of, nor did he place any confidence in the present Ministry-who were continually boasting of the prosperity of the years of their office; but those causes which really led to that prosperity, he sincerely wished they had allowed to remain undisturbed. MR. JAMES: The noble Member for Lynn had stated that the difference between the sugar duty of 25s. 3d. and 14s., had gone into the pockets of the West India planters. He could assure the noble Lord they had not had a farthing of it. In the present state of the labour market in those Colonies, the cost of production exceeded any return obtained for the article produced. If the noble Lord had not made a better speculation on the Derby than the West India planters, all he could say was, that he made a much worse book than usual. Vote agreed to. House resumed. House adjourned at a quarter past Twelve o'clock until Friday next. APPENDIX. SPEECH OF MR. HUDSON RESPECTING "RAILWAY LABOURERS,” THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 1846.-(See note, p. 220.) MR. HUDSON had no objection to the inquiry, because he was satisfied that it would redound to the credit of those gentlemen who had the honour of being connected with these public works. He believed that it was the wish of these gentlemen to improve not only the social but moral condition of their labourers. He could say for himself, that he had received several communications from clergymen relative to the necessity of having some religious instruction imparted to the labourers on certain lines with which he was connected; and in every instance of such an application, he had placed money at the disposal of the clergyman of the district for that purpose. In their contracts for work, the railway directors had a stringent clause prohibiting contractors, under a heavy penalty, from permitting labourers to work on Sundays. He had great doubts whether the appointment of the proposed Committee would be any public benefit; but at the same time, he would not oppose it, and he should be rejoiced if it effected any good. In every instance where grounds of complaint had been made relative to the treatment of labourers, it had been immediately remedied: in some cases it had come to his knowledge, that they received their wages at public houses, and the moment he heard it, he had insisted upon the practice being abolished. INDEX. INDEX ΤΟ HANSARD'S PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES, VOLUME LXXXVI. BEING THE FOURTH VOLUME OF SESSION 1846. EXPLANATION OF THE ABBREVIATIONS. - 1R. 2R. 3R. First, Second, or Third Reading-Amend., Amendment.-Res., Resolution.-Com. - C., It has seemed better, instead of incumbering this Index with a reference to Private Bills, upon which BROUGHAM, Lord Art Unions, 970 Charitable Trusts, 2R. 780, 790 Clerks of the Crown (Ireland), Returns moved Corn Importation, 1R. 730; 2R. 1176, 1182, Education in Wales, 862 Hardinge, Viscount, and Lord Gough, Pensions Religious Opinions Relief, Questions for the |