at least, his mind was not fufficiently fresh and prepared to [COMMONS) enter upon fo important a difcuffion. The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, he could not think that the House was fo exhausted with attention to a number of claufes, chiefly of mere form, as to be unfit for the dif cuffion; and it was not yet half past feven o'clock. He did not think, after the full difcuffion the principle had undergone, that, on the question for the fpeaker leaving the chair, it would be thought necessary to detain the House from the confideration of the details. The committee might now proceed as far as they found convenient. Mr. Tierney faid, he knew the Houfe might go into the committce, and might fet till four o'clock in the morning if they pleafed; he only fpoke of what he conceived of general convenience. Mr. Buxton thought it was of importance that the measure should be immediately taken into confideration, as the Chriftmas holidays were at hand. Mr. William Smith faid, that he had confiderable doubts whether he ought not again, on the prefent occafion, to bring the principle of the bill under difcullion. He knew that fuch a proceeding was not exactly ufual, though perfectly confiftent with form. But he recollected too that if to bring the principle again into confideration might be new and unusual, the measure itfelf was likewife new and unufual. If, however, it was intended to hurry on the bill through the Houfe before Chriftmas holidays, he certainly fhould think himself juflified in oppoling all the forms of the Houfe to fuch rapidity in a measure of fuch confequence. The forms of the Houfe were intended to prevent improper rapidity. He did not mean to say that gentlemen on the other fide wished any hafte which they might confider improper, but at the fame time those who confidered the hafte propofed improper, could not be accused of acting from improper motives in endeavouring to prevent it. It seemed to be confidered a ground for rapidity that the fentiments of the country were in favour of the measure. He did not know this to be the cafe. They certainly could not be acquainted with the details. The bill had been printed only for a week, confequently the country could not have time to exprefs an opinion as to its details, although they might approve of the principle of raifing a part of the fupplies within the year. He did not think that any bad confequences could arife from poftponing the bill till after the holidays. It was not intended to take effect till the ift of April, and even were the holidays to continue two months, there would be abundance of time to pafs the bill, and to let it have its full effect. The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that as the hon. Gen tleman had avowed his intention to oppofe every obftacle in his power to the progrefs of the bill, this was a reafon why those who were friendly to it fhould wish to bring it on immediately; he should, therefore, move that the speaker do now leave the chair. Mr. Smith faid, that certainly no man had a quicker intellect than the right hon. Gentleman; he could not help being furprised to hear the right hon. Gentleman mistake what he had faid fo foon after it had been uttered. He had faid, that if difpofed, he thould think himfelf juftified, by the importance of this measure, in the peculiar circumftances of the cafe, in oppofing every obftacle to prevent it being hurried on with what he muft confider as improper hafte. He might, for inftance, in every stage, on every claufe, divide the House, or fpeak fo long as he was able. He did not fay that he would do fo. He knew too well what was owing to the House, and to his own character, to have recourse to fuch a mode of proceeding. Mr. William Dundas faid, he had understood the last speaker to have made ufe of expreffions that fully juftified the conAtruction put upon them by his right hon. Friend. Mr. Smith repeated his explanation in reply to Mr. Pitt. Mr. William Dundas faid that he was fubject to the correction of the Houfe if he had miftated the hon. Gentleman. And not only had he understood him to have faid that he would impede the measure by every poffible means, if it was attempted to pafs it before the holidays, but he believed the Houfe had understood him generally in the fame manner. Mr. Smith attempted to explain. The question being called for, the Houfe divided: Against it 3-Majority 113 The Houfe then went into a committee on the bill.. It had been propofed by fome of the Gentlemen on the treasury bench to poftpone the preamble of the bill until the blanks fhould be filled up, and the claufes finally agreed to as it might then be made more accurately to exprefs the heads of the bill. Mr. Tierney objected to this. He thought the preamble a libel on the people of England, and could not agree to its making any part of an act of the legislature. Lord Hawkesbury contended that the preamble fhould be "poftponed as a matter of course. Sir William Pulteney faid, that he had a variety of objections to the measure now under difcuffion, but he would at prefent content himfelf with putting it to the ferious confideration of the committee--ift, Whether it was a measure that could de adopted without confiderable danger to the conftitution 2dly, Whether the attempt to enforce it was not an infult added to the injury that arofe from it to the people of Great Britain? The principle of the measure adopted laft year appeared to him to be far lefs objectionable, and it was his opinion that it fhould not be thus precipitately abandoned, but that, on the contrary, it fhould be fully and fairly tried-→→→ it is difficult for any man to difcover with accuracy what is the real amount of another man's property-it is only from appearances that he can fucceed in drawing any thing like a probable conjecture; and on this ground the bill of last year proceeded, and on this ground it proceeded properly, because it is optional with a man to make what appearance he pleases, or, in other words, to limit or increase his expenditure as he may think proper. But the nature of the prefent is altogether of a different complexion. It makes no enquiry into vifible appearances; its obvious principle and final end is an affeffiment on his income, not upon his expenditure. He is called upon to declare the amount of that income; and, if he does not rate it as high as the commiffioners may be pleased to rate it, he muft produce his books, or other written documents, to prove the real amount of his property: no alternative is left him between either paying too much, or fubmitting to the disclosure of his private affairs. This was, in the mind of the hon. Baronet, an infurmountable difficulty, and he would earnestly deprecate attempting fuch ftrong measures-measures that must prove equally haraffing to individuals, and dangerous to the conflitution. The af felfed tax bill of laft year was calculated to produce feven million and a half; it is now acknowledged it has brought in above four million. From what this defalcation in that part of the revenue has arifen, no proof has been adduced. For his part he would again infift that the measure of the affeffed taxes had not been fairly tried, nor for a fufficient length of time. Another circumftance he would allude to was, the voluntary contributions; under that denomination two two millions have been paid in. This was a greater fum than they were expected to amount to, and more than fix millions were raised by these two modes. There were therefore no very fatisfactory reafons for thinking that the meafure of the affeffed taxes had been evaded to any confiderable extent. All taxes, indeed, are evaded more or lefs; but the fpirit that has manifested itself throughout the country of voluntarily coming forward with aids to government is no fmall inducement to believe that the evafion of those taxes. was not very confiderable; befides the affeffment of last year arofe in many instances above a tenth per cent. it is not now propofed that it should be raised higher. Thofe whofe dividends were above bol. also contributed last year to the affeffed taxes. There was confequently, in his opinion, no neceffity of relinquishing the former plan, efpecially as upon the whole it appeared lefs unconftitutional than the measure now propofed in its room. Befides, the mode of carrying it into execution must be found intolerable and infuiting to the pride and feelings of the country. Its principle plainly went to fay that the people of England were not fit to be trusted, or confulted, with regard to any mode of taxation. Neither their heart, it feems, nor their understanding, was to be appealed to when they are called upon for money. Are whips and lashes then to be applied in order to extort it from them? Surely the adoption of fuch harsh and oppreffive measures, argues ignorance of their temper and character. The amcunt of the voluntary contributions conveys a very different idea of their difpofition, and abundantly proves that they should experience a very different treatment; they cannot but feel that while the prefent meafure reflects fo ftrongly and fo unjustly upon their generosity, it alfo ftrikes deeply at the fafety of the conftitution. In either light he would ftrenuously oppose it. The hon. D. Ryder faid, that he rofe only to ftate, that nothing was more ufual than the motion that had been made, and he was only furprifed that there fhould be found any gentleman to oppofe it; in all cafes it was propofed to poftpone the preamble of a bill, and nothing now was asked, but whot was uniformly purfued on fuch occafions. The confideration of the preamble could not well be gone into before the claufes had been duly examined, otherwife many of them. might afterwards be found to be inconfiftent with the preamble. He did not, however, mean to fay that this obfervation was applicable to the prefent bill. As to the truth of VOL. I. 1798. Hh the the statement of the preamble, he thought it fufficiently grounded, as the preamble now ftood, and whether the provifions of the bill had been evaded, or not, and precifely to what extent, it was now difficult to prove. The House had already before them all the information they could have on that fubject, and it was generally acknowledged that feveral perfons had not been affeffed in a juft proportion to their circumftances, which was enough to fubftantiate the latter part of the preamble. Before he fat down he had alfo to observe, that this was not the moment for difcuffing the principle of the bill, and efpecially he could not bear to hear it spoken of in terms fo harth and violent as those made ufe of by the hon. Baronet. There was nothing in the bill that could juftify them; and they came with an extreme bad grace from a perfon who favoured the principle of raifing a part of the fupplies within the year, and who acknowledged the danger of the crifis in which the country was now involved. They were words fo very violent, indeed, as should never be applied to any measure that had been fuffered to be difcuffed even for a moment by that House. He would not say that fuch language was intentionally ufed as inflammatory, but neither could he forbear marking it with that cenfure which in his opinion it juftly called for. Sir William Pulteney confeffed that the words alluded to were ftrong ones; but he was alfo ready to prove that they were not itronger than what might be defervedly applied to feveral claufes of the bill. This he would prove when they came under difcuffion. He would alfo object to the power with which it was to arm the executive government; it might eafily be carried to dangerous lengths, and thefe extremes, whoever wifhed well to the conftitution, fhould jealously guard againít.. The fame jealoufy directed us not to arm ci vil or criminal magiftrates with too ftrong a power, which might be carried to lengths that would affect the innocent. The fame caution was wifely obferved when there was queftion of granting to magiftrates the power of taking up reputed thieves. An equally vigilant caution fhould watch over plans of taxation; becaufe a tax might have been evaded, is furely no reason why a power fhould be given to opprefs a man who never had any intention to evade it, in order to enable Government to get at those who may have in reality evaded it. This would be arming the executive government with a very extraordinary and a very dangerous power: but we are told the meafure must be reforted to, be caufe, |