Population. Average No.

of Paupers.

documents furnished by the Magistrates, were most deserving of confidence. He 64,848 10,117 15 per cent. had another document to which he would 76,689 13,800 - 18

1821 to 1830 95,868 - 12,606 - 13} 1830 to 1833-110,364 16,612 15 78,870 - 19,278

In 1817

24

1832 - 113,106 - 18,516 - 16

correct

call their attention, and leave them to
judge of its value. It was an extract of
a letter from the senior Magistrate of
Birmingham, dated March, 1833, and that
Gentleman had the reputation of being
every way qualified to give a
opinion on the subject. He wrote- From
an experience of more than fifty years,
I can safely aver, that I never saw the
artizans of this place better fed, clothed,
or more comfortably housed, than at pre-
sent. As respects the town itself,
there are manifest symptoms of im-

But he would go further, and produce to the House indubitable evidence of the increased prosperity of the town. The hon. member for Birmingham said, in his evidence before a Committee, that capital was extinct in Birmingham, and that although numbers of the people were enjoying luxuries and spending money in amusements, they were growing poor. He should be glad to arrive at the conclusion,provement. From adequate authority, that, in spite of growing poorer, men were able to enjoy more of the pleasures of life; but not being able to do so, he was fain to believe that they enjoyed more of the pleasures of life, because they were bettering is now going on than has been known

able to afford them. One of the best proofs of the prosperity of Birmingham was afforded by the two great canals; and he would read to the House an account of the revenues derived from them during several years:

Tolls on the Old Bir-
mingham Canal.

Tolls on the Wor

ham Canal.

£20,255

24,912

for many years. The increase of parochial expenditure is trifling compared with the greatly augmented population. Contrary to all former precedents, nearly all transactions in business are on money ' terms. The Birmingham canal--that great duct for the conveyance of our raw cester and Birming- materials, and heavy articles-has a larger tonnage than ever was known, and all the public institutions are well supported.' He had thought it right to dwell on these facts, because the hon. Member grounded his Motion on the assertion, that the distress of the country was great and unparalleled. After the facts which he had stated, he did not believe that the House would adopt the hon. Member's conclusion. He was however prepared to go further, and, in spite of the observations of the hon. member for Oldham, who asserted, that an increase of consumption was only an evidence of increase of distress, he would refer to the increase of consumption in the United Kingdom of the four great articles, all entering largely into the consumption of the poorer classes-tobacco, sugar, tea, and coffee-as evidence of the not decaying prosperity of the kingdom. For this purpose he would proceed to mention the particulars in the following Table of the

That was tolerably good evidence, that trade was not on the decline in Birmingham, that the town was not going to decay, and that capital was not annihilated, as was represented by the hon. Member for that town.

The Tolls on the Market formed another criterion of the state of the town which was equally satisfactory. They amounted, in 1826-27, to 1,0257.; 1827-28, 1,0787.; 1828-29, 2,3831.; 1829-30, 2,9257.; 1830-31, 3,0771.; 1831-32, 3,0957. Provisions had also fallen in price since 1826-At the rate of--Meat 23, Bread 71, Bacon 31, Cheese 40-per cent. He would not pretend to say, that his informants were more correct than the hon. Member, but they had the advantage of stating figures, and they had access to all the documents of the town. It was for Tobacco.. the House to judge whether the vague Tea... statements of the hon. Gentleman, or the Coffee VOL. XVII. {id}

Thus, whilst the increase of the popula- | increased thirty per cent. The documents tion had been only about twenty-four or he had quoted showed the case to be very twenty-five per cent., there had been an in- different. He regretted as much as any crease in the consumption of all these arti- man that there should be distress in the cles far beyond that proportion. He went country, and the rather as he feared it back, it would be observed, to the year was a condition of affairs for which 1814, because that year had been selected patience was the only remedy; he should by the hon. member for Whitehaven be the first likewise to advocate as the halcyon period of unlimited paper the principle that it was the bounden issues, and unbounded prosperity. Let duty of Parliament to seek a remedy the hon. member for Oldham say what for distress, and, whenever inquiry he pleased, he was sure the House, after appeared likely to point out a remedy, it hearing such a statement would be con- ought to be instituted. To any inquiry vinced that the mass of the people enjoyed which seemed to hold out a promise of a greater command over the comforts of utility he would readily assent; but the life than formerly. The rich man, it would present proposition he considered would be remembered, added little or nothing to prove disastrous in its consequences. He his consumption of the necessaries of life, was not deaf to the cry of distress-he however much the price might fall, and wished to diminish and relieve it to the therefore he was justified in assuming, utmost extent possible, but he looked upon that the increased consumption he had the proposition now before the House to pointed out had taken place exclusively be one made solely with a view to depreamong the lower and middle classes, and ciate the standard, and therefore calculated was a sure proof that they had increased not to inquire into distress, and still less in comfort and opulence. He would next to afford a remedy for it. On the contrary, refer to the consumption of cotton and he thought that he should be able to show, sheep's wool, constituting the great staple that by granting the Committee asked for manufactures of the country. He had by the hon. Member, and granting the deseparated these from the other articles, preciation which might be the consequence because a large portion of them were ex- of it, the House would inflict upon ported; but the increase, as a large part the mass of the community (the labouring was consumed at home, might be taken classes especially) an amount of misery both as a proof of additional enjoyment and wretchedness such as never was before and additional employment for the labour- inflicted upon any country. All history ing classes. The consumption of these demonstrated, however beneficial a deprearticles, then, was :ciation of the currency might be to the debtor, who wished to acquit himself of his obligations at a reduced standard of 70 per cent. value-however beneficial for a time to the tradesman who held a stock of goods, it must be, as it ever had been, the most severe infliction possible for the labouring classes. He wished that this question should be well understood by the country; not but that he agreed with the hon. Gentleman behind him (Mr. Foster), that there was far from being that feeling upon the subject amongst the industrious classes which had been described by the hon. Member. He had continued intercourse with people of various classes, and from his experience he must say, that although among certain currency doctors there might be a cry with respect to this question, and there might have been attempts made to enlist the people on their side, yet those attempts had all failed, and the people were indifferent, if not averse, to the change contemplated by the hon.

INCREASE.

1820. 1832. Cotton Wool... 152,829,633 259,412,463 Sheep's Wool. 9,775,605 27,666,350 183 Increase of Population in the same period 16 per cent.

Perhaps he had better not speak of silk, as there had been several alterations in the duty. Another point which he considered not less deserving of notice was the great diminution of the rate of mortality which had taken place in the country during the last fifty years, as it showed an increase of comfort. In 1780, one in forty died annually; at present the proportion was not more than one in fifty-eight, being a diminution of thirty-six per cent. Was not that also an evidence that the condition of the people had improved? In adducing these returns he was replying to that part of the hon. Gentleman's speech in which he stated that the power of consumption of the people had only increased eleven per cent, while the population had

course, must have bore hard upon the lower sort of people especially, who had everything to buy, and nothing to sell, except their labour.' Were Mr. Smith writing with all the experience of the present day, he could not more accurately describe the effects of depreciation which had taken place in our times; or what would be the effects of the depreciation now proposed by the hon. Member. In 1550, in consequence of this depreciation in the value of money, and the miserable condition of the people, a maximum price was actually placed on all the commodities sold in this country, which many writers ascribe to the proper cause, The second period to which he begged to

{APRIL 22} Member. In order to render them decidedly hostile to it, it was only necessary to inform them upon the true state of the question. For this purpose, he would find it necessary to refer the House to four distinct periods which marked, in the strongest and clearest way, the real effects of a depreciation, whether forced or natural, of the standard of value, and on the other hand exhibited in the most striking manner the beneficial consequences of a steady and uniform value of money. For the first of these instances he should have to go back, very shortly, to rather an early period in the history of this country, that in which the first considerable depreciation took place in the value of gold and silver, in conse-call the attention of the House, was that quence of the opening of the South Ame- from 1660 to 1760, during which, with rican mines. Between 1527, and about one exception, the value of money re1540, the pound sterling was depreciated mained nearly equal; and there had been nearly one-third. All the writers of the no period, with that one exception, of time describe the miserable condition to greater prosperity to the labouring classes. which the poor of England were reduced. He would state the evidence upon which Before the passing of the 43rd of Eliza- he came to that conclusion. In the year beth, they were represented as wandering 1680, the Poor-rates were computed by about begging or committing the most Davenant at 665,000l., for England and horrible crimes in open day. It indeed Wales; in 1750, nearly a hundred years had been disputed, whether the distress afterwards, they amounted only to thus described was not owing to the aboli- 689,000l., having increased only 24,000l. tion of the monasteries in the reign of in the long period of a century, during Henry 8th; but when a similar state of which the precious metals retained nearly distress existed in other states of Europe the same value. There was, however, where no monasteries were abolished, and one exception; that was about the year no Poor-laws established, it was right to 1695, when the coin of the country was infer that those writers who attributed the debased. If Gentlemen would turn to distress to the depreciation in the value the history of that day, they would see to of money formed a correct opinion, and what a state of misery and distress the the correctness of that view was now labouring classes were reduced. universally acknowledged. He would Lowndes said, in his Report to the quote only one sentence to the House Treasury, in 1695, that the degraded upon this subject, from the writings of state of the coinage was "one great cause Mr. John Smith who, in speaking of of the raising the price, not only of all the distress of 1550, said- The principal merchandises, but of every article neces'real grievance at this time of the poorer sary for the maintenance of the common 'manufacturers, they do not appear to people, to their great grievance." Mr. 'have been sensible of, and historians Locke, in his answer to Mr. Lowndes, con' have since overlooked it, was the state of firmed this statement, and said, that "the the coin. The debasement of the coin, money-price of all sorts of provisions had which was now of several years standing, risen excessively." Let the House see the 'had undoubtedly given a nominal ad- effect of this upon the Poor-rates. In 'vance to all things vendible; and though the year 1700 they had risen, according to 'perhaps to wages too, yet probably Sir F. Morton Eden's calculation, to nothing near in proportion to the differ- 1,000,0007. Afterwards, when the curence of the coin. And as the money in rency had been restored, and had again bewhich they were paid, not containing as come settled, they fell, in 1750,to 680,000l. much silver as it did before, would not That proved, he thought, that the only 'purchase the same quantity of necessa- interruption to prosperity which oc⚫ries of life it was wont to do-that, in curred in the course of a century, origin

Mr.

the House or of the country this fact-that | avow themselves in that House. But, in the labouring classes would not profit by case they should, he rejoiced that this Moany attempt to depreciate the currency. tion had been submitted to the House-he The more the history of the different rejoiced that this question of a straightforperiods to which he had alluded was ward, downright act of spoliation and studied, the more evident would that con- bankruptcy had been offered for decision, clusion, he felt satisfied, appear. What because it would, he trusted, entirely prehad been characterized by the hon. mem- vent any attempt at arriving at the same ber for Whitehaven as a "6 system of con- result by a sidewind which would lengthen fiscation and public robbery," had cer- present suffering, and increase the ultimate tainly then not been one of confiscation to distress. But he must return to his former the great mass of operators. He did question. Whom did the hon. Gentlenot indeed admit the justice of those man propose to benefit by the depreciwords, as applied to the Act of 1819; ation? He had shown that it could not but if the hon. Member thought proper benefit the labouring class. The hon. so to apply them, he must admit them Gentleman said, that the landed interest as applicable to what must be the was suffering. He admitted it; but would result of his proposition, with this dif- the landed interest be relieved by a meaference, that if the system of confisca- sure of this kind, except in so far as it tion and public robbery now proposed were would be relieved in a manner which he adopted, it would tend most materially to respected the gentlemen of England too injure the operative classes; so that, much to suppose they would acceptwhilst they participated in the shame of the namely, by paying off their fixed engageAct, they would not only be excluded ments in a depreciated currency. Would from any of its supposed benefits, but reap their rents be better paid in that currency from it inevitable misery. But if the hon. than in any other? No such thing. Member's proposition would not benefit Supposing their rents were raised in this the labouring classes, whom would it way, all other things would be raised in benefit? The hon. Member said, that the proportion, and then could they purchase country prospered under the former system, more of the enjoyments of life than they but he only showed that a factitious paper could command at present? They could money for a time increased the industry of not. They could receive relief in no the country. He entirely failed in show- way but that which he believed every ing any connexion between the simple man of honour would spurn. Then as to fact of returning to the metallic standard, the manufacturers and shopkeepers, how and the distress of the present time. No would it benefit them? It would benefit over-issue of paper could take place, with them to the extent of their stock on hand, whatever apparent prosperity it might be and no more. That might be to the exattended, without there necessarily being tent of five, or ten, or twenty per cent, a reaction productive of misery; and in or whatever might be the amount of the proportion as over-issues took place-in depreciation. That would be the work of proportion as the stream had been unduly a single day. When the next day he supplied-would the returning rush of the came to purchase, he would find that his waters be great, and barrenness and dearth condition would not be improved. Then be spread over the land. He had heard it was there any other party who could said, indeed by some, "We do not wish derive a benefit from it? He might be to produce depreciation by any violent or told the debtor would. But why should sudden measure; we mean to obtain an the debtor be more an object of sympathy over-issue of paper, which will create than the creditor? Putting aside all congreat temporary prosperity, to be followed siderations of honesty, he saw no claim the by contraction of the currency, by distress, debtor had to the consideration of the by applications for gold, by the inability of State. The creditor, it was generally who the Bank to meet those applications; and had amassed capital, and who had contrithus arrive at an inconvertible paper cur- buted to the increase of the national rency, which once again obtained, you will wealth, while the debtor might have connever more return to cash payments." tracted engagements he could not fulfil, That was a doctrine which he had heard and who had dissipated gains he had propounded, although he did not believe not honestly acquired. So much for the its advocates would be found openly to immediate consequences of a measure for