view of our financial fituation, he could not entirely agree with him. It certainly was a fubject of ferious confideration, that no lefs a fum than 41,500,000l. was to be raised for the service of the current year. Upon the derail of the fupplies, however, he should not at prefent enter, as he hoped an opportunity would occur for doing that, when he brought forward a fecond edition of the financial refolutions he had offered last year. He could not help obferving at the fame time, the very large fum the houfe was called upon to vote without any previous eftimate. This fum, confifting of army extraordinaries and foreign fubfidies, without fpecification, amounted to no less than feven millions and a half. Many of the articles in the army extraordinaries were extremely vague. He obferved, particularly, that 300: had been given to a baron Hompefch, as an indem nification for quitting the Prusian fervice to raife a regiment in the fervice of this country; and the latter he understood to be a tranfaction fufficiently beneficial to have rendered any other bonus unneceffary. There was a fum of 30,000l. to a count de Muron, for fervices, in the island of Ceylon; this fum, too, was exclufive of another fum of 50,000l. to the fame perfon. He tho ght that the house should exercife their controul in preventing any Expenditure which was extravagant or unneceffary; for, if it was fo, they had no means of getting it back. With refpect to the flourish ing fate of the revenue, he was extremely glad to find it was fo profperous. It certainly had exceeded his expectations; and the right honourable gentleman probably would have the candour to confefs that it had exceeded his own alfo. Into this point, however, he

fhould not enter at prefent, but he begged leave to lay his claim to perfect liberty to examine on a future occafion the grounds of the statement of the right honourable gentleman, notwithstanding the acknowledgment he had made of the apparently flourishing state of the public revenue. With respect to the monies which the right honourable gentleman had calculated upon to arife from the repayment of advances to the merchants of Grenada, &c. he thought that it was not very probable that they would be available immediately. As to the income tax, he was of opinion that the statements of the right honourable gentleman on this fubje& gave room for ferious reflection. In the outfet of the meafure, the minifter had taken eight millions as the produce of the affelfed tax bill; but, exclufive of the voluntary contributions, an idea which was fuggefted in the progrefs of the bufint is, no more than four millions and a half had been obtained. Afterwards, with the convoy duty it was taken at feven millions. The whole amount then of what was called the folid fyftem of finance, in 1798, was no more than three millions. With respect to the income tax, which was confidered as a farther improvement of the folid fyftem, its amount had fallen greatly fhort of what was expected. The gentlemen of the city, when they met in a fort of parliament of their own at the manfion-houfe, feemed to have contented themselves with merely recommending the adop tion of this fyftem. When the affelfed tax bill was under confideration, the country gentlemen were accufed of all fots of frauds to evade its operation. In opening that fene me, the right honourable gentle.nan had calculated, that from

the

the commercial part of the community would be obtained no lefs than four milions of the whole amount. The gentlemen of the city were for leaving the inveftigation of their affairs to choice commiffioners, and fuch, from experience, it appeared they had been. Although many perfons who had the greatest part of their property in land chofe, because they had fome part in commerce, to go before the commercial commiffioners, yet not more than 1,100,000/. had been contributed by commerce. He believed even that it would be found that the proportion of the income tax, arifing from commerce, was not fo much as he had stated. The reft of the produce of it, being upwards of four millions, was obtained from thofe claffes of whofe evafions fo much had formerly been complained. This circumftance, at a time when the country was in a ftate of unexampled profperity, must be admitted to be very extraordinary. But the right honourable gentleman ftated, that he intended to bring forward certain regulations for the better collection of the income tax; what these were he had not hinted. In confidering the probable amount of the income tax, it was to be recollected, that the people would no longer confider, as formerly, the war as juft and ceffary, when minifters had refused even to hear what the enemy had to fay. Their zeal, in itfelf liable to wear off, would be much abated by fuch communications as had of late been laid before the house.

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In the ways and means which the minifter had brought forward, it was evident that he was poftponing those provifions which would be afterwards required; that he was evading, instead of meeting, our difficulties, He had even re

courfe to poft-obits as part of his ways and means; he had folicited the bank to purchase the renewal of their charter while it had twelve years to run. As to the loan, he agreed that the terms were extremely favourable to the public; he could not admit, however, that this circumftance was a decifive proof of the profperity of the country; he thought that it was no lefs a proof of the extravagant fpirit of fpeculation which prevailed. From the way in which the subject was viewed, indeed, it seemed as if the war was confidered as the greateft of bleffings. Mr. Tierney then proceeded to make fome obfervations on the statements of Mr. Rofe's pamphlet refpecting our peace eftablishment, and repeated his intention to go more into detail on that fubject on a future occasion.

The chancellor of the exchequer in reply to Mr. Tierney obferved, that most of the topics upon which that honourable gentleman had thought proper to enter, either did not touch immediately upon the bufinefs before the house, or had already been postponed, for future difcuffion. For that opportunity he would referve what remarks he had to make upon them. The honourable gentleman even admitted, that the fituation in which the country now appeared to be placed, was, and ought to be, matter of exultation and triumph. But he then thought proper to check himself, and obferve that there would be no reason for this triumph until he faw the amount of the peace establishment. The enemy had been in the habit of holding out threats that they would exhauft the resources of this country, and make Great Britain a bankrupt in credit. It muft, therefore, be now a fubject of difcouragement and difappointment

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providing for the fupply to be granted to his majesty towards the further expence of the year. Mr. Pitt now entered into the ufual calculations to fhow how the excefs arofe; and, having exhibited the grounds of his ftatements, he proceeded to obferve, that the circumftances of the country, and the fiattering profpects of an abundant harvest, pointed out an obvious increafe of the duties on malt for inftance, which this year was much diminished, owing to the fcarcity; but the expected increase of the crop of barley naturally led him to truit that his calculations in this place would be found correct. After converfing with the perfons moft acquainted with this fubject, he had estimated the addition to the revenue from this fource at 500,000l. Last year the produce from the aiftilleries in Scotland was neceflarily diminished; but this year, fuppofing the harvest to turn out as he fondly hoped, an increafe would arife in this way of about 100,000l. Befides thefe, the further fums of 300,cool. partly repayments and partly remittances on outstanding accounts, and two fums of 50,000l. and 150,000l. arifing from contingencies, would give an added total of 500,000l. under another head. Mr. Pitt concluded by moving, "That there be iffued 5,200,000l. out of monies to arife from the confolidated fund, towards the fupply to be granted to his majesty."

Mr. Tierney wished the eftimate had been for the whole four quarters, as had been the custom. He entered into a counter calculation, and appeared to be of opinion, that, either owing to mis-statement, or to a fallacy in the quotations of the chancellor of the exchequer, a tum of about 2,300,000l. would ftili be wanting, allowing all the items of

the right honourable gentlemant to make up the 5,200,000l. He found fault with the calculations about the land-tax, and prophefied they would prove erroneous. He alowed that the amount of the taxes this year might be 1,600,000l. greater than it was the laft; but still he could not conceive where the 5,200,000!. mentioned by the right honourable gentleman could poffibly come from. The refolution being put and agreed to, the house was refumed, and the report ordered to be received on the morrow.

On the 18th of July, Mr. Pitt moved, that the house should refolve itself into a committee of fupply. After his majesty's message relative to the imperial fubfidy had been read, Mr. Pitt rofe and faid, that having already had occasion to submit a motion to the confideration of the house, relative to the treaty between the king of Great Britain and the emperor of Germany, it could not be neceffary for him at prefent to enter very minutely into the subject. Now, to enable the committee accurately to judge of the propriety of following up by its vote that which the houfe had fanctioned, it might be neceffary to confider the circumftances under which the treaty was propofed and accepted, previous to the knowledge, or even the fufpicion, of thofe difafters which had lately taken place in Italy. He concluded by moving the first refolution, "that a further fum, not exceeding 1,500,000/. fhould be granted to his majesty, to enable him to fulfil his engagements with the emperor of Germany "

Mr. Tyrwhytt Jones faid, when he had afked a few weeks ago what would be the amount of any subsidy to the emperor that might have been in contemplation, he little thought a treaty had been entered into call

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