The next financial proposition introduced, was a motion by Sir Benjamin Hall to extend the Income Tax to Ireland.

Sir Benjamin contended, that the new payment of poor rates by the land of Ireland constituted no fair exemption that the landlord had for so long a period paid no poor rates, was no reason why he should not pay Income Tax now. He quoted statistical figures to show that Ireland could plead no special burden on the score of its poor; that the rates paid in Ireland were not so high as they had been; that Ireland was specially exempted from taxes which England pays, to the amount of 12,000,000l. annually; and that the Irish Members themselves, at a meeting over which Lord Cloncurry presided, had proposed an income tax in aid of poor rates. Looking to the conduct of Irish Members in the House, he found that 52 of them had voted in favour of the tax and only 8 against it; on the question of continuing it for a period of three years, 67 Irish Members had voted for that proposition and only 9 against it. If the Irish Members chose to saddle Great Britain with this tax, there was no reason why the Eng

lish Members should not return the favour.

The motion was supported by Mr. John Williams, Sir John Tyrell, Mr. Horsman, Colonel Mure, Mr. Bankes, Mr. Newdegate, Mr. Wakley, Mr. Hume, and Mr. Muntz.

The Irish Members received it with great indignation. Sir Henry Barron (who nicknamed the mover "Conciliation Hall") pointed to the agitated state of France and Ireland as a warning to the House. He was followed by Mr. Fagan, by Mr. G. A. Hamilton (who opposed the motion on the score of the different condition of the two countries), Mr. Napier and Colonel Dunne (for the like reason), Mr. Roche (who reproached Sir Benjamin with creating more disaffection in Ireland than all the eloquence of Mr. Meagher), Colonel Conolly, Mr. Monsell, Mr. Reynolds, and Sir Arthur Brooke. Mr. Moore also opposed the motion; though he admitted that a species of property tax would reach those who eluded local liabilities, and might become absolutely necessary to restore the welfare and prosperity of Ireland.

On behalf of the Government, Sir Charles Wood resisted the motion as impolitic and inexpedient. It has been found inconvenient to impose exactly the same taxes on Ireland as on England, and the Income Tax would be an impost particularly cruel at this moment of severe and calamitous affliction.

On a division, the motion was negatived by 218 to 138.

It has been seen that the Government found themselves compelled in the early part of the Session to back out of their unpopular proposal for augmenting the Income Tax to five per cent., but as this

measure, if carried, would have given them an increased revenue of three millions, which they had stated to be necessary to equalise income with expenditure, the withdrawal of the scheme of course involved the consequence of a deficit. The reduction in the Estimates of the Army, Navy, and Ordnance, which the Ministers had consented to submit to the ordeal of a Select Committee, might indeed go some way to supply the expected defalcation; but as it could not be anticipated to equal the amount which it had been proposed to raise by taxation, a deficiency of ways and means, to a greater or less amount, seemed inevitable. Much suspense and anxiety prevailed among persons to whom the maintenance of a sound financial policy was an object of interest, as to the consequences of suffering the nation thus to exceed its income, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer was frequently importuned, as the Session went on, to state definitely to the House, what the position of the country was likely to be. Sir Charles Wood, in answer to these applications, stated, that as the Estimates which had been referred to the Select Committee, were in course of reduction, it would be more convenient to defer his ultimate exposition of his views till the close of the Session; but he, from time to time, made partial disclosures to the House as to the progress effected in reducing the Estimates, and the anticipated results of his calculations. At length on the 25th of August he fulfilled his engagement by making a more complete and explicit disclosure of the state of the Exchequer, and of the mode in which he proposed to meet the exigencies of the public service.

In a Committee of the whole House on that day, he stated what he believed the financial condition of the country to be, and also the measures which it was the intention of Government to propose to meet it. He commenced his observations by recapitulating the leading points in Lord John Russell's statement at the commencement of the Session respecting the income and expenditure of the year, and referred to the measures which his lordship had proposed and Parliament had rejected, for meeting the deficiency which was then contemplated; tracing to its source the increase of our expenditure, for which, as Mr. Cobden had justly observed, neither this nor that Government was blameable, but the House of Commons. When Ministers withdrew their proposition for increased taxation, it became necessary to revise our present system, and to make such alterations in it as the altered circumstances of the country required. In the statement which he was about to make, he would deal in the first instance only with the income of the year as compared with its expenditure. After the decision of the House on the budget of Lord John Russell, Ministers felt that their first duty was to revise the expenditure; and with a view to its reduction they had appointed two Committees, one to examine into the Miscellaneous and the other into the Naval and Military expenditure. Having appointed these Committees, Ministers had called upon every department of the Government to revise its Estimates, and the result was that diminished Estimates had been submitted to and been sanctioned by Parliament. No reduction had been

made in the amount of our effective naval and military force. The House of Commons had confirmed the opinion of Ministers on that point, and nothing had since occurred to shake it. From Ireland, and the manufacturing districts of England, demands for protection had frequently been made; and we should have been ill able to afford it had our force been less than it was at present. On other points Ministers had been able to make several reductions. For instance, the Navy Estimates voted were less than those originally submitted to the House by 208,000l.; the Army Estimates were less by 150,000.; the Ordnance Estimates were less by 123,000l.; the Miscellaneous by 235,000l.; and the Estimate for the Militia by 150,000. The whole reduction on those Estimates amounted to 866,2000. Subsequently, however, the Secretary at War had taken 25,000l. for the pensioners, whom it had been found necessary to call out, and an addition had been made to the Miscellaneous Estimates of 13,2001.; so that the actual reduction on the original Estimates did not exceed 828,000l. Now, the charge of the Debt and the Consolidated Fund was 31,280,600l., the charge for the Navy was 7,678,6101., for the Army 7,012,7951., for the Ordnance 2,078,000l., and for the Miscellaneous Estimates 3,780,000l., and the total expenditure of the year was 52,422,000. Lord John Russell had estimated the income of the year at 51,210,000l. By an arrangement, however, which had been subsequently made as to the Appropriations in aid, a sum of 500,000. had become available for the service of the year. The barley crop had also been so plentiful last

year that malting had been carried on to a very great extent, and had led to a considerable increase in the revenue of the Excise. The Stamps, however, had fallen off. Nevertheless, he anticipated an increase of ordinary revenue above that contemplated by Lord John Russell of not less than 340,000l. Add to this a sum of 80,000l., the last remnant of China money, and the income of the year would amount to 52,130,000l.; and, therefore, upon the balance of the income and expenditure of the year, there would only be a deficiency of 292,3051. He hoped that, after this statement, the Committee would be of opinion that Ministers had given some earnest of their desire to equalize the expenditure and income of the year. In the present condition of the trade and commerce of the country, it was difficult to anticipate the amount of the revenue of the year, but he entertained little doubt that at the close of the year ending 5th of April, 1849, the income would be equal to its expenditure. He then adverted to the necessity of providing for what he called the "extraordinary" expenditure of the year, in which he included the expense of the Caffre war and the amount of naval excess, amounting together to 1,345,4117. That sum had already been advanced, but it was necessary to replace it in the Exchequer. A few days ago he had proposed to vote away two sums, amounting to 393,5100., partly for the relief of distress in Ireland, and partly for repaying to the province of Canada the charge to which it had been put during the last year for relieving the emigrants from Ireland. These sums added together amounted to

1,738,921., which, added to the deficiency of 292,3051. already mentioned, made the total deficiency to be provided for 2,031,2261. Now, if he were to follow the course which had been taken in similar circumstances before, he should throw this as a charge upon the Consolidated Fund. But he thought that such a course would be unadvisable at present, as a charge of 3,500,000l. had been placed in 1846 on the Consolidated Fund for the purpose of loans for drainage in England, Scotland, and Ireland. Of this 3,500,000l. only 500,000l. had been expended. He could not say what amount might be required this year, but for some years it would be a charge annually increasing. There were also other charges, for New Zealand, for the West India hurricane loan, &c., amounting to 300,000l., on the Consolidated Fund; and therefore he thought it impolitic to increase the charge already upon it. What he proposed to do, in order to replace in the Treasury the amount of two millions, which was the excess of expenditure for the year, was to borrow the money in the market. Having explained the reasons why he did not adopt the course pursued by Sir Robert Peel in 1842, to cover the deficiency which then existed, he stated that he intended to raise the money either by an issue of Exchequer bills or by a creation of stock. No one felt more than he did that this, in ordinary circumstances, was an objectionable course. It was in creasing the debt in the time of peace, and the Government deemed that so undesirable that it had even proposed increased taxation for two years. That proposition the House would not accede to,

and Sir Robert Peel had declared that Ministers had done right in abandoning it. The circumstances under which Ministers had recourse to their present plan were not ordinary. During the last two years there had been famine in Ireland; during the last autumn there had been great commercial distress in this country; during this year there had been revolution in Europe, disorganizing all commercial arrangements; and there had been insurrection at home. Under such circumstances, it was very difficult to anticipate the revenue of future years, or even to say what the expenditure might be for Ireland next year. But unless matters took a worse turn than he anticipated, he thought that we should be able to reduce our expenditure next year, and that we might reckon upon a better revenue than we had gained in the present. It was most consolatory to know that even in the present year the revenue had maintained its amount; and taking the year as far as it had gone, our prospects were anything but unsatisfactory. Indeed, the revenue had kept up to an amount, this year, which had filled him with astonishment as he looked on it week by week. Taking the receipt of the revenue from the 5th of April to the 5th of August this year, and comparing it with that during the corresponding period of last year, the whole amount of decrease did not exceed 115,000l.; whilst upon Customs and Excise there had been a positive increase of 500,000l. Though our exports had fallen off, our imports had increased, owing to the general cheapness of commodities which had prevailed throughout the year. We had reason to be thankful for

the peace and tranquillity which had prevailed at home. The receipt of our own Customs, when compared with those of France, was most satisfactory, as he showed at some length. If the disaffected would only reflect upon it, they would see the injury they were inflicting on themselves by disturbing the public peace, and interrupting the ordinary avocations of industry. He was happy to say that trade, throughout the country, was still in a sound state. Though there had been a drain of bullion last week, it had been replaced in the present; and the reserve in the Bank had, in both weeks, amounted to 9,000,000l. He then adverted to the state of the crops and of the weather, which was to all a source of anxiety. He was sorry to say, that in the south and west of England there was danger of a considerable failure in the potato crops; but he was led to believe that in the north of England, and in Scotland, no serious injury had been done. The accounts respecting the harvest were conflicting. In some parts of England, he heard that the corn had sprouted, but he did not anticipate very considerable damage to it by the weather. The panic in London was not general; and in the north of England people were even complaining of the want of rain. As far, then, as this country was concerned, there was no great cause for anxiety. From Ireland the accounts were various. It would be impossible to go into details; but the inference he drew from them was this, that there was scarcely any part of Ireland in which the potato disease had not shown itself more or less. On the other hand, it appeared that the Irish had planted a larger quantity of potatoes than ever, and

there was no reason to believe that there would not be the same amount of sound potatoes this year as there was the last. In his present state of information as to the crops, it would be impossible to calculate what would be the amount of produce available for human food; but unless there were a failure of the crops like that of 1846, there must be a quantity of food in the country capable of supporting the people for a very considerable time. It would be unjust to the people of England, and disadvantageous to the industry of Ireland, if a large and sweeping measure for the relief of Irish distress should again be adopted. At present, he believed that it was not needed; at the same time, he must say that it would be cruel and inhuman to withhold all assistance from such localities as were suffering severe distress. To hold out to them any hope of general and systematic relief would be inexpedient. He hoped, however, that Parliament would allow the Government to dispense such aid as might be necessary. If things should turn out worse than he anticipated, it would be necessary to apply for assistance to the wisdom of Parliament. But Parliament must see what the crops were, and what was the necessity of Ireland, before it decided on the course which it ought to pursue.

The statement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer was followed by a desultory discussion, in which several Members expressed dissatisfaction at the position in which the finances of the country were placed, and also at the method proposed for recruiting them. Mr. Hume, in particular, objected very strongly to the proposition for increasing the permanent debt in time of peace,