And reach'd the garden of her home, Of hope in man bereft. On hand and foot fhe feebly crawl'd Beneath the bower unbleft, Where withering leaves, and gathering fnow, Prepar'd her only reft. There rending pains and darting throes With hafty hand she drew, Erft when the act of blood was done, Her foul its guilt abhorr❜d: "My Jefus! what has been my deed? Have mercy on me, Lord!" - With bloody nails, befide the pond, Its fhallow grave fhe tore: "There reft in God;-there fhame and want Thou can't not suffer more: Me vengeance waits. My poor, poor child, Hard by the bower her gibbet ftands: That is the fpot where grows no gråss; And nightly, when the ravens come, ELEGY, WRITTEN TO DISSUADE A YOUNG LADY Noftros non rumpit funus amores. -Neque unquam Is feen the friendly lantern's glimmering light; Safe in his cot, the shepherd bars his door On thee, Eliza! and the form of night. In yon fequefter'd grove, whose fullen fhade Sighs deeply to the blast, dost thou remain, Still faithful to the spot where he is laid, For whom the tears of beauty flow in Ah, left alone beneath the dreadful gloom, A pallid form, and wedded to the ftone! Solvitur in fomnos, oculifve aut pectore Deep, deep beneath the dark mysterious nocom Accipit. Vir. En. lib. 4. grave, Thy tears he fees not, nor can hear thy fighs: Deaf is thine Edward, as th' Atlantic wave, Cold as the blast that reads the polar *kies. 3 C PROCEEDINGS OF THE SIXTH SESSION OF THE SEVENTEENTH PARLIAMENT OF GREAT BRITAIN. HOUSE OF COMMONS. MR GREY faid, that previous to the adjournment a meffage had been brought down to that House from his Majefty, by his Minifters, that the crifis had at length arrived, when the fituation of affairs in France held out a profpect of treating for Peace; but that fince he had heard nothing further on the fub ject, his reafons at prefent for rifing were to know whether any further informa tion on that head might be expected from his Majefty's Ministers. Mr Pitt faid, that none further, at prefent, could be given. Feb 3. The Secretary at War brought up papers from the War-Office, containing accounts of the expences of the Militia Fencible Cavalry, and fums for the erection of barracks, on which a converfation took place between Gen. Smith, Mr Grey, Gen. Tarleton, and the Secretary at War. General Smith faid, that the fum of 670,ocol. had been expended on the erection of barracks, and to barrack-mafters, &c. and no diftinct account was given of it. The Secretary at War faid, that the accounts had not as yet been made out, but when they were, he would lay them before the Houfe. after a fhort converfation, was agreed to. Feb. 4. Certain papers from the Bank were prefented, read, and ordered to lie on the Table. The contents ftated, that Exchequer Bills had been iffued to the amount of 2,000,000l. fterling, towards the liquidation of the National Debt:alfo accounts from the Commiffiones of the Cuftoms, which were read, and or, dered as above. The House having refolved itself into a Committee of the whole Houfe on the Marine Mutiny Bill, Sir P. Stephens in the Chair, Lord Arden propofed to the Commit tee to add certain claufes, authorifing Marine Officers, to enlift, as Marines, any foldiers belonging to corps beyond the feas. The Report was ordered to be received to-morrow. On the motion of Mr Ryder, leave was given to bring in a Bill to indemnify the Governors and Deputy Go vernors of the Weft-India Islands, for the importation of corn in foreign bot toms. 5. Lord William Ruffell presented a Petition from the Magiftrates of the county of Surry, praying that a Bill might be enacted to prevent the making of bread of wheaten flour, except with fuch a quantity as the exigency of the times, admitted. Referred to the Committee on the high price of corn. Mr Grey having expreffed his aftonifhment, that a fubject of fuch magnitude fhould be fo much neglected, moved that -.8. Mr Grey rofe and faid, that he thefe accounts fhould lie on the table, held in his hand a Petition, which was and that a number of copies be print- rather of an extraordinary nature; but gd for the pfe of the Members; which, when he mentioned that it came from 3 Ca Sir Francis Blake, and particularly at times like the prefent, it would be no longer confidered as fuch. Originally in this country, taxes had been laid on land only, but fubfequent to this all other commodities had been taxed in a greater or lefs degree. The Chancellor of the Exchequer had ftated the annual amount of the value of landed property at 25,000,000l. ferling, and the funded property at 10,000,00cl. fterling, but the Petitioner flated it to amount to 50,000,000l. fterling, to which if we add 10,000,000l. funded property, it would amount to 60,000,ocol. fterling; upon which, fhould a certain poundage or per centage be laid, it would amount to more than all the taxes taken collectively. What he propofed was, to lay a direct tax of 4s. in the pound on all funded and landed property. He concluded by moving, that the Petition be brought up, which was accordingly agreed to, read, and ordered to lie on the Table. The fubftance of this remarkable Petition was as follows: per annum that, from the year 1600 to 1688, under all the difficulties and diftreffes of the intervening space, the trade of the country increased, and the rental advanced from fix to fourteen millions per ann. Computing, therefore, by the vaft increase of trade from the period laft named to the prefent time, comprizing a feries of years for the most part favour able, the final refult muft be, that the prefent rental cannot reafonably be fupposed to fall fhort of fifty millions per annum; which led of course to the following conclufions: That the way to advance the land is to give every poffible. encouragement to trade--that the way to deprefs the land is to burden trade--that to burden trade is, in effect, to burthen land, befides depreffing it: taking, therefore the prefent territorial rental at fifty millions per annum-the funded rental at ten millions-the two together at fixty millions per ann-the present payments to Government at 15 millions per ann. the preffure of thofe payments on the rental named, as authorized by general acknowledgment, at 155. in the poundthe Petitioner proceeded to reason upon thofe data as follows:If it be true, that the territorial and funded rental is 60 millions per annum-then is it true alfo, that five fhillings in the pound on such rental will raife a revenue of fifteen millions per annum: if it be true, that we now pay at the rate of fifteen fhillings in the pound to raife a revenue of fifteen millions-then it is alfo true, that we pay ten fhillings in the pound more than we have any occafion to pay if it be true, that the trading part of the nation can always contrive to create for themselves an exemption from ftate burthens, then is it true alfo, that the landed and funded proprietors are,and have all along to their irreparable lofs, been the principal, if not the fole, paymafters of all impofts; and confequently, that little or no injury will be done to that body of men, but that great and lafting advantage will accrue to them, and to their pofterity, by changing the mode, as here propofed, of collecting the revenue:the Petitioner therefore "That the Petitioner might be per mitted by the Houfe to sketch, for their confideration, the outline of an arrangement, which has for its aim the political falvation of this country, the happiness of the community at large, and every individual; and which propofes to work its effect by means which are apparently both eafy, certain, fafe, and honourable: and the Petitioner further prayeth, that it may be permitted him to ftate to the Houfe, for the purpofe of their more ready determination, the reasons which have influenced him to fuppofe the arrange ment in queftion to be fraught with the benefits fuggefted by him; which are briefly as follow:-That, from fources of information the beft within his reach, it has appeared, to the complete fatisfac tion of the Petitioner, that trade is not an object which, by any poffible human contrivance, can be made amenable to the payment of any tax that can affect the parties concerned in its management, inafmuch as the parties fo concerned can always contrive to relieve themselves by fhifting the weight, which in that cafeprays,that he may be permitted and authomuft ultimately and principally fall upon the proprietors of land, who have no fuch means of fhifting the weight: That, uniformly, as the trade of the nation has more or lefs flourished, the territorial rental has, in like manner, and in fome fuch proportion, been obferved to advance. That, in the year 1600, the territorial rental did not exceed fix millions rized to charge his real eftates with the payment of 30,000l. or with the payment of fuch other fum, be the fame more or lefs, as may be ascertained by the Houfe to be his proportionate share of the public debt, fuppofing the faid public debt to be parcelled out for payment among the feveral proprietors of lands, mines, waters, tithes, rents, in any way arifing arifing therefrom, monies fo fecured, and public funds. And he further prays, that his faid eftates may be made fubject to the payment of intereft on the fum to be fo charged, as above, at the rate of 41, per cent, or any other rate of intereft, be the fame more or lefs, which may ap pear to the House to be his proportionate share of the annual charge of the faid public debt, fuppofing the fame to be transferred, as aforelaid. And the Petitioner further prays, that he may be permitted and authorized to pay in future his proportionate fhare of the Civil Lift and Peace Etablishment by an annual pound-rate, the quantum of which pound-rate to be ascertained by the Houfe in like manner as before has been named. And the Petitioner further prays, that, as often as the exigencies of Government may require a further aid, he may be permitted and authorised to pay his proportionate fhare of the fame by fuch an additional pound-rate as may be afcertained by the Houfe to be fufficient to accumulate the fum which would fall to his lot of payment, fuppofing the whole annual fupply to be raised within the year, and parcelled out for payment among the feveral proprietors aforesaid. And the Petitioner further prays, that he may be permitted and authorized to make fuch temporary and fuch permanent pay ments as have been severally named and affented to on his part, by half-yearly inftallments; and that the fame may be declared to be accepted in full fatisfaction of his proportionate fhare of all taxes, cuftoms, duties, and Parliamentary impofts, laid already, or which hereafter may be laid, on the subjects of this country, or their concerns.' Feb. 9. Mr Grey brought up the Report of the Committee appointed to exainine into the nature of the Loan. Or dered to lie on the Table. 10. The Houfe having refolved itfelf into a Committee of Supply and Ways and Means, Mr Hobart in the Chair, A Rofe moved that the fum of 2,500,cool. to be raised on Exchequer Bills, be granted to his Majefty, for the Extraordinaries of the year 1796. Or dered. He moved alfo for provifion for the Pay and Cloathing of the Militia for the year 1796. Ordered. The Houfe next refolved itself into a Committee of the whole Houfe on the Ways and Means, Mr Hobart in the Chair. Mr Rofe moved, that the farther fum of 2,000,000l. fterling be raised on Ex chequer Bills, by way of Loan, for the year 1797; and that a further fum of 1,000,000l. fterling be raifed in the fame manner, for the fervices of 1797. Ordered accordingly. Feb. 11. Mr M. Robinfon role in confequence of the notice he had given on a former day, and moved, “ That leave be given to bring in a Bill to prevent any Member of the House of Commons from being concerned as a Contractor in any Foreign Loan. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, that he perceived with what intention the Honourable Gentleman had introduced his motion, viz. To prevent a Foreign Loan, and confequently to throw obftacles in the way of the war. The Motion was put, and the galle ries cleared, but we understand the numbers ftood, for the Motion 19, against it 70. The motion of courfe was loft by a majority of 51. The Order of the Day being moved for the fecond reading of the Bill for em powering Juftices of the Peace to fix the Wages of Labourers in Husbandry, and the queftion being put, Mr Whitbread rofe to fupport the Bill. He earneftly hoped that the long space of time which had paffed fince its introduction, had been ferieufly devoted by the Members, to confider, in the minute manner it was entitled to, a matter fo very important in its nature. He had, during that period, confulted every intelligent perfon he could meet with, and reforted to every poffible fource of information on the fubject; but every ftep he had taken, more ftrongly convinced him of the neceffity of the measure he propofed. It was certainly a queftion of no fmall moment, that all commodities fhould have a progreffive increafe in value, while labour alone fhould be depriv ed of this juft and natural advantage. He did not deem it neceffary to produce authorities to the Houfe, to prove that the price of labour was not only too low at this moment, but that it was not fo, even when its ftandard was at firft fixed. To prove that labour had not proportionably rifen in its value, he would merely fiate the opinion of a celebrated writer, Dr Price; who fhewed, that from the beginning of the 16th to the 18th century, labour had only increased in its price five, bread feven, and other articles fifteen times. The confequence of that disparity was obvious: the Poor rates |