1823.] 



teiy, or grace, (call it whicU you 

 please,) to acknowledge it was oi)ly a 

 delnsiun to consider it to be iu that 

 state, the real fact being, that the 

 actual surplus of income above the ex- 

 penditure was only two millions annu- 

 ally. Therefore Lord Liverpool in the 

 Lords, and Lord Castlerengh in the 

 Commons, said it was high time to un- 

 deceive the public, and to drop the 

 fallacious or imaginary surplus annual 

 amount of fifteen millions, and to pro- 

 vide a real and bona-fidii sum of five 

 millions of pounds sterling for the 

 annual redemption of debt. 



This they solemnly promised to do, 

 and pledged their honour, that, if par- 

 liament would grant them new addi- 

 tional taxes, to the amount of three 

 millions annually, in addition to the 

 two millions already in surplus, 

 " That, for the future, no circum- 

 stances or consideration whatever 

 should prevent that sum being laid 

 out annually in the reduction of debt." 



Parliament acquiesced, and new 

 taxes were laid on to upwards of three 

 millions sterling annually. 



Now mark the result according to 

 Ibeir own statement: Mr. Robinson 

 lias lately repeatedly declared, "That 

 the average amount of debt redeemed 

 for the last four years, was only three 

 and an half millions of stock, or four- 

 teen millions of stock in the last four 

 years."* 



Now the pledge solemnly given was, 

 "That twenty millions of pounds ster- 

 ling should be laid out in that period;" 

 and which, at tho average price of 

 stock of seventy-live per cent, would 

 Jiave purchased 2G,6()G,666 pounds of 

 stock. So then, hero is, according to 

 free and unasked-for confession of mi- 

 nisters themselves, an unaccounted- 

 for loss of stock to the puldic, of twelve 

 millions six hundred sixty-six thou- 

 sand six hundred .sixty-six pounds of 

 stock, in the short s])ace of four years 1 



So that it is certain, that the value 

 of this enormous auKtunt of stock has 

 been spent, not merely without the 

 authority of parliaiiKUt, but directly in 

 tlic teeth of its orders; for tliere has not 

 been any Appiojjriatioii Act to siinction 

 it, although they have confessed that 

 the money has been s|)ent. 



Yet, clear and flagrant as these facts 



' The chancellor's f-tiilenicnt wa.s for 

 the lust seven yt'ari^, but llic period here 

 taki-n is picciiii'ly the same at tu the 

 argument. 



The Sinking Fund. 



419 



are, there has not been any proper 

 inquiry into them ; but, on the con- 

 trary, tho new chancellor's maiden 

 budget, in which flio avowal was made, 

 was received with applause! 



Thus, then, it turns out, that, by the 

 annual bandying-about of this ministe- 

 rial shuttlecock, the ministers actually 

 spend some millions annually, for 

 which no account is ever given. 



The period is now nearly arrived 

 (forty-two years,) when Mr. Pitt 

 vaunted, at the first establishment of 

 the sinking-fund upon his own adopted 

 plan, " That, if parliament would sup- 

 port him in it, the whole of the Na- 

 tional Debt would be extinguished. 



Now it is but too well nmembered^ 

 that parliament did support him ia 

 every measure respecting it, and yet 

 what is the actual result? It is too 

 monstrous to be even named ! 



From fatal experience, and some 

 little knowledge of tiic real state of 

 aflairs, 1 venture to predict, that the 

 capability of the sinking-fund to ex- 

 tinguish the debt, will be exactly upon 

 a par with a cripple running after a 

 bare to catch it: tho longer he runs, 

 the further he w ill be from the object 

 of his pursuit. J. B. 



Highburij Grove, April 1823. 



To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 



I liave possessed for five years tlie regulation of the 

 weather, and thedbtribiition of the seasons; the 

 sun has listened to my dictates, the clouds at my 

 call have poured their waters. — Rutsclas. 

 SIR, 



MONGST all the various charac- 

 ters of humourists that have 

 been drawn by our celebrated essay- 

 ists, I cannot, at this moment, recol- 

 lect one of that now numerous class, 

 who set up as being weather-wise. 

 Such, at least, was their former mo- 

 dest pretension ; but, now bolder 

 grown, they assume tho character of 

 weather-prophets, and, not contented 

 with the deference always shown to 

 those who understauil, or pretend to 

 understand, tlic " signs of the times," 

 they not only inform us of tho rain or 

 sun-shine we may e.\peet in the passing 

 or approaching hours, but without 

 hesitation pronounce our doom for 

 weeks and months ; and that, too, with 

 an air of authority, which might lead 

 you to imagine the clouds waited on 

 their bidding, or the sun apportioned 

 the number of his rays to their jirivatc 

 wishes. Another very important alter- 

 ation had taken place in the last few 

 J car* amongst this society of tloud- 

 gazcrs ; 



AMt 

 tc 



