92] 
arifen in the minds’ of perfons obvi- 
oully interefted. ‘The bon. gentle- 
man himfelf had flated that the ma- 
pufacturers were, before the act, the 
only medium for conveying the illi- 
cit tobacco from the imuggler to 
the confumer3 and taking this for 
granted, and the ftatement of the 
tobacconiits themfelves, that eight 
millions of pounds weight were an- 
nually fmuggled, the confequence 
would then evidently appear, that 
fer years they had diyided among 
them 400,000 pounds fterling, of 
which fum the revenue had been de- 
frauded; and, if an average could 
be taken, each man’s fhare of this 
plunder was more than a thoufand 
pounds annually, The houfe being 
in poffeffion of this notorious and 
dire& fraud, he was fure it was not 
afking too much of them to weigh 
well the evidence before they de- 
cided againit the remedy already 
provided for the evil. As to the 
argument about the difcovery of the 
myfteries, and the great danger of 
the manufacturers fecrets being ex- 
ofed, upon which fo much ftrefs 
had been laid; if the fecrets were 
fo eafily difcoverable by an excile- 
man upon a mere view, they muft un- 
doubtedly be known to the manu- 
facturers workmen, and confequent- 
ly at all timés liable to be divulged. 
Mr. Pitt concluded with obferving, 
that during the exiftence of the act, 
the confumption had very confider- 
ably encreafed, which was a com- 
plete refutation, and a conclufive 
aniwer to the affertion of the act’s 
being likely to drive the mannfac- 
_turer from this country. The pub- 
lic had already, in the two leaft pro- 
ductive quarters of the year, receiv- 
ed 130,600/. over and above the 
wonted income of revenue from to- 
bacco in the fame quarters before 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1790. 
the act pafied; and in all probabig 
lity, the difference. on the next 
two quarters of- excife would make 
the whole produce of the difference 
300,000/, at the leaft. 
The motion was powerfully fup-' 
ported by Sir Grey Cooper, Mr. 
Wyndham, and Mr, Fox. ‘The firit 
contended, that the évidence of the 
manufacturers and officers of excife 
had uncontrovertibly eftablifhed the 
following propofitions: 1.°'That 
there is no mode by which the fure 
vey can be made, fave only b 
taking the whole ftock of each ma- 
nufacturer. 2. That ftock cannot 
be taken by any other manner than 
by weight. 3. That itis abfolutely 
neceflary to except from being 
weighed, all that part, of the ftock, 
that is in the atual operation of 
manufacture. 4. That this excep- 
tion deftroys the rule. 
Mr. Wyndham reprobated the 
fpeech of the chancellor of the ex- 
chequer, as a laboured and indecent 
panegyric upon the whole fyftem of 
excife laws, and fuch as had never 
betore been heard in that  houfe. 
No one would venture to affert, thar 
the excife was not adverfe to the 
principles of the conititation. It _ 
was an evil which, perhaps, circum- 
ftances had made neceflary to pre- 
vent.a greater; but neceflity alone — 7 
could juttify it. It might itfelf be- 
corse the greateft of all evils. ‘Con- 
fidered even as a neceflary meafure; 
it fhould be ufed with caution: it 
might be puthed beyond its due ex- 
tent; it might be difgraced by be- — 
ing injudicioully managed ; itmight, 
like a tool, be fpoiit by being worked 
with too much. It had been avowed; — 
that it was to be limited only juft as 
the ftate of our fnances may admit; 
He lamented that the nation feemed 
fo much difpofed to facrifice every 
other 
PR age 
ao ee Vee 
sre 
