83 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



detailed statement, to shew, that the 

 ■war taxes, which he had only calcu- 

 lated, last j'ear, at nine millions, 

 •would probably produce, in future, 

 no less than twelve millions and a 

 half ; and they had already exceed- 

 ed the amount at which he had calcu- 

 Ijited them. He then stated, that 

 the permanent taxes had been as 

 productive as in former years. — 

 The supplies necessary for the 

 3-ear, amounted, in the whole, to 

 £. 36,283, .S48, to be defrayed by 

 Great Britain alone. Among the 

 ways and means, he proposed to add 

 a million to the war taxes, by again 

 increasing the duty on wine, from 

 £. 12 to £. !20 per ton, and by lay. 

 ing a duty of 12y on all imports, 

 except tea, wine, and cotton ■^vool. 

 The produce of the consolidated 

 fund, he should reckon at five mil- 

 3ions, instead of six and a half, at 

 ivhich he had before calculated it, 

 in addition to which ho should pro- 

 pose a loan of ten millions, and a 

 vote of credit of two millions and a 

 half. The interest of the loan, and 

 the one per cent, for its extinction, 

 would amount, with the charges of 

 management, to ^.736,190. To 

 meet this, he should propose an al- 

 teration in the stamp duties, which 

 would givcan addition of o£. JiOO^OOO 

 annually. Aftpr d\\elling for somo 

 time on the advantages of the s\ stem 

 of fmance which he had introduced, 

 of raising within the y«ar a great 

 part of the war expences, he con- 

 cluded by proposing his resolutions, 

 which were agreed to in the com- 

 mittee. 



Mr. Fox wished to know \\\\v- 

 ther ministers would wish him to 

 postpone the motion, of which he 

 had given notice, foi the same rea- 

 sons ibr which an important motion 

 iu the house of lords was postponed. 



Mr. Addington wished it should 

 be postponed, and, in the mean 

 time, his majesty's ministers did not 

 intend to bring forward any mea- 

 sures likely to provoke considerable 

 diflTerence of opinion. 



On the 3rd of May, in the house 

 of lords, the marquis of Stafford 

 asked lord Ilawkesbury, whether 

 the same reasons still subsisted for 

 postponing his motion to a later 

 day. 



Lord Hawkesbury replied in tho 

 affirmative. 



Lord (nenvllic was ready to 

 agree to a postponement of the mo- 

 tion for a few days ; but, unless 

 some information was given to the 

 house before that time, he could not 

 agree that the motion should be any 

 longer delayed. 



On tliesame day, upon the motion 

 of lord Ilobart. "the thanks of the 

 house was unanimously voted to the 

 marquis Wcllesley, and the civil 

 and military otVicers in India, as 

 well as to the army, for the splendid 

 victories recently obtained, in that 

 quarter of the «orkl. I?esides the 

 marquis Welleslcy, lord Clive, go- 

 vernor of Fort St. (ieorge, Jona- 

 than Duncan, esq. governorof Bom- 

 l)av, and generals Lake, St. John, 

 and Wellcsley, were mentioned in 

 the vote of thanks. 



On the same day, lord Castle- 

 roagh proposed a similar vote in the 

 house of commons. Ifc observed, 

 that the motion was carefully drawn 

 up, so as onlv to relate to the mili- 

 tary transactions in India, without 

 taking any notice of the political 

 administration of the noble marquis, 

 or the causes of the war. As to the 

 victories which had been obtained, 

 nothing rould be more splendid, or 

 more important. The army, and 

 the territory of Sciudiah wore com- 

 pletely 



