26] 
straining the commissioners of the 
tax from disclosing the informa- 
tion they obtained in the discharge 
of their duty, was regarded as 
an important improvement, and 
was agreed to. The chancellor 
of the Exchequer then moved that 
provision should be made in the 
bill for rendering the assessments 
of the year, ending April 5, 1815, 
the basis of those for the year 
ending April 1816, and ‘that no 
new assessments be made, which 
was carried. A motion by lord 
Milton for an instruction to the 
committee, that they have power 
to amend the act, was negatived. 
The third reading of the bill took 
place on May the 5th, after a 
division of 160 in its favour a- 
gainst 29. 
It passed the House of Lords’ 
on the 11th, after a single divi- 
sion of 23 contents to 8 non- 
contents. 
In the debates on this bill, par- 
ticular objections were made to 
the continuance on the same as- 
sessments on landed rents, al- 
though the great fall of product 
had in many instances rendered 
their payment impossible. The 
objection had not been attended 
to during the passing of the bill ; 
but at length it occurred with so 
much force, that the chancellor 
of the Exchequer made a repre- 
sentation on the subject to the 
lords of the Treasury, which in- 
duced them to enter a minute of 
their. opinion, dated November 14. 
By this minute, relief was allowed 
to tenants at rack rent, and to 
occupiers of estates, in case of 
proof of new leases at reduced 
rents, or reduced annual value: of 
estates, for the year commencing 
in April, 1815; and a eircular 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 
1815. 
was issued from the tax-office’ to 
the commissioners of the property 
tax, with directions for carrying 
the same into execution. 
The benevolent zeal of the op- 
posers of the slave trade was in 
this session exerted in an endea- 
vour to pass a bill, which was the 
occasion of much discussion. On 
April 18, Mr. Barham, after an 
introductory speech, in which he. 
mentioned it as a well-known fact, 
that at the present moment a large 
British capital was employed in 
this trade, the profits of which 
had become enormous, moved for 
leave to bring in a bill * to pro- 
hibit British subjects, or persons 
resident in the united kingdom, 
from lending capital, or doing 
other acts, to assist in carrying on 
the slave trade to colonies belong= 
ing to foreign states; or persons 
residing in this country from 
lending capital, or committing 
other acts, the tendency of which 
was, to assist in carrying on the 
slave-trade of foreign colonies.” 
Mr. Wilberforce expressed his 
full concurrence in this measure, 
and leave was granted for bring- 
ing in the bill. 
On May 5th, the House being 
in a committee on the bill, Mr. 
Baring objected to it, as it was to 
have an immediate operation in 
the different quarters of the world. 
He also particularly objected to 
the clause which punished as fe- 
lons those who lent any money on 
mortgage, bond, or loan, in any 
of the islands which still traflicked 
in slaves, which, he said, would, 
at once extinguish the trade that 
existed between this country and’ 
the Spanish. settlements, since it 
would be impossible to carry it 
on without that species of credit 
