$54 
time when it is declared, ‘ that this country 
is at the crifis of its fate,” and the united ex- 
ertions of all ranks are neceflary to refift the 
dangers with which they are affailed, a difpo- 
fition in either branch of the legiflature to 
withhold from the people a redrefs of public 
grievances, muft be produétive of moft ferious 
confequences, neceflarily damp their ardour, 
and impede their exertions in the important 
ftruggle in which they are engaged. 
They therefore pray your Right Honour- 
able Houfe to take thefe matters into your 
confideration, and that your Lordthips will be 
pleafed to adopt the fpeedieft and moft eftec- 
tual meafures for reforming all abufes in the 
receipt, management, and expenditure of the 
public money, and preventing fuch abufes in 
future; and for abolifhing all unneceflary 
places and penfions, as well in reverfion as 
otherwife, as the beft means of confolidating 
the ftrength of the empire, and calling forth 
the united energies and exertions of the peo- 
ple, at a time fo neceffary for the fafety and 
fecurity of his Majefty’s dominions. 
On the r1th of April, the Chancellor of 
the Exchequer moved the order of the Day 
for going into a Committee of Ways and 
Means, to which the account of the surplus 
of the Consolidated Fund was referred. ‘The 
House having resolved into the committee, he 
rose, pursuant to notice, to submit to the 
committee the arrangement which he intend- 
ed to recommend to Parliament to adopt re- 
Specting the stamp duties, from which he 
Proposed to derive a portion of the Ways and 
Means of the year. But before he should en- 
ter into that part of the statement which he 
was tu submit to the committee, he felt it ne- 
cessary, in order to justify the vote with 
which he meant to conclude, to recapitulate 
tke amount of the supplies, which had al- 
teady been granted in the course of the pre- 
sent session. By enumerating the different 
items of supply already voted, and the Ways 
and Means available at present to cover them, 
he would point out to the gentlemen opposite, 
the ground upon which he brought forward 
the specific arrangement which he was to sub- 
mit to the consideration of the committee, 
The Right Hon. Gentlemen here went 
“ghrough the various items of Supply which 
had been voted in the present SesSion under 
the various heads of navy, army, barracks, 
commissary-general's department, extraor- 
dinaries, ordnance,miscellaneous services,and 
Swedish subsidy, which having been already 
successively reported when voted, it is not 
ynecessary to repeat. The whole of thesums 
yoted amounted in the aggregate to 
43,653,170]. from which was to be deducted 
the proportien that was to be furnished by 
Treland, viz, 5,713,566]. which would leave 
asum to be defrayed by Great Britain, of 
42,930,604]. ‘These sums he stated upona 
yough estimate, which, however they might 
vary from perfect accuracy, would yet be 
found to correspond pretty exactly with the 
State of Public Affairs in April. 
fMay f, 
actual state of the accounts. Having gone 
through the supplies, it next became neces- 
sary for him to state to the committee the 
various Ways and Means which had hitherto 
been provided for covering these supplies. 
The House had already voted upon malt 
and pensions three millions. The 3am usually 
voted was 2,750,e00].; but it was thought 
more expedient to take the amount of the 
tax at the round sum of three millions, 
which it produced, the effect of which would 
only be to reduce the surplus of the con- 
solidated fund by the sum of 250,000]. the 
difference between the vote of three mil- 
Irons and the usual amount at which the 
malt and pension tax were usually estima- 
ted. The advances trom the Bank amount- 
ed to 3,590,0001. The unappropriated sur 
plus of the consolidated fund, which his ho- 
noured friend would move in the present com- 
mittee, was on the sth of April, 726,87cl. 
Upon a rough estimate, he was warranted 
in taking the war taxes at twenty millions. 
The committee would be aware, that the du- 
ties to be levied under the Orders in Coun- 
cil were applicable to the war taxes, and 
therefore he felt the more confidence in 
taking their amount at twenty millions. 
The Lottery he should reckon at 350,000! 
which was somewhat less than it had produ. 
ced in the laft year, but ftill as much as he 
conceived himself entitled to take credit for. 
It would be recolleéted that four millions of 
Exchequer bills had been funded in the course 
of the present year; inftead of those, he 
proposed to iffue four millions of other Ex- 
chequer bills, towards the Ways and Means 
of the year. In addition to this, he should 
say about eight millions, which he would 
propose as the loan, and which was as much 
as he apprehended would be neceflary for the 
service of the presenz year. When to these 
sums was added the surplus of the consolida- 
ted fund, which he takes at 3,750,000l., it 
would give a total of 43,076,0ool. for the 
Ways and Means for the service of the year, 
which gave an excess of 187,000]. above 
the supplies. Although the surplus of the 
consolidated fund had been takenat 3,750,000) 
yet in fact it had exceeded that sum in the 
course of the laft year by no less a sum than 
720,870}. Sy the funding the four millions 
of Exchequer biils, the loan could be raised 
on more advantageous terms te the public, 
than if they had been left outstanding at an 
interest of 51. per cent. 
The interest of the four millions of Exche- 
quer bills, and of the loan forthe year, would 
amount to 75°,0col. ‘This would be prose 
vided for in the tollowing manner. In the 
first place, short annuities had fallen in to 
the amount of 380,000]. which he would 
propose to be applied to Ways and Means; 
65,0cc1l. had annually been saved oy ime 
provements im the management of the res 
venue ; 126,000l. had been already gained 
by the arrangement which had taken place 
with / 
