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In time of War, the same causes will | less than a shadow, with a rapidity that produce the same effects. The worthy rather resembled the inchantment of a Alderman said, "I had six thousand dream, than simple and certain matter of per annum of revenue from my properfact. ty in plates: I buried the whole of it in procuring additional plates."—Our Farmers now say, we were accustomed to receive a good price for our grain : we buried our profits in ameliorating our lauds, and improving our farms, that we might obtain greater crops of grain." The spirit is the same. Had I reserved a single thousand of the six, says one of the sufferers, this misfortune had not befallen me !-Had we not

buried every penny in improvements, we could have stood our ground, say the others.

Take other instances: "I have twenty thousand tons of (imported) iron on my wharfs," said an eminent dealer in the City of London: " the price of the article has fallen thirty shillings a ton, this morning: there goes thirty thousand pounds, at a single blow." Now, this gentleman could by no means avert that blow ;—and those who ventured to guess further at his affairs, whispered each other, that this was only the prelude to a diminution of a hundred thousand pounds more.

An Iron Master in Staffordshire contracted with Government for the casting of iron cannon balls;-he had fulfilled bis contract, and delivered the number engaged for;-Peace found him with thirty thousand pounds' worth of iron cannon balls remaing on his premises, for not one of which had Government any occasion. He had at the same time, twenty thousand pounds worth of pig iron in possession-but, of how litthe comparative value ! !--Such was the difference between war and peace!

These are well known instances; it is probable, that the reader may be acquainted with others, to the same effect. In the mean while the Peace Trades are not flourishing: they like others, are children of choice, not of necessity: they are mostly embellishments of life; but embellishments come after necessaries; they are the desires of leisure, of a certain portion of prosperity; they never can be followed with any degree of vigour without an entire conviction of security, and that extending far beyond the present moment. Long may Peace continue! and the spirit of our people will shew itself in a thousand ways, different, but all consistent with the prosperity of the whole nation, of other nations, and of the world at large.

Long may Peace continue! Those who think that the magic of the name ought

to have secured our Public Finances

against deficiency in every form, are respectfully desired to look back to the Peace on former occasions. consequences and accompaniments of We are

66

old enough to remember the Peace of
1763: We remember, very well, the
gloomy apprehensions which overspread
the nation on occasion of the Peace suc-
ceding the American Revolution, twen-
ty years afterwards. Never surely,
were the spirits of Britons more de-
pressed, than at that time.
It was
said," the sun of Britain is set, for
EVER!"-it was said, we have lost
all in losing America!" -The fact
proved otherwise. We lost nothing,
but Lord Shelburne as a minister. That
war left an immense debt unfunded; it
could not be less than twenty seven, to
thirty millions sterling. The price of
the 3 per cent. Consols. in the early
part of 1784, a period of profound
peace-was from 56 7-8ths to 55 7-8ths.
The deficiency of Revenue, the first
year, was nearly four millions.

We have already observed, that in commercial countries, no trade suffers singly. The coal mines whence the gentleman last alluded to drew the coal for working his forges, stopped when his forges stopped; dismissed their men, when he dismissed his men. The canal tonnage was next to annihi-interest of the newly contracted debt #lated, of course. And thus throughout a was nearly five millions. But the worst long line of country, the stoppage was of all, was the want of system, to meet felt; and the circulation which had these difficulties, with the persuasion of been kept up for years, was reduced to the nation that the worst was concealed

The

from their view to answer purposes of delusion.

spread in Paris, to the disadvantage of England, and especially of English Finances. Such rumours engross the ignorant; but, even the better instructed give them too much countenance.Baron Bignon, a sensible writer, and Minister of Finances, under Buonaparte, expresses sentiments to the same effect. "And now," says he, "is this prosperity of England founded on bases truly durable? Is it not in great part, the consequence of the monopoly of the commerce of the world? Will not the cessation of this universal monopoly strongly affect this prosperity? That is one of those terrific doubts which foreign nations, and even this power herself, must be equally afraid to solve ;-afraid to find, as the natural consequence, the chance of a new ruptnre. The day on which the partition of commerce is made among the different claimants, it should seem, must abate the superiority of the British Government, by assigning it merely a share, larger or smaller, of those profits which it had been in the habit of considering for a long time past, as exclusively its own.

Now, it ought to be recollected that those wars, which left these dreadful long tails behind them, bad continued but a few years; not one-third of the time that Britain has lately been called to defend herself against the inveterate enmity of France. A war of twenty five years, may well be supposed to have made much deeper impressions on property, public and private, than those short wars could do. A war for our very existence, must, from its very nature, have compromised more deeply the interest of the nation and of individuals, than any former war, This once admitted, the fair inference justifies surprize that the real deficiency, though considerable, is not greater than it appears to be by the figures. For, in the first place, from the apparent deficiency of £9,083,108 must be deducted the deficiencies occasioned by the repeal of the Income Tax (£2,758,982) and the War Malt Duty (taken at half the deficiency £1,500,000) both together £4,258,982; which, deducted from the apparent deficiency, leaves £4,824,126, "As to the services derived from the for the real deficiency a sum surpriz- British system of credit, with the im ingly near to that which Mr. Pitt's mense advantages attendant, to this talents were called forth to meet and day, will not the primary cause, be supply. But, who will doubt, whether identified with that unheard of prosthe powers of the nation to meet a si-perity, the prolongation of which is, milar exigency, are increased? We have not lately seen the Consols at 56 or 57. We have (comparatively with the extent of service) no unfunded debt to provide against. We have not lost influence on the Continent to regain, and if possible to augnient: the British name stands as high as it can stand; and France herself, nolens volens, has recourse to Britain for assistance, against pecuniary distress. It was not so, formerly. Then the opinion of all nations pronouneed us a sinking State; and every soul worshipped the ascendant star of France, as unquestionably triumphant from that day forth, and for ever!!

Time has revealed a different scene: yet still the wise men of France cling to the hope of ruinous difficulties in England. We know this to be the fact. Nothing can cure them of this unneighbourly prepossession. Scarcely a day 'passes, in which some report is not

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at this moment, extremely problematical? The facility with which the national debt may be increased, depends on the incessaut reproduction of those unlimit ed resources which the English nation has hitherto found in the profits of a commerce without rivalship, with the four quarters of the world; but, the moment when these profits are distributed among trading nations, the product being necessarily more or less diminished, will the people of England be able to continue the payment of those enormous taxes which are laid upon them, the continuation of which payment is, nevertheless, indispensable to support the national obligations contracted? In short, can the financial edifice so firmly established in appearance, support the height to which it is arrived? This question does not affect the utility of the system of credit, but the extent given to its application. The services

rendered by the system have been highly valuable; the effects have been admirable. But, the enquiry proposes to ascertain, whether the use has not been pushed to abuse, whether the consequences have not exceeded the limits which wisdom ought to have placed, as impassable. Time will inform us.

"Since it is impossible not to feel conviction how greatly the system of credit, founded by England, has been favourable to her prosperity and power, is it not the interest of other nations to profit by her example, avoiding the faults she may have committed, and above all things avoiding the hazard she has run, of an alarming exaggeration? Credit is not a gift bestowed by nature on this or that partcular climate, on this or that government: it belongs to whoever has the knowledge by what means to produce it, and to foster it. France is entitled to it equally with England. Perhaps it may be no mistake to say, that when it shall once be implanted on the soil of France, it will throw out roots deeper and stronger. The moving sand of the mercantile wealth of Great Britain does not offer such solid ground as the territorial riches of France would be. It is strongly to be presumed that the tree of Public Credit would be in a growing state in France when the Old Oak which now shelters England shall have shed her leaves, and begun to bestrew that country with the wreck of her branches." That time may Heaven avert! but, from this mixture of wisdom and enmity -from this intermingled foresight and asperity, a lesson may be learned of no trifling utility. The division of comevery one to his own this writer justly expected would diminish the British revenue then, why should we be surprized at it? If Baron Bignɔn awaited this result, so did thousands of others, and so ought our own people. But, it has not produced all those extremities which he predicted; and, we trust, it never will.

merce

--

Further, though we have given the comparison of the last financial year with that before it, yet we are altogether of opinion that the average of several years ought to be taken. There may be-and there really was-in one

year,advantages (or disadvantages) which do not afford correct comparison. It was natural, that the first year after Peace was signed should witness an exertion of no ordinary power, in the mercantile world, to renew those connections which had been interrupted, or to form those which required from the British merchant a long credit, and from his agent abroad a judicious confidence.

In the mean while if any enquire, by what means this deficit must be met and counteracted, the answer is clear partly by a diminution of expences: partly by increase of income. No well-informed person would suppose that the expences of the war, could suddenly close; that the various services of the Public force, or the Public departments, could cease on a given day, and their expences with them. The machine that was in action was too vast, to be stopped in a moment. Distances of places, the differences in degree of importance among places, the determination of what is best on the whole, these, with other self-evident considerations, require time, deliberation, determina tion, and after these, still further pause for judicious and sober execution.Gradually the Public expences must be reduced; and the Public burdens relieved as much as possible.

-

The Public income is seldom so judiciously managed during a war, as it should be. The Financier catches at

profits not always permanent in their

nature. lle endeavours to make the

war bear a great part in its own expences. He must now take other steps. He may even change some of his taxes.

new world, as it were, opens before him, and his duty is to communicate to the nation all the advantages of Peace, and to derive from those advantages every possible profit for the Public ser

vice.

Lastly, these tables, will stand, we trust, as perpetual records of difficulties overcome they will stand also, as perpetual monitions on the consequences of war is it too much to hope, that they, in their place, may act in terrorem, and check a too warlike inclination, should any minister be so ill advised as to think of indulging its

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ter ended on the 4th The Income of the QuarJan. 1817, is ended on the 5th Jan. Income of the Quarter 1816, was under the head of Consolidated Customs. by Act 56 Geo. III. cap. 29), are included Duties of Customs (being made perpetual inclusive, from which period the War to the Quarter ending the 5th July, 1816, are included under the head of War Taxes, to the Interest of Loans charged on them, Statement, and the War Taxes appropriated able in England, are excluded from this the interest on their respective Debts payThe Irish and Portuguese Payments for

¿CUSTOMS. Abstract of the net Produce of the Revenue, in the Years ending 5th January, 1816, and 5th January, 1817, distinguishing the Quarters. Also total Customs and Excise.

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