New writs were ordered to be issued for the election of members for the following places: for Marlborough, in the room of the earl of Dalkeith, now lord Tynedale, called to the house of peers; for Bedwin, in the room of viscount Stopford, who had accepted the office of comptroller of his majesty's household; for Mitchell, in the room of sir Arthur Wellesley, who had accepted the office of chief secretary to the lord lieutenant of Ireland; for Eye, in the room of lord Huntley, now baron Gordon, called up to the house of peers.

in consequence of the business which was fixed for to-morrow, wished to postpone the re-committal of the bill which he had brought in on that subject, till Friday. He took that opportunity of stating, that in consequence of numerous communications which he had received, he had thought that it would be the best way to divide his original bill into three separate bills. The first of those bills would be with respect to the Poors' Fund; the second would be, for a better equalization of the county rates; and the third would contain all the remaining objects of his bill. In consequence, however, of suggestions and communications which he had received, he intended to leave out of his bill the clauses respecting the adjudication of settlements, and that for rating personal property.

said, that the subject was one which, perhaps, more than any other, called for a most deliberate consideration and calm discussion. After the threat that had been thrown out a few evenings ago, that parliament should be dissolved if they did not agree to this or that measure of the present administration, it was almost impossible to expect, that, in the course of the present session, or perhaps of the parliament, if that threat should be acted upon, there should be time for that serious and calm consideration which was necessary for a subject of such magnitude, importance, and difficulty. The case, as it now stood, was this: the statute of Elizabeth had been found not sufficient to produce the effects which it proposed. It therefore became necessary that some farther legislative provision should be made. He gave his hon. friend great credit for the attention he had bestowed to this subject, and hoped, that a great part of his bill would be productive of the best consequences; but he was sorry that the clause respecting the relaxation of the settlement laws was to be left out, as that appeared to him to be one of the best parts of the bill. For the reasons he had before mentioned, he should wish the consideration of the measure should be postponed to a much later period, perhaps to the next session.

said, it must be, indeed, a pusillanimous parliament that would suffer itself to be deterred from the prosecution of its public duties by such a threat, which was certainly as indecent, indiscreet, and unparliamentary, as could possibly have been thrown out. That threat, however, should have no influence upon his mind. He could not see any good consequences likely to result from protracting to a later period the discussion; nor did it appear to him, that that was the most likely mode to gain for the subject the fullest degree of attention and consideration. When a discussion was put off longer than was necessary, the attention of mankind was apt to relax; whereas, if it was brought on while the subject was warm in their minds, it was likely to command more attention, and to be as well considered. He had left out many parts of the bill, in consequence of communications received from a variety of quarters, and he was happy to acknowledge publicly, the great obligations he felt to those gentlemen who had thus assisted him with their observations. He had not given up that part which related to the relaxation of the law of settlements, but that part which respected the adjudication of settlements prior to the removal of a pauper. Although he had received some opinions favourable to his original idea in that respect, yet the balance of opinions was much against it. He hoped, by yielding to those opinions, the objections to his original bill would be done away, and that considerable good would be produced by it.

begged it to be understood that, in wishing to postpone the business, he acted under no impression whatever of the description alluded to; for no threats whatever should deter him from doing his duty as an independent member of parliament.—The bill was then committed pro formâ, and ordered to be recommitted on Friday.

to ask a question relative to a matter of the highest importance. The question related to a transaction which it was reported had taken place in the Army Pay-office, and which had been brought to light by the Committee of Finance. As the circumstance was of the greatest importance in itself, as it very much affected the individual principally concerned, and as it was a matter peculiarly fit to be taken up in that house, he hoped that some member would state, whether the report circulated on this point was or was not well founded?

replied, that the chairman of the finance committee was not in the house, otherwise he would probably have given such an answer to his hon. friend as would satisfy him. Yet as he had sometimes attended that committee, and particularly as he had attended it that day, he was happy to be able to give an answer to the question. He had only to state, that in the course of the examination of a Mr. Thomas, a fact had come out which the committee thought it their duty to investigate with the most scrupulous attention; and, since the discovery alluded to, the committee had accordingly been diligently engaged upon this delicate transaction, and a member of that house, who had been formerly paymaster of the forces, had been carefully examined. What the committee meant to do on this point he did not precisely know, but it was of course to be supposed that they would not dismiss the subject without a full investigation of the matter, and making such a report as their duty and the nature of the case should seem to them to require.

thanked the noble lord for the statement which he had made, and hoped that the committee would make a special report on the subject.

pursuant to notice, to move for the production of the treasury minute for appointing a barrack Commission, to execute the duties of the barrack-master-general. As he believed there would be no opposition to this motion, he had only to put the house in possession of his object, which would best appear from a statement of facts. Early in the last autumn, the commissioners of military enquiry thought it their duty to communicate to the commissioners of the treasury part of the 4th report, which recommended the appointment of a barrack board, to be substituted instead of a barrack-master-general. The commissioners of the treasury approved of the recommendation, and thought that such a board ought to be appointed. This was communicated to his majesty, who approved of the measure, and affixed his signature to it, and the business might have been completed before the late ministers quitted office; but it had somehow happened that the privy seal was not affixed to the commission, and the noble lord who now held it had not thought proper to affix it. He would not now question the propriety of withholding the seal from it. His object merely was to have the intentions of the late ministry on this point before the house; but he might at least say on this occasion, that he hoped no definitive arrangement would take place till the report of the commissioners had been fully considered. He trusted that the house would seriously consider the report and the method of preventing the recurrence of such abuses as had been found to prevail in this department. He concluded by moving, that the minute of the late commissioners of the treasury, respecting the appointment of a barrack commission, be laid before the house.

said he had no objection to the motion. On coming into office, he had found the case to be exactly as the noble lord had stated it to be. But this matter required great consideration. It appeared that it had been referred to the barrack commissioners and the comptrollers of army accounts, and they had found great difficulty in the business, and therefore it became those who were to be responsible for affixing the privy seal, to be cautious how they appointed persons to offices, and adopted all the arrangements, without an opportunity of fully considering the subject. He certainly had no desire to precipitate measures, but at the same time, the observation of the noble lord did not very well apply here, when he recommended the mature consideration of the report; for he and his colleagues had adopted the measure, before any report at all had been presented. But he agreed to the production of the minute.

in explanation said, that he and his colleagues had fully considered the subject on the report of the Commissioners, and there was this difference between the two cases, that the report was now before the house, whereas then it was not expected to be brought forward for some time.

stated, that two out of the three comptrollers of army accounts concurred in the propriety of the measure.—The motion was then agreed to.

The house having resolved itself into a committee on this bill,

said that he had no objection to the interest of the loan being secured for the present year according to the mode pointed out in the plan of the noble lord (H. Petty). He wished, however, to avoid pledging the house to approve of any part of that plan for the future. He was very ready to agree to the first object that was stated, to prevent any new taxation in the present year; he was ready to agree to the 10 per cent. which was created for the interest of the loan of the present year, and the sinking fund; but there were other parts of that very complicated system which required a more ample consideration than could be well bestowed upon it in the course of the present session. There were many objections to the principle of making permanent those taxes which were originally raised as mere war taxes, and making them the fund which was to secure the interest of the loans. He had been well informed, that a considerable degree of sensation and alarm had been excited by the idea of continuing the duties on exports and tonnage after the war, and he thought that was a part of the noble lord's plan which ought not to be persevered in. What he meant now to propose was, that the interest of the loan of this year should now remain on the war taxes as charged in the noble lord's plan; but that six months after the conclusion of peace, unless some other mode were resolved on by parliament, of securing it either by continuing the war taxes for the purpose, or by new taxes, it should then be chargeable on the surplus of the consolidated fund. He trusted, however, that the house would see that enough had already been done in the present session for providing for the interest of the loan of this year without any new taxes; and he should wish to leave the general question open for the enquiry of the house in the next session. The completion of any permanent system must take a considerable time; and since the plan was originally proposed, a great deal of new light had been thrown upon the subject, both in the discussions which took place in and out of that house. He concluded by proposing an amendment to the clause in the bill agreeably to the observations he had thrown out.

said, that if the loan of the present year were secured in the manner which had been already determined by the resolutions of that house, he could have no objection to adjourn the consideration of the general merits of the plan he had the honour to bring forward to a future time, when it might be submitted to the fullest enquiry, and to the final judgment of parliament. As to the alarm and sensation produced, if any such alarm did exist, it must have proceeded from a misunderstanding of what he had said. He had stated most expressly, that he did not wish to pledge the house to the continuance of any one of those taxes, but that he meant merely to assign that portion of the taxes, which was now represented by the war taxes, as the security of the loan; and to pledge the house only to substitute other taxes for any of those which they might resolve to discontinue. As for what taxes should be continued after the war, and what should be discontinued, he had always stated, and still was of opinion, that the return of peace would be the proper period, in which that subject should be taken into consideration

to enter his protest against the plan of the noble lord, and particularly that part of it which made the income or property tax permanent. He had received a number of letters on the subject of the income tax, and he thought that—

chairman of the committee, here interrupted the hon. baronet, and told him that the property tax was not mortgaged by the present bill, and had nothing to do with it.

said, that if the hon. baronet would keep his speech for 3 or 4 years, it might possibly then apply to some question relating to the property tax.

said, that he had no ambition to make a speech upon the subject in three or four years. However, as he now found that the property tax was not mortgaged at present, and that the loan was to be secured on the war duties on customs and excise, he felt that he could not then offer his objections to the property tax.

objected to the principle which had been proposed by the chancellor of the exchequer, of throwing generally upon the consolidated fund a loan which had been contracted for on a different security. He thought that this was not only contrary to all precedent, but to that good faith which parliament owed to the public creditor.

did not think the principle so very objectionable. By the present plan, the excesses of the consolidated fund were to be applied in a manner different from their original destination, which might as well be called a breach of faith. It appeared to him that it would be giving to the public creditor an additional security.

said, that the principle of the right hon. gent. was merely that the war taxes should be security for the interest of the loan, and that after the peace that security was no longer to be continued. There never was before an instance of any loan being secured merely on the future excesses of the consolidated fund. It had happened at different times last war, that there was no surplus, and that was a case which might again occur. Sometimes there was an actual deficiency, and in that case this would provide no security at all for the loan of the present year. He could not conceive any objection to letting the thing stand as it did at present, at least as far as regarded the loan of this year.

would have no objection to extend the period to twelve months, after peace, instead of six; in which case parliament must meet, and would have time to decide finally on the subject. He thought nothing could be more objectionable than the principle of the present plan, which went to pledge the house to continue 9½ millions of taxes as a security for 12 millions of money. The surplus of the consolidated fund was now 3½ millions, and he thought that was a very abundant security. It certainly would be possible to avoid the pledging the whole of the war taxes, by making permanent some of the least objectionable of them.

again protested against looking to a supposed future excess of the consolidated fund as a security. It would be entirely departing from all the principles of finance which had been established in this country. The fact now stood thus: the original bargain with the contractors for the loan was, that it was to be secured on those taxes, and in consequence of that bargain, the ministers received their money, and had it now in their pockets. It was, then, too much now to say, that we would neither give them that security for which they bargained, nor any other security, such as was ever given for a loan, but throw them merely on the chance surplus in the consolidated fund, when peace should be restored.

said, that the public creditor was not entitled to more from the war taxes, than a security for the interest of the loan, and for the sinking fund created. As to charging loans on the surplus of the consolidated fund, it was not so extraordinary as had been represented. The chancellor of the exchequer of Ireland (sir John Newport) had charged any deficiency in the product of the sugar tax upon the surplus of the Irish consolidated fund.

said, the arguments of the right hon., for he could no more call him the learned, gent., were such as could not be excused in a man who had been five days chancellor of the exchequer. If he were appealed to as a lawyer, he could not argue that it would be better for his client to have one security than two, and that if he already had two, it would be doing him no injury to take away one of them. There never was an instance of any loan charged upon the consolidated fund without making some increase to it by taxes. If the right hon. gent. would assign 1,200,000l. taxes, for the interest and sinking fund of the loan of this year, he would be content; but if he did not, the contractors had, in common justice, a right to the security for which they originally bargained.

stated, that the difference in the case of the Irish loan was, that it was secured upon annual, and not upon permanent taxes.

said, that no absurdity could, in practice, be greater than that of assigning a portion only of the war taxes for the loan. It would be impossible to tell the collectors of the customs or excise, that they must stop collecting the taxes when they had got so much money. He did not, however, now wish to press his amendment, if it did not meet the sense of the house; but it appeared to him that the house had an undoubted right to substitute the security of the consolidated fund for that of any particular taxes

said, that, in the present case, there was no substitution at all. The right hon. gent.'s idea would go merely to take from the contractors of the loan one of their securities, without giving them any thing in the place of it. As to the general security of the consolidated fund, and the faith of parliament, they were already possessed of that. The right hon. gent., therefore, appeared to him to wish to take from them the specific security of the war taxes, without giving them any thing else in the place of it.—After a variety of explanations, it was resolved to postpone the discussion till to-morrow.