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Article HOUSE OF COMMONS. ← Page 9 of 12 →
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House Of Commons.
SINECUI 1 E PLACES . Mr . Nicholis moved a resolution simi ' ar to that which had passed in the reign of William and Mary , except that he intended to increase the limitation from 500 I . to 2 , oool . a year , in consequence of the advance of every thing since that period . He wished ihe contractors and capitalists round the Minister to have an interest in terminating Ihe war , and that those holding places of great emolument of the Crown , ( many of whom were otherwise men of considerable opulence ) should exemplarily contribute towards relieving ( be distresses of the nationinto which
, their support of the blind measures of the Minister had pr ncipally involved it . The resolution is as follows : ' That all' salaries , fees and emoluments of office , beyond the sum of 2 , oool . per annum , should be applied to defray theexpences of the war , excepting only the salaries of the Chancellor , the Judges , the Speaker of the House of Commons , Foreign Ministers , Officers serving in the Army and Navy , and those who had a freehold interest in their places . ' This resolution being objected to by Mr . Pitt ,, Mr . Dundas , and Mr . " Windham , on the ground that persons employed in the services of the state , as an inducement to bring great talents into office , ought to be very liberally rewarded : and thus the motion was consigned to oblivion .
TI 1 IPI . E ASSESSMENT BILL . The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved the second reading of this bill ; and , upon the question being put , Mr . Sheridan observed that the people were called upon to make every sacrifice ; but what , said he , is the example of the higher classes ? Has not every man who has supported Ministry shewn that he had some personal job in view ? V . hat is the last list of peerages , but so many gaudy jobs ? How can Ministers dare to call upon the people for sacrifices to make up their prodigal waste ? Has not of them insulted the
one country by talking of the cheeseparings of office when one of his own clerks has iS . oool . per annum ? This will serve to shew what is the magnitude of the consecrated cheese . He called the present Bill a libel on the rich , a penalty on economy , a bounty upon perjury , and a commission of bankruptcy taken out against trade . It went to establish a fiscal inquisition throughout the country ; an inquisition founded on a new and dangerous principle , which would fall as heavy on the man who possessed 2 , 000 ! . as on him who has a capital of 20 , 000 ] .
Mr . Dundas asserted that the seven millions would not be taken out of our expenditure to the injury of our commerce ; that our commerce flourished more in war than in peace , because there was an Army to be clothed , and a Navfoto be fed .
Mr . Fox said that Ministers , after destroying the liberty of the subject , were now , with a lavish and libertine hand , about to waste his property . Admitting even the necessity of such a supply , he had the strongest objections to the principle . The resolutions spoke of nothing but assessed taxes , and yet the assessed taxes were the very worst criterion that could be chosen . There was no doubt a growing discontent in this country , when men were alarmed bv the confiscation ot their property , the destruction of their trade , and the insecurity of their persons . It was said that they cried out because the measure would be effectual ; but it not natural to
was more suppose that it was because they were unable to Pay ? If the measure were good , why was it not adopted at the beginning of jne war , as in the Spanish armament ? But , no , the people were to be deluded uke children , treated with tenderness in the first instance , so as to have no foretaste ofthe bitterness that was to follow . For this purpose even his Majesty's speech had been perverted ; and he was made to congratulate his subjects on ire possibility of carrying on the war without adding to their burdens . He then considered the various kinds of incomes liable to taxationand contended that the
, present measure would be a tax upon industry , since the capitalist who lived upon his interest . would in . few cases pay half as much as a person of the same fortune engaged in trade . On his own constituents the tax would bear with extraordinary severity . Houses were , i very bad criterion ; and horses no better , since to many in that house they are entirely luxuries , though necessaries to a VOL , is . 31
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
House Of Commons.
SINECUI 1 E PLACES . Mr . Nicholis moved a resolution simi ' ar to that which had passed in the reign of William and Mary , except that he intended to increase the limitation from 500 I . to 2 , oool . a year , in consequence of the advance of every thing since that period . He wished ihe contractors and capitalists round the Minister to have an interest in terminating Ihe war , and that those holding places of great emolument of the Crown , ( many of whom were otherwise men of considerable opulence ) should exemplarily contribute towards relieving ( be distresses of the nationinto which
, their support of the blind measures of the Minister had pr ncipally involved it . The resolution is as follows : ' That all' salaries , fees and emoluments of office , beyond the sum of 2 , oool . per annum , should be applied to defray theexpences of the war , excepting only the salaries of the Chancellor , the Judges , the Speaker of the House of Commons , Foreign Ministers , Officers serving in the Army and Navy , and those who had a freehold interest in their places . ' This resolution being objected to by Mr . Pitt ,, Mr . Dundas , and Mr . " Windham , on the ground that persons employed in the services of the state , as an inducement to bring great talents into office , ought to be very liberally rewarded : and thus the motion was consigned to oblivion .
TI 1 IPI . E ASSESSMENT BILL . The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved the second reading of this bill ; and , upon the question being put , Mr . Sheridan observed that the people were called upon to make every sacrifice ; but what , said he , is the example of the higher classes ? Has not every man who has supported Ministry shewn that he had some personal job in view ? V . hat is the last list of peerages , but so many gaudy jobs ? How can Ministers dare to call upon the people for sacrifices to make up their prodigal waste ? Has not of them insulted the
one country by talking of the cheeseparings of office when one of his own clerks has iS . oool . per annum ? This will serve to shew what is the magnitude of the consecrated cheese . He called the present Bill a libel on the rich , a penalty on economy , a bounty upon perjury , and a commission of bankruptcy taken out against trade . It went to establish a fiscal inquisition throughout the country ; an inquisition founded on a new and dangerous principle , which would fall as heavy on the man who possessed 2 , 000 ! . as on him who has a capital of 20 , 000 ] .
Mr . Dundas asserted that the seven millions would not be taken out of our expenditure to the injury of our commerce ; that our commerce flourished more in war than in peace , because there was an Army to be clothed , and a Navfoto be fed .
Mr . Fox said that Ministers , after destroying the liberty of the subject , were now , with a lavish and libertine hand , about to waste his property . Admitting even the necessity of such a supply , he had the strongest objections to the principle . The resolutions spoke of nothing but assessed taxes , and yet the assessed taxes were the very worst criterion that could be chosen . There was no doubt a growing discontent in this country , when men were alarmed bv the confiscation ot their property , the destruction of their trade , and the insecurity of their persons . It was said that they cried out because the measure would be effectual ; but it not natural to
was more suppose that it was because they were unable to Pay ? If the measure were good , why was it not adopted at the beginning of jne war , as in the Spanish armament ? But , no , the people were to be deluded uke children , treated with tenderness in the first instance , so as to have no foretaste ofthe bitterness that was to follow . For this purpose even his Majesty's speech had been perverted ; and he was made to congratulate his subjects on ire possibility of carrying on the war without adding to their burdens . He then considered the various kinds of incomes liable to taxationand contended that the
, present measure would be a tax upon industry , since the capitalist who lived upon his interest . would in . few cases pay half as much as a person of the same fortune engaged in trade . On his own constituents the tax would bear with extraordinary severity . Houses were , i very bad criterion ; and horses no better , since to many in that house they are entirely luxuries , though necessaries to a VOL , is . 31