on the 21st of March, the Doctor, in answer to a question from Lord Folkestone, asserted, that, he meant the war-taxes to produce 4,500,0001 in the first year ending on the 5th of April, and not on the 5th of January, who would not have imagined, that, by the 5th of April, he would have taken care to bring forward a produce to that amount? Who would have thought, that, after having excited so much curiosity on the subject, he would not have been provided for a satisfactory result? Could those who contemned his judgment the most, those who were the most anxious to see him exposed to new shame; could even such persons have hoped, that, he would in the latter end of April come lagging out with an account, showing that the war-taxes, those taxes which were to have produced 4,500 0001. in January, bad, in three months afterwards, produced only 3,700,0001. The ac war-tax is now collected. It will, therefore, not be at all surprising, if, before the present year has expired, the prediction of my correspondent should be verified in all its parts, and that both taxes together should not produce so much as was before produced by the old tax alone. Another view of these war taxes is this: the Doctor estimated their net produce at 12,500,000l. annually. Let us try this estimate by the net produce of the quarter which has just been completed, and into which, we may be assured, every atiainable shilling was brought. That quarter produced 1,866,6-171. which, multiplied by 4, amounts to 7,460,5881. the produce of a year of those taxes, which were said to be taken, by way of "superabundant precaution," at 12,500,0001. In the statement to. which I am making these additions, I ventured, before I was in possession of the account now before me, to predict, that the present war-taxes would not yield more than 6,250,0001. annually, if all the old taxes remained unr pealed, and all kept up to their produce of 1803. If the whole year of wartaxes produced 6,250,0001. the first quarter would have produced only 1,562,000l. and, we see that it has produced, 1,806,0001. but, has there been no falling-off in the old, or permanent taxes? Have these taxes kept up to their produce of 1803? SECOND: To the foregoing questions a complete answer is found in a comparison between the net produce of the old or permanent taxes, during the quarter which ended on the 5th of April last year, and the net produce of the same taxes during the quarter which ended on the 5th of April this year *. count here referred to shows the amount of the produce of each tax in each quarter. It will be perceived, that the last quarter has been, as, indeed it must have been, the most productive; but, it does, nevertheless, appear, that some of the taxes, some of even these war-taxes, have not only reached their utmost stretch, but are already upon the decline. The war-taxes upon Goods and Shippg, for instance, yielded 377,7381. during the quarter which ended on the 5th of January, whereas, during the quarter which ended on the 5th of April, those taxes yielded no more than 258,9701, The war-tax on Tea discovers similar symptoms of decline. During the quarter ending in January, it produced 309,022 1. but, during the April quarter it produced only 260,1611. It must, indeed, be allowed, that this falling-off in the tax upon goods and shipping may be, in part, at least, owing to the circumstance of the winter quarter being unfavourable to the making of shipments; yet, some part of the decrease must be attributed to a generalflere we see, that, while the war-taxes decline in the export trade. As to Tea, I am less acquainted with the causes that are likely to operate upon a tax thereon imposed, but, as I find it yielding, even in the first quarter, 215,8131. and, as I see it fall off considerably in the third, I must attribute the falling off to a decrease in the quantity sold and used; and, indeed, this fling-off was explicitly predicted by an in telligent and sensible correspondent, whose letter will be found in the Register of the 4th of February last, present, Vol. p, 135, and the passage I particularly allude to in p. 144. It must be observed, too, that there was a tax upon Tea before; a permaand that his tax, as well as the Net produce of permanent taxes in £. 5,916,000 £345,000 have, in the last quarter, yielded 304,000l. beyond the fourth part of 6,500,0001. the old takes have fallen short of their last year's produce, in the corresponding quarter, to the amount of 345,000l. So that my prediction of last week will, I think, appear to have been by no means hazardous; and, I also think, that it will not require much exertion to satisfy any reasonable person, that, with our present trade, the sources of taxation are nearly exhausted, a position which, at every step in our examination of This statement is taken from an account now before the House of Commons, dated 17th of this present month of April. 每 the grounds on which it rests, will appear Tess and less doubtful. The whole of the taxes of last year, though embracing only 1,800,000 1. of the war-taxes, yielded 32,585,4191. 17s. Od.; and, if we suppose, that the whole of the taxes will this year produce, in each quarter, as much and no more than they have produced in the first quarter, to wit, 7.783.8491. 17s. Old. then the whole produce of this year will fill more than a million short of the produce of Jast year. But, a more conspicuous mode of statement is this: LAST YEAR the taxes, exclusive of war-taxes, produced 30.700,0001. THIS YEAR, including war-taxes, the produce, if every quarter is like the first quarter, will be 31,100,0001. So that, by imposing war-taxes to the amount of 12,500,000l. the Doctor adds me 400 000 to the revenue !!! And this is to "convince the "enemy that it is bopeless for him to con"tend with our pecuniary resources!" This is to "convince the other powers of Europe "that they may safely join ns in a common 51 cause, for, that the resources of this country are such as to give full security for the "punctual discharge of any engagement it may enter into!" This is to "inspire confidence at home and respect abroad!" Besides, to begin the cure we must get of the cause of our malady; that cause is the Doctor in his hands we have been brought to death's door; and few persons, I hope, will be so unjust as to deny, that I have used my utmost endeavours to remove that cause: few persons, I trust, however they may be prejudiced against me, will regard it as my fault that the country is still subjected to this degrading curse. I repeat, that I do not know that any remedy can be found for the financial evils which the Doctor has brought upon us; but, am I for that reason to abstain from exposing those evils? When a thief has taken a purse and spent it, there is, as to the loss, no remedy; but, is that a reason why the robbery should not be exposed and the thief punished? This cry for a remedy has stood the ministers in great stead. If you do not like what we have 'done, or are about to do, why do you not point out something better in place of it? Why do you complain of evils unless you are provided with a remedy?' This, in substance, they have said, in Parliament, fifty times, during the present session and the last, and, in two or three instances, they have been supported therein by Mr. Sheridan. That the "men taken from the middling classes of society" should hold such language is natural enough: it comports with their vulgar and grovelling notions, accordin g to which the adairs of a state are reduced to a level with those of a shop; but, for a man like Mr. Sheridan to give into the same strain is scandalous in the extreme.If there be any remedy for the decline in the revenue, it must be to produce an increase in the quantity of the objects of taxation; for, as to augmenting the rate of the taxes, experience has proved that to be worse than useless. An increase in the quantity of the objects of taxation is to be effected only by an increase of trade; and, an increase of trade is to be effected only by a recovery of our influence in those countries of Europe, with which we formerly carried on an uninterrupted commerce, but which are now under the control of France. We were told, at the time of making the peace, that, in spite of all the restraints which France might, in these unhappy countries, impose upon our I shall be asked, perhaps, what is the use trade, that trade would still keep on increasof exposing these evils and dangers, unless ing; that our goods were become necessaI can point out a remedy. I do not know, 'ries on the Continent, and that they would that a remedy can be pointed out; but, that find their way maugre the malice of our is no reason that I should not expose the enemies. This, was the doctrine of those evil, nor that I should refrain from calling" prudent young men," those "solid young for justice on the heads of those, through lords," those wise, those "safe politicians," whose means that evil has come upon us. Lords Hawkesbury and Castlereagh. My When the Doctor uttered these words, what must he have thought? How completely ignorant he must have been of the whole matter upon which he was talking; or, how far beyond that of ordinary men 'must have been his contempt for the opinions of mankind! It is not till now that I have waited to point out the falsehood of his statements upon the occasion alluded to. I did it immediately after those statements were made; and this fact alone is a sufficient proof of his total want of knowledge and judgment on the subject, or, of his having acted with a deliberate intention to deceive the People, the Parliament, and the King, and thereby to prolong the duration of his power and emoluments; for, to that motive alone an intentional deception can possibly be ascribed, unless we suppose him to entertain the diabolical delight of doing mischief for mischief sake, a disposition, of which, if we look at the thousands and thousands heaped upon his family, we must certainly have the justice to acquit him. answer was: "yes, in spite of all France " can do, the nations of Europe must, for some time at least, receive our manufac " tures; but, every obstacle thrown in their "way will surely enhance their price to the consumer, which will as surely diminish "the quantity consumed." And, who will now deny, that the decline in our trade is to be ascribed, in great part, if not almost entirely, to this cause? To a loss of that influence which we formerly possessed on the continent of Europe, and particularly in those countries with which we traded ? Whether this influence could now be recovered by any ministry, is a question that I am not prepared to answer; but, that it never can be recovered by the Doctor and his colleagues, is, I presume, a position that no one but a Treasury hireling will dispute. SIR, Lord Bacon has well observed (and his observation has often been alluded to) that speaking makes a ready man, writing a correct man, and reading a full man. He might have added, that thinking makes a great man. But what sort of men will the absence of all these make? Why, just such as are your present political adversa ries, just such too as are the scribblers, who have lately thought fit to attack the ness, which has determined him thus openly to arraign the present servants of the Crown, I would willingly ascribe to motives less unamiable than that selfish ava. rice of power, of which his indecision sometimes led you to suspect him, his long doubtful hesitating opposition. I would assign to feelings of a milder kind, feelings for those, whom he once recommended to power, his slowness to pronounce that now unmitigated condemnation, which their tried incapacity has forced from him. I admit, that the morality which dictared (created, if you will) his evident irresolution, was of a nature too feeble and too puny for a mind like his; but there is yet nothing in it un natural; nothing which may not be easily for given, if not praised; nothing which may not justify expectation of a manlier march in future. I fully believe myselt, what is said to have fallen from the attorney-general, in the debate of last night, that Mr. Pitt will not withdraw himself trom any mode of action, which the service of his country may require, and it is in consequence of that belief, that I now with confidence look forward to an administration formed betwixt bim and Mr. Fox. Far however, from thinking with the learned gentleman, that there would in such a junction be any sacrifice of talent or virtue; I, on the con trary, believe it would be the sacrifice of selfish feelings, the death of personal and interested views. So widely do I differ from him, that I in no way can account for his opinion, (of his honour there is not a doubt to hang a loop on) but by imagining his legal studies have robbed him of the leisure necessary for inquiring upon what basis political morality subsists. I have al ways understood, that in cases not forbid thoughts recommendatory of a coalition,' which you noticed in your Register some five weeks ago. When these gentlemen shall have read more, written more, and thought more, they will be, not great men, I cannot promise them that, but certainly something more tolerable than they now are; for the present they must rest content with the wonted half dozen of neigh-den by divine or human laws, the test of bourly subscribers, who live within a door or two of their Printing-oflice; and, in the meanwhile, may not unusefully employ themselves in poring for illustrations into Chambers's Dictionary, or even (by way of promotion) in getting up the monthly catalogue of some dying Review. It is neither worth your time nor mine to trouble ourselves about them. The division of last night (23d April) in the House of Commons, calls us to better things: and, I trust, Sir, you will not be unwilling to accept my congratulations on the conduct which Mr. Pitt has at length adopted. I am persuaded, that his future course will not be found contradictory to that sense of useful Letters on the Preliminaries of Peace, pubjished in December 1891, p. 240, action was utility; far be from us of Eng- Surely ample Mr. Tierney, or upon him pin the f justification: yet, as observed by Mr. Windham, it is somewhat strange, that be should be accepted, and, that yet the pardon granted to hit should be refused to them. The truth is, the desired measure needs not pardon. If to have attained that breadth of understanding, which teaches men of genius, to admit as natural that very dif ference of opinion which they oppose: if, to feel and to acknowledge that the active spi rit, kindling in its progress, necessarily rushes into extremes, till that germ of sepa ration, which in the cabinet might have been a span distant, becomes in the wide field of public disputation a seeming gulph. If to feel this, and the hour of battle past, to hasten to forget it; if this be weak, then is a coalition proof of weakness. If willingness to resign, when a great occasion asks it, the self flattering sensation of heading a free party in a free assembly; if willingness to meet on equal terms an equal rival, be selfish; then is a coalition proof of selfishness. If to cherish high and enthusiastic sentiments, whether of loyalty, of birth, or of freedom, yet so to regulate those sentiments as to make them not restrictive of, but, as they ought to be, conducive to our country's welfare, be dishonourable, then is a coalition proof of dishonour. I will not, Sir, so wrong the attorney general as to suspect, that he can seriously believe the emoluments of office have an influence upon any of the great parties to this measure. I am told that he is personally hostile to one of them, yet cannot I so lightly hold his judgment as to think, that even that obnoxious individual is suspected by him of love of place for its emoluments. And if power be the object, is it ambition in excess for him to accept of half, who is a competitor for the whole? No, Sir, the sole, real question, as to the propriety of a coalition, is, in my mind, whether either Mr. Pitt or Mr. Fox can separately render to the country the same benefit, which may be rendered by them conjointly? To this my own answer certainly is, they cannot. Aud should it accord with the previous arrangement of your Register, I shall be glad, Sir, in the ensuing week to state to you the reasons upon which my answer rests; for the present, I will only add, that there certainly is no such jealousy betwixt them, as need at all lead us to despair of their eventual union. We know, from Mr. Burke, that at the beginning of the late war, a situation in the cabinet equal to his high talents was offered, with Mr. Pitt's approval, to Mr. Fox. Yet Mr. Fox had then been long the opponent of Mr. Pitt's administration. We know that Mr. Fox now considers the return of Mr Pitt to power as an event, compared with the existence of the Addington cabal, devoutly to be desired. It is said too, that he has avowed his wish, did events call upon himself to advise a new adminis tration, to offer Mr. Pitt a leading situation. With these sensations towards each other, what is there that ought long to keep them asunder? I trust in spite of underling intriguers that nothing will.-I am, &c, &c.-F. C. IRISH CURRENCY, STR,-This subject, in itself extremely intricate, especially in Ireland, while it requires the most dispassionate investigation, has generally been treated by interested persons, bankers, or money-changers, whose interest stands diametrically opposite to the interest of the public-and whose opinions, biassed by their interest, are not only deceptive to those who read, but even to those who utter them.-Uader no such bias is the author of this letter; he feels no interest in the subject but in common with the nation; and, therefore, though he may err in his opinions, it will be the error of honesty.I think it may be fairly said, and without a figure of speech, that at this present writing, March 26, there is no circulating coin in this his Majesty's good city of Dublin; and, in three fourths of the kingdom of Ireland, the miserable currency which, with infinite difficulty and great loss, circulates amongst us, consists of base, white or blue metal, passing for shillings, of change notes, and of brass, lead, or copper tokens, stamped by private persons, and passing for halfpence. - I have never been able to understand why a guinea should be called twentyone shillings in England, and twenty two shillings and nine-pence in Ireland; why a shilling should be twelve pence in England, and thirteen pence in Ireland; in a word, why an hundred pounds in England should be one hundred and eight pounds six and eight pence in Ireland, when money is said to be at par; that is, when in the course of business, as much money is transmitted from England to Ireland, as from Ireland to England; and, therefore, unless some one shail shew me that any advantage or benefit results to the public from this difference in the nominal value of money, I shall assume it for granted, that one uniform rate of coin throughout the United Kingdom would greatly tend to simplify exchange, and to assimilate the different parts of the union, and in this opinion I am fortified by the conduct of the British government after the union of Scotland with England. The Scots pound, previous to the union, was one pound one shilling and eight pence British-but ever since it has been twenty shillings, as in England. It has long been the grand desideratum throughout the British isles, that weights, measures, and coins should every where be equalized; there never can be a better opportunity for equalizing the coin than the present, when we are circumstanced precisely as if we never had any coin- and as the subject must be undertaken de novo, government have now an opportunity of attixing to a new coinage any value it may think proper.—— In a new comage I am not at all anxious that the quantity of gold, of silver, or of copper, should be really and intrinsically equal in value to the sum for which it is to pass (expense of coinage excepted). The price of gold and silver, like all other commodities, perpetually fluctuates; and, there. fore, a coinage, almost equal in intrinsic to its nominal value, is in continual danger of going to the crucible, or worse, to the Continent; whereas, if the pieces pass throughout the United Kingdom for considerably more than the intrinsic value, there is no danger of their being melted down or exported. But it will be objected, that if coins have a nominal value considerably greater than their intrinsic value, ingenious but dishonest men will be tempted to imitase such coins and throw the imitations into circulation. This, I grant, may happen, but not in a degree at all equal to the forgeries that have been discovered of bank notes; these two species of fraud are not performed with equal facility; an artist locked up in a closet, with an apparatus capable of being enclosed in a tea-chest, may perform the whole process of making bank no.es to any amount; the thing has been repeatedly performed; while it requires large and ponderous machinery, and the aid of divers artificers to form the imitation of a coin, and after all, if the counterfeit be gold or silver, of the saine fineness with the piece imitated, we have something for our money, whereas in a forged bank note we have nothing at all. It may, indeed, be said, that giving an higher nominal than the intrinsic value of a coin, is bringing, by violent temptation, unwary men to the gallows: in reply to this, I say, that within the last seven years more persons have been hanged and transported for imitating Irish bank notes, than for counterfeiting coin since the creation of the world.A foolish assertion has been made, that though the difference between a golden guinea and a guinea bank note is two shillings and sixpence, yet bank notes are not depreciated: now, if by the word depreciated is meant and understood lowered in value, and if at any time the value of a guinea bank note wa, equal to a golden guinea, and would exchange and pass" for the same, then certainly a guinea bauk note is now lowered in its value, as without the addition of two shillings and sixpence it will not now purchase a golden guinea, and is therefore very properly said to be depre. ciated. The original motive for prohibiting the bank from making payments in specie, has never been well understood. This prohibition was made at the beginning of the last war, and it was then pretended it was to prevent our specie from being sent to the enemy: this pretence was shallow indeed; for however well-disposed our worthy United Irishmen and Jacobins were to aid the French in the ruin of our country, the greater part were poor rogues, without money or means, and certainly there was not one amongst the few wealthy who would be so prodigal of his wealth as to send any of it to France, without getting in return some commodity in value to the money remitted, and this trade has all along been licensed. Another pretence was, that in times of such danger and peril as the present, and those we have lately passed, people would be induced to hoard and hide their specie. This possibly would have been the case; but does not the restriction on the bank operate precisely in the same way; or rather, is it not better for the public that individuals who will bring it out when they find it their interest, should hoard their specie, than that it should be hoarded by Proprietors of the Bank, whose interest it must always be to circulate their paper and retain the specie ?- -I believe the true reason for arresting the specie in the Bank of England last war was, that the minister might have a fund of specie for the remittances of loans, subsidies, payment of troops, and various other demands to the Continent; and the Bank of England being restrained, it followed as of necessity in Ireland.—— But to put the question to a short issne, I will ask, does any man at this day carry one hundred golden guineas to the bank and take for them, as change, one hundred guinea notes? I believe we need not hesitate to answer this question in the negative; as any man having an hundred golden guineas which he was desirous to change, would much rather carry them to any change broker, or almost to any merchant, who for the said one bundred golden guineas would give him an hundred and twelve, nay, sometimes an hundred and fourteen bank notes, or paper |