to all the documents he had then the opportunity of consuling, there would be no deficit this year, though it ap peared by accounts which had since been received, that there would be a deficit of near a million this year. The surplus of a million, which he had spoken of, applied to the accounts of the year 1808, and his statement had been founded on the representations of Sir G. Barlow.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer gave notice, that he should the next day move for leave to bring in a bill for the better assessment and collection of the assessed taxes. It was no his intention to press the bill through the House this session he proposed only to bring it in and have it printe, in which state it was to lie over till next session, to afford the House and the country a full opportunity of forming a judgment upon its provisions.

:

Mr. Lockhart, pursuant to his notice, moved for leave to bring a bill to suspend the act of the thirty-sixth of the king, so far as it relates to the voidance of benefices held by clergymen, who may have subsequently accepted cu. racies augmented from Queen Anne's bounty. The ground on which he rested his motion was, that many clergymen, not aware of the clause in that bill, which rendered benefices void in case the incumbents accepted augmented cures, had by accepting such curacies subjected themselves inadvertently and ignorantly to the penalty of that act. The consequence was, that the patrons of the benefices were threatening them with new presentations, and that they hel! such benefices wholly at the mercy of such patrons. His bill was not intended to alter the law or decide the right, but merely to suspend the operation of the act till next session, in order that the legisla ture might have an opportunity of considering whether clergymen under such circumstances ought to be left to hold their benefices at the mercy of the patrons, or to be deprived of them altogether. The bill had the approbation of some of the highest characters, and as it was only to give Parliament an oppor unity of considering the matter more fully next session, he did not deem it necessary to say more upon the subject. He concluded by moving for leave, &c.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer would have great doubt of the propriety of the bill proposed by the honourable member, if it was to alter the law as it now sands, or to divest rights already vested by law. But as the bill

was

was only to suspend the operation of the law now in force, till the subject might be more fully considered next session, he was not aware of any material objection to it. Leave was then given.

Mr. Sheridan brought up the bill for the better regulation of licences for alehouses, &c. The bill provides, that where licence has been granted in a preceding year, and afterwards refused, the cause of such refusal shall be given in writing to the party, who shall have an appeal to the quarter sessions. The bill was read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time on Saturday next:

ELECTION PETITIONS.

Mr. Dent, pursuant to notice, moved for leave to bring in a bill for better regulating recognizances entered into upon petitions on controverted elections for members to serve in Parliament. The 26th of the king, he stated,. had not provided an adequate remedy against vexatious petitions. It required the principal in a petition to enter into a recognizance of 2001. and each of two sureties into one of 1007. but though it required the sureties to give in their residence, it did not require that of the principal, so that there was generally much difficulty to find him in the event of the recognizances being forfeited. It was to obviate this difficulty, and to discourage vexatious petitions, that he proposed to bring in his bill, which, when printed, he should suffer to lie over till next session. One of the provisions of the bill would be to require of the petitioner to deposit 2007. with the barons of the exchequer, which sum would be to be returned, if the petition should not be declared frivolous, or, if it should, to be disposed of, one half to the sitting member, the other to his majesty. That some such provision was necessary, would appear from what had happened in the case of the borough he represented. There had been no contest there, and yet a petition had been maliciously presented against his return, which had been signed by five persons, not one of whom was at the time within two hundred miles of the place. One was a barber, another a common porter, a third a day labourer, and a fourth a jack-ass-driver, and all had been bribed to give their signatures to the petition. The neces sity of the measure would also be obvious from the circumstance, that of fifty-four petitions which had been presented in last Parliament, eighteen had been abandoned with

out

out any recognizances having been entered into; and, of the thirty-one petitions presented this Parliament, seven had already been given up for want of recognizances. Having stated thus much, he was sure it was unnecessary for him to add any thing more to induce the House to allow him to bring in the bill. He therefore moved for leave, &c.

Mr. Rose could not help thinking that some regulation was necessary upon this subject. The practice of presenting vexatious petitions had become too frequent, and it was not proper that such libels upon the sitting members should be permitted. He hoped his honourable friend would take up the bill next session, when he assured him of his cordial support.

Mr. Dent then brought in a bill, which was read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time on Saturday

next.

The other orders of the day were then disposed of.
Adjourned.

HOUSE OF LORDS.

FRIDAY, AUgust 7.

Mr. Hobhouse, and several other members of the House of Commons, brought up the Malta trade bill, the parochial schools bill, the smuggling bill, and some private bills, which were read a first time. The parochial schools bill was ordered to be printed.

The silk drawback bill, and the Swedish herrings bill, were read a second time, and committed for the next day. The Irish trade bill passed through a committee and was reported. Adjourned.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 7.

The Ellis divorce bill was read a third time and passed. Mr. Lockhart brought in a bill for exempting beneficed clergymen from the penalties attendant on their acceptance of augmented curacies. The bill, after a short conversation between Dr. Laurence and Mr. Lockhart, was read a first time, and ordered to be read a second time the next day.

A message from the lords acquainted the House, that

their lordships had agreed to the Dover pilot bill, and the Scotch schoolmasters' bill, with several private bills, with out any amendments.

Mr. Jones rose to give notice of his intention to submit to the House a motion relative to the conduct of a colonel of a volunteer regiment to a permanent serjeant in the same regiment. The right honourable member was proceeding to state the circumstances, when he was called to order by the Speaker, who said, that it was irregular to go beyond the limits usually prescribed to giving a no ice.

Mr. Jones then said, that he should, early in the next session, make a motion to ascertain whether the colonel of a volunteer regiment had a right to dismiss his permanent serjeant without assigning any reasons whatever, and prima facie on election motives.

Mr. Robert Dundas moved, that the House do, early in the next sessions, proceed to take into consideration thé accounts presented on the 10th and 18th days of July last, respecting the revenue, charges, and commercial concerns of the East India company. Ordered.

Mr. R. Dundas moved for the production of a long series of papers, relative to the correspondence between the court of directors, and the government of Madras and Fort St George, and the instructions given in or about the year 1792 to Colonel Maxwell; as also the trials of the several Polygars, and also of the general letters from the governor of Fort St. George to the court of directors, and also the different correspondence between both, bearing the several dates of the 1st of September, 1800, the 24th of August, 1803, and the 19th of July 1804.

After a few observations from Mr. Creevey, and Lord Folkestone, the motion was agreed to.

ASSESSMENTS.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer rose, pursuant to his notice the preceding day, to move for leave to bring in a bill for the better regulation of assessment, and collection of assessed taxes; he said that, aware as he was of the great and serious inconvenience resulting to all parties, in ascer taining the due estimate of individual property, and collecting that tax with dispatch and efficiency, his great ob, ject was by dividing the trouble of the commissioners, to accelerate the mode of that collection; he wished to divide the duty of the assessors; he thought too, that in the next

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place it would be desirable, if the assessment was made in [COM the first instance, according to the return of the individual assessed; for, in that case, it was impossible that the individual could complain of any excessive estimate made upon his own return, and if that return proved to be frau dulently deficient, the commissioners would then have the means of redress in their own hands, by a subsequent surcharge, but it would be the object of the bill he should have the honour to propose, that there should be no surcharge established, until after the collection shall be made.

Mr. Barham said, that many instances had come within his own knowledge, of the grievous effects of injurious surcharges; he acknowledged he had known instances in which the surcharge of the commissioners was just and well founded, but he also knew some in which the commissioners persisted in levying an unfair surcharge.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer replied to Mr. Bar ham, in vindication of the commissioners.

Mr. W. Smith was afraid that the time was fast approaching when the officers in that department would necessarily be filled by men in the pay of government. He did not throw this out invidiously, but certainly the abuses of the present mode of estimating and collecting the property tax was liable to and might ultimately render the tax itself not only intolerable, but not fit to be borne by the people. The fact was, that the majority of those officers were over anxious to detect deficient estimates, not for the purpose of making the tax more productive to the nation, but that they might have their own share out of the surcharge.

Mr. Huskisson said, that the bill proposed by his right honourable friend would not go at all to limit the power and controul of the commissioners, of whom he thought so justly, that he did not wish them abridged of those powers; he assured the honourable gentleman opposite to him, that they had upon all occasions evinced the most anxious and laudable solicitude to make every inquiry, and give every possible redress in the case of unjust and vexatious surcharges.

Mr. W. Smith said in explanation, that he meant no charge against the commissioners.

Mr. Peter Moore observed that, oppressive as the tax was upon the subject, it would be borne not only patiently but cheerfully, if the people saw that Parliament was sin

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