was, it would go in anticipation of the army extraordinaries of the next year. He then concluded, by moving for the eftablishment of 17,483 for guards and garrisons in Great Britain, and the islands of Jersey and Guernsey, from the 25th day of June to the 24th of December, being 183 days. Lord Newhaven asked why the foreign troops had not been Lord Newmentioned. haven. Lord North gave for reafon, that the pay of thefe troops Lord North. had already been voted for the whole year; orders had been fent to America for their removal, and they would be withdrawn from that country with all the expedition imaginable: the five provincial corps on this eftablishment would also be fent to Nova Scotia, and difbanded. Sir Jofeph Mawbey wondered that the reduction was not Sir Jofeph to extend to the Oxford Blues, and the Horfe Guards, who Mawbey. had done no fervice whatever this war. Howard, General Sir George Howard faid he would never confent to Gen. Sir G. the difbanding of the Oxford Blues, which, in his opinion, was the finest regiment in Europe; nor did he like to hear of the converfion of the heavy into light dragoons; the heavy cavalry of this country had established such a reputation in Germany for being irrefiftible in their charge, to fuch a degree indeed, that the French cavalry had not once dared to face them laft war; that he fhould be very forry to see fuch a body of troops mounted on light horfes. He approved very much of the intention of Government to keep ten Captains in each regiment, but he at the fame time moft earneftly recommended it to the Committee to extend their generofity to another defcription of men, who were in fact the very foul of difcipline in the army, he meant the ferjeants. Many of these men, after having ferved from 20 to 40, and even 42 years, were difcharged with the very best characters, and recommended in the strongest terms to Chelsea Hofpital, where he prefided; and yet all that could be done for them was to give them, after all their fervices, five-pence a day, though when in the fervice, their pay was one fhilling a day. There was a charity indeed, to which ferjeants were recommended, called the King's letter men, and they received one thilling a day; but then their number was no more than 200; he therefore fupplicated the Committee to make the fame provifion for 100 more. Mr. Byng concurred entirely in opinion with the honour- Mr. Byng. able General; he bore his teftimony to the merit of the fer jeants The Secrezary at War. M. Fox. Gen. Con way. jeants of the army; and as the expence of adding 100 more General Burgoyne was of the fame way of thinking; his The Secretary at War faid he had it in contemplation to propofe fomething of that nature. Mr. Fox faid it had been fuggefted to him that the reduction of one drummer per company, might take place without any inconvenience to the army; and would produce a faving of near 6000l. per annum, which might be disposed of in rewarding meritorious ferjeants and others. As to the reduction in the guards, it had not taken place, for this reafon guards were confidered all over Europe as part of the fplendor and magnificence of monarchs, and in all the reforms that have been propofed in Parliament, the House had always given up the idea of taking from whatever was thought to be part of the fplendor of Majefty. General Conway fupported the idea of making fome farther provifion for the ferjeants, but he could not think that it was improper to convert heavy into light dragoons; the world knew what glory Elliott's light horfe had acquired at Emidorff, where they cut two battalions to pieces, and for his own part, he would ftake his own and his country's reputation on a charge at the head of light horfe, against an equal number of French heavy cavalry. Several queftions were put to Minifters by Sir Cecil Wray, Mr. Banks, and Lord Mahon, relative to inferior regulations in the army; after which the different refolutions on the eftates were moved by the Secretary at War, and carried without oppofition. The Houfe then refumed, and adjourned to Monday. June 16. Under the authority of an act of Parliament, perfons brewing beer for their own ufe, and not for fale, were per mitted to compound with the Board of Excife, at so much a head in their family, for the real duty on malt they thus confumed, in confequence of which they were freed from the vifits of the excife officers; but great frauds having arifen under this power of compounding, to the great deftruction of the revenue, Lord John Cavendish moved for a Committee of the whole House, to take into confideration the law which gives this power. In the Committee a refolution was moved by his Lordfhip, that this power of compounding ought to ceafe; the refolution was carried without oppofition. The Chairman afterwards reported, it to the Houfe; and Mr. Sheridan having moved the House to agree with the Committee in this refolution, Mr. Hill rofe, and faid he had five hundred objections Mr. Hill against the taking off the compofition on malt; but that he might not be tedious to the House, he would reduce them to units, and only mention five out of five score. He therefore opposed the tax on the five following grounds: as it was a partial, an unproductive, an oppreffive, an offensive, and as it was a fmuggled tax. It was a partial tax, because it affected fome few corn counties, among which Shropshire was not the leaft confiderable, but fhone, (at least a member for Shropshire might be allowed to think fo) velut inter ignes luna minores. It would be found an unproductive tax, not only on account of its being partial, but because not near the quantity of malt would be made; by which means would not bring in fo much as arofe to the revenue from the prefent high compofition duty; yet that compofition duty might perhaps bear raifing a little, though he muft own, he much doubted it; but if it was advanced too much, it would be crushed under its own weight, like the carriage tax, &c. It would be an oppreffive tax, because it would fall on the farmers, who compound in fome corn counties on account of their harveft people. It would alfo fall heavy on the hofpitality of country gentlemen, and on their poor neighbours and workmen, who received the benefit of their hofpitality he hated beftiality and excefs, but he professed himself a lover of hofpitality, and he trusted he might say, without boafting, that to feed the hungry, and to give drink to the thirfty, afforded him a fingular pleafure; but if that tax took place, it muft in fomne degree tie up the hands of charity, and caufe the indigent to lament its reftrained influence. It would be fuch an offenfive tax, that he really trembled for the confequences, efpecially when he confidered VOL. X. that that taking away a pint of beer per day from the workmen's allowance, as last year, on account of the fcarcity of bar ley, and the dearnefs of malt, was one principal caufe of the riots which took place in fome parts of England: the House knew that military force might quell thofe riots, but that was a shocking expedient in a free country, and at best was only a temporary remedy, for no fooner was the force withdrawn, than the evil it had curbed broke out with greater violence; whereas fair words, and a draught of beer, frequently effected that in a few minutes, which regiments. of foldiers, with drawn bayonets, could never accomplish at all. The man who was fubdued by love, they might make their lafting friend. The man that was conquered by power, would only wait the opportunity of fhewing them that he was their enemy. He heartily wifhed his fears might be groundlefs; but he knew the genius of the people in that part of the kingdom where the riots were the laft winter. He would not have men in power fhrink for a moment from their fleadiness, where fteadiness was needful; but he begged to be permitted to fay, that it required no finall degree of wisdom in Minifters to know when they ought to be steady, and when they ought to relax. There were times when even men's prejudices must be fubmitted to. The fkilful phyfician would feel his patient's pulfe before he forced down his throat the draught which his ftomach naufeates. They had feen the happy effects of that relaxing wifdom in various inftances. In the ftamp act in America, in conceffions lately made to a neighbouring kingdom, and they had feen the ill effects of the want of that relaxing wifdom, in the lofs of thirteen colonies of the British empire, on account of a little Boftonian tea. It was not for him to dictate to Minifters, nor fhould he attempt it; and as to arguments, they were of no weight where men in office were determined to carry their point, let what might be the confequence. He had faithfully and confcientioully delivered his fentiments on the fubject. He felt the ground on which he ftood to be firm, and he did in the moft 1, earneft and friendly manner intreat Minifters to remember that nil timere, as well as nil timide, was part of an excellent motto, He obferved that it was a fmuggled tax. If he were inclined to be jocular, (and he confeffed he often felt himfelf perhaps too much fo) he had then a fpacious field to fport in; but he had rather bind up the ironic vein than let it bleed. He could not however help remarking, that acts of Parliament against smuggling would come with a very ill grace from thofe who fmuggle acts of Parliament. But the reason why he called this a muggled tax, was firft, becaufe it was not mentioned when the other taxes were taken out of the budget. Secondly, because it was brought forward fo very late in the year, that thofe gentlemen who were principally interested in it, were almost all out of town; and those who were in town were affured, that no fuch tax was intended; at least,.he could affirm that that was the cafe with regard to one, for hearing that fuch a tax had been thought of by Adminiftration, he took the liberty of asking an honourable gentleman in his eye, [Mr. Sheridan] if it were really intended to be propofed,, and he affured him, that he did not know any thing of it. He was fure he did not mean to charge the honourable gentleman with duplicity. He was perfuaded he himself did not know the tax was to be brought on when he had the honour of fpeaking to him on the fubject; however, his ignorance of it was a full proof of the fudden and clandeftine manner in which the bufinefs had been tranfacted. He hoped, therefore, that the candour of the Houfe was fuch, as well as its regard for its own honour and dignity, that it would not fuffer a bill of that magnitude and importance to come on without putting it in the power of thofe gentlemen, who were moft concerned in it, even to deliver their fentiments upon it. Before he fat down, he must beg leave juft to mention a few words relative to the cyder counties: he thought it must be allowed to be a manifeft comparative hardship, that the barley counties must have fo great an onus thrown upon them, and the cyder counties bear no fhare at all of it. He hoped he should not bring any of the gentlemen of thofe counties upon his back by that obfervation, becaufe from a mere principle of juftice, he faid, that whilft they were totally exempt from any duty whatever (unless it was on cyder for fale) and give their labourers and harveft people as much of their beverage as they pleafed, quite duty free. The farmers and gentlemen where malt liquor was only, at leaft, principally ufed, were even denied the alternative of paying an immense compofition for their own home-inade malt, rather than fuffer an exciseman to come and examine their premises, with as much effrontery as a conftable entered the houfe of a thief to fearch for ftolen goods. Upon the whole, if Miniftry did not wish to render themselves more unpopular and odious than any preceding Miniftry ever did, by attempting that Z 2 which |