Colonel Wood oppofed the Speaker's leaving the chair.He faid, he conceived the Bill incapable of attaining its avowed object, which was to facilitate recruiting for the regular corps, and to relieve thofe counties, in which the neceffary complement of men was not raifed, from their embarralment. He recommended, therefore, that, instead of reducing this body to eighty-two thousand as propofed by the Bill, that it should be raised to its proper complement of one hundred and eight thoufand, of which twenty-four thousand of the moft veteran might be fent home on furloughs for three years, upon condition of returning in cafe of actual neceflity. Mr. Dundas faid, it was not his intention to press the Bill at present, but merely to put it in fuch a state as might enable the country to judge of its merits; he likewife wished that the Bill, as amended, might be printed, and that it be taken into further confideration after the holidays, when the Honourable Gentleman would have a full opportunity of making any obfervations he might think proper, The Bill then went through a Committee, in which several claufes were agreed to. The Report was then received, and ordered to be taken into further confideration on Tuesday fortnight. Mr. Dundas brought up copies of the Report of both Houfes of Tobago, in anfwer to certain refolutions passed in 1797, communicated to them by the Governor, which was ordered to be laid on the table. The further confideration of the Income Bill was deferred till to-morrow. Adjourned. HOUSE OF LORDS. PRINCES EDWARD and ERNEST, and the PRINCESS AMELIA. THE Bill for making a fettlement upon these branches of the Royal Family, was brought up from the House of Commons, read a first and fecond time, paffed through the Committee. and ordered to be read a third time on Monday. The Bills on the table, and fome private bufinefs, being gone through, the Houfe was adjourned. HOUSE OF COMMONS. Saturday, March 16. THE Linen Bill was reported, ordered to be engroffed, and read a third time on Monday, The The Bill fettling an Annuity of twelve thousand pounds a year each on their Royal Highneffes Princes Edward and Erneft Auguftus, during his Majefty's pleafure, and alfo the Bill for enabling his Majefty to make provifion for her Royal Highness the Princefs Amelia, were read a third time and paffed. Sir John Sinclair faid he faw no immediate neceffity for the Report being brought up now. A fubject of this importance ought to be deferred until Monday, unless there was fome evident neceffity for dispatch, in which cafe the particular reafon ought to be affigned. The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that the largest vote in the Refolutions in the Report was a fum for the fuffering. Clergy and Laity of France (two hundred and fixty thoufand pounds), all the others were fums voted after the fulleft notice of the fubjects to which they referred, and upon which there had been fome difcuffion; he had heard no notice of any further objection to any of them. The Report was brought up, and the following Refolutions of the Committee read; That the fum of one hundred and fifty thousand pounds be granted to his Majefty for secret services. That the fum of two hundred and twenty-fix thousand pounds be granted for the fuffering Clergy and Laity of France, and for the American Loyalifts for the year 1799; and That five thousand pounds be granted to the Levant Company. After the first Refolution had been read a second time, Sir John Sinclair said, he had often difapproved of voting large fums of money, or tranfacting any other bufinefs of great importance, on this day. It was Saturday, and Members of Parliament confidered it as a day that was peculiarly their own, and accordingly made arrangements, which caused their abfence from the Houfe. On this account, he was of opinion, that business of importance fhould be deferred until Monday, unlefs fpecial reafon fhould be affigned for particular dispatch. He had heard no fuch reafon affigned. He objected therefore to the day; but that was not all, for he objected alfo to a fum which had been voted, and now stood in the report. It was new to the Conftitution of this country to vote money on a defective estimate. By an Act of the 20th George the Third, c. 40. certain provifion was made, and one of the articles of this report was directly contrary to that provifion. It was alfo directly No. 28. 7 A contrary contrary to the ufage of Parliament to grant money for public fervice, any otherwife than upon a proper estimate laid before them. He had looked at the estimate that was laid before the Houfe, and he did not think it was such an estimate as would juftify that House in granting the money ftated in the report; he therefore thought he ought not to affent to the vote now before the House. The Chancellor of the Exchequer faid, that the act which the Honourable Baronet had adverted to was to repeal a power by which the Lords of the Treafury thought they might iffue fuch fums as they might think proper, without giving any eftimate, or ftating the object; yet it was upon this act that the Honourable Baronet had founded his objection to the grant of a fum whofe object was defined, whofe amount was ftated, and which was proposed upon eftimate. That this was Saturday he did not mean to deny; the Honourable Baronet had flated it with great emphafis, and with the conviction that belonged to fuch a pofition; but he would recollect that bufinefs had been frequently done upon Saturdays; and that the Members knew that bufinefs was to be done upon this Saturday. The objection, therefore, to the motion, fo far from inducing him to defer the report till Monday, only confirmed him in his opinion, that there was no reafon for deferring it. The Refolutions were then feverally agreed to, viz. For the Secret Service abroad for the year 1799 £.150,000 For Suffering French Clergy and Laity, and for American Loyalists For the Turkey Company Total } 226,000 5,000 L.381,000 A Bill was ordered to be brought in accordingly. INCOME BILL. The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved the Order of the Day on the Bill for altering, explaining, and amending the Income Bill. The Report being brought up, the amendments made in the Committee were read and agreed to, after which a prodigious heap of claufes was produced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, by way of further amendment to the Bill: each claufe being put and agreed to, Mr. Jones faid he took no exception to Saturday as a day for public bufinefs; he was always ready to attend to his duty as a Member of that House. But with respect to the Bill now before them, he had done all he could to under fland 1 ftand it, and he was not ashamed to confefs he did not understand it. He had spoken to a number of perfons whom he confidered as poffeffing good intellects, and they also declared they did not underfland this Bill. As to the queftion of fecrecy with regard to the Income of individuals, he owned it appeared to him to be very defective in that parti cular. It always appeared to him to be a measure of an inquifitorial nature. He wifhed it were otherwife. The claufes which were faid to be in favour of fecrecy appeared to him to be very inadequate to their object. He wished to fee fomething further done in that particular. That part of this subject was very repugnant to the general feeling. The Common Council of London had thrown out fome hints about fwearing Collectors to fecrecy as well as Affeffors; he wifhed thofe hints to be attended to by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who would, he hoped, fuffer as much fecrecy to attend the execution of this Bill as was consistent with the main object of it ;-that of raifing a great deal of money for the public fervice. It would give him great fatisfaction to fee this object of fecrecy attained. Among the claufes added to the Bill, were, A claufe for repealing fo much of the last act as related to the qualifications of Commillioners for cities and boroughs. A claufe prefcribing the qualifications of Commiffioners for cities and boroughs, and for Wales. A claufe for delivering statements fealed up, and inflicting a penalty upon Affeffors who fhall break fuch feal. A claufe for repealing fo much of the former act as directed that no difcount fhould be allowed on money paid into the Bank. A claufe for allowing discount for money paid in advance into the Bank. A claufe for allowing perfons to be affeffed by the Commercial Commiffioners in the diftrict in which the trade is carried on. A claufe for allowing the act to be altered, varied, or repealed, by any act of the prefent feflion. Mr. Ryder propofed an amendment on the declaration refpecting children. Some perfons fuppofed, though he confeffed he did not, that, by the former act, a man might deduct from his income any allowance made to a child, and afterwards claim an abatement for fuch a child. He would thus obtain a deduction in two ways. For his own part, he did not think that fuch a conftruction could be put upon 7 A 2 the the act; but in order to render it totally impoffible, he would move the insertion of these words after the words child born in wedlock," and that I have not deducted any allowance made by me to fuch child from my income;" and after the word abatement, that these words be inferted, "of per cent. from the fum which I have declared to be per cent. of my income." These amend not less than ments were agreed to. Mr. Vanfittart remarked, that by the former act, two witneffes were required to every perfon's fignature. This had occafioned much complaint; and therefore he suggested that that part which required the two witneffes fhould be omitted. He alfo regretted that it was too late to introduce a claufe for conftituting the income arifing from woods and forefts as within the meaning of the Bill. Mr. Lloyd fubmitted a new claufe. He did not recollect whether the object of it had been stated before, but it feemed to him to be fo particular a cafe, that he should not do his duty if he did not act according to the representations which he had received from feveral clergymen of fmall income. They ftated, that with the taxes that now exifted, it was next to impoffible for them to maintain that character which was neceffary, if they were to be loaded with the whole of the prefent tax. He therefore propofed a clause to the following effect: "That where the income of any clergyman does not exceed 200l. he fhall only be charged at half of the refpective rates above fet forth."-To this bill he had given his fupport in every stage, because he thought it his duty in the prefent fituation of the country. The Chancellor of the Exchequer exprefled his regret at being forced to object to this claufe. No man, he was ready to admit. had been more friendly to the Bill than the Honourable Gentleman; but it was impoffible to begin making exceptions for particular perfons. This had been fufficiently urged before. But the Honourable Member would recollect, that for incomes under 200l. there were confiderable diminutions. The claufe was withdrawn. The Bill was now ordered to be engroffed, and read a third time on Monday. A meffage from the Lords informed the House their Lordships had paffed Mr. Ricketts's Divorce Bill, and had agreed to a Bill from the Commons. The Bill for exempting perfons ferving in Volunteer Corps |