ed to
the motion as irregular and inexpedient. It was a motion, he
said, recommending a reduction of our civil, naval, and military
establishments, without waiting for the estimates of those
establishments which was to be laid before the house--without waiting
to see whether any and what reductions might be proposed in them by
ministers. How, he asked, would parliament determine the amount or
practicability of any reduction, till it had inquired into the necessity
and general bearing of the several branches of the expenditure? And how
could that inquiry be instituted before ministers had laid before the
house the responsible official statement of the amount of the several
estimates for the year, so as to enable the house to decide upon the
economy or extravagance observed in the management of the public money?
He objected to the motion, therefore, as a departure from the usual
practice of parliament. It was opposed by Messrs. Western and Grant, on
the ground that it would be better for ministers first to produce their
plan, and then to deal with it as the house might think fit. The house
was already pledged to the full extent of this motion, which was,
generally to reduce expenditure, and the next step ought to be to point
out in what particular manner the reduction ought to be made.
Lord Althorp said, that he felt every confidence in the economical
disposition of ministers; but still it was desirable that the house
should express its opinion that the taxes ought to be reduced in
proportion to the reductions in the expenditure, although he did not
conceive it possible that the taxes ought to be reduced to the extent
proposed by Mr. Hume: his duty was to vote, therefore, for the
motion. On a division, however, the motion was lost by one hundred and
eighty-nine to sixty-nine.

MOTION FOR REVISING THE WHOLE SYSTEM OF TAXATION.

On the 25th of March Mr. Poulett Thompson moved the appointment of a
committee to revise the whole system of our taxation. His object,
he said, was to examine the incidents of our great taxation; for all
authorities of any weight were agreed that revenue did not depend merely
on the amount of what actually passed into the exchequer, but on the
manner in which it was derived from the people. Mr. Poulett Thompson
wished the house in the first place to consider the taxes which affected
raw materials; and whether a reduction was not practicable without any
diminution of revenue. He then passed i