20th of February, by Mr. Littleton, the Irish secretary, in a committee
of the whole house, met for the purpose of considering the portion
of the king's speech relating to this subject. Government, he said,
proposed in the first place, that from and after the month of November
next, composition for tithe should cease in Ireland, and in lieu thereof
a land-tax should be imposed, payable to the crown, and to be collected
and managed by the commissioners of woods and forests, of the same
amount as the tithe-payment now exigible, and to be paid by the same
parties who at present were liable. In the second place, he said,
ministers proposed that this land-tax should be redeemable at the end
of five years, by all who had a substantive interest in the estate.
Thirdly, they proposed, he said, that so much of the land-tax as
remained unredeemed on the 1st of November, 1839, should be converted
into a real charge, equal to four-fifths of the land-tax, and payable by
the owner of the first estate of inheritance in the land, who should be
entitled to recover the whole amount over against his tenantry; these
rent-charges would be redeemable or saleable for the best price to be
had, not being less than the consideration for redemption of land-tax.
In the fourth place, ministers proposed that the tithe-owners should be
paid by warrants issued by the ecclesiastical commissioners for Ireland,
and addressed to the commissioners of woods and forests: such payments
to be of the amount of the compositions to which the tithe-owners might
be severally entitled, subject to a deduction for the trouble, loss, and
expense of collection. Finally, ministers proposed that on redemption
of the land-tax or sale of rent-charges taking place, the payments by
warrants were to cease; and that the redemption or purchase-money should
be paid over to the commissioners for the reduction of the national
debt, and to yield an interest of 2 1/4d. per diem. The money was to be
drawn out from time to time, and invested in land, for the benefit of
the tithe-owner entitled to the principal money. The great object of
the measure, Mr. Littleton explained, was, if possible, to invest the
produce of the land-tax and rent-charge in land, so as to give the
tithe-owner L80 in land for every L100 tithe to which he had a claim.
Where clergymen had already agreed to compositions, they would get tax
to the same amount, redeemable on the same terms as in other cases;
clergymen wo