Slike strani
PDF
ePub

A distiller or maker of low wines or spirits, a rectifier of spirits, or a deal er not being a retailer, to pay 107. license duty annually; the license to be renewed every year; retailers to pay according to their rents: under 10l., to pay 27.; a house107., and under 20., to pay 41. 4s. ; under 25., 67. 6s. ; under 30l., 71. 7s. ; under 401., 81. 8s.; under 50l., 9l. 9s.; and 50%. and above, 10l. 10s.

Statutes were also enacted, consolidating and new-modelling the license duties payable by auctioneers, and by persons selling malt liquors, and others regulating the equalization of the duties upon the different measures used for different exciseable liquids, and in different parts of the empire, and assimilating them all to the imperial gallon, when that should take effect in January 1826, and also allowing spirits to be entered in bonded warehouses when carried from one part of the empire to another.

The act for assimilating the excise duties and regulations, which fixed the commencement of the new duties at the 5th of July, repealed the old excise licences, and instead thereof, fixed the auctioneers' licenses at 5l.; the brewers' licenses at from 10s., when the annual quantity should be under twenty barrels, progressively to 751., when it should exceed forty thousand barrels; brewers retailing for consumption out of their premises, 51. 58.; brewers retailing strong beer in not less than four gallons, or two dozen quart bottles, 31. 3s.; victuallers paying under 20l. rent, 17. 18.; or above 20l., 31. 3s.; candle-makers, 51. if wax and spermaceti; 21., if of other composition; retailers of tea, coffee, or spices, 11s.; glass-makers, 20.; tanners, 5l.; tawers of hides, 21.; dressers of hides and curriers, 4l.; makers of parchment or vellum, 21. ; makers of malt from under fifty quarters annually, 7s. 6d., to above five

VOL. XVIII. PART I.

hundred and fifty quarters, 4l. 10s.; paper-makers and paper-stainers, 4l.; dealers in plate, under thirty ounces, 24. 28.; above thirty ounces, 4l. 4s.; calico-printers, 201.; soap-makers, 4l. ; makers of low wines, rectifiers of spirits, spirit dealers not retailers, each 10.; still-makers and persons having stills for chemical purposes in Scotland and Ireland, 10s.; retailers of spirits in houses not rated from under 10l. rent, 21. 2s.; to a house 50l., 10l. 10s.; retailers of spirits in Ireland, also retailing tea, coffee, and spices, in houses not rated, from 91. 9s., under 25. of rent, to 13. 13s., if above 50%.; starch-makers, 5l.; makers of sweets, 21. 2s.; retailers of ditto, 17. 1s.; manufacturers of snuff and tobacco, according to the quantity, from 51. to 80l.; retailers of ditto, 5s. ; vinegar-makers, 57.; dealers in foreign wine, not being licensed to deal in spirits or beer, 10l.; dealers in wine, licensed for beer but not spirits, 4l. 4s. ; if for spirits, 21. 2s.; drawers of gilt or silver wire, 21.

The imperial gallon appointed to be used after the commencement of January 1826, being 277.274 cubic inches, the existing ale gallon 282, and the existing wine gallon 231, all duties, allowances, and drawbacks upon malt, (a bushel of which was 8 gallons ale measure,) beer, and spirtis, were repealed, in consequence of the impossibility of fixing perfectly equivalent duties, and new duties were imposed in their stead, which applied to all malt, beer, and spirits, made in Scotland or Ireland, namely, for every thirty-six imperial gallons of beer above 16s. the barrel, 9s. 10d.; or ditto twopenny ale in Scotland, 4s. 1d.; for ditto table beer, 1s. 114d.; for every barrel of thirty-six imperial gallons imported into Britain from the Isle of Man, or from Ireland, 9s.; allowance for waste, to every brewer not a retailer, on strong beer, per barrel,

10d.; on table beer, 2d.; drawback upon the exportation of every barrel of strong beer that shall have paid the duty, 14s.; upon ditto exported from Ireland, 5s. 4d.; and upon British strong beer exported to Ireland, 9s.; duty upon malt, not made from bear or bigg, for home consumption, 1. 13s. 4d., and if from bear or bigg, 1. 58. for every hundred imperial gallons. Duty upon every hundred gallons of spirits made at the rate of two gallons of spirits from nine gallons of malted barley, or twelve gallons of malted bear or bigg, made by distillers in Scotland or Ireland, charged with duty for distilling from malted corn only, 51. 16s. 8d.; if made from mixed or unmalted corn, 127. 10s.

Such is an outline of the measures that were adopted for the simplification of the excise laws, and the more easy collecting of the duties after the adopting of the new standard; and here it may not be improper to introduce a very simple formula for exchanging wine and ale gallons and Scotch pints to the standard gallon :

[blocks in formation]

after that date, factors and agents having goods or merchandise in their possession, should be deemed the true owners, so far as to give validity to contracts with persons dealing bona fide upon the faith of such property; and also declaring that persons in possession of bills of lading should be deemed owners, in so far as to be able to make contracts; and that persons might contract with known agents in the ordinary course of business, or out of that course, if within the agent's authority; but that no person should acquire security upon goods in the hands of an agent for an antecedent debt beyond the agent's bona fide interest in the goods, nor make a pledge of them further than such interest of the agent. It also gave a power to the right owner of goods to follow them into the hands of the agent, or of his assignee, in case of bankruptcy, or to redeem them from a third person in the event of paying that person's advances upon them; the said payment, if to the amount of the agent's interest in the goods, or the sum owing to him by the owner, to be held as relieving the owner from all obligation to the agent or his trustee. It enacts, that agents fraudulently pledging their employers' goods shall be held guilty of a misdemeanour, and liable, upon conviction, to transportation for not exceeding fourteen years; not, however, unless the sum received for them should exceed the agent's lien, which was not to be held as increased by bills accepted by the agent, until those bills should have been paid; nor to extend to partners, unless they should be proved to have been privy to the offence. But under no circumstances was the act to lessen the remedy of the parties at law or equity.

V. MEASURES RELATING TO NA

VIGATION.

Of these there were several: as an act giving power to masters of vessels,

in case of distress, to repair and man their vessels in foreign ports, or with foreign seamen, allowing a more free intercourse in shipping, and defining more clearly what ought and ought not to be considered as British ships or British seamen. Other bills were introduced and adopted for regulating ships carrying passengers, for pilots, and other minor details, for which reference must be made to the acts themselves.

VI. TRADING COMPANIES. Of the measures relating to these, one went to repeal so much of the 6 Geo. I. cap. 18, (commonly styled the Bubble Act,) as related to joint stock companies, and to enable the legislature to grant to those companies acts of parliament for their protection, and thus to bring them within the guardianship of the law; the act not to affect the issue of suits pending during the time that it passed; and to render the members of corporations incorporated by royal charter individually liable.

Another act gave additional power to private bankers in Ireland, and additional security to persons doing business with them, by allowing companies of more than six members to issue promissory notes, provided the same were done at places fifty miles from Dublin; allowing persons resident in Britain to be members of Irish trading companies, making the members liable individually, and regulating the whole of the details. This measure was expected to conduce very much to the prosperity of Ireland, in consequence of the stability it was calculated to give to the private banks, which, under the old system, were always either creating alarm or actually occasioning loss.

A third measure related to partnership societies in Scotland, and provided for their suing and being sued by their active director or manager, much in the same way that joint stock compa

nies in England can sue and be sued by their secretaries.

VII. BONDED GRAIN AND FLOUR,
AND CANADIAN CORN.

An act, passed on the 22d of June, provided for all foreign corn bonded before the 13th of May 1822, and all wheaten flour warehoused under 5 Geo. IV. c. 70, being taken out for home consumption, the one half before the 15th July, and the other half before the 15th August, upon paying a duty of 10s. per quarter on wheat, 6s. 6d. for every quarter of rye, pease, or beans, 3s. 6d. for every quarter of oats, and 2s. 6d. for every hundredweight of flour; but none to be taken out of the warehouses after the 15th of August. On the same day, an act was passed, suspending for one year and to the end of the then next session of Parliament, the prohibition of the importation of wheat from Canada; but prohibiting any wheat from being shipped for Britain from the Canadian ports without oath being previously made that such wheat was bona fide the production of the British colonies in North America.

VIII. REGULATIONS OF COTTON

MILLS AND FACTORIES.

The early age at which children had been admitted to work at those establishments, the number of hours which they had been employed without air or exercise, and the unseasonable hours at which they had been made to work, had long been complained of, and ultimately excited the attention of the legislature. The act provided, that, after the first day of August, 1825, no person under sixteen years of age should be employed in any mill for spinning wool or cotton, or cleaning the same, for a greater number of hours than twelve in the day, and that these hours should be between five in the morning and eight in the evening. That nine hours only should be allowed on Satur

days, to be over by half past four in the afternoon; and that half an hour daily should be allowed for breakfast, and one hour for dinner: but, in case of loss of time, through deficiency of water, or accidents to machinery, the time to be made up by additional labour, not exceeding half an hour per day, and not extending to Saturdays. The act farther ordered, that the walls and ceilings should be washed with water and quick lime once a-year; that a copy of the act should be kept in every manufactory to which it applied; that persons convicted of offending against it, upon information laid within two months, should be fined; that books of registry, stating the ages of the children, should be kept; that justices interested should not act; that witnesses should be punished for refusing to give evidence; and that no appeal should be allowed. This act gave rise to some discussion. It was contended, on the one hand, that it was an interference with the liberty of the subject, by restricting the usefulness of the young persons, employed in those mills, both to their employers and to themselves; and it was answered, upon the other hand, that the children were employed an improper length of time, not for any benefit to themselves, but to gratify the cupidity of others.

IX. POSTAGES AND NEWSPAPER
STAMPS.

The regular conveyance of letters to and from Colombia and Mexico was provided for; and the postage between Britain and Colombia and Mexico, fixed at 2s. 2d., 4s. 2d., 6s. 3d., 8s. 4d., for single, double, treble, and ounce letters; and between the ports in the West Indies and the same, at half those sums, abating the pence; the moneys raised by the same to be paid into the Exchequer on behalf of the consolidated fund.

Newspapers, votes, and proceedings in Parliament, were allowed to be sent to the West India Colonies upon putting them into the post-office upon the day on which they were dated, and paying three-halfpence. Newspapers put into the post-office not upon the day of publication, (except Sunday papers, which might be put in on Monday,) to pay the same as single letters; but if written upon, to be charged as treble letters. Newspapers printed in the Colonies, to pay 3d. upon being received in the mother country. The proceeds of the postage to be paid into the consolidated fund; and compensation to be made to those officers in the postoffice who previously had the privilege of franking newspapers to the Colonies. Persons not obliged to send newspapers by post, and the name of a Member of Parliament upon the cover of newspapers dispensed with.

The regulation limiting the sale of newspapers repealed, and supplements or sheets containing advertisements, and delivered gratis, allowed to be upon a two-penny instead of a four-penny stamp.

Letters were allowed to be sent by the packets between Liverpool and Dublin at the same rates as from Holyhead to the latter place.

X. EQUALIZATION OF CURRENCY.

The current coin of Ireland, which had previously been at the rate of thirteen-pence to one shilling sterling, was assimilated to the British standard; all existing obligations which had been taken in Irish currency, to be paid in sterling at the proper rate; the bank tokens to be called in, and sterling to be the circulating medium and money of exchange for Ireland, from and after the 1st of January, 1826.

CHAPTER VI.

COMBINATION LAWS.

THE measure of the previous session, repealing the combination laws, was founded upon a just principle, but in practice had given rise to the most atrocious disorders. Those laws, directly invaded the equitable rule, that every man has a right to dispose of his labour on such terms as he himself chooses to fix ; and it was no reply to that objection to say, that there was an impropriety in a number combining to do that which either of them singly was entitled to do. Masters, it is well known, can combine with greater facility than can their workmen, and it is quite fair that combination should be opposed to combination. The proceeding, on either side, must, in most instances, be uncalled for and foolish; because it may be presumed, on the one hand, that masters will seldom be indisposed to give for labour its money worth at the time; and, on the other, that by no contrivance of human ingenuity will they be compelled to give more: however, exceptions from this remark may, and do occur; and we shall endeavour to exemplify the advantages in combining which masters have over their workmen. The former can suspend their works for a season, or submit to have them suspended, without incurring any loss

but the negative one proceeding from the non-employment of their capital; but the latter, who, to use a homely expression, live from hand to mouth, would be exposed to starvation, were work withheld from them for the shortest period, and were there no fund upon which they might retreat when out of employment. It is easy to perceive, then, that the masters, in any particular branch of trade, might, by a little dexterous management, succeed, at some particular crisis, in forcing their workmen (supposing there to be no such fund, as that we have adverted to, in existence) into the acceptance of wages which are unequal to the value of their labour. true, they could not continue such injustice for any length of time; for the spirit of rivalship between them, and also the transference by the workmen (which would infallibly happen) of their labour from a trade in which they are oppressed, to some more profitable one, would speedily bring about an equitable readjustment of wages to profits. But even temporary injustice is an evil, which the workmen ought to have been entitled peaceably to guard against; and the only means of guarding against it was by combinations, provided with common funds

It is

« PrejšnjaNaprej »