on the same just and liberal principle, as has been adopted in the instance just quoted; it is impossible therefore to harbour the thought that that justness and liberality should now be done away with.

But now as regards the revenue: it appears that since the peace the following importations of deals have taken place, taking the average importation of one year as basis, viz:

From Norway,
Sweden,

19,228 GreatStandarts.

Russia and Prussia, 11,134

making in toto

ditto.

35,103 Great Standarts,

on which a duty on the average (allowing for British and foreign ships), of 217. per great standart, has been received, and consequently produced annually £737,163.

If the duty on those deals had been paid according
to the scale at which the duties on deals are levied
in Ireland, at present; and if I take the official
report of the Commissioners of Customs as the basis
of the different lengths of those deals, the result
would have been as follows, viz:

On 19,228 Norway deals, averaging 12 feet, at the
Irish dues of 127. 10s.

240,350. On 4,741 Swedish ditto, length 14 feet, at 147. 11s. 68,981. 11s. On 11,134 Russia and Prussia ditto, 16 feet,

at 167. 12s.

184,824. 8s.

Annual total income £494,155. 19s.

And thus the revenue would have experienced a deficiency of upwards of 240,000l. annually, on the duty of deals alone, taking it in that way of calculation. Now if I consider that this mode of raising the duties, (and were they in future to be calculated on the cubical contents of the deals it would be worse still) would give the deal trade entirely in the hands of Norway, and exclude all other nations from partícipating therein; (as is now actually the case in Ireland, to which country formerly a great portion of Prussian deals used to be sent, and which of late and since the new regulation of those duties, is no longer the case,) it would then appear that the above annual quantity of 35,103 great standarts of deals, instead of being imported from all the northern nations each according to about their present share, would in future be supplied by Norway alone, thus yielding to the revenue of this country, as on twelve feet average length at the new regulated duty of 127. 10s. per great standart only 438,7871. 10s, and cause a greater defi. ciency still, namely to the amount of 300,000l. per annum, I am

sure the Chancellor of the Exchequer will not overlook so serious an object, with which he certainly is threatened in case any regulation on the deal duties as recommended by the Lords' Committee, were to take effect. That Norway is fully competent to supply this country not only with 35,103 great standarts of deals annually, but even to go considerably beyond that quantum if her interest requires it, I have fully proved already; nor would the argument hold good, that wherever a 16, 18, or 20 feet deal, (which Norway cannot supply) is to be made use of, a 12 feet would not answer : generally speaking this would be correct, but it so happens that most if not all the building purposes, such as the flooring of houses and the like, as also all other work, can be accomplished with the use of 12 feet deals alone, although the greater length certainly, if applied in many instances would give an additional value if not also greater strength to the building.

Finally, the Lords' Committee have also recommended that, with a view of removing the impediment from the employment of British capital in saw-mills established in this country, the duty on foreign deals should at least be made equivalent to that on timber in the log-which in fact implies that a still greater duty should be imposed on foreign deals according to their cubical contents; and that the larger sized deals should pay at a proportionate greater rate to what they do at present. Having said so much already upon this subject, as regards the comparative trađe in the shorter deals from Norway and the longer deals from Prussia and Russia, I need here but add, that the more the article of the two latter countries is burthened, the less benefit will England derive from it, and the surer will be the effect of excluding them altogether and giving the trade entirely to Norway. But with regard to the expediency of giving British capital employed in saw-mills, an additional advantage to what it already possesses, I hope to be indulged to say a few words on that head, and particularly to set the gentleman's notions right, who seems the first that has started upon this subject.

The advantage which the British saw-mills and sawyers already possess, is (independent of forming the timber into the divers smaller sizes as requisite for building purposes), chiefly to convert the 3 inch plank into the sundry smaller sorts of deals; such as from half an inch, to one inch and ahalf thickness, as required for almost all works and buildings in this country and this is certainly no small advantage, for be it remembered that for very few purposes indeed a 3 inch plank is used in the state it comes from abroad, whereas I may truly say that full four fifths of the whole importation of 3 inch plank are converted into smaller deals; and although no prohibition exists, why these kind of thinner deals should not also be imported from abroad, yet the

duty thereon is so high as to act like a prohibition, and any quantity coming from abroad would cause more than a total loss of the capital. But when the gentleman alluded to thinks that by excluding the importation of foreign three inch plank altogether, (for an extraordinary high duty thereon would certainly act as a total prohibition,) this country and his saw-mills would benefit in having the timber, or perhaps the tree, brought here in its original state, by him to be converted into deals, surely he would, even if such were possible to be accomplished, find himself very much puzzled how to go about it, and wonderfully differing from his present calculations.The timber as now brought to this country (and from the mere appearance of which that gentleman most likely has formed his ideas upon the subjects) is hewn and squared in the forests, accord, ing to the straightness and soundness of the tree, but not accord, ing to what is technically called, the grain, or rent, or heartshake of the wood; and thus it happens too frequently, that out of a hundred pieces, apparently the finest timber in the world, not ten pieces will answer the purpose of being converted into a smaller description of deals; for wherever that rent or heartshake happens to run differently from the squaring of the piece, (and in most instances, and particularly in long pieces of wood, it takes quite a different direction from what it apparently is on one end of the tree,) as sure will all the deals rent, shiver, and shake (as it is called here) into pieces, the moment they get dry and seasoned. It would therefore require a greater capital, and a greater stock of timber, as any man might possess, and found willing to load himself with, for the mere purpose of picking a few pieces, apparently an swering his views to convert them into deals, so as to keep his saw, mills regularly going; nor would the advantage on these deals be at all adequate to the trouble and the loss, which he would have to sustain in disposing of the rest of the whole, and broken up pieces of timber, not answering his purpose. All those trees not perfectly straight, evidently unsound or otherwise defective, are conveyed in their original state to the sundry places, where saw-mills are established abroad, and where it often happens that the purchaser of those trees meets with a great proportion of rotten, and otherwise perfectly useless stuff, which in many instances is hardly good enough for fire-wood. Would then that gentleman recommend that these trees, with all their defects, unsoundness, and offal upon them, should be shipped to England, and incur heavy expenses, a heavy duty, and perhaps double and triple the freight to what other straight and squared timber would do? And would he find bis account by such a purchase, when after divesting the tree of all the offal and rotten parts, (for although the people abroad are pretty good judges of sound and rotten timber, yet they would

have to learn from him how to distinguish whether such and such tree with the bark on, is sound or defective,) perhaps not one third or one fourth thereof would be found to produce a sound and useful deal, and consequently on two thirds or three fourths of waste, an enormous duty and a high freight, &c. would have been expended, that might not even sell for fire-wood in this country? I think that gentleman. would, after a little experience, be sufficiently convinced that the tree in its original state would neither be the thing he could conveniently meddle with!

But then, says that gentleman from the north: ye Prussians and Russians, do all these jobs for us, cut away all the rotten parts, divest the tree from all the offal and defects, and bring us the log of wood in a perfect state, so as to be fit for being put into our saw-mills; ye may keep all the rotten parts and offal to yourselves, and we will pocket the profit, which the sound and serviceable part of the tree is sure to give us. To this I answer, that with exactly the same loss, labor, and expense, with which the tree can be disencumbered of its unsound and defective parts, and formed into a useful log of wood, so as to meet that gentleman's views, with the same loss, labor, and expense, can the log be at once converted into three inch plank abroad, and become thus still more useful to that gentleman; for even the log of wood so prepared is not always free from all defects, and often produces unsound and bad planks. His observation about the comparative duty on oak-plank and oak-timber, does not exactly bear upon this case; for if I comprehend the meaning of the duties or oak-wood rightly, they were increased chiefly to encourage the growth of the native oak, so as in time of war to be independent of foreign countries; nor is there any great consumption of foreign oak plank, beyond what the navy of this country requires, Government therefore have to pay the duty on oak plank with one hand what the Exchequer receive with the other hand. I am sure that on mature reflection, that gentleman will do me the justice to allow that my arguments in this respect are perfectly correct, and that it neither can be expedient nor advantageous to this country to take more upon herself than she really is capable of managing. Live and let others live, is a common but a true saying! The converting of the 3 inch plank, as imported from abroad, and the sawing up of the American timber, (for which purpose, and not for the converting of European timber into smaller deals, I rather think that gentleman's saw-mills to have been established, when taking advantage of the great increase of duties on European wood,) are sufficient objects to engage the industry of all the sawyers, and to employ all the saw-mills of Great Britain; and if more were to be conceded to them, the public that consumes and has consequently to pay for those articles, would soon feel the ill consequences of a growing monopoly.

I have now arrived to that state of the question in which it would be proper, in my humble opinion, to consider the best mode of raising the duty on foreign wood articles, and to what extent these duties had best be levied.

I think that any reduction in the present scale of duties, would not only materially affect the revenue, but also become of very serious consequences, when considered that property to an immense extent has been vested in houses and buildings of every description, and that property of this kind would not be the proper object of a greater reduction, as the depression thereon is felt already very seriously, owing to the cheaper rate at which labor and other materials have been had under late and present circumstances, to what they were formerly. Taking then as basis, that the present duties raised on European timber, deals, staves, and all other descriptions of wood, were to be levied upon exactly the same footing and under the same regulations as heretofore, and those on European deals now levied in Ireland, to be placed on the same rate as raised in England; and if a reasonable duty such as to bring the differ ence of freight between Canada and the Baltic ports, upon a nearer scale of equality, (the difference being at present as 17. 12s. 6d., and 21. in freight, to 31. 5s. per load, in duty on European timber) say about twenty shillings per load, were to be levied in future on the importation of timber, (and on oak staves in the same proportion) from the British American possessions, partly as a matter of revenue to this country and partly to discountenance the system of defrauding that revenue by the introduction of the United States timber duty free; (provided, however, his Majesty's Government do not consider it more advisable to allow the American timber in future still to be imported duty free, or against payment of a more moderate duty, such as ten shillings per load, and relieve the European timber in the same degree, namely, twenty shillings in the former, and ten shillings per load in the latter instance,) I humbly say, if this were the case, I think that his Majesty's Government would amply redeem that pledge given at the time of imposing the temporary war duties on wood, and satisfy the expectations which have been held out all along to the Northern States, to relieve them from a part of that extreme pressure under which they have been laboring hitherto, and which in the end would be found beyond the capability of carrying on trade altogether. I might as well make the remark here, that with a view of enabling the British ship. owner to build ships in competition with other nations, and particularly with Norway, Sweden, and Holland, it would materially forward his object, if the duty on oak plank, and also on deck deals (being that description of deals above 20 feet long) were to be somewhat lowered. No country but Prussia produces particu