§ MR. CAVEsaid, he wished to put a Question upon a subject of considerable interest to Volunteer Artillery Corps, Under the 26 &c 27 Vict. c. 65, s. 42, persons lending horses gratuitously for the service of the Militia, Yeomanry, or Volunteers are excused from payment of the Assessed Taxes upon such Horses, but persons licensed to let horses under the 16 & 17 Vict. (the Post Horse Act) are allowed no exemption in case they lent their horses gratuitously. As the animals which such persons could lend would be better adapted for drawing guns than the carriage or riding horses of private individuals, it was for the advantage of the Volunteer service that persons licensed under the Post Horse Act should be encouraged to lend their horses. He would submit that it would be easy to grant a proportionate reduction of the Post Horse duty to those persons who lent their horses. The question he should ask was, Whether the exemption from the Assessed Tax granted to persons gratuitously furnishing horses during six days within the year for the Volunteer Service, under the 26 & 27 Vict. c. 65, 895 s. 42, might not be extended to those persons who pay duty on licences to let horses for hire under the 16 & 17 Vict. c. 88 (the Post Horse Act)?
MR. PEELsaid, in reply, that persons licensed to let horses for hire did not pay Assessed Taxes upon their horses as well, and it would not be reasonable to exempt them from the payment of the Post Horse Duty, which was much heavier than the Assessed Tax, because they lent their horses gratuitously for six days. The Question of granting any abatement from the amount of the license duty proportionate to what was allowed in the case of persons liable to the Assessed Tax was a very fair Question to be considered.