§ Mr. Hart Daviscommenced a question, which he put to the chancellor of the exchequer, by saying, that a large body of merchants, bankers, and manufacturers of the city of Bristol, had directed him to express their sense of the distressing effects which would follow the too early resumption of cash payments; and they had requested him to endeavour to learn what were the intentions of his majesty's ministers in relation to this momentous question. He had applied to the right hon. gentleman, who had suggested to him the propriety of asking for information, as to the views and intentions of government with respect to this subject, in the House. He therefore took the earliest opportunity of asking the right hon. gentleman, whether it was the intention of his majesty's ministers to recommend a continuance of the restriction on payments in cash? Now that he was on his legs, he would put another question to the chancellor of the exchequer, which was highly interesting. The right hon. gentleman had said, in the course of the last session, in reply to a question put to him, that he saw no probability of being obliged to resort, during the present year, either to funding or raising money by loan. Was he of the same opinion still?
The Chancellor of the Exchequerobserved, that he considered it his duty to give an explicit answer to the first question put to him by the hon. gentleman. It had been his intention to bring forward a measure for the purpose of continuing the Restriction act, in the course of the ensuing week. A right hon. gentleman had, however, given notice of a motion on the state of public credit, as connected with the circulation of Bank paper, for a subsequent day; and it would, therefore, be more convenient to defer his own proposition till after the discussion of that motion. With respect to the second question of the hon. gentleman, the House must feel that his majesty's ministers should be free to choose the most beneficial mode of raising the supply for the year. He certainly did not at present foresee that there would exist a necessity for any additional funding; but it would at the same time be unadvisable to fetter a discretion which circumstances might render it advantageous to exercise.