§ Bill, as amended, considered.
§ MR. BLACKBURNmoved that, instead of a duty of 12s. 9d. per cwt. being levied upon yellow Muscovado and brown clayed sugar, or sugar rendered by any process equal in quality to yellow muscovado or brown clayed, and not equal to white clayed, for the year following the 5th day of April, which shall first happen after the end of twelve months, from the date of a definitive treaty of peace with Russia, the duty be fixed at 12s. 3d., and for subsequent years at 10s. instead of 10s. 3d., and that during the same period the duty upon brown Muscovado or any other sugar, not being equal in quality to yellow Muscovado or brown clayed sugar, be fixed at 11s. 5½ and 9s. 2d. respect- 455 tively, instead of at 11s. 8d. and 9s. 6d. per cwt.
§ Amendment proposed, in page 2, line 40,
| To leave out "12s. 9d. | 10s. 6d., |
| And to insert "12s. 3d. | 10s. 0d." |
§ Question proposed, "That '12s. 9d.' stand part of the Bill."
THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, that the scale had been established in accordance with what had appeared to him to be the express desire of the House upon the second reading of the Bill. He still adhered to the opinion which he had then expressed, that it would have been better for the House not to predetermine the decision of the House before the period at which the proposed scale of duties would come into operation should have arrived. In framing the prospective scale of duties, he had endeavoured to bring back the duties to the amount at which they stood before they were increased in consequence of the war. The question before the House depended upon a small consideration. One class of sugar upon which the duty had been 10s. per cwt. had, for certain reasons, been divided into two classes, the duties upon which were different, and in the two columns of duties which he had drawn up he proposed that when the increased duties should be reduced those two classes should respectively pay 9s. 6d, and 10s. 6d. per cwt., instead of being amalgamated into one class, paying a duty of 10s.
§ MR. HANKEYsaid, it was agreed last year that the whole of these duties should be laid down at a minimum price; and the late Chancellor of the Exchequer feeling, when he increased these duties 20 per cent, that an injustice would be done to a certain description of sugar, he created another class with a reduced duty. All the West India interest was to be put on the same footing as the East India interest, and he (Mr. Hankey) was surprised to hear the right hon. Gentleman regret that he had assented to this arrangement.
§ Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
§ Bill to be read 3o on Monday next.