§ MR. FERRANDsaid, he rose to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether poor men or women hawking pots, house sand, green groceries, or other articles of a like description, are required to take out a hawker's licence; if not, and the Excise Officers have compelled any persons to do so, whether he will give instructions for the money to be remitted?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, in reply, that on former occasions he had been charged by the hon. Gentleman, in reference to this matter of hawkers' licences, with having ruined several thousands of poor men. He had, however, made no proposition on the subject, except one which would have an opposite tendency—namely, a proposition to reduce the duty. The state of the law was this, and it had been so for some very considerable time, that licences were required to be taken out for hawking all goods but victuals or articles which were the manufacture of the person selling them. It had been the custom of the Revenue Department in cases which appeared to them to be not in the contemplation of the law, though within its letter, not to enforce the law. Such being the provisions of the law, it was impossible for him to give any general answer on the subject. All he could say was that no 250 complaint had been made to him of the operation of the law, and should any cases of hardship arise, the best way would be to send an account of them to the Government, who would then consider whether any proposal should be made for an alteration of the law. With respect to green groceries he apprehended that there was no liability to take out a hawker's licence.
§ MR. FERRANDsaid, he wished to know whether the right hon. Gentleman expected every individual case of hardship to be laid before him?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUERsaid, that no individual case had been laid before him, and he was therefore without the means of determining upon the expediency of altering the law.