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may be found who will transact business on almost any terms. Sometimes whole cargoes are sold by brokers on an agreement to receive a specific sum in lieu of commission and broker

age.

Boston currency.(For further particulars as to Money,
Weights, Measures, &c. see Naw YORK.)

We have derived these details partly from official, partly from private information, and partly from tables and statements in Hunt's valuable Commercial Magazine.

Money. In Massachusetts, and throughout New England, the dollar passes at 68. ; so that the pound sterling = 11. 6s. 8d. BOTARGO, called in Provence Bouargues, a sausage. made on the shores of the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, of the roe of the mullet. The best come from Tunis and Alexandria.

BOTTLES (Fr. Bouteilles; Ger. Bouteillen; It. Bottiglie, Fiaschi; Rus. Bulülki; Sp. Botellas), glass vessels for holding liquids, too well known to require any description. They are exported in considerable quantities. The duty of 8s, a cwt, on bottle glass, like the duties on other descriptions of glass, was both oppressive in amount, and was imposed and collected in the most vexatious manner. Happily, however, it has been repealed. (For further details, see GLASS.)

BOTTOMRY AND RESPONDENTIA.- Bottomry, in commercial navigation, is a mortgage of the ship. The owner or captain of a ship is, under certain circumstances, authorised to borrow money, either to fit her out so as to enable her to proceed on her voyage, or to purchase a cargo for the voyage, pledging the keel, or bottom of the ship (a part for the whole), in security for payment. In bottomry contracts it is stipulated, that if the ship be lost in the course of the voyage, the lender shall lose his whole money; but if the ship arrive in safety at her destination, the lender is then entitled to get back his principal, and the interest agreed upon, however much that interest may exceed the legal rate. (Black. Com. book ii. c. 30.) The extraordinary hazard run by the lenders of money on bottomry, who, in fact, become adventurers in the voyage, has been held, in all countries, as justifying them in stipulating for the highest rate of interest.

When the loan is not on the ship, but on the goods laden on board, which, from their nature, must be sold or exchanged in the course of the voyage, the borrower's personal responsibility is then the principal security for the performance of the contract, which is therefore called respondentia. In this consists the principal difference between bottomry and respondentia. The one is a loan upon the ship, the other upon the goods. The money is to be repaid to the lender, with the marine interest, upon the safe arrival of the ship, in the one case, and of the goods in the other. In all other respects, these contracts are nearly the same, and are governed by the same principles. In the former, the ship and tackle, being hypothecated, are liable, as well as the person of the borrower; in the latter, the lender has, in general, only the personal security of the borrower.

This contract, which must always be in writing, is sometimes made in the form of a deed poll, called a bill of bottomry, executed by the borrower; sometimes in the form of a bond or obligation, with a penalty. But whatever may be its form, it must contain the names of the lender and the borrower, those of the ship and the master; the sum lent, with the stipulated marine interest; the voyage proposed, with the commencement and duration of the risk which the lender is to run. It must show whether the money is lent upon the ship, or upon goods on board, or on both; and every other stipulation and agreement which the parties may think proper to introduce into the contract.--(See the Forms at the end of this article.)

"It is obvious," says Lord Tenterden, "that a loan of money upon bottomry, while it relieves the owner from inany of the perils of a maritime adventure, deprives him also of a great part of the profits of a successful voyage; and, therefore, in the place of the owners' residence, where they may exercise their own judgment upon the propriety of borrowing money in this manner, the master of the ship is, by the maritime law of all states, precluded from doing it, so as to bind the interest of his owners, without their consent. With regard to a foreign country, the rule appears to be, that if the master of a vessel has occasion for money to repair or victual his ship, or for any other purpose necessary to enable him to complete the enterprise in which she is engaged; whether the occasion arises from any extraordinary peril or misfortune, or from the ordinary course of the adventure; he may, if he cannot otherwise obtain it, borrow money on bottoinry at marine interest, and pledge the ship, and the freight to be earned in the voyage, for repayment at the termination of the voyage. When this is done, the owners are never personally responsible. The remedy of the lender is against the master of the ship."- (Law of Shipping, part if. c. 3.)

In bottomry and respondentia bonds, the lender receives the whole of his principal and interest, or nothing; he is not answerable for general or particular average; nor will any loss by capture, if subsequently recaptured, affect his claim. In this respect our law differs from that of France (Code de Commerce, art. 330.) and most other countries: the lenders on bottomry bonds being there subject to average, as our underwriters upon policies of insurance. No loss can void a bottomry contract, unless a total loss, proceeding from a peril of the sea, during the voyage, and within the time specified by the contract. If the loss happen through any default or act of the owners or master, to which the lender was not privy, he may still recover.

There is no restriction by the law of England as to the persons to whom money may be lent on bottomry or at respondentia, except in the single case of loans on the ships of foreigners trading to the East Indies, which are forbidden by the 7 Geo. 1. stat. 1. c. 21. § 2.

It does not, however, appear to be necessary, in order to enable the master of a ship in a foreign port to obtain money for her repair, outfit, &c., that the contract pledging the vessel in security of the debt should be in the nature of a bottomry bond. Provided the person who advances the money do not choose to take upon himself the risk of the ship's return, and do not stipulate for maritime interest," there seems," says Lord Tenterden, "to be no reason why the master should not pledge both the ship and the personal credit of the owner." And in the case of money advanced in this way to refit a ship in distress at Jamaica, which was captured on the voyage home, the lender recovered.-(Law of Shipping, part. ii.

c. 3.)

Bottomry contracts were well known to the ancients. At Athens, the rate of interest was not fixed by law; but the customary rate seems to have been about 12 per cent. But when money was lent for a voyage, upon the security of the ship and cargo, the interest, on account of the superior risk encountered by the lender, was in most cases much higher. In voyages to the Taurica Chersonesus and Sicily, it was sometimes as high as 30 per cent.(Anacharsis's Travels, vol. iv. p. 369. Eng. trans.) By the

*Mr. Serjeant Marshall doubts this; but it was so decided by the Court of King's Bench in Joyce v. Williamson, B. R. Mich. 23 Geo. 3.

Rhodian law, the exaction of such high interest as is usual in bottomry was declared to be illegal, unless the principal was really exposed to the dangers of the sea. ( Bocckk's Public Economy of Athens, vol. i. p. 177. Eng. trans.) This principle was adopted by the Romans, who gave to bottomry interest the name of nauticum fœnus; and has been transferred from the Roman law into all modern codes.

"Formerly," says Mr. Serjeant Marshall, the practice of borrowing money on bottomry and respondentia was more general in this country than it is at present. The immense capitals now engaged in every branch of commerce render such loans unnecessary; and money is now seldom borrowed in this manner, but by the masters of foreign ships who put into our ports in need of pecuniary assistance to refit, to pay their men, to purchase provisions, &c. Sometimes officers and others belonging to ships engaged in long voyages, who have the liberty of trading to a certain extent, with the prospect of great profit, but without capitals of their own to employ in such trade, take up money on respondentia to make their investments; but even this, as I am informed, is now not very frequently done in this country." The term bottomry has sometimes been incorrectly applied to designate a contract, by the terms of which the ship is not pledged as a security, but the repayment of money, with a high premium for the risk, is made to depend upon the success of the voyage. This, however, is plainly a loan upon a parti cular adventure, to be made by a particular ship, and not a loan upon the ship, and, of course, the lender has only the personal security of the borrower for the due performance of the contract. And it seems that loans have sometimes been made in this manner, and probably also with a pledge of the ship itself, to an amount exceeding the value of the borrower's interest in the ship; and such a contract is still legal in this country in all cases, except the case of ships belonging to British subjects bound to or from the East Indies; as to which it is enacted (19 Geo. 2. c. 37. § 5.),

"That all sums of money lent on bottomry or at respondentia upon any ship or ships belonging to his Majesty's subjects, bound to or from the East Indies, shall be lent only on the ship, or on the merchandise or effects laden, or to be laden, on board of such ship, and shall be so expressed in the condition of the bond, and the benefit of salvage shall be allowed to the lender, his agents or assigns, who alone shall have a right to make assurance on the money so lent; and no borrower of money on bottomry or at respondentia as aforesaid, shall recover more on any assurance than the value of his interest on the ship, or in the merchandises and effects laden on board of such ship, exclusive of the money so borrowed; and in case it shall appear that the value of his share in the ship, or in the merchandises and effects laden on board, doth not amount to the full sum or sums he hath borrowed as aforesaid, such borrower shall be responsible to the lender for so much of the money borrowed as he hath not laid out on the ship, or merchandises laden thereon, in the proportion the money not laid out shall bear to the whole money lent, notwithstanding the ship and merchandises be totally lost."

Lord Tenterden says that this statute was introduced for the protection of the trade of the East India Company; and its rules must be complied with in the case of bottomry by the masters of ships trading to the East Indies.

For a further discussion of this subject, see Abbott on the Law of Shipping, part ii. c. 3.; Marshall on Insurance, book ii.; and Park on Insurance, c. 21.

I. Form of a Bottomry Bond.

KNOW ALL MEN by these presents, That I, A. B., commander and two-thirds owner of the ship Exeter, for myself and C.D., remaining third-owner of the said ship, am held and firmly bound unto E. F. in the penal sum of two thousand pounds sterling, for the payment of which well and truly to be made unto the said E. F., his heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns, I hereby bind myself, my heirs, executors, and administrators, firmly by these presents. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this 14th day of December, in the year of our Lord 1796.

WHEREAS the above bound A. B. hath taken up and received of the said E. F. the full and just sum of one thousand pounds sterling, which sum is to run at respondentia on the block and freight of the ship Exeter, whereof the said A. B. is now master, from the port or road of Bombay on a voyage to the port of London, having permission to touch, stay at, and proceed to all ports and places within the limits of the voyage, at the rate or premium of twenty-five per cent. (25 per cent.) for the voyage. In consideration whereof usual risks of the seas, rivers, enemies, fires, pirates, &c. are to be on account of the said E. F. And for the further security of the said E. F. the said A. B. doth by these presents mortgage and assign over to the said E. F., his heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns, the said ship Ereter, and her freight, together with all her tackle, apparel, &c. And it is hereby declared, that the said ship Exeter and her freight is thus assigned over for the security of the respondentia taken up by the said A. B., and shall be delivered to no other use or purpose whatever until payment of this bond is first made, with the premium that may become due thereon.

NOW THE CONDITION of this obligation is such, that if the above bound A. B., his heirs, executors, or administrators, shall and do well and truly pay, or cause to be paid, unto the said E. F. or his attorneys in London legally authorised to receive the same, their executors, administrators, or assigns, the full and just sum of 1.000. sterling, being the principal of this bond, together with the premium which shall become due thereon, at or before the expiration of ninety days after the safe arrival of the said ship Exeter at her moorings in the river Thames, or in case of the loss of the said ship Exeter, such an average as by custom shall have become due on the salvage, then this obligation to be void and of no effect, otherwise to remain in full force and virtue. Having signed to three bonds of the same tenor and date the one of which being accomplished, the other two to be void and of no effect.

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A. B. for self

and C. D. (L. s.)

* In this bond the occasion of borrowing the money is not expressed, but the money was in reality borrowed to refit the ship, which, being on a vage from Bengal to London, was obliged to put back to Bombay to repair. See The EXETER, Whitford, 1 Rob. A. R. 176. The occasion therefore of borrowing the money gave the lender the security of the entire interest of the ship. But this bond, although expressed to be executed by the master for himself and the other part-owner, would not bind the other part-owner personally, unless he had by a previous deed authorised the master to execute such a bond for him. — (Abbott on the Law of Shipping, part iii. c. 1. § 2.)

II. Form of a Bottomry Bill.

TO ALL MEN TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME. 1, A. B., of Bengal, mariner, part-owner and master of the ship called the Exeter, of the burden of five hundred tons and upwards, now riding at anchor in Table Bay, at the Cape of Good Hope, send greeting:

WHEREAS 1, the said A. B., part-owner and master of the aforesaid ship, called the Exeter, now in prosecution of a voyage from Bengal to the port of London, having put into Table Bay for the purpose of procuring provision and other supplies necessary for the continuation and performance of the voyage aforesaid, am at this time necessitated to take up upon the adventure of the said ship, called the Exeter, the sum of one thousand pounds sterling monies of Great Britain, for setting the said ship to sea, and furnishing her with provisions and necessaries for the said voyage, which sum C. D. of the Cape of Good Hope, master attendant, hath at my request lent unto me, and supplied me with, at the rate of twelve hundred and twenty pounds sterling for the said one thousand pounds, being at the rate of one hundred and twenty-two pounds for every hundred pounds advanced as aforesaid, during the voyage of the said ship from Table Bay to London. Now KNOW YE, that I, the said A. B., by these presents, do, for me,

my executors and administrators, covenant and grant to and with the said C. D. that the said ship shall, with the first convoy which shall offer for England after the date of these presents, sail and depart for the port of London, there to finish the voyage aforesaid. And 1, the said A. B., in consideration of the sum of one thousand pounds sterling to me in hand paid by the said C. D. at and before the sealing and delivery of these presents, do hereby bind myself, my heirs, executors, and administrators, my goods and chattels, and particularly the said ship, the tackle and apparel of the same, and also the freight of the said ship, which is or shall become due for the aforesaid voyage from Benga! to the port of London, to pay unto the said C. D., his executors, administrators, or assigns, the sum of twelve hundred and twenty pounds of lawful British money, within thirty days next after the safe arrival of the said ship at the port of London from the same intended voyage.

AND I, the said A. B., do, for me, my executors and administrators, covenant and grant to and with the said C. D., his executors and administrators, by these presents, that I, the said A. B., at the time of sealing and delivering of these presents, am a true and lawful part-owner and master of the said ship, and have power and authority to charge and engage the said ship with her freight as aforesaid, and that the said ship, with her freight, shall, at all times after the said voyage, be liable and chargeable for the payment of the said twelve hundred and twenty pounds, according to the true intent and meaning of these presents.

AND lastly, it is hereby declared and agreed by and between the said parties to these presents, that in case the said ship shall be lost, miscarry, or be cast away before her arrival at the said port of London from the said intended voyage, that then the payment of the said twelve hundred and twenty pounds shall not be demanded, or be recoverable by the said C. D., his executors, administrators, or assigns, but shall cease and determine, and the loss thereby be wholly borne and sustained by the said C. D., his executors and administrators, and that then and from thenceforth every act, matter, and thing herein mentioned on the part and behalf of the said A. B. shall be void; any thing herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding.

IN WITNESS whereof the parties have interchangeably set their hands and seals to four bonds of this tenor and date, one of which being paid, the others to be null and void. At the Cape of Good Hope, this 15th day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty.

SEF

Witness, G. H.
LI.K.

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BOUNTY, a term used in commerce and the arts, to signify a premium paid by government to the producers, exporters, or importers of certain articles, or to those who employ ships in certain trades.

1. Bounties on production are most commonly given in the view of encouraging the establishment of some new branch of industry; or they are intended to foster and extend a branch that is believed to be of paramount importance. In neither case, however, is their utility very obvious. In all old settled and wealthy countries, numbers of individuals are always ready to embark in every new undertaking, if it promise to be really advantageous, without any stimulus from government: and if a branch of industry, already established, be really important and suitable for the country, it will assuredly be prosecuted to the necessary extent, without any encouragement other than the natural demand for its produce.

2. Bounties on Exportation and Importation. It is enacted by the 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 52., that a merchant or exporter claiming a bounty or drawback on goods exported must make oath that they have been actually exported, and have not been re-landed, and are not intended to be re-landed, in any part of the United Kingdom, or in the Isle of Man (unless entered for the Isle of Man), or in the islands of Fare or Ferro; and it is further enacted, that if any goods cleared to be exported for a bounty or drawback shail not be duly exported to parts beyond the seas, or shall be re-landed in any part of the United Kingdom, or in the islands of Faro or Ferro, or shall be carried to the islands of Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney, Sark, or Man (not having been duly entered, cleared, and shipped for exportation to such islands), such gods shall be forfeited, together with the ship or ships employed in re-landing or carrying them; and person by whom or by whose orders or means such goods shall have been cleared, re-landed, or carried, shall forfeit a sum equal to treble the value of such goods. - §§ 87-95.

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3. Policy of Bounties. It was formerly customary to grant bounties on the exportation of various articles; but the impolicy of such practice is now very generally admitted. It is universally allowed that bounties, if they be given at all, should be given only to the exporters of such commodities as could not be exported without them. But it is plain that, by granting a bounty in such cases, we really tax the public, in order to supply the foreigner with commodities at less than they cost. A. has a parcel of goods which he cannot dispose of abroad for less than 110.; but they will fetch only 100% in the foreign market; and he claims and gets a bounty of 10l. to enable him to export them. Such is the mode in which bounties on exportation uniformly operate; and to suppose that they can be a means of enriching the public, is equivalent to supposing that a shopkeeper may be enriched by selling his goods for less than they cost!

But however injurious to the state, it has been pretty generally supposed that bounties on exportation are advantageous to those who produce and export the articles on which they are paid. But the fact is not so. A trade that cannot be carried on without the aid of a bounty, must be a naturally disadvantageous one. Hence, by granting it, individuals are tempted to engage or continue in businesses which are necessarily very insecure, and are rarely capable of being rendered lucrative; at the same time that they are prevented, by trusting to the bounty, from making those exertions they naturally would have made, had they been obliged to depend entirely on superior skill and industry for the sale of their produce. The history of all businesses carried on in this country by the aid of bounties, proves that they are hardly less disadvantageous to those engaged in them than to the public.

The truth of these remarks has been acknowledged by government. The bounty on the exportation of corn was repealed in 1815; and the bounties on the exportation of linen and several other articles ceased in 1830.

4. Bounties on Shipping have principally been paid to the owners of vessels engaged in the fishery, and their influence will be treated of under the articles HERRING FISHERY and WHALE FISHERY.

For an account of the bounties that still exist, see the article TARIFF.

BOX-WOOD (Ger. Buchsbaum; Du. Palmhout; Fr. Buis; It. Busso, Bosso, Bossolo), the wood of the box tree (Buxus sempervirens), growing wild in several places in Great Britain. This tree was greatly admired by the ancient Romans, and has been much cultivated in modern times, on account of the facility with which it is fashioned into different forms. Box is a very valuable wood. It is of a yellowish colour, closegrained, very hard, and heavy; it cuts better than any other wood, is susceptible of a very fine polish, and is very durable. In consequence, it is much used by turners, and mathematical and musical instrument makers. It is too heavy for furniture. It is the only wood used by the engravers of wood-cuts for books; and provided due care be exercised, the number of impressions that may be taken from a box-wood cut is very great. In France, box-wood is extensively used for combs, knife-handles, and button moulds; and sometimes, it has been said, as a substitute for hops in the manufacture of beer. The value of the box-wood sent from Spain to Paris is reported to amount to about 10,000 fr. a year. In 1815, the box trees cut down on Box-hill, near Dorking in Surrey, produced upwards of 10,000l. They are now, however, become very scarce in England. Previously to 1837 the duty on box-wood was quite oppressive, being 51. a ton if brought from a foreign country, and 14. a ton if from a British possession; but it was then reduced to 10s. a ton without reference to origin. In 1841 this duty produced 554l., showing that 1108 tous had been entered for consumption. In 1842 the duty on boxwood from a British poss, was reduced to 2s. 6d. a ton, and in 1845 it was repealed. Turkey box-wood sells in the London market for from 44. 10s. to 8l 15s. a ton.

BRAN, the thin skins or husks of corn, particularly wheat, ground, and separated from the corn by a sieve or boulter.

BRANDY (Ger. Brantewein; Du. Brandewyn; Fr. Eau de vie, Brandevin; It. Aquarzente; Sp. Aguardiente; Port. Aguardente; Rus. Wino; Lat. Vinum adustum), a spirituous and inflammable liquor, obtained by distillation from wine and the husks of grapes. It is prepared in most of the wine countries of Europe; but the superiority of French Brandy is universally admitted. The latter is principally distilled at Bordeaux, Rochelle, Cognac, the Isle de Rhé, Orleans, Nantes, and in Poitou, Touraine, and Anjou. That of Cognac is in the highest estimation.

Wines of all descriptions, but chiefly those that are strong and harsh (poussés), are used in the manufacture of brandy. The superior vintages, and those that have most flavour, are said to make the worst brandy. It is naturally clear and colourless. The different shades of colour which it has in commerce, arise partly from the casks in which it is kept, but chiefly from the burnt sugar, saunders wood, and other colouring matter intentionally added to it by the dealers. It is said that the burnt sugar gives mellowness

to the flavour of the liquor, and renders it more palatable.

The art of distillation is believed to have been first discovered by the Arabians. From a passage in the Testamentum Novissimum of the famous Raymond Lully, who flourished in the thirteenth century, it would appear that the production of brandy and alcohol from wine was familiar to his contemporaries. —(p. 2. edit. Argent. 1571.) But the practice does not appear to have been introduced into France till 1313.—( Le Grand d'Aussi Vie privé de François, t. iii. p. 64.) When first introduced, brandy or burnt wine (vinum adustum) appears to have been used principally as an antiseptic and restorative medicine; and the most extravagant panegyrics were bestowed on its virtues. It was described as a sovereign remedy in almost all the disorders of the human frame; it was commended for its efficacy in comforting the memory, and strengthening the reasoning powers; it was extolled, in short, as the elixir of life, and an infallible preservative of youth and beauty !—(Henderson's Hist. of Wine, p. 24.) Dr. Henderson says that the experience of later times has shown how little this eulogy was merited; but in this he is contradicted by Burke, who maintains, with equal eloquence and ingenuity, that "the alembic has been a vast benefit and blessing."—(Thoughts and Details on Scarcity, p. 41.)

Brandy formed, for a lengthened period, a prominent article in the exports of France; few ships sailing from Bordeaux, Rochelle, or Nantes, without taking a certain quantity of it on board; but of late years there has been an extraordinary falling off in the exports of brandy as well as of wine. We subjoin

Account of the Quantities and Values of the Brandy exported from France during each of the 10 Years ending with 1839, to the United Kingdom and to all Countries.

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Duties on Brandy In a former edition of this work we remarked on this subject as follows, viz.," In nothing, perhaps, has the injurious operation of oppressive duties been so strikingly exemplified as in the case of brandy. At the latter end of the 17th century, when the duty on brandy did not exceed 97. a tun, the imports into England amounted to about 6,000 tuns, or 1,512,000 gallons —(Historical and Political Remarks on the Tariff of the late Treaty, 1786, p. 113.); whereas at present, notwithstanding our vast increase in wealth and population since the period referred to, we do not import so much brandy as we did then! Nor is this extraordinary circumstance to be ascribed to any preference on the part of the public to other beverages, but is wholly owing to the exorbitant duties with which brandy is loaded. The price of brandy in bond varies, at this moment, according to quality, from 3s. to 5s. a gallon (Imperial measure), while the duty is no less than 22s. 10d. Had the imposition of such a duty taken away the taste for brandy, it would have been comparatively innocuous. But it has done no such thing. Its only effect has been to convert a trade, that might otherwise have been productive of the most advantageous results, into a most prolific source of crime and demoralisation. The temptation to smuggle, occasioned by the exorbitancy of the duty, is too overpowering to be counteracted by the utmost penalties of the law. All along the coasts of Kent and Sussex, and the districts most favourably situated for running spirits, almost the whole of the labouring population are every now and then withdrawn from their ordinary employments, to engage in smuggling adventures. The efforts of the revenue officers to seize foreign brandy and geneva have in innumerable instances been repelled by force. Bloody and desperate contests have in consequence taken place. Many individuals who, but for this fiscal scourge, would have been industrious and virtuous, have become idle, predatory, and ferocious; they have learned to despise the law, to execute summary vengeance on its officers; and are influenced by a spirit that has been, and may be, turned to the most dangerous purposes.

"Neither can it be truly said that this miserable system is upheld for the sake of revenue. On the contrary, it is easy to show that, besides the other mischievous effects it entails on the public, it occasions the loss of at least 1,000,000l. a year. In 1786, Mr. Pitt, by a wise and politic measure, took 50 per cent. from the duty on brandy and geneva; (the duty on the latter has been for a lengthened period the same as that on brandy :) and instead of being diminished, the revenue was increased. In 1790, when the duty on brandy and geneva was 5s. the wine gallon, the quantity retained for home consumption was 2,225,590 gallons. During the 3 years ending with 1803, when the duty was 98. 2d., the quantities of brandy and geneva retained for home consumption amounted, at an average, to about 2,700,000 gallons; but during the 3 years ending with 1818, when the duty had been increased to 18s. 10d. the wine gallon, the quantities retained did not exceed 850,000 gallons, while the quantities actually entered for home consumption were considerably less! The consumption increased considerably between 1818 and 1822; but since the latter epoch it has remained nearly stationary; and, notwithstanding the great increase of wealth and population in the interval, is not nearly so great now (1843) as it was half a century ago! Nothing, therefore, can be more palpably erroneous than to contend that the revenue is improved by the present system. Have we not seen the revenue derived from coffee trebled, by reducing the duty from 1s. 7 d. to 6d. ? Have we not seen the revenue derived from British spirits greatly increased, by reducing the duty from 5s. 6d. to 28. the wine gallon? And where is the ground for supposing that the result would be different, were the duties on brandy equally reduced? But the experience afforded by Mr. Pitt's measure, in 1786, is decisive as to this point. He quadrupled the consumption and increased the revenue, by taking a half from the duty when it was a good deal less oppressive than now? Were a similar reduction made at present, does any one doubt that a similar result would follow ?

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