86 Curious Epitaphs-On Assassination. I am but fleeping refting in my bed, His foul afcended is above heavens cope; [duft inftructing young ladys and gentlewomen. Underneath are laid -Feb. The earthly remains Of a virtuous and good woman, Bleft with a clear head And an honest heart, In life and death A true Chriftian; Such was For the LONDON MAGAZINE. LATE author * bath affured us, that affafination lofes ground in Portugal; but at the fame time he believes it is owing to a greater depravity of manners. On being defired to explain fo great a paradox, he offers the following vindication of his countrymen-which probably will attract the notice of fome of your ingenious correfpondents. O. "MOST nations trace their anceftors from remoteft time.-Jubal the fon of Japhet, they pretend was the first who peopled our country-however, without entering into difquifitions which are only an additional mark of the vanity of mankind, I will confine myfelt merely to what may be afcertained with fome degree of truth -The Greeks, Phoenicians, and Carthaginians, are the first people fpoken of as the inhabitants of Portugal; and the various antiquities which are to be met with, corroborate history in this particular-after them came the Romans, who remained in poffeffion of it till the decline of their empire; when the Goths, Huns and Vandals made thofe famous revolutions in Europe. Whatever then were the cuf toms and manners to this period, they were fuch as were authorized by the most enlightened people at that time in the world. "The northern nations had not that continued poffeffion of Portugal, which they had of their other conquefts; for they were interrupted by the Moors, who in their turn again were difpoffeffed of it; fo that their customs and manners had not time to take root; and as a proof of it, duelling is to this day little practifed among us, which is evidently a Gothic inftitution. "It follows then that the power which individuals affume among us to do juftice to themselves, is derived from the first inhabitants of Portugal, the Greeks and Romans; and has been handed down to their posterity, notwithstanding the different revolutions that have happened. "It is no doubt happier for a people to remit all their animofities into the hands of others, than to decide them themselves; but as neither morals nor legislation have yet arrived to that perfection, is it not abfurd, as with you, for a man to put himself on the footing with one who has violated every principle of honour and equity, and not only expofe his life, but often fall a victim to the villain who deferves to lose it?-Thefe are the arguments which we ufe. However, what has been the great caufe of affaffination among us, is jealoufy ;-but now the intercourfe and communication is 1776. Port. Anecdotes-Alfault on the K. of Portugal. grown fo great, that a man fees it would be an endless talk to punish the infidelities of the other fex-We therefore begin to imitate the manners of our neighbours, and are fatisfied with making reprisals on each other-You have all been in Spain; and I am perfuaded you must have observed with furprize the familiarity in which men 87 and women live in general with each other, though they are ftill confidered by those who have not been among them as the fame jealous kind of people they were about an hundred years ago. They copied from the Frenchthe French taught the Italians, and we shall foon be equal to either." To the EDITOR of the LONDON MAGAZINE. SIR, TH HE following is a converfation between fome Portuguese gentlemen on their prime minifter, &c. "Our minifter, faid one, has been always found implacable-he would fooner pardon an indignity to the king than difrespect to himself; for you know his majefty leaves his honour to the arbitration of his excellency; and a happy use he makes of it!" "True, (replied an officer) and for my part, I can never reflect but with indignation, that fo honeft a man as the king fhould fuffer himself to be treated with fo much contempt;for what can more debafe majesty than to be shut up in a cage whenever he gives audience, and receive the peti. tions of his fubjects, only from third hands? Would it not be more noble and more manly in a prince to expofe himself to the rancour of his people, and even meet death at their hands, than live on fuch vilifying conditions? -But the truth is, his majesty has no need of fuch apprehenfions, and it is only to encrease his power over him, by creating in him fuch a jealoufy and diftruct of his fubjects- -Gentlemen, (continued the major) I was upon guard in the palace of Villa Viciofa, the day the king was attacked by that madiman, which has occafioned fo much noife; and I will relate to you all the circumftances of that affair; for it is not neceflary to mention that it was this adventure that gave the marquis a pretext for perfuading the king to fubmit to the indignity that has been mentioned. "This madman, then, (for though he was not a lunatic, he deferves no other name) after ferving the greatest part of his life as a foldier in the artillery, was difcharged as unfit for fervice. The king remained in arrears to him fix years pay; and, befides, he claimed the value of a mule, which had been preffed from him during the war, for his majefty's fervice. He fet forth his claims in a petition to the king, which he prefented himself. After waiting fome days in fruitlefs attendance, he prefented another, which the king likewife received, and gave to one of his fuite. However, as this met with the fame fate as the firft, he determined to present a third; ⚫ but the king recollecting the man's face again, pushed it on one fide, and faid to him, "Fellow, why do you plague me thus with your petitions?" -The old foldier was obliged to retire, but fullen and oughtful, thus he reafoned with himfelf." I have ferved the king the best part of my life-I am now old, and he owes me money-yet he not only refuses to pay me, but treats me with contempt I will have fatisfaction." "Accordingly he provided himself with a long flout ftick, with which he was refolved to give his majesty a drubbing the next morning as he went a-bunting;-he therefore planted himfelf very compofedly at the park gate; and just as his majefty paffed through, he fell moft heartily upon him; and if he had not been immediately feized, he would probably have brought the king to the ground. The attendants in their fury would inftantly have difpatched him, if they had not been prevented by the king, who called cut to them to fpare his life. He was ordered into ftrict cuftody; and, foon after, all his friends and relations, and those with whom he had any intimacy or acquaintance, were fent to prifon, in order to find out who it was that had inftigated him to fo rafh an action;-but all 88 Dr. Price's Account of the National Debt. their enquiries proved fruitlefs, and it did not appear that he had any accomplices, but had acted merely from a principle of taking fatisfaction for the injustice the king had done him. Feb. What became of the poor fellow afterwards, God knows;-but the army owe him, at least, this piece of fervice, that some time afterward their arrears were paid." For the LONDON MAGAZINE. Dr. Price's State of the National Debt-Annual Income-Annual ExpenditureSinking Fund-Taxes-and Scheme for a quick Reduction of the public Debt. T Account of the NATIONAL DEBT. HE amount of the capital at the Bank, South Sea, Principal. and India Houses was (in Jan. 1775) 125,056,454). See the particulars in an account by R. Helm, at Stock Exchange, corrected for January 5th, 1775. Deduct 424.50cl. confol. annuit. 246,300l. reduced; 161,650l. Old S. S. annuit. 124,200l. New S. S. annuit. and 43,350l. annuit. 1751, making in all a million of the 3 per cents, paid off in 1775; and the remainder will be Annuities for 99, 96, and 89 years, granted in King William's time. Suppofing 18 years to come of thefe annuities, their value will be (reckoning the intereft at 3 per cent.) 13 years purchase, or nearly Annuities for lives, with benefit of furvivorship, in King William's time, fuppofed worth four years purchase. N. B. The benefit of furvivorship is to be continued till the annuitants are reduced to seven; and they are not yet red to this number Annuities on lives, with benefit of furvivorship, grant ed Anno 1765-valued at 20 years purchase Annuities for two or three lives granted in 1693. Alfo annuities on fingle lives 1745, 1746, 1757. The original amount of thefe annuities, taken all together, was near 130,000l. They are now reduced by deaths to about 80,000l. I have valued them at 10 years purchafe Long annuity for 99 years 1761-The value of this annuity is in the Alley about 251⁄2 years purchase; but the remaining term is really worth 27 years purchase Unfunded Debt, confifting of Exchequer Bills (1,250,000l.) Navy debt (1,850,000l.) and Civil lift debt, fuppofed 500.000l. The interest is reckoned at no more than 21 per cent. Total of the National debt in 1775 I have given the Navy Debt as it was about a year ago. It must be now greatly increafed.The Civil Lift Debt has been given by guess. It is generally reckoned not to be less than the fum I have specified; and it is alfo expected, that the Civil Lift income will be raised to 900,000l. per annum In 1769 the fum of 513,5111. was granted by parliament towards dif 4 124.056,454 4.317,870 1.801,179 136,453 30,268 7,567 10,800 540 800,000 80,000 248,250 6.702,750 1776. State of the Annual Income of the Nations - 89 in my poffeffion, 26.182,981). 175. 6d. expences of the prefent year, will inor 795,2421. per ann. They fell fhort, creafe this debt confiderably. therefore, taking one year with ano- Drawing out, embodying, and mainther, more than they exceeded.- taining the militia in the laft war, coft In 1747, they had been deficient for the nation near half a million per ann. feven years together; and the whole We cannot reckon upon a lefs exdeficiency amounted to 456,7331. 16s. pence in doing this now. Add to it which, in conformity to the act I pay for foreign troops, and all the have mentioned, was made good to extraordinary expences of our inhis majesty out of the fupplies for that creafed navy and army, transport year. In 1729 alfo, 115,000l. was fervice, recruiting fervice, ordnance, granted out of the fupplies for the like &c. and it will be evident that the reafon. This is all the money, re- whole expence of this unhappy year ceived by his late majefty from par- must be enormous.-But I expect that liament, towards fupporting his house- care will be taken to hide it, by fundhold and the dignity of his civil govern- ing as little as poffible, and that for ment; or 810,7491. per ann.—I have this reafon it will not be known in its thought proper to ftate this matter fo full magnitude, till it comes to appear particularly here; because accounts another year under the articles of navy grofsly wrong have been given of it. debt, extraordinaries of the army, tranfport bills, ordnance debentures, &c. making up a vaft unfunded debt which may bear down all public credit. The amount of the national debt, it has appeared, was laft year 137 millions. The great deficiencies of last year, added to the extraordinary State of the NATIONAL ACCOUNT in 1775. Cuftoms in England, being the medium of the payments into the £. 2.528,179 Amount of the Excifes in England, including the malt tax, being the medium of 3 years ending in 1773 4.649,892 Land Tax at 35. 1.300,000 Duties on houfes and windows, being the medium of 3 years ending in 1771 Salt Duties, being the medium of the years 1765 and 1766 218,739 280,788 385.369 Poft Office, feizures, wine licences, hackney coaches, tenths of the clergy, &c. 250,000 95,229 68,369 Excifes in Scotland, being the medium of 3 years ending in 1773 Customs in Scotland, being the medium of 3 years ending in 1773 Inland taxes in Scotland, deduction of 6d. in the pound on all penfions, falaries, &c. cafual revenues, fuch as the duties on gum fenega, American revenue, fale of lands in the ceded inlands, &c.-Thefe are little articles, and I have fuppofed them to amount to as much as will make the whole revenue ten millions per ann. tho' it is almoft certain they cannot produce fo much The annual medium of the payments into the Exchequer from the Customs in England, for the last five years, has been 2.521,769!.. In 1774 this payment was 2 947.7171.. -In 1775 it was 2.476,3021 -The produce Feb. 1776. Thefe branches of the revenue produced in 1754 210,2431. I do not know bow much they bave produced lately; but I believe I have eftimated them at the bigbeft. 90 Account of the Annual Expenditure. or of all the five years fince 1770, will not differ much from the fum I have given. In 1754, or the year before the laft war, the Customs produced only 1. ·558,2541.. Feb. -The Excifes pro duced 2.819,702).--And the whole revenue exclufive of the Land-tax at 25. was 5.097,617). ANNUAL EXPENDITURE. Intereft of the National Debt in 1775 £.. 4.880,680 Peace establishment for navy and army, including all miscellaneous and incidental expences 3.700,000 Annual increase of the Navy and Civil Lift Debts 350,000 800,000 9.730,680 The estimate for the peace eftablishment, including miscellaneous expences, amounted in 1775 to 3.703,4761. In 1774 it amounted to 3.804,4521. exclufive of 250,000l. raifed by Exchequer Bills, towards defraying the expence of calling in the gold coin. And the medium for eleven years, from 1765, has been nearly 3,700,000l. According to the accounts which I have collected, the expence of the peace establishment (including mifcellaneous expences) was in 1765, 1766, and 1767, 3.540,000l. per ann -In 1768, 1769, and 1770, it was 3.354,000l. per ann.In 1771, 1772, 1773, 1774, and 1775, the average has been nearly four millions per ann. exclusive of the expence of calling in the coin. £. 10.000,000 The parliament votes for the fea fervice 41. per month per man, including wages, wear and tear, victuals and ordnance. This allowance is infufficient, and falls fhort every year more or lefs, in proportion to the number of men voted. From hence, in a great measure, arises that annual increase of the navy debt, mentioned in the third article of the National Expenditure. This increase in 1772 and 1773 was 669,9961. or 335,000l. per ann. number of men voted in those two years, was 20,000. I have fuppofed them reduced to 16,000, and the annual increase of the Navy Debt to be only 250,000l.-Add 100,000l.for the annual increase of the Civil List debt, and the total will be 350,000l. A Second Method of DEDUCING the SURPLUS of the REVENUE. Nett Produce of the Sinking Fund, for the last five years, in- Nett annual produce of Land Tax at 38. militia deducted; and of (N. B. These two taxes in 1773, brought in only 1.665,4751. There are fome cafual receipts, not included in the Sinking Fund, fuch as duties on Gum Senega, American Revenue, &c. But they are fo uncertain and inconfiderable, that it is scarcely proper to give them as a part of the permanent revenue. Add however on this account Total of unappropriated * revenue The 2.610,759 1.800,000 50,000 £. 4.460,759 Produce The greatest part of this revenue is borrowed of the Bank, and spent before it comes into the Exchequer. It is therefore, in reality, so much debt conflantly due to the Bank, for which intereft is paid. |