d for a bill to repeal Pitt's
Additional Force bill, which raised a storm of opposition from the
friends and admirers of the deceased minister. His views were especially
combated by Lord Castlereagh and Mr. Canning; but the repeal bill was
finally carried, and then Windham's plan was adopted: it was introduced
and carried as a clause in the Annual Mutiny bill. A bill for the
training of a certain number of persons, not exceeding 200,000, out of
those that were liable to be drawn for the militia; a bill to suspend
the ballot for the militia in England for two years, with a reserved
power to government for recurring to it in order to supply the vacancies
of any corps which should be reduced below its quota; a bill called
the Chelsea Hospital bill, to give security to invalid, disabled, and
discharged soldiers, for such pensions as they were entitled to; and a
bill for settling the relative rank officers of yeomanry, volunteers,
militia forces, and troops of the line, completed Windham's system, and
were all carried, though not without much opposition. An increase was
also voted to the pay of sergeants, corporals, privates of the line, to
the Chelsea pensions, and to the pensions of officers' widows: similar
benefits were also voted to the navy, and the Greenwich Hospital
allowances to out-pensioners were increased.

THE BUDGET.

The budget was opened by Lord Henry Petty on the 28th of March. From
his statement it appeared that the unredeemed debt of Great Britain and
Ireland was about L566,000,000, of which the annual interest was about
L27,500,000. The supplies of England and Ireland for the year were
estimated at L62,187,465; and among the ways and means, were a loan of
L18,000,000 and an augmentation of the new taxes to L19,500,000, to be
effected principally by raising the income-tax from six and a half to
ten per cent. The new Chancellor of the Exchequer also imposed a duty
of forty shillings a ton on pig-iron; an additional duty on beer and
spirits, in Ireland; and a paltry tax on appraisements. The duty
on pig-iron and the increase of the income-tax raised a storm of
opposition; but they were nevertheless decreed. As the burdens of the
people were so increased, it was deemed expedient that some attempt
should be made to prevent the misapplication of the money raised from
the public. It was proposed by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, that,
beside the five commissioners to whom the task of general investigati