chairman and deputy chairman for the time being, with the addition of the deputy-master of the Trinity-house; these are elected by ballot, at a general meeting of the trustees annually held; 300l. are taken annually from the funds, and divided amongst the members of the committee, by whom the business is done. The trustees hold an annual meeting at Ramsgate, where a building for that purpose has been erected.

In London, a house is also provided for the monthly meetings of the committee, where a permanent establishment is kept up. The

The

rates established by act of parliament are, upon British ships passing the harbour, three-pence per ton, if under 300 tons; one penny per ton, if above 300 tons; and, if laden, the owners are authorized by the act to receive the amount payable for the voyage from the proprietors of the cargo. rates upon foreign vessels, whether passing to the eastward or to the westward of the Goodwin Sand, are six-pence per ton, if under 300 tons; and four-pence per ton, if above 300 tons; which dues have been, till lately, collected from foreign vessels passing from foreign port to foreign port, prospectively and retrospectively. But since the subject has been under inquiry, your committee have been informed, that orders have been given for this practice to be discontinued, which they mention with satisfaction, from having reason to believe that a subject of great dissatisfaction will thereby be removed.

Under the act of the 32 Geo. III, c. 74, and 37 Geo. III, c. 86, masters of foreign ships arriving with cargoes for a British port, are authorized to reimburse themselves

from the consignee, or proprietor.

The rates payable under the act were three-pence per ton; but the act of 55th Geo. III, which augmented the rate to sixpence per ton, is silent as to the recovery from the owners of the cargo; so that the rate by that act is raised 100 per cent, and the right of reimbursement from the cargo no longer expressly continued. By the same act, the trustees have a discretionary power of lowering the rates, and the monies collected are directed to be applied towards enlarging, building, finishing,maintaining, supporting, and improving the harbour, and in defraying all other expenses which shall be incurred in carrying the act into execution.

Your committee have already adverted to the exaction of a duty from vessels for the support of the harbour, which, under no circumstances, they are capable of entering.

The preamble to one of the acts before-mentioned assigns, as the reason for imposing a rate upon vessels of this description, that, as the harbour provides shelter for small vessels, it will have the effect of affording more room for ships to ride in the Downs; and it cannot be denied that, to a certain extent, this benefit is derived from it; when a gale of wind sets in from the south-west, and is of any continuance, the number of ships which collect in the Downs is said to be occasionally very great, and, at certain seasons, becomes such as to render the anchorage unsafe. In such cases, vessels of a moderate size seek shelter in Ramsgate harbour, and, so far, the larger ships receive advantage. But, whatever the advantages may be, they do not appear to your committee equivalent to the heavy burden entailed

upon the shipping by which they are purchased, and they therefore submit to the consideration of the House, the expediency of discontinuing the rate upon all ships beyond the tonnage which the harbour is capable of admitting, namely, of 300 tons, and upwards, the amount of rates on which, according to the return for the year 1820, is about 2,800l. per annum. The imposition of a duty, to which the act has subjected all ships that, in the course of navigation from foreign port to foreign port, must unavoidably pass Ramsgate, but do not approach it, whether passing to the eastward or the westward of Goodwin Sands, is very questionable. It could never be intended, that a foreign ship, sailing from Rotterdam to Calais should be liable to the Ramsgate harbour dues; these, however, are claimed, and form a subject of complaint, in the opinion of your committee so reasonable, that it ought to be

removed.

The sums which have at various times been expended on Ramsgate harbour are stated to amount to no less than 1,500,000l.; and it appears, from the evidence of Mr. Rennie, that although he estimates the amount required to complete the works at about 52,000l., he is of opinion that it is not unlikely 150,000l. may be required for that purpose. Your committee do not question the accommodation the harbour has the means of affording to shipping of a particular class; but they are not of opinion that any increase of the harbour will be attended with additional advantage to the shipping, and that some limit ought to be imposed on the receipts to prevent any further increase, and to enforce economy, that the trade may not continue

to be burdened, either in point of time or amount, beyond what absolute necessity demands, consistently with certain expenses on works and repairs to be incurred. Your committee have considered whether all the shipping may not, to a certain extent, be immediately relieved. The trustees have a power under the seventh section of the 55th Geo. III, c. 74, of raising monies upon the credit of the rates, to the extent of 50,000%. the repayment to be secured by mortgage thereof. The estimate, by Mr. Rennie, of the sum required to complete the works, amounts to 52,000l.; and it appears, in evidence, that if no more than the present number of workmen are employed, it will take about seven years to finish them. Your committee are of opinion that such of the repairs as are considered to be absolutely necessary, ought, for the accommodation of the public to be completed with every possible dispatch, and that persons should immediately be contracted with by public tender to execute the works to be performed within a given time, to be done under the general superintendence of the engineer. That the trustees should raise in the manner authorized by the act the necessary funds for that purpose, by which they would be enabled at once to discontinue the rates on ships above 300 tons, and to equalize the duties on foreign ships with those on British ships, and reduce the rates upon all vessels bound to or from foreign ports.

The amount of the annual revenues of the trust is about 20,000/. per annum, arising from rates and permanent capital; and the charges of the establishment, according to the evidence of the chairman of

on Tower-hill; a commission of two and a half per cent being allowed the corporation for the trouble of collecting them.

DOVER HARbour.

Your committee's attention was, in the next instance, directed to Dover harbour, and the charges imposed and collected for its main tenance. This harbour has long enjoyed legislative protection; the act under which it is now regulated is the 47th Geo. III, c. 69. The management is placed under the lord warden of the Cinque Ports, the lieutenant-governor of Dover Castle, the mayor of Dover for the time being, and a certain number of assistants, who use to hold meetings twice a year, but which, according to the evidence of Mr. Shipdem, the registrar and agent, have not been regularly held for some years. They have the power, under the act, to raise monies for the purposes of the harbour, upon the credit of the rates, in such manner as to a majority of them may seem expedient; of this right they have availed themselves to a considerable extent, as by a paper returned by Mr. Latham, the treasurer, it appears, that since the year 1794, sums have been raised upon the credit of the rates to the amount of 19,500l., part of which, upon annuities at 9, 10, and 11 per cent, and that an agreement has been made with a Mr. Oxenden, for a further loan of 7,000l., making together no less a sum than 26,500l. at an annual interest of 1,504., of which sum so raised, 23,500l. has been borrowed within the last five years; it appears further, by the accounts rendered and confirmed by the evidence of the registrar,

that the annual average revenues of the harbour are about 13,000l. per annum, so that in five years a sum of no less than 81,500l. has been expended upon the works, repairs, and maintenance of the harbour. The amount of the rates by law established upon the shipping are, three-pence per ton upon all ships under 300 tons burden, bound over sea, which shall pass from, to, or by Dover, whether to the east or the west side of the Goodwin Sands, or which shall enter the harbour, and authorizes a reimbursement of the rates from the owners of the cargoes with which the vessels shall be laden.

Coasting vessels, if laden, are subject to a charge of 14d. for every chaldron of coals or culm, ton of grindstone, Purbeck, or Portland stone, provided they shall be above 20 tons and under 300 tons; and from every vessel that may enter Dover harbour, laden with merchandise, above 300 tons burden, 3d. per ton; but if laden with coals and culm, 1d. per chaldron, and an equal charge for every ton of grindstone, Purbeck, or Portland stone. All vessels in ballast, and such as do not enter the harbour, being of the burden of 300 tons and upwards,. are exempted from any demand.

The annual receipt of rates, upon an average of the last five years, is about 11,300l.; and the annual receipt of permanent income, arising from ground-rents, and leases of houses and land, to about 1,700., making together the annual income 13,000l. per

annum.

Many of the observations your committee have felt it their duty to make, in regard to the principle upon which the rates payable from shipping to Ramsgate harbour are