N* 27.3 ON FEES, G R A T U I T I E S , & c.-( Au6tion Duty, & c.) 67 each regiftered Table. Mr. Foote manufactures about 1,000 Jbs. of Roll Tob.: cco every week ; and Examinant thinks, one man working moderately, with the neceflary Attendance of boys, would turn off 500 lbs. or 600 lbs. of Roll in a week from one table ; and he has known inftances of one man turning off 800 lbs. or 900 lbs. He is of opinion, that a Manufacturer of Tobacco, who paid the Duties, could not make a livelihood by manufacturing lefs than 500 lbs. a week. He believes the Manufac- turers in the country generally follow fome other occupation. It is his general prac- tice to put a hogfhead of Tobacco in a cafe for Roll at one time, and fometimes two. In warm weather he finds great inconvenience from being obliged to make ufe of a frame for this purpofe, as the Tobacco is apt to heat, and muft then be taken out of cafe and fpread upon the floor, in order to give it air. It is his praCtice from time to time 10 add to the Tobacco in cafe; and he conceives, that to oblige Manu- facturers to work off an entire cafe without interruption, and to preclude them from adding thereto, would be injurious to them, as it frequently happens that the To- bacco put in cafe may not be of a quality to work up by itfelf; and this is not to be difcovered with certainty until it is wetted. If a hogfhead of Tobacco fhould happen to be filler or foft leaf, it would require a mixture of wrapper or ftrong leaf to work it up. Before the trade fell off, Mr. Foote ufually worked up at one time about 2 9,000 lbs. weight of Tobacco, where he now manufactures no more than 19,000 lbs. The Tobacco remains in Snuff- cafe about three weeks before it is fit for fpinning ; in the courfe of a week, it is wholly fpun off into Snuff Rolls. He conceives that it would be impoflible for an Officer to weigh the Snuff- cafe; when the Tobacco has remained for any time in that ftate, the heat is fo intenfe, and the fmell fo ftrong, that thofe who have been for upwards of twenty- five years conftantly employed in the bufinefs, are always feverely affeCted with ficknefs. He conceives that it is moft advantageous to the Manufacturer to work off fmuggled Tobacco from the cane cafe. He has bought large cakes of feized To- bacco at the Cuftom- houfe fales, and has generally found it to be of a fuperior qua- lity, and better calculated for the manufacturing of Rolls rlian of Snuff; he therefore is of opinion, that fmuggled Tobacco is ufually worked off in the cane cafe. James Nowlatt. J. S. Rochfort, Fredk Geale, Charles Saxtou. No. 27. The Examination of ARCHIBALD HAWKSLEY, Esq. taken on Oath, the 29th of OCtober 1807, and 27th January 1808. This Examinant faith, That he is an Importer of Tobacco, and has been fo for many years, and deals ex- • tenfivelv therein. The Import Trade is at prefent very low, owing to the fmuggling on the Coaft, which has increafed in proportion to the increafe of the Duty, and from the facility afforded to the Smuggler by the numerous Creeks and Bays on the coast or Ireland ' He is of opinion, that the only effectual mode of suppressing the illicit trade will be, to lower the Duty on tobacco. He is firmly persuaded, that a Revenue much greater jn amount than the present would be produced, if tne Import and Excife Duties together did not exceed is. per lb. Before the increafe of Duty, he has in fome years imported from 12 to 1500 hhds. of Tobacco, but his fales are now fo greatly diminifhed,- in confequence of smuggling, which he attributes solely to the effeCt of the high Duty, that he has this year imported only 400 hhds; he formerly made cbnfiderable sales into Connaught, but now makes scarce any. He alfo thinks that there has not been sufficient encouragement given to the seizure of fmucmled Tobacco. It is the general praCtice of Manufacturers, who purchase from the Importing Merchant, to remove only fo much of the quantity purchased, as they require for immediate confumption, and to leave the remainder until they have occa- fion for it. A fhort time ago, he was applied to for two hhds. of Tobacco by a