1804. On the Malt Tax. 



59 



of barley, either in England, or in the fouthcrn dlftri6]:r; of Scot- 

 land, along with grafs feeds, as this is the belt preparation for a 

 rich crop of clover. And in the northern counties, or Highland 

 diilricts to difcourage the railing of bear, or big, with grafs 

 feeds, is to flrike at the root of all improvements in agriculture, 

 in thofe remote parts of the ifland, where fuch improvements are 

 yet in their infancy. No other fpecies of grain, not even bar- 

 ley, will anfwer as a proper nurfe for grafs feeds ; for in a late 

 harveil, bear is the only fleady crop in places where wheat can- 

 not be raifed, where barley is often frofted, and oats are fome- 

 times deftroyed by the inclemency of the weather. It is there- 

 fore obvious, that by impoling a high tax on bear, or barley, 

 which has the effe^l of leffening the quantity of land laid down 

 with that crop, or throwing either of them out of the courfe of 

 cropping, our agriculture is deeply injured, even in good feafons, 

 while in unfruitful feafons, and late harvefts, if the grafs feeds be 

 fown with oats, they are often choked by that crop lodging and 

 rotting in the fields ; and, on the other hand, the oats are either 

 Tendered unferviceable, or are harvefted with very great difficul- 

 ty, owing to the clover, or other grafles (hooting up, or beino; 

 mixed with the flravv, or ftalks of the oats. Hence in this part of 

 the ifland, a great injury to improved agriculture would be occa- 

 (ioned, by an injudicious, or exceflively high tax on malt. 



There are many other bad eiFecls produced by too high a tax 

 on malt, whether this be made of Englilh or Scotch barley, or of 

 Scotch bear, or big. 



When the tax on any article, finks the price of the raw ma- 

 terial of which it is made, as much, or nearly as much, as the 

 tax amounts to, that tax is paid by the raifer or owner of the raw 

 material or rude produce, and not by the purchafer ; and there- 

 fore fuch ought to be repealed or modified, except where it is the 

 intention of the legiflature to difcourage the raifing of the raw 

 material, or the too great ufe of the article. In cafes where the 

 raw material is one of the neceffaries of life, or an article, the 

 raifing of which is efientially requifite, a high tax on the raw 

 material is one of the greateft errors (it might- feem harfli if we 

 faid crimes) that can be committed by an ill informed fiatefman, or 

 fanetioned by a well intending legiilature. Yet it is certain, that 

 the late very high tax on malt not only tends to check the im- 

 pmvcments in agriculture by difcouraging the raifing of barley, 

 and of bear or big, but that it lias alio the greatefi: tendency to 

 produce a fcarcity in« the firft unfavourable feafon. For let it 

 never be forgotten, tliat in 1782, 1799 ^"'^ iSco, the barley cf 

 tlie fouth, and the bear or big of the nortli were the principal 

 fupporters of the lives of the common people of Scotland, who 

 were not able to purchafe flour (which often was not 10 be get 

 in the interior diitrifts), and who could not have eaten the bad 



oat 



