62 On the Malt Tax. Feh. 



of grain, he lofes icool. a-year, if he malts only Scotch barley, 

 or 200cl. a-year, if he malts only Scotch bear or big ; becaufe 

 he lofes all the difference of labour, inter^ft of capital, rent or re- 

 pairs of houfes, and tear and wear of machinery ; or would have 

 made fo much more profit, if he had malted only Englifh bar- 

 ley : It does not require much mathematic:il knowledge, far lefs 

 great financial abih'ties, to fee, that in the above fuppofition, the 

 malt-tax on Scotch barley fhould not be the simple fraction of 

 five-fixths, but the compound fraction^ five-iixths of five-iixths ; 

 and that the tax on Scotch bear or big Ihould not be two-thirds, 

 but two-thirds of two-thirds, or four-ninths of the tax that can 

 be fairly paid on E'lglilli barley. If the barley of the South of 

 Scotland, as to its faccliarine ftrength and power of producing ale 

 or fpirits, be equal only to live-fixrhs of the real value of Eng- 

 lifti barley, it ought not to be taxed above two-thirds of the du- 

 ty on Englifli malt ; and if the bear or big of the north of Scot- 

 land contain only two-thirds of the extractive matter which the 

 fame quantity of Englifli barley contains, it ought not to be taxed 

 above four-ninths of what is paid for malr of fo much fuperior 

 quality. The fact here is, that the bear of Aberdeenlliire, at a 

 medium of 30 years, is not quite two-thirds of the price, and 

 does not contain fo much as three-fifths of the faccharine, or ex- 

 tractive matter, contained in Norfolk barley, and ought not to 

 pay above half the iLngliili duty. 



Under this branch, viz.. the proportion of taxes that fhould be 

 impofed refpeclively on Scotch and Engliili barley, and alfo on 

 Scotch bear or big, we would next enquire into the danger of 

 innovating or altering long ellablilhed rules in regard to the dif- 

 ferent proportions of malt-duty to be paid in England, and ia 

 Scotland. 



Soon after the Union, as already mentioned, a violent ferment 

 was occafioned in Scotland, by impofing the fame malt-tax on 

 both countries ; and all the revenue obtained from this high no- 

 minal duty, which was chiefly obnoxious to the Scots, on ac- 

 count of its proportion to the Englifli duty, did not, in Scotland, 

 defray the expence of collecting it. To regain the affeftions of 

 the Scots, and make a due allowance for the fituation and cir- 

 cumftances of that people, as well as to obtain fome revenue from 

 Scotch malt, which could only be made eftldive by a moderate 

 rax, a proportion of duty, viz. one half of what was paid for 

 Knglilh barley was fixed upon as the rate of taxation on malt 

 made in Scotland, with the confent of all parties ; and continued 

 \;naltered for 77 years. During that period, very great quan- 

 tities of Englifli barley and malt-liquor were imported into 

 Scotland, wlule very little was exported from the lattei coun- 

 try into England, and that little, chiefly in feafons when the 

 iiarvelf (which happens very rarely) was favourable in Scot- 

 land, 



