1817.] t?ie Cowntrif to hear the present Rate (ff Taxation. 



Hie lowest persons in tlic comity.' — And 

 yet, sir, I have the aulliority of the 

 Cliancellor of the Exchequer for sajitig, 

 that Monmouthshire is lot worse, oft" in 

 this respect than tlie t;i.i;erality of the 

 kingdom : and numberless facts prove 

 that this is really the case. 



Sir George Leeds doscritcs io print 

 the case of a f^cntlcnian, of |;ood landed 

 property, in C.-MBRlDOEsHJ.'tE, whose 

 assessed taxes onlii amounted to 701. 

 per annum, but wliose whole income is 

 reduced to 601. ; addinj?, " there are other 

 case.s, thougli not quite 89 hard, nearly 

 as desperate ; and a gre<tt many, indeed, 

 where the taxes iiever cun he collected at 

 all:" which is fully confirmed by Air. 

 Ddcs, who declares that, " tiie labour, 

 })arncliial rates, tithes* and taxes, on an 

 acre of land, far exceed the amount of 

 the value of the produce." 



In Cheshire, it is stated to tiie Board 

 of Aj.?riculture, that '.'the pressure of 

 taxation, llio intolerable burden of paro- 

 chial rates, the lowncss of price, and the 

 absolute want of markets for some com- 

 modities, are eyils of which the com- 

 plaint is universal," 



The Penzance Agricultur.al Society 

 declare, Wiat " the inability to pay taxes 

 is such, tluit in one parish two-thirds in 

 number of the occupiers of farms fiavc 

 been returned in the schedules of de- 

 faulters." 



'J'hc Cornwall Society states it to be 

 their opinion, that, unle.ss some imme- 

 diate remedy be applied, not qnly great 

 indivi<hial suffering will be .siistaiued, 

 biit that the taxes cannot be paid. 



in DEiibYSHiHE, Mr. Beresford says, 

 " there is extraordinary difficulty iu eol- 

 Jccling the taxes and poor-rates." — In 

 Devonshike. Mr. Taylor states, that 

 " a jiroportion of seven-sixteenths, out 

 uf tlic annuiil vahie of every estate in 

 this county, is taken from the owners 

 and occupiers in direct taxes."— From 

 DoRsuT»HiKi(.Mr. Bpwkcr transmits an 

 accountvcry similar; whilst, in Duiuiam, 

 Mr. Collingwood expressly declares, 

 " if government do not devise some re- 

 medy, this part of the island, which pro- 

 duces most dnty, &:c. will be soon in an 

 insolvent slate." 



Unpaid rent and taxes in Essex, and 

 seizui'e of st<ick, to pay rent, tilhe.s, and 

 taxe.s, inHEKEFOUDsHiRt.arccomiilain- 

 cd «i';r— but, says Mr. ?<ewman, "the 

 ptineipal distrc:-ses that ha\e occurred 

 liavc been seizures under the crown for 

 taxes." 



Mr. Keet and Mr. Casainnjor both 

 •tate inability to pay reut and t;t\es ju 



515 

 HcRTFORUSHUiE; as Mr. Boys and Mr. 

 Neve, jun. do Irom KEN'-r ; and similar 

 represcnUtions have been made to the 

 Board of Agriculture from the counties 

 of Lancaster and tiEicEi^ER. "Aii;i 

 in Lincolnshire, it is said, " the taxes 

 may be levied, but they ^vill not Inny be 

 paid:" whence, also, it is reported Ihat 

 Lord Castlcrcagh has nearly two pi- 

 rishcs on his hands near Holbcach;-^ 

 Complaints of equal distress and innhU 

 lity have been made fioni NoRFotrc, 



NoRTIIAMPTONSHiRE, aild NoRTFJUM- 



berland ; in which latter county it h 

 asserted, by Mr. AVilson, Ihat, " of 12,'^0 

 farmers in the district of Morpetli-wani, 

 upwards of 1000 would have proved, to 

 the satisfaction of the commissioucr.'; of 

 property-tax, that lor the two last yoiirs 

 they had be9n pacing the tax upon a 

 loss, and ndt upon profit." And Mr. 

 AV. J. Calvert is disposed to bcRetc, 

 that "not enough of rent wiH aris'6 froi^ 

 the land in NottikghAmshikc to wn'.^J/ 

 the demands of gutcritment : thus," savs 

 he. " rendering the iiiwle property of tlie 

 landholder to the tilhe-owrier, the stutti, 

 and its creditors." ' 



The foregoing deta'd of facts cxiiibif,'!, 

 in language concise but expressive, tlie 

 melancholy situatioii of about onehalf 

 of (he counties of Eilgland, and the mi- 

 serable folly of the expectation ot being 

 able to raise from sixty to scACnty rniU 

 lJon.s of taxes annually, froni a country 

 situated as this at present is ; as well :j» 

 the cruelty and impolicy of the aJtempt! 

 'i'he state of the remainder, and of Scot- 

 land and A^'ales, I shall defer the iioiice 

 of to the next number of your Magnziiie, 

 It was a fair subject of consc/lationi 

 and excited a hope of better times in 

 many, that some relief woiild bcaffoidecl 

 by the cessation of part of what are call- 

 ed the war-taxcR; but woeful expe- 

 rience now convinces r\'ery iiltent/yb 

 observer of facts, that, if seventeen or 

 eij;htccn millions of such tr.x^s cease W 

 afflict, the remainder wi|l cbnliiinb to 

 act with opjiressiou doubly grc.ititO- 

 what they did When they Were insi 

 posed ; — so that, in (act, ti;co[iomtiori of 

 this grinding taxation is Viislly greater 

 than lit any former period ; and, to niako 

 this manifest, it is only necessary to 

 consider that, if it retjnires fite sale of 

 til ice the namlier of cattle, vr other "pi^O" 

 diicc, to raise the luoney necessan/ io p/j}/ 

 the same amount tif taxes, such tares ai^ 

 in fact doubled. — i'lius, in round iium» 

 bc'is, takeei'.;iity millions as the n(m<«t 

 that were raised in taxes at (he tiiiio 

 they were Jaij on. and deduct twtmy 

 3 U '2 nvlliuns 



