376 



GREAT BRITAIN 



M'Culloch's estimate for Ireland in 1846 was 

 perhaps too low. The Registrar-general for Ireland 

 in December 1889 published a report on the total 

 value of farming products, thus : 



1851-55 annual average 71,990,000 



1866-70 n 72,210,000 



1884-88 it " 54,010,000 



This shows a national loss of 18,200,000 per 

 annum to the Irish people, or double the total 

 rental of the country. In seven years, down to 

 August 1888, the Land Court has reduced rents on 

 243,490 farms from 3,852,000 to 3,094,000, the 

 saving thus effected to tenants being equal to 4 per 

 cent, of their loss by the fall in prices. 



Middleton estimated the total value of farm 

 products of England and Wales in 1820 at 127 

 millions sterling ; M'Culloch, in 1846, at 142 

 millions. In 1887 the total for the three king- 

 doms was 251 millions viz. : 



1846. 1887. 



England and Great Britain 



Wales. and Ireland. 



Grain 51,500,000 41,400,000 



Green Crops 28.500,000 52,400,000 



Hay and Straw 13,000,000 33,000,000 



Meat 26,200,000 51,500,000 



Dairy 12,000.000 31,200,000 



Eggs and Poultry 1,400,000 10,100,000 



Foals 3,000,000 6,000,000 



Hides, Wool, &c 4,300,000 14,000,000 



Timber 1,800,000 1,400,000 



Vegetables and Fruit 10,000,000 



Total... ....141,700,000 251,000,000 



FINANCES. The revenue of the British govern- 

 ment has been as follows : 



Date. Reign. Amount. 



1080.. William I. 1,320,000 



1120 Henry I. 990,000 



1250 Henry III. 264,000 



1480 Edward IV. 162,000 



1540 Henry VIII. 1,300,000 



1640 Charles I. 950,000 



1700 William III. 4,135.000 



1728 George II. 9,030,000 



1810 George III. 55,810,000 



1830 William IV. 59,400,000 



1860 Victoria. 71,100,000 



1888 i 89,800,000 



In the earlier reigns of the above table the nomi- 

 nal amount was only one-third of the above sums ; 

 but it must be remembered that the groat (4 pence) 

 contained as much silver as our shilling of to-day. 

 Hence the above represents the exact value in 

 silver. The purchasing power was three times 

 greater down to 1540 (Henry VIII.), and twice as 

 great from that time till the death of George II. 

 than what our present money can buy. 



Revenue and expenditure since 1842 slum as 

 follows, in million pounds sterling : 



Period. Revenue. 



1842-51 567 



1852-61 678 



1862-71 711 



1872-81 799 



1882-88 616 



47 years 3371 



3363 



In the preceding table an allowance of 10 per 

 cent, is included as ' sundries,' but Chaptal and 

 other French economists allow 14 per cent. It will 

 be noted that the agricultural capital of the United 

 Kingdom has only risen 30 per cent, since 1814, 

 while the wealth of the nation ( since Colquhoun's 

 estimate in 1811) has risen 370 per cent. Agricul- 

 ture, in fact, is by no means so prosperous as it was 

 one hundred years ago, nor is the gross product 

 BO high relatively as elsewhere. The agricultural 

 capital of the United States is only 52 per cent, 

 higher than in the United Kingdom ( the value of 

 land being in the United States so much less) ; the 

 gross product is 200 per cent, greater. Germany has 

 the same agricultural capital as the United King- 

 dom, while her product is 66 per cent, over ours. 



The agricultural capital and product of various 

 nations are approximately as follows, in million 

 pounds sterling : 



Capital. Gr yea ? r" d 



United Kingdom 2287 251 



United States 3696 776 



Canada 343 65 



Australia 413 62 



France .3229 440 



Germany 2336 415 



Kussia .* 2090 523 



Argentine Republic 191 44 



47 years 1314 



840 



3363 



National expenditure, not including local taxes, 

 compares with the estimated capital wealth of the 

 nation as follows, in million pounds sterling : 



Public Ratio of 



Expenditure. Expenditure. 



0-4 

 0-8 

 2-6 

 1-3 

 1-3 

 1-0 



If we include local taxation, and compare the 

 gross public burden with the estimated earnings 

 of the British and Irish people, we find thus, in 

 million pounds sterling : 



