334 



GKEAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND. 



pounds, as compared with 155*85 pounds in 

 1869; of sugar, 74'28 pounds, as compared 

 with 42'56 pounds; of bacon and hams, 1T47 

 pounds, as compared with 2'68 pounds ; of 

 butter, 7*15 pounds, as compared with 4'52 

 pounds; of cheese, 5 - 48 pounds, as compared 

 with 3'52 pounds; of tea, 502 pounds, as 

 compared with 3'63 pounds. 



Navigation. The total tonnage of vessels en- 

 gaged in foreign commerce entered at British 

 ports in 1886 was 31,035,618, of which 22,- 

 741,061 tons were under the British, and 

 8,294,557 under foreign flags. The steam ton- 

 nage entered was 24,410,809, of which 19,- 

 791,481 tons were British and 4,619,328 for- 

 eign. The total tonnage cleared was 31,805,- 

 459, of which 23,337,238 tons were British. 

 The steam tonnage cleared was 24,992,884, 

 British steamers being represented by 20,250,- 

 706 tons. The aggregate burden of vessels 

 entered with cargoes was 24,778,693 ; cleared, 

 29,171,079. The aggregate tonnage of vessels 

 in the coasting trade entered in 1886 was 44,- 

 005,833 ; cleared, 37,420,204. 



The number of vessels on the registers of 

 the United Kingdom in 1886 was 22,409, of 

 7,321,000 tons, of which 6,630. of 3,962,000 

 tons, were steamers. The number of vessels 

 registered in British colonies was 15,143, of 

 1,924,000 tons. The number of sailing-vessels 

 built in Great Britain in 1885 was 459, of 

 208,411 tons; the number of steamers, 393, of 

 196,975 tons. 



Railroads. The number of miles of railroad 

 in operation in the United Kingdom at the 

 end of 1886 was 19,332, of which 13,678 miles 

 were in England and Wales, 3,022 in Scotland, 

 and 2,632 in Ireland. The cost of construc- 

 tion was 828,344,000. The gross receipts in 

 1886 were 69,592,000, as compared with 69,- 

 556,000 in 1885; the net receipts, 33,073,- 

 000, as compared with 32,768,000. 



Posts and Telegraphs. The number of letters 

 transmitted by the post-office during the year 

 ended March 31, 1887, was 1,460,000,000; 

 post -cards, 179,000,000; newspapers and 

 printed matter, 520,000,000; parcels, 32,860,- 

 000 ; postal orders for the United Kingdom, 

 9,800,000, of the aggregate amount of 21,- 

 952,000 ; for foreign countries and the colonies, 

 300,000, of the amount of 763,000 ; from for- 

 eign countries and British colonies, 700,000, ot 

 the amount of 2,218,000. 



The length of telegraph lines in April, 18R6, 

 was 30,276 miles, with 170,195 miles of wire. 

 The gross receipts from the postal telegraphs 

 in 1886 was 1,758,169, and the net revenue 

 25,343. The number of inland telegrams 

 forwarded in the year ended March 31, 1887, 

 was 50,243,639, of which 42,320,185 were in 

 England and Wales, 5,106,774 in Scotland, and 

 2,816,680 in Ireland. 



Finances. The financial year 1886-'87 showed 

 better results than were originally anticipated. 

 The estimates of revenue adopted by Sir Will- 

 iam Harcourt, who was Chancellor of the Ex- 



chequer at the beginning of the year, amounted 

 to 89,869,000. The actual revenue was 90,- 

 773,000. The receipts from customs, which 

 were first estimated at 19,700,000, were 20,- 

 155,000; stamps, 11,830,000, exceeding the 

 estimate by 465,000 : land - tax and house 

 duty, 2,980,000, which was 60,000 more 

 than the estimate ; property and income-tax, 

 15,900,000, being 145,000 more than the 

 estimate, the 8d. income-tax having been 

 more thoroughly collected than in previous 

 years ; the post-office and telegraphs, estimated 

 to yield 8,270,000 and 1,730 000 respective- 

 ly, produced 8,450,000 and 1,830,000 ; 

 crown-lands, 370,000 ; interest on advances, 

 1,176,000. The excise revenue fell below 

 the estimate, producing 25,250,000 instead of 

 the 25,694,000 that it was expected to yield. 

 The expenditure for 1886-'87 also exceeded 

 the estimates by reason of supplementary rates. 

 The total expenditure was 90,115,000, of 

 which 60,294,000, or 497,000 more than the 

 original estimate, was for the supply services. 

 Mr. Goschen, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, 

 in presenting his financial statement with regard 

 to the revenue, to illustrate its gradual loss of 

 all elasticity, showed how the increased prod- 

 uce of the taxes had fallen from 10'8 per cent, 

 in the five years 1860-'65, and 24 per cent, in 

 1870-'75, to 1 per cent, in the fiscal year 

 1886-'87. The most notable features have been 

 a considerable falling off in the alcoholic reve- 

 nue, showing that the habits of the British 

 people have reformed in respect to the use of 

 spirituous liquors, and the progress of the free 

 breakfast-table movement. Mr. Goschen il- 

 lustrated the unsatisfactory character of the 

 revenue raised from the higher classes by refer- 

 ence to the falling off in the yield of the differ- 

 ent schedules of the income-tax, and drew the 

 general conclusion that the commercial and 

 agricultural depression, while it had touched 

 the two extremes of the social scale severely, 

 had not affected the profits of the middle- 

 man. 



The revenue for 1887-'88 was estimated by 

 the Chancellor of the Exchequer at 91,155,- 

 500, and the expenditure at 90,180,000. He 

 proposed to suppress a part of the sinking 

 fund, reducing the fixed charge of the debt 

 from 28,000,000 to 26,000,000 per annum in 

 order to throw off one penny from the income- 

 tax, which seems to be permanently established 

 at war rates. The proposed relief of local 

 taxes could not yet be taken in hand except 

 to the extent of handing over an amount equal 

 to the proceeds of the carriage-tax to the local 

 authorities. The tobacco duty was lowered 

 from 3s. 6d. to 3s. %d. per pound, the rate at 

 which it formerly stood. 



The Army. The army estimates for 1887-'88 

 fix the number of regular troops, exclusive of 

 those serving in India, at 149,391. The total 

 effective strength of the regular army is fixed 

 at 9,939 officers and 211,143 men, making to- 

 gether 221,082, with 25,583 horses. The regu- 



