BEST METHODS OF TAXATION. 785 



An instance of this nature is so striking in its relations and so 

 pertinent to the present discussion that attention is asked to it. In 

 the reign of James I water was supplied by two or three conduits in 

 the principal streets of London, and the river and suburban springs 

 were the sources of supply. Large buildings were furnished with 

 water by tapping these conduits with leaden pipes, but other build- 

 ings and houses were supplied by " tankard bearers," who brought 

 water daily. A jeweler of the city, Hugh Myddleton by name, 

 believed something better could be done, and he proposed to bring 

 water from Hertfordshire by a " new river." He embarked in the 

 undertaking, sank his fortune in its conduct, and appealed to the 

 king for assistance. James granted this aid, taking one half of the 

 shares of the company thirty-six out of the seventy-two shares 

 into which it was divided. The shares that remained received the 

 name of " adventurer's moiety." The work was completed in 1613, 

 and water was then let into the city. 



So little was the measure appreciated that its first years were 

 troubfous ones for the shareholders. The squires objected to the 

 river, believing it would overflow their lands or reduce them to 

 swamps and destroy the roads. The city residents adopted the use 

 of the water slowly. The shares were nominally worth 100 apiece, 

 but for nearly twenty years the income was only 12s., or $3, per 

 share. In 1736 a share was valued at 115 10s., and by 1800 it had 

 risen to 431 8s. With the first years of this century the company 

 prospered, and its benefits were widely applied, reflecting this change 

 in the value of its capital. In 1820 a share was worth 11,500 

 and in 1878 the fraction of a share was sold at a rate which made 

 a full share worth 91,000. In 1888 the dividend distributed to 

 each share was 2,610. Eleven years later, in July, 1889, a single 

 share was sold for 122,800, or nearly $600,000. The nominal 

 capital of the company in 1884 was 3,369,000, and besides its water 

 franchise it holds large estates and valuable properties. While the 

 actual real estate controlled by the corporation accounts for some 

 of this remarkable rise in the value of the shares, a greater and more 

 lasting cause was the possession of an almost exclusive privilege or 

 franchise which assured a handsome an.d ever-increasing return on 

 the investment. Had all the other property been deducted from 

 the statement of the company's assets, there would have remained 

 this intangible and unmeasurable right created and conceded by its 

 charter and long usance. 



A definition of a franchise has been given by the Supreme Court 

 in terms of sufficient general accuracy to be adopted : " A franchise 

 is a right, privilege, or power of public concern which ought not to 

 be exercised by private individuals at their mere will and pleasure, 



VOL. LV. 64 



