THE PEESSURE OF TAXATION ON REAL PROPERTY. 59 



with great fullness : mucli is also known of the imperial burden ; but, for the 

 reasons hereafter stated, approximate completeness is alone attainable in this 

 section of our taxes. As the heaviest in amount the local taxes arc first 

 shown by the subjoined list : — 



Local Taxation in England and Wales faUinrj on Heal Propertu in 1SG7-68, 

 according to Mr. Ward Hunfs Return, Nos, 497 and 497 — I.' Sess. 1868. 



£ 



1. Amount levied under the name of poor-rate 11,061,000 



2. County, hundred, borough police, not paid out of poor-rate 307,000 



3. Highway-rate, not paid out of poor-rate 917,000 



4. Church-rates 217,000 



b. Lighting- and watching-rate , 77,000 



6. Improvement-commission rates 445,000 



7. General district-rates, levied under the provision of Public 1 ■> t-nf- nnn 



Health and Local Government Acts / ^ ' ' '^^ '^"^ 



8. Eates under Com-ts of Commissioners of Sewers, including "I -,.,q j^.^ 



drainage aud embankment rates j <UJ,UUU 



P. Eates of other kinds, and inclusive of i'981,000 levied in 1 ^ f,no rynn 

 the metropolitan district as general and lighting-rates . . J t,-Uo,UUU 



Total 16,733,000 



*^* Taken in round numbers and corrected by the most recent returns in possession of 

 the Poor-Law Board. 



It may be well to remember that nearly half of this heavy sum is entailed 

 tipon the ratepayers by the absolute right to relief which the legislation of 

 England has given to the poor. The expenditure last year for " relief to the 

 poor " was £7,498,000 ; but law charges to the amount of .£29,000, the 

 cost of making valuations .£50,000, and "money expended for all other 

 jHirposes" £532,000, a large portion of which latter sum is solely contingent 

 on pauperism, are all items that are excluded from what, in official language, 

 is termed "relief;" though it is patent that if pauperism ceased out of the 

 land, most of these expenses would be determined. Add a duo proportion of 

 the excluded items and we may fairly say that, in round numbers, English 

 pauperism last year cost little short of £8,000,000 sterling. 



The imperial taxes that are incident upon realty certainly exceed 

 £6,000,000 ; they probably approach to £7,000,000. So far as their respective 

 amounts can be discovered, they are exhibited in the following statement :— 



Imperial Taxation in England and Wales falling on Real Property in 1867-68, 

 or thereahouts, according to Returns in 2>ossessio7i of the Commissioners of 

 Inland Revenue. 



£ 



1. Property-tax, 18G7 2,354,000 



2. Land-tax, 1868 1,058,000 



3. House-duty, 1868 1,003,000 



4. Succession-duty, average of 1867-68-69 562,000 



5. Stamps on deeds and other instruments, not otherwise spc- 1 , ,„- «/-.«„ 



cified, 1868 (a) .....| l.-10o,000? 



6. Fire insurance? 



7. Stamp-duty on wills and letters of administration ? 



8. Probate Court fees ? '.[[.'.W 



Approximate total 0,382,000 



(a) Stamps on sales, conveyances, leases, mortgages, &c. will be included in this sum, 

 but what portion is not incident on real estate it is impossible to discover. The stamp- 

 duties on wills and letters of administration, some of which will be jjaid on leaseholds for 

 years, and therefore indirectly from real property, are excluded from the above, and that 

 exclusion may possibly balance the excess under the head of stamps on deeds. The duty 



