TITHK.S. 



that cannot at prcfcnt be forcfeen. With thefe views, might 

 not, it is afked, a law be obtained, authorizing the valuation 

 of tithes, in every cai'e where either of the parties interefted 

 in it fliould fo incline ? This might be done, it is faid, by a 

 fummons raifed againll all the parties concerned, either be- 

 fore the (herifF of the county where the property lay, or be- 

 fore any other judge that (hould be thought more proper for 

 executing the office ; who, after hearing the parties, (hould 

 proceed to make a legal inqueft to obtain a clear proof what 

 had been the amount of the tithes, adtually paid and drawn, 

 for five, ten, fifteen, or twenty years lad pad, as (hould be 

 judged the moft proper, out of the feveral lands in queftion ; 

 fpecifying diftindlly the quantity of each denomination of 

 grain, or other titheable produce. But as it may eafily be 

 torefeen, that it would be a matter of ^reat difficulty, in 

 many cafes, to get at thefe fafts with precifion, might it 

 not be put in the power of the judge, if the parties could 

 not agree as to that particular, to appoint two or more per- 

 fons of good charafter in the neighbourhood, to gather up 

 the tithes in kind themfelves, fairly and honeftly, for five 

 years next to come, without favour to any perfon; the 

 amount to be delivered to the perfons having a right to re- 

 ceive them, after the quantities had been re£pe£lively afcer- 

 tained, fo as to admit of the colleftors making up an ac- 

 count of the whole, upon oath, to be delivered to the judge ; 

 who, from that account fo made up, (hould caufe an 

 average to be llruck of the quantities of each particular ar- 

 ticle ; which average quantities, after dedufting a juft pro- 

 portion for the expence of collefting, and taxes affefting the 

 tithe, (hould be declared by him to be the legal tithe exigeable 

 from the land in queftion in all time to come ? But as there 

 is room to fufpeft that the money prices of corn, wool, 

 &c. of different denominations, may rife to be much 

 higher in fome future period than it was at that time ; in- 

 ftead of then afcertaining the price of thefe articles, let it 

 be declared, that the quantities of grain and other articles 

 refulting from the averages refpeAively, are payable out of 

 the refpeftive lands, leaving the average prices of fuch grain, 

 &c. to be fettled and afcertained each year, as is fpecified 

 below ; declaring that the money which (hall arife from the 

 average prices thus afcertained, (hould be in lieu of the 

 whole tithe that could be exafted each year ; the time of 

 payment too to be fpecified. And, in order to prevent all 

 difputes as to the average prices of thefe articles in time to 

 come, let the fheriff of each county be authorized and re- 

 quired to make an inqueft at a certain period each year of 

 what has been the aftual ready money felling price of corn 

 of the preceding year's crop, from the time the crops were 

 reaped till this time, and of wool, as well as of all other 

 titheable articles for the former year, by examining witnefTes 

 before a jury to be appointed for that purpofe, which prices, 

 after being thus afcertained, (hould be publifhed and de- 

 clared to be thofe by which the quantity of tithe-corn of 

 each particular defcription, and other titheable articles, con- 

 tained in any degree of valuation, (hould be payable for the 

 crop of the preceding year. Thus, it is faid, would the 

 tithe-owner be entitled to receive payment of his tithes, 

 without any extraordinary expence or trouble, or unjuft de- 

 duftion or difpute whatever : the farmer would be allowed 

 to carry on his operations uncramped by thofe galling re- 

 ftraints which the tithe-laws at prefent perpetually throw 

 in his way : the proprietor would be at liberty to apply 

 fuch part of his capital as he might incline, towards pro- 

 moting agricultural improvements, with a reafonable pro- 

 fpeft of being benefited by his exertion : and the public 

 would become poffefTed of a quantity of furplut produce of 

 land, which it can have no profpeft of ever othcrvsrifc en- 

 Vol. XXXV, 



joying, which would be tlie means of difTufiiig a perpetual 

 plenty llirougli every corner of tlie land. 



Mr. Pitt too, in his account of the agriculture of a 

 midland diftrift, fuggcfts, that the mode or fcheme to 

 be adopted as the outline of an exchange of tithes, (hould 

 be for land, in the manner directed below, as land will 

 always bear a value proportionate to that of its jiroduco, and 

 that even tlie price or value of labour is meafurcd by the 

 fame ftandard. This is, that an aft of parliament (liould 

 appoint, in every diocefe, an equal number of the moft re- 

 fpeftable clergy and country gentlemen commilTioners and 

 truftces, with a power of nominating furveyors, to value all 

 the tithes belonging either to tlie clergy or laity within the 

 diocefe ; and lliat tliis aft (hould be let give an option to the 

 land-owners of purchafing their refpeftive tithes, at the va- 

 luation fixed on them by luch commiffioncrs and furveyors ; 

 the money arifing from fuch redemption being inverted in 

 the funds, or other more proper fecurities, until a fuitable 

 opportunity fhould offer of laying it out in the purchafc of 

 land ; and that, where the land-owners (hould refufe to pur- 

 chafe fuch tithes, the commilTioners (hould have the power 

 of mortgaging them, or of taking up money on their fecu- 

 rity, to be inverted in the fame way with that arifing from the 

 tithes aftually fold ; or after a given time, the trullees might 

 be impowered to fet apart an allotment of the land of thofe 

 owners who refufe to purchafe, and which, if conveniently 

 fituated for the former tithe-owner, might be fo applied, 

 otherwife fold ; and the money arifing from fuch fale in- 

 verted as before, until it could be laid out in the purchafe 

 of land. The execution of fome fuch plan or mode as 

 this, would, it is fuppofed, be attended with infinitely lefs 

 trouble and expence than now incurred by the annual valua- 

 tion of tithes ; as, (hould fuch a regulation be once effefted, 

 the bufinefs would be fettled for ever : while under the pre- 

 fent fyftem, the furveyor or valuer's bufinefs is never done, 

 but continued from year to year ; and, if it (hould remain, 

 will be from generation to generation. An equivalent in 

 land murt certainly, it is thought, be a more folid property 

 than tithes. Land too may be improved in any degree by 

 good management and induftry : tithes fluftuate or fink in 

 value at the will of the cultivator. Some fuch commutation 

 as this may, it is thought, be readily and eafily effefted, 

 and that all parties would be pleafed with the alteration. 



The concluding remarks and fuggeftions on this greatly 

 interefting matter, are the refult of the invertigations and en- 

 quiries of two clergymen, who have been lately engaged in 

 drawing up accounts of the ftate of the agriculture of two 

 large counties of the kingdom ; thofe of Hereford and 

 Berks. The former ftates, that of the various modes pro- 

 pofed to effeft the defirable objeft of a general commutation 

 of tithes, that of a corn-rent feems to have met lefs objeftion 

 than mofl others which have been yet propofed ; ftill, how- 

 ever, nothing has been ferioufly attempted, and the matter 

 remains open to further difcullion. It has not, perhaps, it 

 is faid, occurred to every one, that tithes, in their prefent 

 form, have a direft and powerful tendency towards increafing 

 the prices of wheat and of every other grain, by creating 

 obrtacle« to its culture, and thus diminiming the quantity 

 which would otherwife be grown. But that the finele faft, 

 that an acre of land under the culture of ^heat, is liable to 

 a deduftion on account of tithes, in nearly a ten-fold pro- 

 portion to that of an acre of land grazed by cattle or (heep, 

 is furely fufficient evidence that tithes muft operate unfa- 

 vourably to the culture of grain, and confequently to its 

 abundance and cheapnef*. How defirable then is, it is faid, 

 fuch a. commutation as Wotild render this payment equally 

 heavy on every acre of land, according to its value, whether 



5 B it 



