The Assessment of Agricultural Land. 
795 
In the union in which I reside, in Northamptonshire (the notorious Brix- 
worth Union), I have acted for many years as chairman of the assessment 
committee, making rent the absolute criterion of annual value. Of course, 
in the instances of land occupied by owners or their relations, and of long 
leaseholds, further considerations have to be taken into account in adjusting 
the valuation ; but these are exceptional. 
For many years this rule of assessing was resisted, but, after much con- 
tention, was at last adopted as easy and just. The result is that the pro- 
perty tax assessment and the valuation lists in this union essentially coincide, 
as they ought to do. 
The reform in the law needed is one that was under the consideration of 
Parliament some years back, providing for the surveyor of taxes co-operating 
with the overseers of the poor in the preparation of the parochial valuation lists. 
Such is the law at present for the metropolis. It is to be hoped that Mr. 
Shaw-Lefevre may see his way to introduce a Bill on these lines next Ses- 
sion. He has the arguments for it now at his fingers’ ends. 
I am your obedient servant, 
Hazelbeach, October 25. (Signed) Albert Pell. 
Sir, — I have perused with interest the letter of Mr. G. Shaw-Lefevre in 
your issue of the 25th, and can very fully confirm the statement therein in- 
sisted upon — viz. that land in many places is paying more than its fair share 
of the parochial rates. 
I have valued, for rating purposes, during the last four years parishes 
comprising about 140,000 acres, with the general result that the land has 
been relieved from rates to a very great extent, much of the burden having 
been transferred to the railways and other commercial property. 
Your obedient servant, 
(Signed) The Honorary Examiner in the 
Subject of Parochial Assessment 
to the Surveyors’ Institution. 
As these pages are passing through the press a very remarkable 
report by the Norfolk Chamber of Agriculture on the present con- 
dition of agriculture in that county has been published, which shows 
that the same injustice is being perpetrated there ; and similarly 
also a report from Suffolk ; while other instances of the same kind 
have been brought to my knowledge in various other parts of 
England ; and there is no doubt whatever that at the present time 
agricultural land is rated at far too high an amount, and that agri- 
cultural ratepayers are bearing far more of the burden of local taxes 
than in fairness or justice they ought to bear. 
Although there are several other points connected with this 
subject, which perhaps ought not to be passed over, yet I will touch 
only upon two, viz. the deduction of tithe, and appeals. It is 
asserted that the tithe is frequently not deducted from the rent 
before the ratable value is determined ; and it would seem from 
Dr. Fream’s report to the Royal Commission on Agriculture on the 
Andover district of Hampshire (see sec. 52), as well as from a letter 
in The Times of October 29, from the chairman of the Watford 
Union Assessment Committee, and from what I have myself heard, 
that some difficulty in this respect has arisen in consequence of the 
Tithe Act of 1891 having thrown the liability to pay the tithe, or to 
be more accurate the tithe rent-charge, on the owner, notwithstanding 
