473 
POLITICAL ARITHMETIC. 
who subsist by the labour of others, has also 
probably much increased; the effect of this 
unfavourable circumstance has however been 
amply compensated by the great improve- 
ments in different arts "and manufactures, by 
which the produce of the country has been 
increased in quantity, and rendered much 
superior in quality ; so that after supplying 
all our new factitious wants, and enabling us 
to defray expensive wars, it has left a con- 
siderable surplus, which, gradually accumu- 
lating, has formed the present national stock 
or capital. 
Previously to an inquiry into its increased 
amount, it may not be. uninteresting to view 
its former computed value, according to the 
estimate of sir William Petty, who certainly 
cannot be suspected of having drawn an un- 
favourable statement : 
Computation of the wealth of England and 
Wales in 1664. 
Value of the land: 24 millions 
of acres, yielding 3 millions £ 
per ann. rent, worth at 18 
years purchase - - 144,000,000 
Houses, reckoning those within 
the bills of mortality equal 
in value to one-third of the 
whole - - 30,000,000 
Shipping : 500,000 tons, at 61. 
per ton, including rigging, . 
ordnance, &c. - - 3,000,000 
Stock of cattle on the 24 mil- 
lion acres, and the waste be- 
longing thereto, including 
parks, fisheries, warrens, &c. 36,000,000 
Gold and silver coin, scarce - 6,000,000 
Wares, merchandize, plate, fur- 
niture, &c. - - 31,000,000 
Total - - £ 250,000,000 
In comparing this estimate with similar 
accounts at present, it must be remembered 
that a great alteration has gradually taken 
place iu the nominal value of all commodities, 
which, with respect to the above period, ap- 
pears, from a table formed by sir G. S. Eve- 
lyn, to be in the proportion of about five to 
fourteen ; the total of the wealth of England 
and Wales, in 3 664, would therefore have 
amounted to 700,000,000/., according to the 
present value of money. 
The value of land has progressively in- 
creased, in consequence of improvements in 
cultivation, and the increased consumption of 
the produce of land. Before England be- 
came a trading nation, the general price of 
land was twelve years purchase. At the be- 
ginning of the last century, it sold for about 
sixteen years purchase: sir W. Petty valued 
it at eighteen years purchase: and at the 
commencement of the last century, it had 
advanced to twenty years purchase. About 
the year 1 730, it" had risen to twenty-five 
years purchase ; and at present is from twen- 
ty-eight to thirty years purchase. The in- 
crease of the number of years purchase paid 
for land, is the most obvious proof of its aug- 
mented value; but it does not shew the 
whole augmentation of the national wealth on 
this account, which in part arises from the 
increase of the total rental beyond the ad- 
vance that is caused merely by the difference 
in the value of money. This real increase of 
the rental proceeds from a greater proportion 
of land being brought into cultivation, and 
that which was before cultivated being im- 
proved. The whole landed rental of Eng- 
land and Wales, and the Lowlands of Scot- 
land, was stated by sir W. Petty at about 
9.000. 000/. ; and it cannot be supposed that, 
if he had included the Highlands of Scot- 
land, he would have made the rental of the 
whole island more than 9, 500, 000/. G. King 
and Dr. Dnvenant, in queen Anne’s reign, 
stated the rental of England and Wales at 
14.000. 000/. ; and it may be presumed this 
was nearly the truth at the time: but it soon 
began to appear too low ; and between twen- 
ty and thirty years ago it was generally reck- 
oned at 20,000,000/. At present, however, 
it considerably exceeds this sum. 
The chief difficulty of forming an estimate 
of the land rental consists in assigning an 
average value to the different descriptions of 
land. The total number of acres in England 
and Wales has been computed by sir W. 
Petty to be 28,000,000; by Dr. Grew, 
46.000. 000 ; by Dr. Halley, 39,938,500 ; 
by Mr. Templeman, 31,648,000; by Mr. 
Arthur Young, 46,916,000; and by the Rev. 
H. Beeke, 38,498,572. Mr. Beeke’s calcu- 
lation appears to be by far the most accu- 
rate : it is therefore taken as the foundation 
of the following statement ; the proportions 
cultivated for different purposes being nearly 
as given by Mr. Middleton, in his View of 
the Agriculture of the County of Middle- 
sex : 
Acres. 
Wheat - 
Barley and rye 
Oats and beans 
Clover, rye-grass, &c. 
Roots anti cabbages cultivated by 
the plough 
Fallow - 
Hop-grounds 
Nursery grounds 
Fruit and kitchen-gardens, culti- 
vated by the spade 
Pleasure-grounds 
Land depastured by cattle 
Hedge-rows, copses, and woods 
Ways, water, &c. 
3.160.000 
861.000 
2.872.000 
1.149.000 
1.150.000 
2.297.000 
36.000 
9,000 
41.000 
16.000 
17,479,000 
1.641.000 
1.316.000 
Cultivated land - - 32,027,000 
Commons and waste lands - 6,473,000 
Total acres in England and Wales 38,-500,000 
If the commons and waste lands are con- 
sidered as equal in annual value to only one 
million of cultivated acres, the whole may 
be taken at 33 millions. The average rent 
has been stated at 15a\ per acre, which ap- 
pears to be a moderate computation, and 
makes the rental amount to 24.750,000/., the 
value of which, at 28 years purchase, is 
693,000,000/. Tiie number of cultivated 
acres in Scotland is upwards of 9,600,000 ; 
and of uncultivated, about 11,310,000: a 
great part of the latter is of very little use ; 
but if it is wholly excluded, and the culti- 
vated part rated at an average of 10s. per 
acre, which makes 4,845,000/. per annum, the 
total rental of the island will be 29,595,000/., 
and the value of the land 828,660,000/. This 
must be understood as including the value of 
tythes, it being unnecessary in this point of 
view to distinguish between the rent paid to 
the landlord, and the part paid to the tythe 
proprietor. 
1 he value of the houses of Great Britain 
is perhaps more difficult to ascertain than 
that ot the land : but the following statement 
of their rent, founded on the number return- 
ed under the population act, will not be 
thought too high : 
1 00.000 houses, at 30/. per ann. 
500.000 10/. 
256.000 51. 
600.000 21. 
425,000 U. 10s. 
£ 3,000,000 
5,000,000 
1.250.000 
1 . 200.000 
637,500 
1,875,000 
Total rent <£ 11,087,500 
The total rent, if valued at only 18 years 
purchase, makes the value of all the houses 
in Great Britain 199,575,000 /. 
In order to form an idea of the value of 
cattle and farming-stock on the land, we may 
consider the black cattle and calves, sheep 
and lambs, swine, pigs, and poultry, annually 
consumed in London, as worth 6,000, 000/^, 
which cannot be more than a seventh part of 
the whole consumption, amounting therefore 
in value*to 42,000,000/. ; but the whole num- 
ber of cattle existing must be more than 
double the quantity brought to market ; so 
that, including horses, asses, cows kept for 
milk, and oxen employed in agriculture, the 
whole value of the cattle cannot be less than 
90 , 000 , 000 /. 
Taking the annual consumption of grain of 
all sorts at 16,000,000 quarters, which is pro- 
bably below the truth, we may presume, that 
in general there is at least three or four 
months supply on hand, which, at only 35.?. 
per quarter, will amount to at least 7,000,000 /. 
The value of hay and straw, and all kinds of 
fodder, and of all implements of husbandry, 
cannot be less than live or six millions, and 
with the former sum cannot be less than 
12,500,000/. T he total value of cattle and 
farming-stock is therefore 102,500,000/. 
The value of the shipping belonging to 
Great Britain may be calculated with more 
accuracy. It appears from the accounts laid 
before parliament, that exclusive of Ireland 
and the plantations, the number of vessels 
in the merchants’ service, belonging to Great 
Britain, on the 30th September 1804, was 
17,809; and the amount of their tonnage, 
2,018,999 tons: taking it at 2, 000,000, °at 
8/. per ton, it makes 16,000,000/., which is 
certainly below the real value. The shipping 
of the navy may at least be estimated at 
4.000. 000/. ; making with the former sum, 
20.000. 000/.; to which some addition should 
be made for the value of ships building in all 
the dock-yards, and for small craft employed 
on the rivers and canals. 
The quantity of money in the country has 
at different times been a subject of dispute, 
and has never been determined with preci- 
sion. It was, however, pretty well ascer- 
tained by the re-coinage in the years 1773, 
1774, and 1776. The value of the light gold 
delivered into the bank under the different 
proclamations, amounted to 15,563,593/. ; 
and it was generally admitted that somewhat 
more than two millions of heavy guineas re- 
mained out in circulation, which, with the 
silver and copper coin, made the whole at 
that time about 20 millions; at which sum 
Mr. Chalmers estimated it in the year 1786. 
Including the cash in the coffers of the bank. 
