The Commissioners of accounts, ap pointed in the year 1780, in their 13th, 14th, and 15th reports, the last of which was dated 19th December, 1786, have given a full explanation of the constitu tion of this department of the revenue, the duties of its several officers, and the mode of collecting it, both in London and the out-ports. They also pointed out a variety of important regulations for re trenchment of expense, reduction of the establishment and accommodation of the merchants, most of which have since been carried into effect. But the most extensive and useful measure recommend ed by them as a consolidation of all the existing duties, by the substitution of one single duty on each article, amounting as nearly as possible to the aggregate of all the various duties then payable. This was effected in 1787, by an act 27 Geo. 111. cap. 13, by which the accounts of the custom-house were much simplified, and the rates of duty rendered intelligible to all persons affected by them.
In the year 1797 eight new branches of duties had been created since the conso lidation, which made it necessary to keep so many new and distinct accounts. At this time the number of articles subject to the custom duties amounted to not less than 1200, not more than 160 of which appear upon the .tnnual accounts present ed to parliament, as yielding the sum of 1000/. and upwards ; the remaining 1040
are classed together, under the general head of "sundry small articles," and did not produce, in the whole, more than from 85,000/. to 110,0001. per annum ; each of these articles, nevertheless, had some special regulation belonging to it, and the accumulated mass of these details had, in the opinion of the Select Committee on Finance, rendered the whole system much too complex. That this opinion was well founded will be admitted from the cir cumstance, that the statutes relative to the customs alone, make six very large volumes in folio.
In the year 1803 the customs were again consolidated, by 43 Geo. I1L cap. 68 ; but additional duties have been since imposed, which will render it necessary to have recourse again to this useful mea sure at a future period.
The total expense of collecting the cus toms of Great Britain was, in the year 1795, at the rate of 61. 19s. 5d. per cent. on the gross receipt, or 10/. 3s. 5d. per cent. on the nett produce ; but, in consequence of the various regulations which have since been adopted, the expense of the collec tion has been considerably reduced. In the year ending the 5th of January, 1807, it amounted to 51.2s. 8d. per cent. on the gross receipt, or 61. 4s. 3d. per cent. on the nett produce.