TAXES. The general objects, cha racter, and principles of taxation, and of different classes of taxes, are treated of under the head of TAXATION. In this place it is proposed to give a short sum mary of the amount and description of taxes paid in Great Britain and Ireland, whether assessed directly upon property, or collected indirectly upon articles of consumption; including not only such taxes as are paid to the general govern ment, but also all municipal and local assessments or contributions.
United Kingdom.
The chief sources of revenue are from indirect taxes, as will be seen by the fol lowing statement, made up to 5th Janu ary, 1842 :— Rate per cent. at which Grose Receipt. collected.
£ d.
Customs . . 23,821,486 5 6 4 Excise . . 15,477,674 6 7 81.
Stamps. . 7,494,239 2 3 4 Taxes (Assessed, &c.). . . 4,720,457 4 2 9} Post-Office . 1,539,274 60 9 6} Duties on Pen sions and Sa laries . . 5,752 1 17 6} Crown Lands . 438,297 8 18 3,1.
Small branches of hereditary revenue . . 5,562Surplus fees of public offices 93,504 Total ordinary revenues . 53,596,250 6 13 The assessed taxes are the tax on male servants, taxes on carriages, on horses, on dogs, armorial bearings, horse-dealers' duty, game duties, stage coach duties, and duties on passengers con veyed for hire by carriages travelling on railways. In 1840 (3 & 4 Vict. C. 17, 10 per cent. additional was imposed on all the assessed taxes.
Farm-houses belonging to farms under 200/. a year are exempt from window duty. Bachelors, except Roman Catholic clergymen, pay an additional duty of IL on male servants. [BACHELOR.] The charges for game duties are stated GAME LAWS. The duty on passengers conveyed for hire by carriages travelling on railways is 5 per cent. on the gross amount of the fares. As to the duties on stage-coaches, see STAGE-CARRIAGE.
To these parliamentary taxes may be added the following local assessments :— Poor-rates £6,351,828 (which includes county rates, 700,0001.) Church-rates 600,000 (in round num bers.) Highway-rates 1,312,812 Turnpike-tolls (England and Wales) 1,577,764 Grand-jury presentments (Ireland) . 1,265,866
Total of local taxes . . 11,108,970 (Parliamentary Papers, 1839 (562), 1841 (344) (421), 1842 (135) (235).
Since the year 1842 considerable changes have been made in the Customs, some of which changes are mentioned under TARIFF. In the Excise also changes have been made. The excise duty on glass has been taken off But, on the other hand. since 5th April, 1842, the income-tax has been in operation. The income-tax was imposed April 5th, 1842, for three years, and has been re newed for another three years. In con sequence of all these changes some years will elapse before it will be possible to say how far the increased consumption will make up for the direct reduction in the revenue by the diminution and repeal of taxes, and whether it will be neces sary to keep the income-tax. The pro duce of the income-tax for 1845 and 1846, respectively, was 5,261,9541. and 5,183,912/. So far however as we can judge, the experiment of reducing taxa tion has been successful, even if we look only to the revenue. The net produce of the revenue for the year ending July 5th, 1845, was 51,067,8561., and for the year ending July 5th, 1846, it was 50,056,08:3l.; and this result has been obtained not withstanding the total removal of some duties and of the excise on glass and the great reduction made in other duties. If the quarters ending July 5th in the years 1845, 1846, respectively, are compared, there is an increase on the quarter for 1846, compared with that of 1845, of 575,5991.,.and this is the first quarter in 1845 in which many reductions took effect, while business has been materially injured in the corresponding quarter of 1846 by the delay in passing the Corn Repeal Bill and the Customs' Bill. [TA RIFF.] Under these circumstances the prospect of at least an equal revenue with a reduced taxation seems to be assured, and at the same time the consumer and all classes of industrious persons are benefited by the reduction in taxation.