HISTORICAL Articles of the Union. By the article 9th of the Union, it is provided, that whenever the fum of 1,997,7631. 8s. 4 d. fhall be raised by the VIEW. land-tax in England, that Scotland fhall be charged by the fame act with a farther fum of 48,000l. free of all charges, as the quota of Scotland, to fuch tax, and fo proportionally for any greater or leffer fum raised in England, by any tax in land and other things ufually charged, together with the land; and that fuch quotas for Scotland, in the cafes aforefaid, be raised and collected in the fame manner as the cefs now is in Scotland, but subject to fuch regulations in the manner of collecting as shall be made by the parliament of Great Britain. ACCORDINGLY, acts of fupply laying that fum of 47,9541. Is. 2d. upon Scotland, by an eight months cefs of 59941. 5s. 1d. in the month, have, ever fince the Union, been paffed yearly till the 38th of his prefent majesty, which made the land-tax perpetual. PERMAN ENT, By the laft fupply act, (38 Geo. III, c. 5), 47,9541. rs. 2d. --38ce0., was ordered to be levied by an eight months' cefs of 5,994). 5s. 1d. fterling per month, out of the land rent of Scotland for the year 1798; and c. 60 enacted, that the feveral and refpective fums of money charged by virtue of faid act, fhould continue and be levied and paid yearly to his majesty, his heirs, and fucceffors, from the 25th of March in every year for ever, but under redemption; and the provifions and directions contained in the former act, fo far as not altered in the latter, were to remain in full force as if particularly repeated and re-enacted. This fum, therefore, of 47,9541. Is. 2d. thus made a perpetual burthen on the country, is payable, one part by the boroughs, and another by the counties or ftewartries. IN THE II. IN the boroughs, the tax is collected by ftentmasters, § 2. who, originally, were appointed by the whole inhabit- BOROUGH. IN THE BOROUGH -WHO STENTMASTERS, THEIR DUTY. -RULE OF >ants of the borough. Afterwards they were chofen by the town-council. But, by the convention 1667, and all the fubfequent cefs acts, they are to be chofen by the magif trates.' THE duty of the ftentmafters is, " to ftent their nich bours," or, "to fet the ftent upon the burgeffes and inhabitants, and to make a ftent-roll thereupon as effeirs'." THE rule laid down is, that every perfon within burgh ASSESSING. fhall be taxed and fented according to the avail and quan tity of his rent, living, goods, and gear, which he hath within burgh." By the firft, is meant the at the rent of houfes; by the fecond, the profit of trade or of a callings and the last explains itself.unɔ sou brainst THUS, within borough the inhabitants pay land tax according to their fuppofed perfonal property ཚ་ chants. But this io per cent. of the grofs remt being fixed upon the landholders as the constant rule, came, By enlargement of the town, to be fufficient for the whole land tar and by this means it came, that for many years the traders were relieved from paying any proportion of the land tax. Proprietors of houfes within the city of Glasgow brought a procefs of declarator, concluding, that the practice of Taying the whole land tax upon the landed intereft, exempting altogether the trading intereft, is illegal and oppreffive; and therefore that the traders fhould be stented in two-thirds of the land tax, because the profit of the trade of Glasgow is much more than double the rent of III. THE other moiety is raised from the counties, and out of the fubjects valued by the commiffioners appointed HIRE. the houfe The defence was, that the convention of the royal boroughs has by law power to divide the whole quota of cefs, payable by the boroughs, upon each refpective borough, according to their diferetion; and that the magiftrates of each borough have power, according to their difcretion, to stent and proportion the cefs upon their inhabitants; that fuch difcretionary powers cannot be challonged before the court of feffion, upon the footing merely of inequality, which would be denying the magiftrares to have difcretionary powers, and therefore that this declarator cannot be fuftained, until it could be made out that the proceedings of the magistrates were partial and unjust, of which there is not the feat appearance in the prefent cafe. It was decided, that not only the houfes and lands, but likewife the burgeffes, in refpect of their trade and manufac tures, are liable in payment of the tea and that the magiftrates and their fent-mafters ought to rate the fame upon the heritors and burgeffes accordingly. The magiftrates, during the procefs, apprehending the caufe would go against them, altered their mea, fures fo far, as to direct the tent mafters appointed for levying the cefs, anno 1758, to lay one-fourth upon the trade, and three-fourths upon the houses. But the landholders, confidering this as ftill an unequal allocation, applied to the court, after obtaining the foregoing decree, pray ing that the proportion to be paid by each should be afcertained. But it was confidered "neither necessary nor proper for the court to give more particular directions to the magiftrates of Glasgow for proportioning the cefs betwixt the heritors and other burgeles, than what is contained in their interlocutor. (Kames decifions, V. iii, 15th June 1759, No. 154) Lord Kames, who reports this decifion, did not approve of it; on this principle, that from the beginning the method of levying the cefs within boroughs has been to tax individuals, and not claffes or focieties.. Magistrates have no power by law to allocate the land tax, whether equally or unequally, upon houses and upon trade. The commiflioners for a fhire have furely as extenfive powers as the magiftrates for a borough. Yet the former never pretended to split the cefs betwixt the nobility and gentry, nor to allocate fo much of it on each particular parifh. If the magiftrates of a burgh can, by their own arbitrary will without having any rnle, divide the cefs betwixt the proprietors of houfes and thofe who live by commerce, they may fubdivide it betwixt the manufacturers and traders, or order it to be laid on by quarters of the town. In a word, the magiftrates cannot give any lawful inftruction to the stent-mafter other than to make a ftent-roll, valuing the rents, living, goods, and gear of cach individual." (Ibid.) $ 3. SHIRE. WHAT PAYS CESS? by the act of convention 1667, that is, land or fubjects connected therewith yielding a yearly revenue. By the act 1649, the fubjects to be valued and affeffed were, "money rent, victual rent, cafualties paid by tenants, and cafual rent of coals, falt, and falmon fishings, and other fishings whereby there is an yearly profit." But, by an unprinted act, parl. 1681 b, it was declared that coal and falt is not to bear any part of the fupply. Temporary rights, therefore, bear no longer any part of the tax, which rests Temporary upon perpetual rights alone. But as the fum impofed upon rights? each fhire was made unalterable, that part of the tax which was originally laid upon temporary rights must have been added to the tax laid on the perpetual rights by the commiffioners of fupply ... UPON the fame narrative, that "by the fupply hereby granted, the land rents and boroughs of this kingdom are only burdened; and it being reasonable that perfonal eftates in money should bear fome proportional burden, the Scots act 1706, c. 2, and the fubfequent British fupply acts, flatute and ordain, that every debtor owing money within this b The king's majefty, and eftates of parliament, taking to their con fideration feveral petitions addrefled to them, complaining of the inequal. itie of the valuation of lands in diverfe fhires, feveral lands being ex. orbitantly valued, and others far below the true value, do hereby authorize the lords of his majeftie's privie council, upon application to be made to them by the commiffioners of supply in any of the shires, or major part of them, to grant want and and commiffion to the commiffioners of supplie or excife, or fuch others as they hall think fitt, to take tryel of fach inequal valuations, and, after tryck, to revalue and rectify the valu ation of the fhire: And it is hereby declared, that coal and falt is not to bear any part of the fupplic, providing always that the total of the thire be keeped entire, without any dimi nution; and his majestie's, privie council are hereby authorized to name and appoint commiffioners of excife or fupplie in the feveral fhires as they fhall find caufe, upon application of a quorum of the commiffioners. c Kames' Dec. V. iii, p. 49. -WHAT kingdom at fix per cent. of interest shall, in the payment of $ 3. his annualrents, have retention in his own hands of a twelfth SHIRE part of fix per cent. this retention to be from the term of rays? Martinmas next to come to ." A ftrong proof of the inclination to adhere to old phrafeology; as the legiflature here provides for what, if it exifted, would be feverely punishable as ufury. But the claufe never appears to have been carried into effect. In England, the land tax is raised, 1, on perfonal eftates In England. to the extent of 4s. in the pound, viz. 20s. for every 100l. in money or goods of that value. 2dly, On offices and penfions to the extent of 4s. for every 20s. yearly income. 3dly, On real estates, including every species of property or income arising out of, or connected with land. And, therefore, fupply acts are, fince that time, annually paffed, for raifing the fame rate as formerly of 4s. in the pound, viz. 209. for every 100l. of perfonal propery, and 4s. in the pound for every zos. of offices and penfions. But these acts are so far from extending to Scotland, that they contain the clause inferted in the former land tax act, viz." that this act fhall not extend to the inhabitants of Scotland, Ireland, Jersey, or Guernsey, for affeffing any such personal estate which they, or any to their use, have within thofe places, for or towards the faid fum hereby charged upon England, Wales, and Berwick-upon-Tweed, as aforefaid." IV. AT a period of great moment and difficulty, it was judged proper to pafs à ftatute for the redemption of the land tax; a meafure of policy, which propofes at once to promote the intereft of the individual and of the public. The ftatute 38 Geo. III, c. 60, which introduced, and subsequent ones which corrected and explained, this measure, d See Mr. Harrison's Analysis of the Act 38 Geo. III, c. 60. с 39 Geo. III, c. 6 and 21; and 41 Geo. III, c. 72. |