The Sun.
London, England, 1815-10-14 00:00:00

„.

TAX-FiS

roi T►lE SUN.

(Continued
.fl',» ye*rdc,fy's Paper:!

y
.Sa:11 a sriotis decision,. zts fixing the rent,
which air i,e Government, parochial, and other
charges are regalated,'sbould niit be rna"di: by any
loose, vague, and indefiaite-rale,4,-,!-When a house
is not let at a rack teat, the law should determine
the principle to be abided by thrOughout the
country of affixing the annual value or rent at
which it shall be assessed, and rated.
j)leSt mOde,..thatl ean.perceivejs, by comparing
it with eveyy other house in _the same street or
place only, and .fixing the• rent in proportion to
what .the; others produce. This should be the
ground of, every. decision upon an appeal to the
vestry of the parish, after a survey of a committee
of t' e inhabitants of the parish or place, accom-
panied by the assessors, overseers, or surveyors,
Ivhich derision should nottvithstanding be subject
to a further appeal to the Quarter Sessions as at
present, where the appellant shall think himself
aggrieved.
If the assessments on the rents nt all such build-
as are now exempted from the House Tax,. or
Window Duty, or both, are duly ascertained,
apprehend it ..will .not be overvaluing the rental of
the whole 1)a-tidings in this kingdom at .a .fourth
More than the amount on which the Llouse
and, Window Duty is .nosy assessed. This would
.
make the whole rental of all )161(1111gs equal to
10,715,3661. which being assessed at.. 28 per cent.
woald produce' 3,001,1421. nearly the amount no.w
obtained. This• would not reduce .the Tax as
much as miglit be' expected but the rebel
hit
N.-,:orthl afford Would be very material, as will a 1)...
pe4r,from the statement drawn of the four_ cases
in my first letter. . , .
Evien. such a modification as this, however, if
much tos beicoveted, •as it would produce that
equalization of Taxation, so. desirable to be ef,
fected eyery, State, the contrary praCtice'of.
which. 011r'S Could only have taken place from
the extcut of the evil, having eseapeol unseen : for.
so great a-disproportion in the.mode of taxing the.
Slibieet for one particalar species of property only,
never could seriously be contemplated by the Le
gislature. And if. there are tier) modes of col-
lecting the Revenue, one of which-shall be more
tecoacileable to the feelings of.' the
_people than
another, sorely that whiclr is. the least obnoxious
is the preferable mode that ought to:be adopted.
Should tbiS meestire be countenanced, it will
pave .the way for the more equitably iayiug on
the
.Property Tax is times of exigency, and far-
ther_ lightening _ the weight of the burtlien
on
houses, nhich has of -late been so much'greater
than on other property.
• AS exceptions will be taken by many to any
Taxation On such houses and buildings as are noty.
exempted from it, let the propriety of, it bt

The situ-

eXaal lord.
It will be objected to, that all houses under five
tfoiinds per 'ann.'shall pay any'Tax ; bnt,
I ask,
Do those houses belong to the occupiers ? If 'so,
there can be no ohjvction. Or; if a landlord hav-
ing one of them to !et, will nOt the person desir-
ous of taking it, consider that for every point(' it land-
lord asks him; he will have to contributtq the build-
ing Tax to GoVeri.kent, as its 'poition of the
rent ? This Must be the impres.sitin of both land-
lord and tenant, inducing the former.to take less,
•and the loiter to give less than they otherwise
would do. • It, therefore, affects only the land-
lord, anti can make no, tifilierctice to the tenant,
thongb said to be Ins Tax ; and, surely, from the
th,fference•whete the line is drawn bet erect] it ho'nse
at 61.‘r,nt, now payisig Taxes, and a hone lit 51.
rent, not paying atiy, the burthea; .not be
greater to the teo,mt.tif the latter rent than to-hint
tit the f•urtner
Many of those-cottages and small tenements' are
let out by tileuutmner or lessee. in apartments, by
the ‘reel; eloorter,-who, instead of the tenants,
ought Lei Lbe taken and deemeit-to liejthe occir'=;
piers, Auflley would, under similar circumstances;,
of I3r4i'lp,uses, and should be-compelled to pay
the Tkcxes thereon.
~ ur,
t n:;eus no argument to justify an asseSsmeni':
ail ailvluonschold and other offices, thouf.;ll let se',';
I)ar4tely. Where any ontission in'assesslng them
does oiccur, it can only .arise froth) evasion, or a
be-oleci of being looked into.
4iluch objection has already been made to any
Tax Ott workmen and trader's shops; warehouses,
manufactories, green and hot houses, or an the
windoWs in them,':umi certainly on, just grounds
op': the li.ttel, Of what use would they be to
the nuech:tnic nod' 'Manufacturers at their labour
• and inackinery ';"ito the merchants and traders,
trim lent-lire-4*,10t their inerchandize; and to the
-nurserymen rflgitiring the'stio to their fruits and
exotic platutus.,, if they are not accommodated with
uchlrgerliortion id light, air, and sun, 'than in an
oteituary duveiliag.
tot the objectidn will not bold good as to -any'
Tox upon the rent of them. With as inOch pro-
priety might the liop-keeper
.of eVery'town
in
particularly of London, .object to those
ToN,'S attach 011 his house anti
..windows ;
for \that are many of them butt shops and Ware-
Louses floin top to bottom How many of them
a!“-; I; oases and shops, in prime anti crowded sitna-
lions, to make their tunic and dealings more con-
spicuous ; • and, for the sake of convenience, de-
inising- their ;muds owl stares in the tipper floors,
_tts wat'ekouses;, are compelled, for want- of room,
houses for thc.icsidtbce of their families,
rcn-uoter parts of the town ? Are LIM the count-
iii
ing-tonses Old offices, those necess'ary_appentiages
. professions, assessed to
to.trien of littsiness anti
both houses and windows ? What:
.ore the cellars
rooms of the/farm-
, and graTtar w irs, wool mid hemp
, wi,,dows to whicii they pay the duty on,
cis c
if in the hattt,:c) but their warehOuses
' ptlieti;Pot com-
ts-:tciations t'Ct)tote from 'town (;t•cot.-
; to find chainhers-and accommodations for
'tlu'en.hoOmminten, wocild they have occasion 'far
such extensive premises ? • -
Suppose A, hay.ing. a capital, is disposed to en:-
bark it in building a private-house, either for his