ENGLEFIELD, SIR FRANCIS (c. 1520-1596), English Roman Catholic

politician, born probably about 1520, was the eldest son of Sir Thomas

Englefield of Englefield, Berkshire, justice of the common pleas. His

mother was Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Robert Throckmorton, one of the

well-known Catholic family of Coughton, Warwickshire. Francis, who

succeeded his father in 1537, was too young to have taken any part in

the opposition to the abolition of the Roman jurisdiction and

dissolution of the monasteries; and he acquiesced in these measures to

the extent of taking the oath of royal supremacy, serving as sheriff of

Berkshire and Oxfordshire in 1546-1547, and accepting in 1545 a grant of

the manor of Tilehurst, which had belonged to Reading Abbey. He was even

knighted at the coronation of Edward VI. in February 1547. But the

progress of the Reformation during that reign alienated him, and he

attached his fortunes to the cause of the princess Mary, whose service

he entered before 1551. In August of that year he was sent to the Tower

for permitting Mass to be celebrated in Mary's household. He was

released in the following March, and permitted to resume his duties in

Mary's service. But in February 1553 he was again summoned before the

privy council, and may have been in confinement at the crisis of July;

perhaps he was only released on Mary's triumph, for his name does not

appear among those who exerted themselves on her behalf before the

middle of August. He was then sworn a member of the privy council like

many others who owed their promotion to their loyalty rather than to

their political abilities. Their numbers swelled the privy council and

sadly impaired its efficiency; but Mary resisted the various attempts to

get rid of them because she liked staunch friends, and regarded them as

a salutary check upon the abler but less scrupulous members who had

served Edward VI. as well as herself. Englefield sat as M.P. for

Berkshire in all Mary's parliaments except that of April 1554, but

received no higher political office than the lucrative mastership of the

court of wards.

He was an ardent believer in persecution, was present at Hooper's trial,

sought Ascham's ruin, and naturally lost his office and his seat on the

privy council at Elizabeth's succession. He retired to the continent

before May 1559, and from that time until his death was an active

participant in all schemes for the restoration of Roman Catholicism. At

first his ideas took such comparatively mild forms as inducing the pope

to send a legate to persuade Elizabeth to return to the fold; but

gradually they grew more violent and treasonable, until Englefield

became the close confidant of Cardinal Allen, Parsons and the "jesuited"

Catholics, who advocated forcible intervention by Spain and the

succession of the infanta; in 1585 Englefield thought that Mary's

succession, peaceful or other, would not be satisfactory unless it were

owing to Spanish support and she were dependent on Philip. Englefield

lived first at Rome, then in the Low Countries, and finally at

Valladolid. He was blind for the last twenty years of his life, and

received a pension of six hundred crowns from Philip. He had been

outlawed in 1564 and his estates sequestered, but they were not

forfeited until 1585, when an act of attainder was passed against

Englefield. Even then some legal difficulties stood in the way of their

appropriation by the crown, for Englefield, obviously with an eye to

this contingency, had conditionally settled them on his nephew Francis.

The long arguments on the point are given in Coke's _Reports_, and a

further act was passed in 1592 confirming the forfeiture to the crown.

The nephew, however, eventually recovered some of the family estates,

and was created a baronet in 1612. His uncle was alive in September

1596, but apparently died at Valladolid about the end of that year. His

tomb there used to be shown to visitors as that of an eminent man.

See _Dict. of Nat. Biog._ xvii. 372-374; but additional light has been

thrown on Englefield's career since the date of that article by the

publication of the Spanish and Venetian Calendars, the Hatfield MSS.,

the Acts of the Privy Council, and the Letters and Papers of Henry

VIII. (A. F. P.)

ENGLEHEART, GEORGE (1752-1829), English miniature painter, the great

rival of Richard Cosway, was born at Kew in October 1752, and received

his artistic training first under George Barret, R.A., and then under

Sir Joshua Reynolds. He started on his own account in 1773, and

exhibited in that year at the Royal Academy. He continued the active

pursuit of his profession down to 1813, when he retired, and his

fee-book, still in existence, records the names of his sitters, and the

amount paid for each portrait, proving that he painted 4853 miniatures

during that period of thirty-nine years, and that his professional

income for many years exceeded L1200 a year. During the greater part of

his life he resided in Hertford Street, Mayfair, where he lived till he

retired. He died at Blackheath in 1829, and was buried at Kew.

He painted George III. twenty-five times, and had a very extensive

circle of patrons, comprising nearly all the important persons connected

with the court. He made careful copies in miniature of many of the

famous paintings executed by Sir Joshua Reynolds, and in some cases

these constitute the only information we possess respecting portraits by

Sir Joshua that are now missing. His fee-book, colours, appliances and a

large collection of his miniatures still remain in the possession of his

descendants.

His nephew, JOHN COX DILLMAN ENGLEHEART (1784-1862), also a miniature

painter, entered George Engleheart's studio when he was but fourteen

years of age. He first exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1801, and sent

in altogether 157 works. He was a man of substantial means, and in his

time a very popular painter, but his health broke down when he was

forty-four years old, and he had to relinquish the pursuit of his

profession. He lived at Tunbridge Wells for some years and died there in

1862.

See _George Engleheart_, by G. C. Williamson and H. L. D. Engleheart

(1902). (G. C. W.)

ENGLEWOOD, a city of Bergen county, New Jersey, U.S.A., near the Hudson

river, 14 m. N. by E. of Jersey City. Pop. (1900) 6253, of whom 1548

were foreign-born and 386 negroes; (1905) 7922; (1910) 9924. It is

served by a branch of the Erie railway, and by an electric line

connecting with a ferry (at Fort Lee) to New York. Englewood is

primarily a residential suburb of New York. The site rises terrace above

terrace from the marshes in the valley of the Hackensack to the top of

the palisades overlooking the Hudson, from which Englewood is separated

by the borough of Englewood Cliffs (pop. in 1905, 266). There are

several fine residences, a hospital, a public library and the Dwight

school for girls (1859). The site of Englewood was for a long time a

part of "English Neighbourhood," and was known as Liberty Pole; but

until 1859, when the place was laid out, there were only a few houses

here, one of which was the "Liberty Pole Tavern." In 1871 Englewood was

set off from the township of Hackensack and was incorporated as a

separate township, and in 1896 it was chartered as a city; but the act

under which it was chartered was declared unconstitutional, and in 1899

Englewood was rechartered as a city by a special act of the state

legislature.

ENGLISH CHANNEL (commonly called "The Channel"; Fr. _La Manche_, "the

sleeve"), the narrow sea separating England from France. If its entrance

be taken to lie between Ushant and the Scilly Isles, its extreme breadth

(between those points) is about 100 m., and its length about 350. At the

Strait of Dover, its breadth decreases to 20 m. Along both coasts of the

Channel, cliffs and lowland alternate, and the geological affinities

between successive opposite stretches are well marked, as between the

Devonian and granitic rocks of Cornwall and Brittany, the Jurassic of

Portland and Calvados, and the Cretaceous of the Pays de Caux and the

Isle of Wight and the Sussex coast, as well as either shore of the

Strait of Dover. The English Channel is of comparatively recent

geological formation. The land-connexion between England and the

continent was not finally severed until the latter part of the

Pleistocene period. The Channel covers what was previously a wide

valley, and may be described now as a headless gulf. The action of waves

and currents, both destructive and constructive, is well seen at many

points; thus Shakespeare Cliff at Dover is said to have been cut back

more than a mile during the Christian era, and the cliffs of Grisnez

have similarly receded. Of the opposite process notable examples are the

building of the pebbly beaches of Chesil Bank and near Treguier in Cotes

du Nord, and the promontory of Dungeness. The total drainage area of the

English rivers flowing into the Channel is about 8000 sq. m.; of the

French rivers, including as they do the Seine, it is about 41,000 sq. m.

From the Strait of Dover the bottom slopes fairly regularly down to the

western entrance of the Channel, the average depths ranging from 20 to

30 fathoms in the Strait to 60 fathoms at the entrance. An exception to

this condition, however, is found in Hurd's Deep, a narrow depression

about 70 m. long, lying north and north-west of the Channel Islands, and

at its nearest point to them only 5 m. distant from their outlying

rocks, the Casquets. Towards its eastern end Hurd's Deep has an extreme

depth of 94 fathoms, and in it are found steeper slopes from shoal to

deep water than elsewhere within the Channel. Nearing the entrance to

the Channel from the Atlantic, the 100 fathoms line may be taken to mark

the edge of soundings. Beyond this depth the bottom falls away rapidly.

The 100 fathoms line is laid down about 180 m. W. to 120 m. S.W. of the

Scilly Isles, and 80 m. W. of Ushant. Within it there are considerable

irregularities of the bottom; thus a succession of narrow ridges running

N.E. and S.W. occurs west of the Scillies, while only 4 m. N.W. of

Ushant there is a small depression in which a depth of 105 fathoms has

been found. As a general rule the slope from the English coast to the

deepest parts of the Channel is more regular than that from the French

coast, and for that reason, and in consideration of the greater dangers

to navigation towards the French shore, the fairway is taken to lie

between 12 and 24 m. from the principal promontories of the English

shore, as far up-channel as Beachy Head. These promontories (the Lizard,

Start Point, Portland Bill, St Alban's Head, St Catherine's Point of the

Isle of Wight, Selsey Bill, Beachy Head, Dungeness, the South Foreland)

demarcate a series of bays roughly of sickle-shape, the shores of which

run north and south, or nearly so, at their western sides, turn eastward

somewhat abruptly at their heads, and then trend more gently towards the

south-east. On the French coast the arrangement is similar but reversed;

Capes Grisnez, Antifer and La Hague, and the Pointe du Sillon

demarcating a series of bays (larger than those on the English coast)

whose shores run north and south on the eastern side, and have a gentler

trend westward from the head.

The configuration of the coasts is perhaps the chief cause of the

peculiarities of tides in the Channel. From the entrance as far as

Portland Bill the time of high water is found to be progressively later

in passing from west to east, being influenced by the oceanic tidal

stream from the west under conditions which are on the whole normal. But

eastward of a line between Portland Bill and the Gulf of St Malo these

conditions are changed and great irregularities are observed. On the

English coast between Portland Bill and Selsey a double tide is found.

At Portland this double tide corresponds approximately with the time of

low water in the regular tidal progression, and the result is the

occurrence of two periods of low water, separated by a slight rise known

locally as "gulder." But farther east the double tide corresponds more

nearly with the time of high water, and in consequence either the effect

is produced of a prolonged period of high water, or there are actually

two periods of high water, as at Southampton. Various causes apparently

contribute to this phenomenon. The configuration of the coast line is

such as to present at intervals barriers to the regular movement of the

tidal wave (west to east), so that reflex waves (east to west) are set

up. In the extreme case at Southampton the tidal effect is carried from

the outer Channel first by way of the Solent, the strait west of the

Isle of Wight, and later by way of Spithead, the eastern strait. Finally

the effect of the tidal stream entering the Channel through the Strait

of Dover from the North Sea must be considered. The set of this stream

towards the Strait of Dover from the east corresponds in time with that

of the Channel stream (i.e. the stream within an area defined by Start

Point, the Casquets, Beachy Head and the mouth of the Somme) towards the

strait from the west; the set of the two streams away from the strait

also corresponds, and consequently they alternately meet and separate.

The area in which the meeting and separation take place lies between

Beachy Head and the North Foreland, the mouth of the Somme and Dunkirk.

Within this area, therefore, a stream is formed, known as the

intermediate stream, which, running at first with the Channel stream and

then with the North Sea stream, changes its direction throughout its

length almost simultaneously, and is never slack. Under these

conditions, the time of high water eastward of Selsey Bill as far as

Dover is almost the same at all points, though somewhat earlier at the

east than at the west of this stretch of coast. The configuration of the

French coast causes a very strong tidal flow in the Gulf of St Malo,

with an extreme range at spring tides of 42 ft. at St Germain, compared

with a range of 12 ft. at Exmouth and 7 ft. at Portland. In the

neighbourhood of Beer Head and Portland and Weymouth Roads the streams

are found to form vortices with only a slight movement. On the eastern

(Selsey-Dover) section of the English coast the _maximum_ range of tide

is found at Hastings, with a decrease both eastward and westward of this

point.

Westerly winds are most prevalent in the Channel. The total number of

gales recorded in the period 1871-1885 was 190, of which 104 were

south-westerly. Gales are most frequent from October to January

(November during the above period had more than any other month, with an

average of 2.1), and most rare from May to July. It appears that gales

are generally more violent and prolonged when coincident with spring

tides than with neaps. The winds have naturally a powerful effect on the

tidal streams and currents, the latter being in these seas simply

movements of the water set up by gales, which may themselves be far

distant. Thus under the influence of westerly winds prevailing west of

the Iberian Peninsula a current may be set up from the Bay of Biscay

across the entrance of the Channel; this is called Rennell's current.

Fogs and thick weather are common in the Channel, and occur at all

seasons of the year. Observations during the period 1876-1890 at Dover,

Hurst Castle and the Scilly Isles showed that at the two first stations

fogs most frequently accompany anticyclonic conditions in winter, but at

the Scilly Isles they are much more common in summer than in winter, and

accompany winds of moderate strength more frequently than in the case of

the up-Channel stations. (O. J. R. H.)

_Salinity and Temperature._--The waters of the English Channel are

derived partly from the west and partly from the English and French

rivers, and all observations tend to show that there is a slow and

almost continuous current through it from west to east. The western

supply comes from two sources, one of which, the more important, is the

relatively salt and warm water of the Bay of Biscay, which enters from

the south-west and has a salinity sometimes reaching 35.6 pro mille

(parts of salt per thousand by weight); the other consists of a

southerly current from the Irish Channel, and is colder and has a

salinity of 35.0 to 35.2 pro mille. As the water passes eastwards it

mixes with the fresher coastal water, so that the salinities generally

rise from the shore to the central line, and from east to west, though

south of Scilly Islands there is often a fall due to the influence of

the Irish Channel. The mean annual salinity decreases from between 35.4

and 35.5 pro mille in the western entrance to 35.2 pro mille at the

Strait of Dover on the central axis, and to about 34.7 pro mille under

the Isle of Wight and off the Bay of the Seine. The English Channel may

be divided into two areas by a line drawn from Start Point to Guernsey

and the Gulf of St Malo. In the eastern area the water is thoroughly

mixed owing to the action of the strong tidal currents and its

comparatively small depth, and salinities and temperatures are

therefore generally the same from surface to bottom; while westward of

this line there is often a strongly marked division into layers of

different salinity and temperature, especially in summer and autumn,

when the fresher water of the Irish Channel is found overlying the salt

water of the Bay of Biscay. The salinity of the English Channel

undergoes an annual change, being highest in winter and spring and

lowest in summer, and this change is better marked in the eastern area,

where the mean deviation from the annual mean reaches 0.3 pro mille,

than it is farther west with a mean deviation of 0.1 pro mille. There is

also reason to believe that there is a regular change with a two-year

period, years of high maximum and low minimum alternating with years of

low maximum and high minimum. Variations of long period or unperiodic

also occur, which are probably, and in one case (1905) almost certainly,

due to changes taking place some months earlier far out in the Atlantic

Ocean.

The mean annual _surface_ temperature increases from between 11 deg. C.

and 11.5 deg. C. at the Strait of Dover to over 12 deg. C. at the

western entrance.[1] The yearly range in the eastern area is

considerable, reaching 11 deg. C. off the Isle of Wight and 10 deg. C.

in the Strait of Dover; westward it gradually decreases to 5 deg. C. a

short distance north-west of Ushant. The mean maximum temperature, over

16 deg. C., is found under the English coast from Start Point to the

Strait of Dover about the 1st of September and off the French coast

eastward of Cape la Hague about eleven days later. In the western area

the maximum temperature is about 15 deg. C. and occurs between September

1 and 11. The mean minimum surface temperature is between 5 deg. C. and

6 deg. C. at the eastern end, and increases to over 9 deg. C. off the

coast of Brittany. Owing to the thorough mixing of the water in the

eastern area the temperatures are here generally the same at all depths,

and the description of the surface conditions applies equally to the

bottom. In the western entrance, on the other hand, the bottom

temperature is often much lower than on the surface; the range here is

also much less, about 3 deg. C., and the maximum is not reached till

about the 1st of October, or from three weeks to a month later than on

the surface.

A detailed account of the mean conditions in the English Channel will

be found in _Rap. et proces-verbaux_, vol. vi., and _Bulletin

supplementaire_ (1908) of the Conseil Permanent International pour

l'Exploration de la Mer (Copenhagen). (D. J. M.)

_Cross-Channel Communication._--An immense amount of time and thought

has been expended in the elaboration of schemes to provide unbroken

railway communication between Great Britain and the continent of Europe

and enable passengers and goods to be conveyed across the Channel

without the delay and expense involved by transhipping them into and out

of ordinary steamers. These schemes have taken three main forms: (1)

tunnels, either made through the ground under the sea, or consisting of

built-up structures resting upon the sea bed; (2) bridges, either

elevated high above the sea-level so as to admit of the unimpeded

passage of ships under them, or submerged below the surface; and (3)

train ferries, or vessels capable of conveying a train of railway

vehicles with their loads. A tunnel was first proposed at the very

beginning of the 19th century by a French mining engineer named Mathieu,

whose scheme was for a time favourably regarded by Napoleon, but it was

first put on a practical basis more than fifty years later by J. A.

Thome de Gamond (1807-1876), whose plans were submitted to the French

emperor in 1856. This engineer had begun to work at the problem of

cross-Channel communication twenty years previously, and had considered

the possibility of a submerged tunnel or tube resting on the sea-level,

of steam ferries plying between huge piers thrown out from both coasts,

and of a bridge, for which he prepared five different plans. He again

brought forward his scheme for a tunnel, in a modified form, in 1867,

and exhibited his plans in the Universal Exhibition of that year. About

the same time an English engineer, William Lowe, of Wrexham, was also

working at the idea of a tunnel. Geological investigation convinced him

that between Fanhole, a point half a mile west of the South Foreland

light, and Sangatte on the French coast, 4 m. W. of Calais, the Dover

grey chalk was continuous from side to side, and he considered that this

stratum, owing to its comparative freedom from water and the general

absence of cracks and fissures, offered exceptional advantages for a

tunnel. He and Thome de Gamond joined forces, and their plans were

adopted by an international committee whose object was to popularize the

idea of a tunnel both in England and France. Its engineers on the

English side were Lowe, Sir James Brunlees and Sir John Hawkshaw, the

last of whom in 1866 had made trial borings at St Margaret's and near

Sangatte; and on the French side Thome de Gamond, Paulin Talabot and

Michael Chevalier. In 1868 they reported that there was a reasonable

prospect of completing the tunnel in ten or twelve years at a cost not

exceeding ten millions sterling. They admitted, however, that there was

some risk of an influx of the sea, but pointed out that this risk could

be determined by driving preliminary driftways, as suggested by Lowe,

and for this purpose asked for financial aid from the imperial treasury.

A commission of inquiry then appointed by the French ministry of public

works reported favourably on the plans, though it declined to, recommend

a grant of money; but the further progress of the scheme was interrupted

by the outbreak of the Franco-German war.

The tunnel was by no means the only plan in evidence at this period for

securing continuous railway communication between England and France. An

iron tube, resting on the bottom of the sea, had been proposed by

Tessier de Mottray in 1803, and had again been considered by Thome de

Gamond in 1833; but after 1850 projects of this kind might almost be

counted by the dozen. Some of the structures were to be of iron, others

of concrete or masonry, and some were to be floated a moderate distance

below the surface. One of the most carefully worked out plans was that

of J. F. Bateman and J. Revy, who proposed to construct a continuous

tube, 13 ft. in internal diameter, of iron rings each 10 ft. long, each

ring being built out from the completed portion of the tube by means of

a horizontal chamber or bell, which slid telescopically over the last

few rings previously put in place, and was moved forward by hydraulic

power. About the same time Zerah Colburn produced plans for a tube

constructed of 1000 ft. sections, which were to be built in dry dock and

then successively attached by a ball and socket joint to the completed

portion, the whole being raised from the bottom and dragged out to sea,

by the aid of a large number of ships, as each section was attached and

launched. Thomas Page, again, the builder of Westminster Bridge,

proposed to place eight conical steel shafts at intervals across the

Strait of Dover, and to connect them by long sections of tube lowered

from the surface, the whole structure being covered with concrete when

finished. No attempt was made to put any of these plans into execution,

and the same was true of several bridge schemes propounded about the

same time; in one of these, spans one-half or three-quarters of a mile

in length were contemplated, while another required 190 towers, 500 ft.

apart and rising 500 ft. above the water-level, which obviously would

have constituted an intolerable nuisance to navigation. The case,

however, was different with a train ferry which was vigorously advocated

by Sir John Fowler. His proposal was to employ steamers 450 ft. long,

with a beam of 57 ft. and a speed of 20 knots, having railway lines laid

down on their decks on and off which railway vehicles could be run

directly at each side of the strait. Dover was to be the English port,

while on the French coast a new harbour was to be formed at

Audresselles, between Calais and Boulogne. This plan in 1872 received

the sanction of the House of Commons, but was rejected in the House of

Lords by the casting vote of the chairman of the committee. According to

another similar ferry scheme, which was worked out by Admiral Dupuy de

Lome in 1870, a new maritime station was to be constructed at Calais, so

far off the shore that it would command deep water at every state of the

tide, and connected with the French railways by a bridge.

After the conclusion of the Franco-Prussian War, negotiations

concerning the tunnel were resumed between the French and British

governments, and in 1872 the latter intimated that it had "no objection

in principle." After some further communications between the two

governments in 1874, settling the basis on which the enterprise should

be allowed to proceed, a joint commission was appointed to arrange

details relating to jurisdiction, the right of blocking the tunnel, &c.,

and this commission's report was accepted as a basis of agreement

between the governments. In 1875 the Channel Tunnel Company obtained an

act authorizing it to undertake certain preliminary works at St

Margaret's Bay. In the same year the French Submarine Railway Company

obtained a concession, with the obligation to spend a minimum of

2,000,000 francs in making investigations; in fact it took over 3000

samples from the bottom of the sea in the strait, and made over 7000

soundings, and also sunk a shaft at Sangatte and started a heading. The

English company did not do so much, for it failed to raise the money it

required and its powers expired in 1880. Moreover, it was not the only

company in the field, and its programme was not universally accepted as

the best possible. Some authorities, such as Sir Joseph Prestwich,

doubted whether the tunnel should be attempted in the chalk because of

the likelihood of fissures being encountered while others who thought

the chalk suitable were dissatisfied With the actual plans and formed a

rival "Anglo-French Submarine Railway Company." In 1882 another tunnel

company made its appearance. In 1874 the South Eastern Railway Company

had obtained powers to sink experimental shafts on its property between

Dover and Folkestone, and in 1881 to acquire lands, including the beach

and foreshore, in that area in connexion with a Channel tunnel. These

powers resulted, in 1882, in the formation of the Submarine Continental

Railway Company which in that year sought parliamentary sanction for a

tunnel, starting from a point west of Dover, at Shakespeare's Cliff; and

at the same time the resuscitated Channel Tunnel Company applied for

powers to make one from Fanhole, instead of St Margaret's Bay as in its

former scheme. The whole question of the tunnel was then widely

discussed and considered by various committees, the last of which--a

joint select committee of the Lords and Commons--in 1883 expressed the

opinion by a majority that it was "inexpedient that parliamentary

sanction should be given to a submarine communication between England

and France." This decision for the time being disposed of the question

of making a tunnel, and though Sir Edward Watkin, one of its most

prominent advocates, brought bill after bill before parliament to

authorize experimental works in connexion with it, all were rejected. In

1882 the government interfered with the operations then in progress, and

they were ultimately discontinued. They included a driftway 7 ft. in

diameter which was driven for a distance of about 2300 yds. eastwards

under the sea at an inclination of 1 in 72 from the bottom of a shaft

sunk to a depth of 164 ft. in the chalk marl at Shakespeare's Cliff.

About this time the Channel Bridge and Railway Company took in hand the

design of a bridge, the preliminary plans for which were exhibited in

the Paris Exhibition of 1889. The terminal points were Folkestone and

Cap Grisnez, and for the sake of facilitating the laying of the pier

foundations it was proposed to take the bridge over the Varne and

Colbart shoals. The main girders were to be nearly 59 yds. above the

sea-level, the railway itself being more than 20 ft. higher still, and

the spans were to vary in length between 540 and 108 yds. As the result

of a survey of the sea bottom made in 1890, a modification in the line

of the bridge was adopted, and it was taken direct from Cap Blancnez to

the South Foreland. It was found that in this way an excellent bottom

would be obtained for the foundations, and the length of the bridge

would be 3 m. less, the number of piers, by employing spans of 434 and

542 yds. alternately, being reduced to 72. The cost of this structure

was estimated at L28,320,000, exclusive of interest on capital during

the period of construction, which was put at seven years. The same

company also worked out plans for a moving chariot or platform, capable

of holding a railway train and supported by long legs on a submerged

causeway or track constructed of steel or armoured concrete 45 or 50

ft. below low-water level. No attempt has been made actually to carry

out either this project or that of a bridge.

In 1905 the question of establishing a train ferry from Dover across the

Channel was brought forward by the Intercontinental Railway Company, and

in the following year the Channel Ferry (Dover) Act was passed

authorizing the work. About the same period the Channel Tunnel Company,

which had amalgamated with the Submarine Railway Company, awoke to

activity and started a campaign in favour of its scheme; but the bill

which it promoted was opposed by the government and accordingly was

withdrawn in March 1907.

See _Blue-book, Correspondence respecting the proposed Channel

Tunnel_, Commercial No. 6 (1875); _Blue-book, Correspondence with

reference to the proposed Construction of a Channel Tunnel_, C. 3358

(1882); _Blue-book, Report from the Joint Select Committee of the

House of Lords and House of Commons on the Channel Tunnel_ (1883); F.

J. Bramwell, "The Making and Working of a Channel Tunnel," _Proc. Roy.

Inst._, May 1882; Tylden Wright, "The Channel Tunnel," _North of

England Inst. Min. and Mech. Eng._ vol. 33 (1882); W. Boyd Dawkins,

"The Channel Tunnel," _Manchester Geol. Soc._, May 1882, and _Brit.

Assoc. Rep._ (1882, 1899); E. de Rodakowski, _The Channel Ferry_

(London, 1905). (H. M. R.)

FOOTNOTE:

[1] 50 deg. F. = 10 deg. C.; 60.8 deg. F. = 16 deg. C.

ENGLISH FINANCE. The history of the English fiscal system affords the

best example known of continuous financial development, in respect both

of institutions and methods. Though certain great periods of change can

be readily noticed, yet from the time of the Norman Conquest to the

beginning of the 20th century the line of connexion is substantially

unbroken. Perhaps the most revolutionary changes occurred in the 17th

century, as the outcome of the Civil War, and, later on, the revolution

of 1688. But even in this case there was no real breach of continuity.

It is, therefore, possible to trace the normal growth and expansion of

British finance as one of the aspects of the nation's history.

The primitive financial institutions of England centre round the king's

household, or, in other words, the royal economy precedes the national

one. Revenue dues collected by the king's agents, rents, or rather

returns of produce, from land, and special levies for emergencies form

the elements of the royal income, which gradually acquired greater

regularity and consistency. There is, however, little or no evidence of

any effective financial organization until we approach the 11th century.

The influence exercised from Normandy, which so powerfully affected the

English rulers at this time, tended towards the creation of records of

revenue claims and also of a central treasury.

With the union of England and Normandy under the same head the idea of

settled administrative methods was definitely fixed and became of

special importance in the field of finance. The systematizing spirit, so

characteristic of both the Norman and Angevin kings, produced the great

institution of the exchequer (q.v.) with its judicial and administrative

sides, and its elaborate forms of account and control. Even before this

organization was developed the Domesday Survey (see DOMESDAY BOOK)--now

recognized as having a purely fiscal object (in Maitland's words "a tax

book, a geld book")--shows the movement towards careful observation of

the sources of revenue. It is clear that William I. initiated a policy

which was followed by his successors, in spite of the serious

difficulties of the period of anarchy during Stephen's nominal reign.

The obscure question as to the real origin of the special contrivances

employed by the exchequer is, strictly speaking, irrelevant to the

financial inquirer, who may be content to hold that, granting the

existence of some Old English analogies, the system, as it appears in

the 12th century, was a peculiar product of the conceptions as to fiscal

organization formed by Norman subtlety. It is the manner in which this

institution held together and focused the revenues and expenditure of

the kingdom that has to be considered. The picture presented by the

"Dialogue of the Exchequer" (c. 1176) is that of a comprehensive system

which secured the receipt of the royal income, and provided a thorough

audit of the accounts by employing processes adapted to the

circumstances of the time. It is, in fact, through the description of

financial institutions that it is possible to ascertain the forms of

revenue possessed by the crown. The ingenuity expended on the

administrative machinery of the exchequer had as its aim the increase of

the king's resources, an object in which the official class of churchmen

and lawyers was deeply interested.

In order to understand the character Of English finance in the middle

ages it is absolutely essential to bear constantly in mind the

identification of the king with the state. Though feudalism (q.v.) was,

in one of its aspects, a powerful instrument for division of political

authority, it, nevertheless, in the particular form in which the

Conqueror introduced it into England, enabled the fiscal rights of the

crown to be established in a more definite shape than was possible under

the older condition. For, in the first place, the actual property of the

crown was more carefully administered as each royal manor came under the

system of accounting. Again, the various claims or dues of the king took

more decidedly the feudal type and received stricter legal definition.

Further, the higher judicial organization assisted the expansion of

court fees; while, above all, the increased authority of the state made

the casual receipts (for such they were) from trade more profitable.

In a broad view the sources of revenue fall under the following

heads:--(1) The royal estates which were distributed over England,

derived in part from the possessions of the old English kings, but

increased by the confiscations that followed the events of the

Conqueror's reign, as well as by the doctrine that unowned land was the

king's (_terra regis_). Over fourteen hundred manors appear in Domesday

as royal property. The forests, placed under special laws, yielded

little revenue, except in the form of penalties on offenders. The rural

tenants, who at first paid their rents in produce, gradually commuted

them into money payments. As the royal demesne was favourable for the

growth of towns the rents derived from urban tenants became a valuable

part of the yield from the demesne; this, later, took the shape of a

payment from the town as a unit (the _firma burgi_), a method which

secured to the burghers freedom from the exactions of the sheriff and

which was purchased by special payments. (2) The feudal rights. These

included the claim to military service; the three regular aids and the

payments of relief at succession to a fief, as also the profits on

wardships and marriages. Escheats and forfeitures completed the list.

The yield from this source varied with the power of the king and was

kept within bounds by the resistance of the tenants as shown in the

provisions of Magna Carta. (3) The administration of justice was a

lucrative prerogative of the crown. Suitors had to pay for securing the

hearing of their cases in addition to the fees for writs, and both

amercements and compositions increased the receipts under this head. (4)

Two special classes contributed to the royal exchequer. As a great deal

of the wealth of the country was in the hands of the church the

opportunities afforded by the vacancies of sees, abbacies and priories

were utilized for the purpose of securing the profits of these offices

during the time in which there was no occupant; and this term was

frequently prolonged by the king's action or inaction. The Jews, until

their expulsion, were an even more profitable class to the revenue.

Being under the absolute control of the crown, they could be taxed at

pleasure, either by taking a percentage of their property (e.g. in one

case, one-fourth), or by levies for alleged offences. The existence of a

separate exchequer for the Jews is an indication of their fiscal value.

(5) Direct taxation formed an extraordinary or occasional head of

revenue. The Danegeld was succeeded by the carucage, and the commutation

of military service introduced the scutage, but these forms were of

little immediate importance, though very significant for the future

course of development. (6) Lastly come the dues claimed at the ports,

which contain in germ the customs system of later times, though they

rather resemble the harbour charges of modern ports and were very

trivial in amount.

The history of the English financial system consists largely in the

exhibition of the different fortunes of these several component parts of

the exchequer receipts; for it must be remembered that the sheriff was

bound to account to that tribunal for all that he should have received,

and by this agency the local contributions passed into the king's

possession for the service of the state, During the century and a half

that lay between the Conquest and the granting of the Great Charter the

account given above holds good. The character of the ruler affected the

vigour of the fiscal, as well as the general, administration. Henry I.

and Henry II. secured much better results than Stephen or John; but the

collection of the rent and profits of the royal manors and the feudal

and other dues continued as the mainstay of revenue. Indications of

change are, however, to be found. Thus the substitution of the

"carucage" or plough tax for the "Danegeld" marks an advance towards

direct taxation of land through its produce, and the introduction of

"scutage" is not only further evidence of the same tendency, but also a

step in the development of "money economy" in place of the earlier

"natural economy" or system of payments in kind. The special levies or

"tallages" imposed at times of need on the towns in the king's demesne

appear to have been a doubtful exercise of the royal prerogative, but

scientifically they belong to the same class as the Danegeld and

scutage. Perhaps the most important advance made in this period is the

beginning of taxation of movables, first applied in the Saladin tithe of

1189 and, later, expanded into a general system.

In the reign of John (1199-1216) the loss of Normandy and the concession

of the barons' demands by the issue of Magna Carta rendered financial

readjustments inevitable. During the long reign of Henry III. the

struggle to maintain the privileges granted by the Charter acted on the

fiscal system by checking the arbitrary use of tallages, and as a

consequence, encouraging the regular assessment of the tax on movables,

which was becoming more prominent. The fruitful idea that it was

necessary to obtain the consent of the payers of taxes before the

imposition operated powerfully in favour of the establishment of bodies

representing the several estates. It is through the reaction of

constitutional on fiscal development that the transition from feudal to

parliamentary taxation in its earlier form is made.

Almost at the opening of the age of parliamentary taxation one of the

older sources of revenue ceased. The pressure of popular opinion forced

Edward I. to decree the expulsion of the Jews (1290), though he

naturally desired to retain such profitable subjects. It is, indeed,

probable that, owing to the exactions practised on them, the Jewish

usurers had become less serviceable to the exchequer; while it is

certain that the general resources of the kingdom had so increased as to

make their contribution relatively much smaller. The first effects of

the representative influence in the fiscal domain are the abandonment of

the tallages on towns and the decline of scutage as a mode of levy. The

tax on movables was framed in a more systematic way. Instead of distinct

charges on different classes, or variations in proportion of levy from

one-fourth to one-fortieth, the policy of imposing a tax of one-tenth on

the towns and one-fifteenth on the counties was adopted. Greater

strictness in assessment was sought by the appointment of commissioners

for each county, supplied with special instructions as to taxable goods

and exemptions. This method continued in force for the tax on movables

from 1290 till 1334, though in some cases the proportions imposed on the

towns and counties were varied (e.g. an eighth and a fifth were granted

in 1297, and a tenth and a sixth in 1322). A more general influence was

the growing national economy which led to greater activity on the part

of the king as administrator, and which also increased the need of the

state for revenue. Though the doctrine that "The king should live of his

own" was generally accepted as a constitutional maxim, the force of

events was making it obsolete. From being an infrequent and uncertain

kind of taxation the direct tax on movables, which was practically

absorbing the older forms, became usual and regular. Under medieval

conditions the collection of a general property tax (for such, in fact,

was the nature of "the tenth and fifteenth") presented serious

difficulties. Each locality gained by keeping its assessment down to the

lowest point, while the borough authorities were naturally not eager to

enforce the charge on their fellow-citizens. England in the 14th century

was not ripe for a system that has been found hard to make effective in

more advanced societies. Hence, from 1334 onward, the method of

"apportionment" was employed, i.e. the tenth and fifteenth was taken as

affording a definite sum measured by the yield on the ancient valuation.

As this gave, in the aggregate, between L38,000 and L39,000, "the tenth

and fifteenth" became for the future "practically a fiscal expression

for a sum of about L39,000"; the total to be divided or "apportioned"

between the several counties, cities and boroughs according to their

former payments. This settlement, which remained in force for centuries

and affected all the later direct taxes, had the great advantages of

certainty and adaptability. The inhabitants of any particular town knew

their total liability and could distribute it amongst themselves in the

manner most convenient to them. From the royal standpoint also the

arrangement was satisfactory, for the "tenth and fifteenth" could be

multiplied (e.g. in 1352 three "tenths and fifteenths" were voted for

three years), and supplied a stable revenue for the service of the

kingdom. To the parliament the power of regulating the policy of the

crown by the bestowal or refusal of grants was naturally agreeable.

Thus, all sections of the nation united in support of the system

established in 1334, just before the opening of the Hundred Years' War,

in connexion with which it was particularly serviceable.

Akin to the tax that has just been described, at least in its nature as

a direct impost, is the poll or capitation tax. Financial pressure at

the close of Edward III.'s reign (1377) led to the adoption of a tax of

fourpence per head on all persons in the kingdom (mendicants and persons

under fourteen years being excepted). This "tallage of groats," which

seems to be derived by analogy from the hearth money for Peter's pence,

was followed by the graduated poll taxes of 1379 and 1380. In the former

the scale ranged from ten marks (L6:13:4) imposed on the royal dukes and

the viscounts, through six marks on earls, bishops and abbots, and three

on barons, down to the groat or fourpence payable by all persons over

sixteen years of age. Such a form of taxation approximated--as Adam

Smith saw--to an income tax, but it proved to be unproductive, only half

of the estimated yield of L50,000 being obtained. The tax of 1380 varied

within narrower limits; from twenty shillings to fourpence (or sixty

groats to three), with the proviso that "the strong should aid the

weak." But this particular tax is chiefly memorable as the

occasion--whatever may have been the real causes--of the great

"Peasants' Revolt" of 1381. This unlucky association sealed the fate of

the poll tax as a fiscal expedient. It was abandoned, with one

exception, for nearly three hundred years; and its occasional employment

in the 17th century did not result in its permanent revival. Apart from

special circumstances it is plain that the "tenth and fifteenth" was

better suited than the poll tax for the purpose of English finance. The

machinery for collection was ready to hand for the former, while special

agents had to gather the latter, even from the poorest classes. In fact,

the episode of the poll taxes may be regarded as an attempt--fortunately

unsuccessful--to relieve the propertied classes at the expense of the

peasants and poorer burghers. Failure in this respect helped in the

maintenance of the settlement of direct taxation devised in 1334.

Parallel with the evolution of direct taxation, but decidedly lagging

behind, is the progress of indirect taxation. As already mentioned, the

right of levying dues on goods entering or leaving English ports

belonged from very early times to the king. Whether this power was, in

its origin, due to the protection afforded to traders and thus a kind of

insurance, or the result of the royal prerogative of pre-emption is

immaterial for finance. What is established is that the "prisage" of

wine or levy of one cask in ten, and the taking of one-tenth or

one-fifteenth of other commodities was in force. Attempts to impose

additional dues were forbidden by an important article (41) of the Great

Charter which recognized "the ancient and just customs." One of the

earliest effects of parliamentary influence is manifested in the

establishment of duties on wool, woolfells and leather by Edward I.'s

first parliament. After some efforts by the king to gather increased

duties, the "Confirmation of the Charters" (1297) forbade any increases

on the amounts fixed in 1275, which were henceforth known as the ancient

customs. Another attempt was made to obtain a higher scale of duties by

arrangement with the merchants. The foreign traders consented to the

royal proposals, which comprised duties on wine, wool, hides and wax, as

well as a general tax of 1-1/4% on all imports and exports. Thus, in

addition to the old customs of half a mark (6s. 8d.) per sack of wool

and on each three hundred woolfells, and one mark (13s. 4d.) per last or

load of leather, the foreign merchants paid an extra duty (or surtax) of

50% and also 2s. on the tun of wine--the so-called "butlerage." The

privileges granted in the Carta Mercatoria (1303) were probably the

consideration for accepting these enhanced dues. The English merchants,

however, for the time, successfully resisted the application in their

case of the higher charges, and consequently remained under the old

prisage of wine. In spite of parliamentary opposition, on the ground

that they amounted to an infringement of the Great Charter, the new

customs were maintained in force. After being suspended in 1311 they

were revived in 1322, confirmed by royal authority in 1328, and finally

sanctioned by parliament in the Statute of the Staple (1353). They

became a part of the permanent crown revenue from the ports, and, with

the old customs, were the basis for further development.

Just as the old direct taxes were first supplemented by, and then

absorbed in, the general taxation of movables, so the customs, in the

strict sense, were followed by the subsidies or parliamentary grants.

One great source of English wealth in the 14th century was the export of

the peculiarly fine wool of the country, and the political circumstances

of Edward III.'s time suggested the manipulation of the trade in this

commodity for purposes of policy as well as revenue. Sometimes, in order

to influence the towns of Flanders, the export of wool was absolutely

prohibited; at others, export duties of varying amounts were imposed on

wool, skins and leather. In the early years of the reign these

arrangements were settled by agreement with the merchants. The subsidies

of this class began in 1340 and henceforward were frequently granted,

though complaints were very often made. Thus, in 1348 the Commons

objected to the subsidy of an export duty of L2 per sack on wool on the

ground that it was really a tax on the landowners, who received a lower

price for their wool in consequence of the duty. Bargains between the

king and the merchants were forbidden, and this species of taxation was

brought under parliamentary control by statutes passed in 1362 and 1371.

Along with the special duties on wool there was an increase of the

imposts on wine and general goods. By agreement with the merchants a

charge of 2s. per tun on wine and 2-1/2% on goods was levied in 1347.

Between 1371 and 1376 these dues were established as parliamentary

grants under the names of "Tunnage" and "Poundage," leaving the older

dues intact.

One class or "estate" occupied a peculiar position. The clergy still

claimed the privilege of self-taxation, and therefore it was

convocation, not parliament, that voted the tenths imposed on clerical

property. In some instances much heavier charges (e.g. in 1296

one-third) were decreed by the king, but the taxation of the clergy

declined in productiveness during the 14th century. By the close of the

reign of Richard II. the results of the transition from feudalism to a

parliamentary constitution were practically complete. In respect to

finance the most important of these were: (1) The disappearance or

reduction to unimportance of the feudal dues. The fact that this change

occurred at, relatively speaking, so early a date is of special

significance for English development. (2) The royal demesne, though it

had not suffered the losses that the grants of later times inflicted on

it, had also lost some of its value as a source of revenue. (3) In

compensation the direct taxation of property had become a ready means of

supplying the growing requirements of the administration, and the mode

of levy had been reduced to a well-recognized form, unsatisfactory

experiments--such as the poll tax--being withdrawn. (4) The growth of

import and export duties through the "old" and "new" customs and the

subsidies furnished a large part of the requisite funds. In fact, in

the course of a little over three hundred years the constituent parts of

the public income had, without any violent change, been completely

altered in relative value and in organization.

The period of the Lancastrian kings, extending over two-thirds of the

15th century (1399-1471), is noticeable for various experiments in the

system of direct taxation. The standard tax--"the tenth and

fifteenth"--failed to suit the changed conditions. In consequence of the

decay of some of the towns allowances had to be made to them, amounting

to over 15% (L6000), which, with other deductions, lowered the yield

from a "tenth and fifteenth" to L31,000. As a supplement a land tax,

affecting only the large owners, was voted at the rate of 5% in 1404,

and repeated with wider scope, but at the lower rate of 1-2/3%, in

1411. A house tax made its appearance in 1428. Taxes on knight's fees

and other freeholds were also tried, while in 1435 and 1450 the

graduated income tax was employed. The minimum rate, 2-1/2%, applied to

incomes under L100 (or under L20 in the tax of 1450), and rose to 10% on

the higher incomes. These devices are evidence of the demand for larger

revenue, and also of the increasing unfitness of the existing direct

taxation. It may be added that they indicate a disposition to adopt

foreign models, particularly the methods of taxation in use in France

and Italy. As to indirect taxation the receipts seem at first to have

declined, and the subsidies were only granted for fixed terms (the

victory of Agincourt gained a life grant to Henry V.). After the

establishment of Edward IV. on the throne, the idea of a "tenth," in the

literal sense, was taken up and voted (1472) by the two houses as a

special military provision; but it failed to bring in the required

revenue, and the king had to fall back on grants of the old-established

form. Extra taxes on aliens were levied under both Lancastrian and

Yorkist rulers with little profit. The most original contribution of

Edward IV. to fiscal policy was the "benevolence" (q.v.) or payment by

wealthy subjects of sums requested by the king. Voluntary in form, these

payments were, in fact, compulsory, and became in later times one of the

great grievances against which parliament had to struggle.

Broader issues in finance marked the course of the Tudor period, and

these were connected with the general history of the time. The era of

national monarchies had arrived, necessitating the maintenance of

greater military and naval forces, as well as more costly machinery of

administration. External policy was affected by the set of ideas that

developed into mercantilism (see MERCANTILE SYSTEM); but so also was

fiscal policy. Finance reflected the actions of the personal rule that

was the characteristic of the 16th century. Within the period, however,

some decided contrasts are to be found. Prudence, carried to parsimony

with Henry VII., is followed by lavish prodigality in the case of Henry

VIII. Elizabeth, again, presents in her reign a very different financial

policy from that of either her father or her grandfather. The desire for

a vigorous foreign policy, the hope of encouraging native industry, and

the sentiment of retaliation against the trade regulations of other

countries are found to interfere with the aim--strictly followed in

earlier times--of obtaining the largest possible yield. All the

different parts of the public economy were regarded as existing only in

order to be utilized for the furtherance of national power. It is this

more complex character in policy, coupled with the new influences, that

the discovery of America, the Renaissance and the Reformation brought

into operation, which gives special interest to the financial problems

of the 16th century.

Taking in order the great heads of public income placed at the disposal

of the sovereign, it appears that the first head of the old

receipts--the crown lands--had been from time to time diminished by

grants to the king's relatives and favourites, but had also gained

through resumptions and forfeitures. On the whole, the loss and gain

down to the close of the 14th century was probably balanced. The revenue

was, however, inelastic, and declined in relative importance. It has

been said that "it was in the 15th century that the great impoverishment

of the crown estate began." The Lancastrian kings (especially Henry VI.)

lost most of the lands attached to the crown through pressure of

expenditure and the wholesale plunder of officials. Though the civil

wars of the 15th century brought in many forfeited estates the grants of

Edward IV. kept down the increase. But the chief opportunity for

aggrandizement was afforded by the dissolution of the monasteries and

gilds under Henry VIII. The great mass of property that passed into the

royal possession in this way was in part assigned to nobles and

officials, while most of the remainder was distributed in the reigns of

his children. The dwindling importance of the public revenue from land

and rent charges is as noticeable under the Tudors as in earlier times.

In like manner the feudal dues had fallen into a very subordinate place

notwithstanding the attempts made on particular occasions to enforce

them with greater rigour. The force of personal monarchy exercised by

the Tudors, depending as it did on popular support, tended to encourage

the collection of dues which had a legal ground in preference to

taxation of the community. Of similar character was the employment of

the old right of purveyance (q.v.), in restraint of which a series of

statutes had been passed.

Whatever possibilities of obtaining some additional revenue from the

crown lands or prerogative rights may have existed in the 16th century,

and these were slight, all the political and social conditions tended

more and more to make the need of taxation as the principal financial

resource imperative. Amongst the cases of increased calls for funds to

maintain the machinery of state, the rise of prices, due to increased

supplies of the precious metals, must be included as one of the chief,

and its effect extends into the 17th century. It was under this

influence that the old forms of revenue became less profitable and that

fresh developments were necessitated.

Direct taxation still retained in one of its branches the pattern set in

the reign of Edward III. "Tenths and fifteenths" continued to be voted,

and for some time all attempts to introduce new methods failed. In 1488

a military grant framed on the model of the abortive tax of 1472 yielded

only a little over one-third of the estimate (L27,000 out of L75,000),

and the unsatisfactory result prevented further experiments on the part

of Henry VII. The foreign policy of Henry VIII.--particularly his French

expedition--with its attendant outlay, accounts for the graduated

capitation tax of 1513, which was even less in accordance with

anticipation than the tax of 1488 (it yielded only L50,000 instead of

L160,000). But these failures cleared the way for a more effective form

of direct impost, which appeared in the "subsidy" or general tax on land

and goods. The first case of this tax (1514) was a modest one-2-1/2%; it,

however, soon took on a typical form, so that the subsidy came to mean a

charge of 4s. in the pound on land and 2s. 8d. in the pound on goods, a

scale evidently devised with reference to the older tenth and fifteenth,

which was henceforth put in a subordinate position. The subsidy became

the established mode of grant under both Tudors and Stuarts, though by

degrees it underwent a change similar to that experienced by its

predecessor. The taxing statutes made elaborate provisions for the

assessment and collection of the tax in order to secure a full return.

Old habits proved too strong and the subsidy "slipped into the same kind

of groove as that of the fifteenth and tenth, and became, in practice, a

grant of a sum of money of about the same amount as the yield of the

last preceding subsidy" (Dowell). The consequence was that each subsidy

came, in the middle of the 16th century, to be a sum of L100,000, and at

its close only L80,000. The parallel vote of the clergy in convocation

(which after 1533 had to be confirmed in parliament) amounted to

L20,000. The usual parliamentary proceeding was to vote so many "tenths

and fifteenths" and so many subsidies, e.g. Elizabeth's first parliament

voted her "two fifteenths and tenths and a subsidy," or, taking the

usual values, L160,000. At times of crisis such as the arrival of the

Armada the votes were enlarged by granting more tenths and fifteenths

and subsidies. The history of the subsidy is instructive as to the

tendencies of direct taxation in all countries. The assessment becomes

inelastic and approximates to a fixed sum. As the subsidy follows the

course of the later medieval taxation, so it is the undesigned model of

the later land and property tax.

In the history of the port duties under the Tudors the first point for

notice is the life grant to each of the sovereigns of the subsidies on

wool, hides and leather, together with tunnage at 3s. and poundage at

5%; thus, with the hereditary customs, supplying a considerable revenue

for the crown's use. No better indication of the increased power and

popularity of the monarchy could be found. The contrast with the

suspicious and grudging attitude of the Plantagenet and Lancastrian

parliaments is significant of the change in national sentiment. A duty

on malmsey (1490) had a retaliatory rather than a fiscal aim, being

directed against the Venetians who had imposed restrictions on English

trade. In several later cases wine became liable to extra duties,

chiefly applied to French trade in further pursuance of the policy of

retaliation. Restrictions on import and export as well as the hostile

measures against foreign merchants were matters of economic policy

rather than finance, but they had the indirect effect of increasing the

control exercised at the ports. The loss of Calais (1558) dislocated the

system of the staple and cut off one centre of customs revenue; and it

was also probably the cause of an important change in the mode of

valuing goods for duty. For the declaration on oath of the merchant a

fixed valuation was substituted and set forth in a book of rates, the

first of its class (1558). Following this reform came more stringent

regulations against smuggling and fraud on the part of officials. All

through the Tudor period the cost of collection was unduly high. For the

first six years of Elizabeth it has been estimated at one-sixth of the

gross receipts.

Just as in the 14th century the subsidy had followed the "old" and "new"

customs, so in the 16th the "impositions" levied by royal prerogative

formed a supplement to the parliamentary subsidy; but the principal

employment of this expedient occurs in the next century. Another

significant indication of the future course of indirect taxation was

furnished by the grants of monopolies to inventors, producers and

traders. These privileges, when they affected important commodities,

operated in the same way as taxes farmed out to collectors, and, though

the profit to the crown was small, they enhanced prices and excited

discontent. The wisdom of Elizabeth (or her ministers) was shown in the

promise of redress after the hostile debate of 1601.

From one point of view it may fairly be said that the great struggle of

the Stuart kings with the parliament centred round financial issues. It

is, at all events, beyond dispute that questions of taxation were the

chosen ground of conflict. Taking the period from the accession of James

I. to the opening of the Civil War (1603-42) it appears that the legal

basis of indirect taxation was tested for the port duties in the "Great

Case of Impositions" (known as Bates' case, see BATES, JOHN), while that

of direct taxation was considered in the even more famous "Ship Money"

case (for ever associated with the name of Hampden). In parliament the

debates deal with impositions, monopolies, the grounds for voting

subsidies, and the proper application of the funds granted; in fact,

with nearly all the financial questions of the time. Notwithstanding

these difficulties and disputes the financial system shows evident signs

of expansion and adaptation to the needs of the state.

The direct grants of the parliaments of James I. far exceeded those of

earlier periods (in 1606 six "fifteenths and tenths," three lay and four

clerical subsidies), but the efforts to extend the other sources of

revenue by the exercise of the prerogative naturally reacted on this

spirit of liberality. The last "fifteenth and tenth" was voted in 1624,

from which date this old-established form disappears, and the subsidy

alone is used. In spite of Charles I.'s high-handed policy five

subsidies were voted after the Petition of Right had been accepted, and

even the Long Parliament made similar grants. Almost at the outbreak of

the Civil War it also gave the king a graduated capitation tax. Other

modes of direct taxation were used without parliamentary sanction. The

collection of the antiquated feudal dues was enforced through the

special courts (particularly the Star Chamber) with a rigour long

unknown; James had tried the French device of a "tariff of honors." Both

kings employed the "benevolence" until the Petition of Right made such

a levy illegal. But by far the most serious innovation was the

collection of the "ship money," a course forced on Charles by his

determination not to meet the representatives of the nation. The writs

"embodied the ultimate expression of the ingenuity of the king's

advisers in the invention of means to enable him to rule without a

parliament." The first writs secured over L100,000, and were followed by

five further issues (1634-1639) bringing in an average return of

L200,000 or about three lay subsidies. Like the "benevolence," the ship

money was declared to be illegal (1641).

The contest respecting monopolies, settled by Elizabeth's withdrawal,

was revived under James I., and had to be finally closed by the Statute

of Monopolies (1624), declaring such grants to be utterly void. Certain

exceptions (as in the case of the soap-boilers) permitted the raising of

revenue by what was in fact a rudimentary excise, and plans for a

general excise were discussed, especially as a substitute for the feudal

dues, though they were not reduced to practice. In the earlier 17th

century the customs show a steady increase. From L127,000 in 1604 they

rose to nearly L500,000 in 1641. This fourfold increase was due in part

to the growth of English trade, but it was also influenced by the

adoption of new "Books of rates" in 1608 and 1635, fixing higher

valuations, and by the inclusion of new commodities with definite

duties. Wine, currants (the subject of controversy in Bates' case) and

tobacco are particularly noticeable. Sugar also appears as a

contributory. An interesting development was the adoption on a larger

scale of the "farming" system, an evident imitation from France. A

distinction was made between the "great," the "petty" and the "sugar"

farms, and opportunities for gain were afforded to the officials. On the

constitutional side the life grant of subsidies, made in accordance with

Tudor usage to James, was temporarily withheld from Charles, a

restriction which his own overbearing policy led the parliament to

maintain. Practically, the whole customs revenue between 1628 and 1640

was raised by the use of the prerogative without any parliamentary

sanction. The Tunnage and Poundage Act of 1641 pronounced definitely

against the legality of any extra parliamentary customs and thus closed

another of the constitutional problems of finance.

In the progress from the Conquest to the crisis of the Great Rebellion

there is noticeable a practically complete shifting of the classes of

revenue. The king had ceased "to live of his own"; the royal demesne and

the prerogative rights included in feudalism had become very

subordinate. The direct taxation of property and income, and the

indirect taxation on imported or exported commodities became the

principal forms of receipt.

In the long course of English financial history the nearest approach to

the new departure and an abandonment of old devices is found at the time

of the Civil War and Commonwealth. The actual outlines of the now

existing system made their appearances, while the older portions of the

revenue--particularly the survivals of feudalism--are eliminated. Thus

the Civil War and the Interregnum (1642-60) may be regarded as marking a

watershed in the financial history of the country. At the beginning of

the struggle both sides had to rely on voluntary contributions. Plate

and ornaments were melted down and useful commodities were furnished by

the adherents of the king and by those of the parliament. As holding

possession of London and the central organization the parliament voted

subsidies and a poll tax. Such imports could hardly be levied with

success and new forms became necessary. The direct taxation took the

shape of a "monthly assessment" which was fixed from time to time, and

which was collected under strict regulations, in marked contrast to the

lax management of the former subsidies. As the amount for each district

was fixed, the systematic collection secured "the more equitable

adjustment of the burden of the tax as regards the various taxpayers"

without hardship to the community. In spite of its origin, the

"assessment" was the model for later taxation of property. The yield of

this tax--exceeding for the whole period L32,000,000--is a proof of its

importance. Minor contrivances, e.g. the "weekly meal" tax, indicate

the financial difficulties of the parliament, but are otherwise

unimportant. Owing to its control of the sea and the principal ports the

parliament was able to command the customs revenue; and in this case

also it remodelled the duties, abolishing the wool subsidy and

readjusting the general customs by a new book of rates. A more extensive

tariff was adopted in 1656, and various restrictions in harmony with the

mercantilist ideas of the time were enforced. Thus French wines, silk

and wool were excluded from 1649 to 1656. Far more revolutionary in its

effects was the introduction of the excise or inland duties on goods--a

step which Elizabeth, James I. and Charles I. had hesitated to take.

Beginning (1643) with duties on ale, beer and spirits, it was soon

extended to meat, salt and various textiles. Meat and domestic salt were

relieved in 1647, and the taxation became definitely established under

the administration of commissioners appointed for the purpose. Powers to

let out the collection to farmers were granted, and a bid for both

excise and customs amounted in 1657 to L1,100,000. Confiscations of

church lands and those belonging to royalists, feudal charges and

special collections helped to make up the total of L83,000,000 raised

during the nineteen years of this revolutionary period. Another mark of

change was the removal of the exchequer to Oxford, leaving, however, the

real fiscal machinery at the disposal of the committees that directed

the affairs of the parliament. Under Cromwell the exchequer was

re-established (1654) in a form suited for the changes in the finances,

the office of treasurer being placed in the hands of commissioners.

A complete reconstruction of the revenue system became necessary at the

Restoration. The feudal tenures and dues, with the prerogative rights of

purveyance and pre-emption, which had been abolished by order of the

parliament, could not be restored. Their removal was confirmed, and the

new revenues that had been developed were resorted to as a substitute.

Careful inquiry showed that just before the Civil War the king's annual

revenue had reached nearly L900,000. The needs of the restored monarchy

were estimated at L1,200,000 per annum, and the loyal spirit of the

commons provided sources of revenue deemed sufficient for this amount.

An hereditary excise on beer and ale was voted as a compensation for the

loss of the feudal dues, and temporary excises on spirits, vinegar,

coffee, chocolate and tea were added. All differences of "old" and "new"

customs and subsidies had disappeared under the Commonwealth. The

general or "great statute" (1660) provided a scale of duties--5% on

imports and exports, with special duties on wines and woollen

cloths--accompanied by a new book of rates. A house tax, levied after

the French pattern, on each hearth, was introduced in 1662 and became

established. Poll taxes were used as an extraordinary resource, as were

the last subsidies, voted in 1663, and then for ever abandoned. Licences

on retailers and fees on law proceedings were further aids to the

revenue, which, in the later years of Charles II. and in the short reign

of his successor, was with difficulty kept up to the level of the

increasing expenditure. The Commonwealth assessments were revived on

several occasions, and indirect taxation was made more rigorous by the

imposition of extra duties on brandy, tobacco and sugar, as also on

French linens and silks. A very important development was the placing of

the customs (1670) and the excise (1683) in the hands of special

commissioners, instead of the system of farming them out to private

collectors. The approach to modern conditions is further evidenced by

the greater care in the administration. Amongst expert officials Dudley

North (q.v.), as commissioner of customs, was the most distinguished. In

this period, too, the beginning of the public debt as in the

appropriation of the bankers' deposits may be found.

The Revolution of 1688 may be regarded both on its constitutional and

financial sides as the completion of the work of the Long Parliament. In

the latter respect its chief effects were: (1) the transfer of the

administration of the finances from the king's nominees to officials

under parliamentary control, (2) the consequent application of the

revenue to the purposes designated by parliamentary appropriation, (3)

the rapid expansion of the various kinds of revenue, particularly the

indirect taxes, (4) the rise and growth of the national debt, combined

with the creation of an effective banking system. The greater part of

the 18th century was occupied with the working out of these results.

The government of William III. had to face the expenses of a great war

and to allay discontent at home. As a preliminary step to the necessary

settlement of the revenue a return was prepared, showing the tax

receipts at over L1,800,000 and the peace expenditure at about

L1,100,000. Parliament accepted the view that L1,200,000 per annum would

suffice for the ordinary requirements of the kingdom. It, further,

introduced the system of the Civil List (q.v.) and assigned L600,000 for

the fixed payments placed under that head, leaving the remainder to be

appropriated for the other needs of the state. As the "hearth money" had

proved to be a very unpopular charge, it was, in spite of its yield

(L170,000), given up. The temporary excise duties were voted for "their

majesties' lives" and the customs for a limited term. These branches of

revenue were altogether insufficient to meet the pressure of the war

outlay, and in consequence new heads of taxation--or old ones

revived--came into use. A series of poll and capitation taxes were

imposed between 1689 and 1698, but were after that date abandoned for

the same reason as that for the repeal of the hearth money. The monthly

assessment was tried in 1688; then came an income tax followed by

"twelve months'" assessments in 1690 and 1691. The way was thus prepared

for the property tax of 1692, imposing a rate of 4s. in the pound on

real estate, offices and personal property. The old difficulties of

securing returns made the tax chiefly one on land. It was under the name

of "the land tax" that it was generally known. The 4s. rate brought in

L1,922,712, a return which declined in the following years. To meet this

a fixed quota of nearly half a million (a 1s. rate) was adopted in 1697,

the amount to be apportioned in specified sums to the several counties

and towns. The framework of the tax remained without substantial change

till 1798, the time of Pitt's redemption scheme. In 1696 houses were

taxed 2s. each, with higher rates for extra windows. The beginning of

the "window tax," licences on pedlars, and a temporary tax on the stocks

of companies complete the imposts of this kind. Stamp duties--imitated

from Holland--were adopted in 1694 and extended in 1698: they mark the

beginnings of the modern duties on transactions and the "death duties."

Large additions were made to the excise. Breweries and distilleries were

placed under charge, and such important commodities as salt, coal, malt,

leather and glass were included in the list of taxable articles, but the

two last mentioned were soon relieved for the time. The customs rates

were also increased. In 1698 the general 5% duty was raised by the new

subsidy to 10%. French goods became liable to surtaxes, first of 25%,

afterwards of 50%; those of other countries had to pay similar charges

of smaller amount. Spirits, wines, tea and coffee were taxed at special

rates. How great was the expansion of the fiscal system may be best

realized from the fact that during the comparatively short reign of

William III. (1689-1702) the land tax produced L19,200,000, the customs

L13,296,000, and the excise L13,650,000, or altogether L46,000,000. In

the last year of the reign, the opening one of the 18th century, the

returns from these taxes respectively were: land tax (at 2s.), L990,000,

customs L1,540,000, excise L986,000, or a total exceeding three and a

half millions. The removal of the regular export duties in respect of

(a) domestic woollen manufactures, (b) corn, was the only alleviation of

taxation, and in both cases it was due to special reasons of policy.

Quite as remarkable as the growth of revenue is the sudden appearance of

the use of public loans. In earlier periods a ruler had accumulated

treasure (Henry VII. left L1,800,000) or had pledged "his jewels or the

customs or occasionally the persons of his friends for the payment" of

his borrowings. Edward III.'s dealings with the Florentine bankers are

well known; but it was only after the Revolution that the two conditions

essential for a permanent public debt were realized, viz.: (1) the

responsibility of the government to the people, and (2) an effective

market for floating capital. At the close of the war in 1697 a debt of

L21,500,000 had been incurred, over L16,000,000 of which remained due at

William III.'s death. Connected with the public debt is the foundation

of the Bank of England (see BANKS AND BANKING), which more and more

became the agent for dealing with the state revenue and expenditure;

though the exchequer continued to exist until 1834 as a real, even if

antiquated institution.

Thus it is clear that by the end of the 17th century the new influences

which date from the Civil War had brought into being all the elements of

the modern financial system. Expenditure, revenue, borrowing to meet

deficiencies are all, in a sense, developed into their present-day form.

Increase in amount and some refinements in procedure, combined with

improved views of public policy, are the only changes that occur later

on.

Regarded broadly, the 18th and 19th centuries exhibit several distinct

periods with definite financial aspects. In the ninety years from the

death of William III. (1702) to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War

with France (1793) there are four serious wars, covering nearly

thirty-five years. There is the long peace administration of Walpole,

and there are the shorter intervals of rest following each of the

contests. From the beginning of the war with the French Republic to the

year of Waterloo there is a nearly unbroken war time of over twenty

years. The forty years' peace is closed by the Crimean War (1854-56);

and another forty years of peace ends with the South African War

(1899-1902). During this time the older mercantilism passes into

protectionism; and this, again, gives way before the gradual adoption of

the free trade policy. At each time of war, taxation (particularly in

the indirect form) and debt increase. Financial reform is connected with

the maintenance of peace. Among the great financial ministers Walpole,

the younger Pitt, Peel and Gladstone are conspicuous; while Huskisson's

services in the kindred field of economic policy deserve special notice

in their financial bearing.

By taking the several great heads of revenue in order it is

comparatively easy to understand the nature of the progress made in

subsequent years. (1) The land tax, established on a definite basis in

1692, was the great 18th century form of direct taxation. Varying in

rate from 1s. (as in 1731) to 4s. (as in most war years), it was

converted by Pitt in 1798 into a redeemable charge on the lands of each

parish, and by this process has sunk from the amount of L1,911,000 in

1798 to L730,000 in 1907-1908. The great increase in other heads had

impaired the value of the land tax as a fiscal support. (2) Parallel

with the movement of the land tax but showing much more rapid growth was

the excise of the 18th century. Most of the articles of common

consumption were permanently taxed. Soap, salt, candles and leather are

described by Adam Smith as taxed, and that taxation is unreservedly

condemned by him. In 1739 the excise duties brought in L3,000,000. By

1792 they had risen to L10,000,000. Their continued expansion was due

both to the wider area covered and to the increased consuming power of

the country. (3) The customs were equally serviceable, and in their case

the increased duties were even more considerable. The general 10% of

1698 became 15% in 1704, a fourth 5% was imposed in 1748, and in 1759

the general duties were raised to 25%. Coincidently with this general

extension of the customs duties special articles such as tea were

subjected to increased duties. The American War of Independence brought

about a further general increase of 10%, together with special extra

duties on tobacco and sugar. In 1784 the customs revenue came to over

L3,000,000. Two circumstances account for this slower growth. (1) The

extreme rigour of the duties and prohibitions, aimed chiefly against

French trade; and (2) the absence of care in estimating the point of

maximum productiveness for each duty. Swift's famous saying that "in the

arithmetic of the customs two and two sometimes, made only one" is well

exemplified in England at this time. The smuggler did a great deal of

the foreign trade of the country. Efforts at reform were not, however,

altogether wanting. Walpole succeeded in carrying several useful

adjustments. He abolished the general duties on exports and also several

of those on imported raw materials such as silk, beaver, indigo and

colonial timber. His most ambitious scheme--that for the warehousing of

wine and tobacco in order to relieve exporters--failed, in consequence

of the popular belief that it was the forerunner of a general excise.

Walpole's treatment of the land tax, which he kept down to the lowest

figure (1s.), and his earlier funding plan deserve notice. His

determination to preserve peace assisted his fiscal reforms. Pitt's

administration from 1783 to 1792 marks another great period of

improvement. The consolidation of the customs laws (1787), the reduction

of the tea duty to nearly one-tenth of its former amount, the conclusion

of a liberal commercial treaty with France, and the attempted trade

arrangement with Ireland, tend to show that "Pitt would have anticipated

many of the free trade measures of later years if it had been his lot to

enjoy ten more years of peaceful administration." One of the financial

problems which excited the interest and even the alarm of the students

of public affairs was the rapid increase of the public debt. Each war

caused a great addition to the burden; the intervals of peace showed

very little diminution in it. From sixteen millions in 1702, the debt

rose to L53,000,000 at the treaty of Utrecht (1713). In 1748 it reached

L78,000,000, at the close of the Seven Years' War it was L137,000,000,

and when the American colonies had established their independence it

exceeded L238,000,000. Apprehensions of national bankruptcy led to the

adoption of the device of a sinking fund, and in this case Pitt's usual

sagacity seems to have failed him. The influence of R. Price's theory

induced the policy of assigning special sums for debt reduction, without

regard to the fundamental condition of maintaining a real surplus.

The revolutionary and Napoleonic wars mark an important stage in English

finance. The national resources were strained to the utmost, and the

"whip and spur" of taxation was used on all classes of the community. In

the earlier years of the struggle the expedient of borrowing enabled the

government to avoid the more oppressive forms of charge; but as time

went on every possible expedient was brought into play. One class of

taxes had been organized during peace--the "assessed taxes" on houses,

carriages, servants; horses, plate, &c. These duties were raised by

several steps of 10% each until, in 1798, their total charge was

increased threefold (for richer persons four- or fivefold) under the

plan of a "triple assessment." The comparative failure of this scheme

(which did not bring in the estimated yield of L4,500,000) prepared the

way for the most important development of the tax system--the

introduction of the income-tax in 1798. Though a development of the

triple assessment, the income-tax was also connected with the permanent

settlement of the land tax as a redeemable charge. It is possible to

trace the progress of direct taxation from the scutage of Norman days

through "the tenth and fifteenth," the Tudor "subsidies," the

Commonwealth "monthly assessments," and the 18th century land tax, to

the income-tax as applied by Pitt, and, after an interval of disuse,

revived by Peel (1842). The immediate yield of the income-tax was rather

less than was expected (L6,000,000 out of L7,500,000); but by alteration

of the mode of assessment from that of a general declaration to returns

under the several schedules, the tax became, first at 5%, afterwards at

10%, the most valuable part of the revenue. In 1815 it contributed 22%

of the total receipts (i.e. L14,600,000 out of L67,000,000). If employed

at the beginning of the war, it would probably have obviated most of the

financial difficulties of the government. The window tax, which

continued all through the 18th century, had been supplemented in the

American War by a tax on inhabited houses (one of Adam Smith's many

suggestions), a group to which the assessment taxes were naturally

joined. During the 18th century the probate duty had been gradually

raised, and in 1780 the legacy duty was introduced; but these charges

were moderate in character and did not affect land. Though the direct

and quasi-direct taxes had been so largely increased, their growth was

eclipsed by that of the excise and customs. With each succeeding year of

war new articles for duties were detected and the rates of old taxes

raised. The maxim, said to have guided the financiers of another

country--"Wherever you see an object, tax it"--would fairly express the

guiding policy of the English system of the early 19th century.

Eatables, liquors, the materials of industry, manufactures, and the

transactions of commerce had in nearly all their forms to pay toll. To

take examples:--salt paid 15s. per bushel; sugar 30s. per cwt.; beer

10s. per barrel (with 4s. 5d. per bushel on malt and a duty on hops);

tea 96% _ad valorem_. Timber, cotton, raw silk, hemp and bar iron were

taxed, so were leather, soap, glass, candles, paper and starch. In spite

of the need of revenue, many of the customs duties were framed on the

protective system and thereby gave little returns; e.g. the import duty

on salt in 1815 produced L547, as against L1,616,124 from excise;

pill-boxes brought in 18s. 10d., saltpetre 2d., with 1d. for the war

duties. The course of the war taxation was marked by varied experiments.

Duties were raised, lowered, raised again, or given some new form in the

effort to find additional revenue. Some duties, e.g. that on gloves,

were abandoned as unproductive; but the conclusion is irresistible that

the financial system suffered from over-complication and absence of

principle. In the period of his peace administration Pitt was prepared

to follow the teaching of _The Wealth of Nations_. The strain of a

gigantic war forced him and his successors to employ whatever heads of

taxation were likely to bring in funds without violating popular

prejudices. Along with taxation, debt increased. For the first ten years

the addition to it averaged L27,000,000 per annum, bringing the total to

over L500,000,000. By the close of the war period in 1815 the total

reached over L875,000,000, or a somewhat smaller annual increase--a

result due to the adoption of more effective tax forms, and particularly

the income tax. The progress of English trade was another contributing

agency towards securing higher revenue. The import of articles such as

tea advanced with the growing population; so that the tea duty of 96%

yielded in 1815 no less than L3,591,000. It is, however, true that by

the year just mentioned the tax system had reached its limit. Further

extension (except by direct confiscation of property) was hardly

possible. The war closed victoriously at the moment when its

prolongation seemed unendurable.

A particular aspect of the English financial system is its relation to

the organization of the finance of territories connected with the

English crown. The exchequer may be plausibly held to have been derived

from Normandy, and wherever territory came under English rule the

methods familiar at home seem to have been adopted. With the loss of the

French possessions the older cases of the kind disappeared. Ireland,

however, had its own exchequer, and Scotland remained a distinct

kingdom. The 18th century introduced a remarkable change. One of the

aims of the union with Scotland was to secure freedom of commerce

throughout Great Britain, and the two revenue systems were amalgamated.

Scotland was assigned a very moderate share of the land tax (under

one-fortieth), and was exempted from certain stamp duties. The attempt

to apply selected forms of taxation--custom duties (1764), stamp duties

(1765), and finally the effort to collect the tea duty (1773)--to the

American colonies are indications of a movement towards what would now

be called "imperialist" finance. The complete plan of federation for the

British empire, outlined by Adam Smith, is avowedly actuated by

financial considerations. Notwithstanding the failure of this movement

in the case of the colonies, the close of the century saw it successful

in respect to Ireland, though separate financial departments were

retained till after the close of the Napoleonic War and some fiscal

differences still remain. By the consolidation of the English and Irish

exchequers and the passage from war to peace, the years between 1815 and

1820 may be said to mark a distinct step in the financial development of

the country. The connected change in the Bank of England by the

resumption of specie payments supports this view. Moreover, the

political conditions in their influence on finance were undergoing a

revolution. The landed interest, though powerful at the moment, had

henceforth to face the rivalry of the wealthy manufacturing communities

of the north of England, and it may be added that the influence of

theoretic discussion was likely to be felt in the treatment of the

financial policy of the nation. Canons as to the proper system of

administration, taxation and borrowing come to be noticed by statesmen

and officials.

These influences may be followed out in their working by observing the

chief lines of adjustment and modification that followed the conclusion

of peace. Relieved from the extraordinary outlay of the preceding years,

the government felt bound to propose reductions. With commendable

prudence it was resolved to retain the income-tax at 5% (one-half of the

former rate), and to join with this reduction the removal of some war

duties on malt and spirits. Popular feeling against direct taxation was

so strong that the income-tax had to be surrendered _in toto_, a course

which seriously embarrassed the finances of the following years. For

over twenty-five years the income-tax remained in abeyance, to the great

detriment of the revenue system. Its revival by Peel (1842), intended as

a temporary expedient, proved its services as a permanent tax: it has

continued and expanded considerably since. Both the excise and customs

at the close of the war were marked by some of the worst defects of a

vicious kind of taxation. The former had the evil effect of restricting

the progress of industry and hampering invention. The raw materials and

the auxiliary substances of industry were in many cases raised in price.

The duties on salt and glass specially illustrated the bad results of

the excise. New processes were hindered and routine made compulsory. The

customs duties were still more restrictive of trade; as they practically

excluded foreign manufactures, and were both costly and in many

instances unproductive of revenue. As G. R. Porter has shown, the really

profitable customs taxes were few in number. Less than a score of

articles contributed more than nineteen-twentieths of the revenue from

import duties. The duties on transactions, levied chiefly by stamps,

were ill-graded and lacking in comprehensiveness. From the standpoint of

equity the ground for criticism was equally plain. The great weight of

taxation fell on the poorer classes. The owners of land escaped giving

any return for the property that they held under the state, and other

persons were not taxed in proportion to their abilities, which had been

long recognized as the proper criterion.

The grievance as to distribution has been modified, if not removed, by

the great development of (1) the income-tax, (2) the "death" or

inheritance duties. Beginning at the rate of 7d. per pound (1842-1854),

the income-tax was raised to 1s. 4d. for the Crimean War, and then

continued at varying rates; reduced to 2d. in 1874, it rose to 5d., then

in 1894 to 8d., and by 1909 appeared to be fixed as a minimum at 1s., or

5% on income from property. The yield per penny on the L has risen

almost uninterruptedly. From L710,000 in 1842, it now exceeds

L2,800,000, though the exemptions and abatements are much more

extensive. In fact, all incomes of L3 per week are absolutely free (L160

per annum is the precise exemption limit), and an income of L400 derived

from personal exertion pays less than 5-1/2d. per pound, or 2-1/4%. The

great productiveness of the tax is equally remarkable. From L5,600,000

in 1843 (with a rate of 7d.) the return rose to L32,380,000 in

1907-1908, having been at the maximum of L38,800,000 in 1902-1903, with

a tax rate of 6-1/4%. The income-tax thus supplies about one-fifth of

the total revenue, or one-fourth of that obtained by taxation. Several

fundamental questions of finance are connected with the taxation of

income and have been dealt with by English practice. Small incomes claim

lenient treatment; and, as mentioned above, this leniency means in

England complete freedom. Again, earned incomes appear to represent

lower ability to pay than unearned ones. Long refused on practical

grounds (as by Gladstone and Lowe), the concession of an abatement of

25% on earned incomes of L2000 and under was granted in 1907. The

question whether savings should be exempt from taxation as income has

(with the exception of life insurance premiums) been decided in the

negative. Allowances for depreciation and cost of repairs are partially

recognized. Far more important than these special problems is the

general one of increased tax rates on large incomes. Up to 1908-1909 the

tax above the abatement limit of L700 remained strictly proportional;

but opinion showed a decided tendency in favour of extra rates or a

"super tax" on incomes above an assigned amount (e.g. L5000), and this

was included in the budget of 1909-1910 (see INCOME-TAX).

In close relation with the income-tax is the estate duty, with its

adjuncts of Legacy and Succession Duties. After Pitt's failure to carry

the succession duty in 1796, no change was made till Gladstone's

introduction in 1853 of a duty on land and settled property parallel to

the legacy duty on free personality. Apart from certain minor

alterations, the really vital change was the extension in 1894 of the

old Probate Duty into a comprehensive impost (entitled the Estate Duty)

applicable to all the possessions of a deceased person. This

"Inheritance Tax"--to give it its scientific title--operates as a

complementary property tax, and is thus an addition to the contribution

from incomes derived from large properties. By graduation the charges on

large estates in 1908-1909 (before the proposal for further increase in

1909-1910) came to 10% on L1,000,000, and reached the maximum of 15% at

L3,500,000. From the several forms of the "Inheritance Taxes" the

national revenue gained L14,500,000, with 4-1/2 millions as a

supplementary yield for local finance. The immense expansion of direct

taxation is evident on comparing 1840 with 1908. In the former year the

Probate and legacy duties brought in about one million; the other direct

taxes, even including the "House duty," did not raise the total to

L3,000,000. In 1908 the direct taxation of property and income supplied

L51,500,000, or one-third of the total receipts as against less than

one-twentieth in 1840.

But though this wider employment of direct taxation--a characteristic of

European finance generally--reduced the _relative_ position of the

taxation of commodities, there was a growth in the absolute amount

obtained from this category of duties. There were also considerable

alterations, the result of changes in the views respecting fiscal

policy. At the close of the Great War the excise duties were at first

retained, and even in some cases increased. After some years reforms

began. The following articles amongst others were freed from charge:

salt (1825); leather and candles (1830); glass (1845); soap (1853); and

paper (1860). The guiding principles were: (1) the removal of raw

materials from the list of goods liable to excise, (2) the limitation of

the excise to a small number of productive articles, with (3) the

placing of the greater part (practically nearly the whole) of this form

of taxation on alcoholic drinks. Apart from breweries and distilleries,

the excise had little field for its work. The large revenue of

L35,700,000 in 1907-1908 was derived one-half from spirits

(L17,700,000), over one-third from beer, while most of the remainder was

obtained from business taxation in the form of licences, the raising of

which was one of the features of the budget in 1909. As a feeder of the

revenue the excise might be regarded as equal to the income-tax, but

less to be relied on in times of depression. Valuable as were the

reforms of the excise after 1820, they were insignificant as compared

with the changes in the customs. The particular circumstances of English

political life have led to perhaps undue emphasis being placed on this

particular branch of financial development. Between 1820 and 1860 the

customs system was transformed from a highly complicated arrangement of

duties, pressing with severity on nearly all foreign imports, into a

simple and easily understood set of charges on certain specially

selected commodities. All favours or preferences to home or colonial

producers disappeared. Expressed in financial terms, all duties were

imposed "for revenue only," and estimated in reference to their

productiveness. An assimilation between the excise and customs rates

necessarily followed. The stages of the development under the guidance

of (1) Huskisson, (2) Peel, and (3) Gladstone are commonly regarded as

part of the movement for Free Trade; but the financial working of the

alteration is understood only by remembering that the duties removed by

"tens" or by "hundreds" were quite trivial in yield, and did not involve

any serious loss to the revenue. Perhaps the most remarkable feature of

the English customs of the 19th century was the steadiness of the

receipts. In spite of trade depressions, commercial crises and sweeping

changes in rates, the annual revenue in the period 1815-1900 only varied

between L19,000,000 and L24,000,000; though, on balance, duties

amounting to L30,000,000 were remitted. The potential resources of this

branch of revenue were made evident in the rapid rise of the yield by

the new taxation imposed for the South African War (1899-1902). In

consequence of this increase the customs became equal to the excise in

return, and, combined, they collected over L60,000,000 annually from the

consumption of commodities. They accordingly afforded a counterpoise to

the burden put on income and property, or, more accurately speaking,

they obtained due, or somewhat more than due, contribution from the

smaller incomes, particularly those of the working class.

The exemption of raw materials and food; the absence of duties on

imported, as on home manufactures; the selection of a small number of

articles for duty; the rather rigorous treatment of spirits and tobacco,

were the salient marks of the English fiscal system which grew up in the

19th century. The part of the system most criticised was the very narrow

list of dutiable articles. Why, it was asked, should a choice be made of

certain objects for the purpose of imposing heavy taxation on them? The

answer has been that they were taken as typical of consumption in

general and were easily supervised for taxation. Moreover, the sumptuary

element is introduced by the policy of putting exceptionally heavy

duties on spirits and tobacco, with lighter charges on the less

expensive wines and beers. Facility of collection and distribution of

taxation over a larger class appear to be the grounds for the inclusion

of the tea and coffee duties, which are further supported by the need

for obtaining a contribution of, roughly speaking, over half the tax

revenue by duties on commodities. The last consideration led, at the

beginning of the 20th century, to the sugar tax and the temporary duties

on imported corn and exported coal.

As a support to the great divisions of income-tax, Death Duties, Excise

and Customs, the stamps, fees and miscellaneous taxes are of decided

service. A return of L9,000,000 was secured by stamp duties.

In recent years the so-called "non-tax" revenue largely increased, owing

to the extension of the postal and telegraphic services. The real gain

is not so great, as out of gross receipts of L22,000,000 over

L17,500,000 is absorbed in expenses, while the carriage of ordinary

letters seems to be the only profitable part of these services. Crown

lands and rights (such as vintage charges) are of even less financial

value.

One cardinal principle of the greatest English finance ministers has

been the avoidance of deficits or undue surpluses. Gladstone's

inheritance of doctrine from Peel "was to estimate expenditure

liberally, to estimate revenue carefully, to make each year pay its own

expenses, and to take care that your charge is not greater than your

income." This method of treatment requires that taxation shall be

productive in yield, and that it shall be so elastic as to admit of

expansion, a function specially assigned to the income-tax. It may also

be said to involve due care in the treatment of the national resources.

The reaction of ill-chosen taxes on industry is a hindrance to their

productiveness and their growth.

AUTHORITIES.--The constitutional historians--Stubbs, Gneist,

Hallam--deal with the legal and constitutional aspects of finance.

Special financial histories are: Sir J. Sinclair, _History of the

Public Revenue of the British Empire_ (3 vols., 3rd ed., London,

1803); S. Dowell, _History of Taxation and Taxes in England_ (4 vols.,

2nd ed., London, 1888); Schanz, _Englische Handelspolitik_ (2 vols.,

Leipzig, 1881), and H. Hall, _History of the Customs Revenue of

England_ (2 vols., London, 1885), are valuable for the earlier

periods. W. Cunningham, _Growth of English Industry and Commerce_ (2

vols., Cambridge, 1903-1907); H. O. Meredith, _Economic History of

England_ (London, 1908), devote sections to finance. A. Smith, _Wealth

of Nations_ (1776), Tooke and Newmarch, _History of Prices_ (6 vols.,

London, 1837-1856), give financial details. G. R. Porter, _Progress of

the Nation_ (3rd ed., London, 1851); Sir S. Northcote, _Twenty Years

of Financial Policy_ (London, 1862); S. Buxton, _Finance and Politics_

(2 vols., London, 1888); J. R. McCulloch, _Taxation and Funding_ (3rd

ed., London, 1863); W. M. J. Williams, _The King's Revenue_ (London,

1908), for 19th-century finance. (C. F. B.)