Chapter 35 Chapter III Public Bonds

In a savage society without commerce and manufactures, where high-priced luxuries were not well understood, those with more income had no other means of consumption and enjoyment than could support many.Possessing wealth means having plenty of the necessities of life at all times.At that time, although the rich man could have many necessities of life, such as clothing, raw materials for food-grain, livestock, wool and hides, etc., he could not find other items to exchange most of his remaining necessities.These remaining necessities, therefore, have no other use than to support a few more persons.In such cases, the rich (or powerful) are generally not liable to bankruptcy, provided they refrain from very extravagant hospitality and favors, as that differs from mere self-interest.When it comes to pure self-interested pleasure, it can be illustrated by the example of the cockfight in the past.At the time, even smart people were bankrupted by that frenzy.Frugal hospitality and favors, however, do not bankrupt many.

In feudal times, the same family generally maintained the same piece of land for a long time.It can be seen from this that people at that time were very diligent and thrifty in their lives.Some big landlords often hold frugal and simple hospitality. Although on the surface, this seems to be against the good order of financial life, it is undeniable that they at least know how to be frugal.Usually, big landowners would sell some wool or hides to obtain currency.They would use part of the currency to buy certain vanities and luxuries of the time to enjoy, and then store the other part.And the reason they're hoarding that currency is actually because they don't know how to use it.In those days it was not a very honorable thing for a gentleman to use his surplus money in business, and still less in lending money, since the law had long since made money lending illegal.Moreover, in that chaotic era, people may be driven out of their homes one day, so some currency is left in their hands to escape in case they are needed.It can be said that the main reason why people hid currency was the social instability at that time.We can know from the buried objects and unclaimed objects that are often found that hiding currency seems to be a very common thing at that time.There was even a period when monarchs considered buried objects an important source of income.But now, even adding up all the buried objects in the country may not be worth the main income of a wealthy gentleman.

At that time, not only the people practiced thrift and savings, but even the monarchs kept the good habit of saving.I have observed in the fourth book of this work, that in those countries where commerce and manufactures are undeveloped, the prince will naturally maintain the habit of saving and saving, due to the social circumstances.For in that case, even if the prince were vain, he could not spend his income freely.He wished, for example, to adorn his court richly, but at that time a few worthless trifles constituted all the decorations of his court.At that time the state had no standing army, and therefore the prince, like other great lords, had no other use for his income than to reward his tenants and entertain his retainers.Of course, rewards and entertainment are generally temperate, and only the vanity of the heart can lead to unrestrained extravagance.Therefore, all the monarchs in Europe at that time possessed a lot of wealth.Now, I heard that even every Tatar chief still has a lot of treasures.

However, in present-day commercial states, where luxury goods of all kinds are plentiful, the sovereign, like other great landowners, naturally spends the greater part of his income on luxury goods.For example, he adorned his court with great splendor and splendor with all kinds of expensive ornaments from his own and neighboring countries.And the nobles are the same, but what they pursue is a lower level of magnificence.To accomplish that pursuit, they not only dismissed the retainers, but also made the tenants independent.As a result, they, too, slowly lost their authority, and ended up being like most other rich people.The pursuit of pleasure by the nobles also affected the monarch.Just think, if every rich person in the domain is seeking pleasure, how can the monarch do nothing?Even if he does not spend a large part of his income on pleasure, thereby weakening his defense (as he often does), he consumes all that which exceeds his needs.His income, therefore, was about the same as his usual expenses; as long as his expenses did not exceed his income, thank God, there was no way he could be expected to save wealth.When there is an urgent need, he will only ask the people for assistance.For example, after the death of King Henry IV of France in 1610, only the current and former kings of Prussia had saved a lot of wealth in Europe at that time.Even republican governments rarely practice thrift and savings.For example, the Italian republics and the Dutch republic, not to mention savings, are still in debt.However, the Berne Federation was a special case. It saved a lot of wealth at that time; but none of the other federations in the Swiss Republic had any savings.As the saying goes, everyone has the love of beauty.Not to mention the magnificent decoration of the royal palaces of those big countries. However, the parliament halls of some small republics are also made like this, which is a bit extravagant and wasteful.

If a country does not practice strict economy in peacetime, then when war breaks out, there will be no other income in the treasury for urgent needs except the necessary expenses for maintaining peacetime facilities, so it can only borrow money.We all know that the national defense expenditure in wartime is three or four times that in normal times.That is to say, the income needed in time of war is three or four times that of ordinary income, and it is almost impossible for the monarch to immediately increase the income in proportion to the increase in expenses.Even if he has a way, he still adopts the method of collecting taxes from people. However, it often takes ten or even twelve months for the collected taxes to enter the national treasury.The outbreak of war requires the country to immediately increase the army, equip the fleet, fortify the cities where the defense troops are stationed, and provide weapons, ammunition, and food.That is to say, the moment war breaks out, the state must immediately pay a large amount of expenses; and this expense cannot be solved by slowly collecting taxes.Therefore, in this emergency situation, the government has no other way but to borrow money.

It can be seen from the above that the state of commercial society brings the necessity of borrowing by the state, and it will also bring about the convenience of borrowing.Because it enables people to have the ability and willingness to take out loans.In countries where there are many merchants and manufacturers, there is a man who has in his hands not only his own capital, but also the capital of those who have lent him money or entrusted him with his business, and this capital turns over in his hands a great deal.In contrast, those private capitals that are not engaged in business generally only turn over once a year in their own hands.But for a businessman who can quickly recover his principal and interest from his business, all his capital and credit can generally be turned over in his own hands three or four times a year.Hence, in countries where there are many merchants and manufacturers, many are both willing and able to lend to the government.

In a country without a formal judicial administration system, people will always feel insecure about their property and have no confidence in whether people will abide by the contract; in a country without sound laws, people's creditor's rights cannot be guaranteed by legal force.In these countries commerce and manufactures certainly cannot be long developed.In a word, when the people lose confidence in the justice of the government, the commerce and manufactures of this country will certainly not develop in the long run.Because, if big merchants and big factory owners trust the government at ordinary times, they dare to entrust their property to the government for protection, and then they dare to hand over their property to the government for use when the country is in urgent need.Since the government is in dire need of money, it borrows on extremely favorable terms.The lending to the government, therefore, so far from lessening the power of the people to carry on commerce and manufactures, increases that power.In addition, creditors can also obtain the following benefits: on the one hand, the guaranty given by the government to the original creditor can be transferred among any creditors; on the other hand, because the people trust the government, the guaranty of the government can also be sold in the market very high price.Thus, a businessman or a rich man who lends money to the government can benefit from it and thereby increase his trading capital.This is why the people of commercial nations are very willing to lend to their governments.However, in this kind of country, the above-mentioned situation also has a negative effect, that is, the government is easy to think that if the people are able and willing to lend money to the country when the country is in urgent need, it will not practice strict economy in ordinary times.

In savage societies without commerce and manufactures, men hide their savings because they do not trust the government.Also, they are afraid that the government will loot their currency if they know where it is hidden.Under such circumstances, when the government is at stake, few people are willing and able to lend money to the government.The monarch has long known the difficulty of borrowing, so he usually saves money in case of emergencies. In almost all the great countries of Europe there is an ever-increasing debt; the nationals of all countries suffer from it, and may one day be bankrupt.Like private borrowing, the state initially borrows on the state's credit and does not require specific income or collateral as collateral.However, when the creditor no longer trusts the debtor, if the debtor wants to continue borrowing, he must use certain income as guarantee.

In Great Britain its unsecured bonds are borrowed on credit.There are two kinds of unsecured public debt: one is a debt without interest, which is equivalent to an accounting debt between private individuals;Debts of the former kind generally include: debts due to special services, unpaid balances on various services, part of the temporary expenses of the army, navy, and ordnance, unpaid balances on grants to foreign kings, and unpaid salaries of seamen balance etc.The latter type of debt generally includes: Navy securities or Treasury securities issued for a portion of the debt and for other purposes.Among them, the Ministry of Finance securities, the interest will be calculated from the date of issuance; the Navy securities, the interest will be calculated from six months after the issuance.In addition, for the above-mentioned securities, the Bank of England will take two measures: one is to automatically discount these securities according to the market price; the other is to make the securities of the Ministry of Finance circulate in the market through the conditions agreed with the government.Generally speaking, the condition of circulation is to purchase securities at face value and pay corresponding interest.This preserves the value of securities and allows the government to borrow huge amounts of public debt.In contrast, since France has no banks, its national securities are sometimes sold at sixty or seventy per cent.During the period when William re-minted currency, because the Bank of England stopped its daily business, Treasury securities could only be sold at a price of 25% to 60%.However, in addition to the fact that the Bank of England did not provide assistance, the new government has not yet settled down just after the revolution is also a reason.

When the government needed to guarantee borrowing with specific revenues, at different times, the government used two different methods.One is called the advance payment method, which means that in the case of short-term mortgages (one year or several years), the mortgage income can pay off the principal and interest of the borrowed currency within a certain period of time; the other is called the permanent interest payment method , which refers to the case of long-term mortgages, where the mortgage income is only enough to pay interest or long-term annuities, and cannot repay the principal.

The British government was constantly embezzling the annual land and malt taxes on the terms of the loans.The specific operating procedure is that the Bank of England first advances the loan and collects interest, and after the tax is paid into the treasury, the government returns it to the Bank of England.Since the Revolution, the Bank of England has held interest rates between three and eight percent.When the tax payment of a certain year cannot pay off the principal and interest of the loan, the shortfall will be made up with the tax payment of the next year.Thus, each year, the state spends the unsecured revenues before they enter the treasury.The state, which borrows at interest from its agents and managers, is like the unplanned prodigal, who always borrows with interest in advance of his income for consumption. The method of borrowing money with perpetual interest was not so popular in most of the time of King William and Queen Anne than it is now.At that time, most new taxes were limited to a short period of time, such as four, five, six or seven years.The country's annual borrowing is for the expenditure of the national treasury. These borrowings can be considered as pre-appropriation of these taxes.However, the tax is generally not enough to pay the principal and interest of the loan within a limited period, so the shortfall can only be made up by extending the tax collection period.For example, in 1697, the second decree of the eighth year of William III stipulated that the tax collection period that was about to expire was extended to August 1, 1706, in order to make up for the lack of tax.The provisions of this Act were known at the time as the First General Mortgage or Fund.The total amount to be replenished from the fund at that time amounted to £5,164,590, £14s. nine-and-a-halfpence. In 1701, for the same purpose, the collection period of various taxes was extended to August 1, 1710.This is called a second total mortgage or fund.The total amount that needs to be replenished this time is £2,055,999 pounds seven shillings eleven and a halfpence. In 1707, these taxes were extended to August 1, 1712, as a fund for a new public bond.This is called a third total mortgage or fund.The total amount to be replenished this time was nine hundred and eighty-three thousand two hundred and fifty-four pounds eleven shillings nine and a quarter pence. In 1708, except for the two old subsidy taxes, the half-ton tax and the pound tax, and the Scottish linen import tax abolished in England and Scotland, other taxes were extended to August 1, 1714 as a new public bond fund. day.This is called a fourth total mortgage or fund.The total amount of this fund replenishment was nine hundred and twenty-five thousand one hundred and seventy-six pounds nine shillings two and a quarterpence. In 1709, in addition to the two old subsidy taxes, tonnage and poundage, these taxes were extended to August 1, 1716, for the same purpose.This is known as a fifth gross mortgage or fund.The total amount of this fund replenishment was £922,029 six shillings. In 1710, these taxes were extended until August 1, 1720, in what became known as the Sixth General Mortgage or Fund.The total amount of the funds replenished this time is 1,296,967 pounds 9 shillings 11 and 3/4pence.By 1711, due to the payment of principal and interest on four advances, these and other levies were provided for perpetuity and continuation as a fund for payment of interest on the capital of the South Sea Company.In that year, the government had borrowed from the South Sea Company a total of 9,177,967 pounds 15 shillings and 4 pence to repay debts and make up for the lack of tax revenue.It was also the largest loan at the time. Prior to this, the taxes permanently levied to pay interest on debts included only the following three types: 1. to pay interest on loans from the Bank of England; 2. to pay interest on loans to the East India Company; 3. to pay interest on loans to the Land Bank. .Among them, the land bank at that time was only in the plan, but it was not realized later.At that time, the Bank of England's loan to the government amounted to £3,375,027 £17s. Five hundred and one pounds thirteen shillings and five pence; the East India Company's loans to the government amounted to three and a half million pounds at an annual interest rate of one per cent, and the interest amounted to one hundred and sixty thousand pounds. In 1715, Act No. 12 of the first year of George I provided that, for the payment of the Bank of England's annual interest and other annuities and debts, those various taxes as security and other taxes imposed in perpetuity under the Act, together established a common total fund.Moreover, the provisions of George I's No. 8 Act in three years and No. 3 Act in five years have increased the fund, and stipulated that various additional taxes will be collected permanently. In 1717, the Seventh Act of the Three Years of George I made other taxes permanent.And they also form a mutual fund, known as a general fund.The annual interest paid on this fund amounted to £724,849 pounds six shillings ten and a halfpence. The provisions of the above decrees have resulted in two results: one is that most of the taxes that used to be short-term advances have now become permanent taxes; the other is that the purpose of these taxes has changed from paying the principal of the loan to paying interest. When the government borrows on an advance basis, it only needs to pay attention to two things to pay off the debt within a few years.One is to keep the fund's debts within a limited period not exceeding the amount it can afford, and the other is not to make a second advance before the first advance is paid off.However, the governments of most European countries have not paid attention to these two points.They often initiate a second or third advance before the first advance is paid off; or they place an undue burden on the fund while the first advance is being paid.If this situation continues, the fund established by the above-mentioned law can only pay the interest on the loan or the perpetual annuity, and it is impossible to pay off the principal and interest of the loan.It is precisely because of the disadvantages of this unplanned prepayment method that the government turned to borrowing in the form of permanent interest payment. However, the adverse consequences caused by the permanent interest payment method are more serious.Thus, the burden of state revenue was extended from a certain period to an indefinite period.It cannot be denied, however, that in all cases more money was borrowed by this new method than by the old advance.As a result, whenever the state's expenses are tight, the government adopts new methods of borrowing.Because when the country is in dire straits, those who are directly involved in state affairs are only responsible for solving the country's urgent needs at that time. As for when the loan can be repaid, they think it is a matter for future generations. Later, the market rate of interest fell from six percent to five percent in Queen Anne's time.Also, Queen Anne's Act of Twelve Years stipulated that the maximum legal rate of interest on private mortgages was five per cent.It can be seen from the above that most of the short-term taxes in the UK have become permanent taxes, and these taxes have been used as components of the General Fund, the South Sea Fund and the General Fund.The state's creditors, therefore, had to accept the five per cent rate of interest just as much as private creditors.Thus, when the majority of short-term debt is converted into long-term debt, the government generates a savings of 1 percent between such conversions.In other words, the annual interest paid by the above three funds can be reduced by one-sixth.Thus, after paying the interest on the loans guaranteed each year, each fund has a huge balance.This balance is the basis for future debt relief funds. In 1717 this enormous balance amounted to three hundred and twenty-three thousand four hundred and thirty-four pounds seven shillings seven and a halfpence.By 1727, the rate of interest on most public debt had fallen to 4 percent; in 1753, to 3.5 percent; and in 1757, to 3 percent.As a result, the amount of the above-mentioned debt reduction fund is getting bigger and bigger. Although debt relief funds are set up to pay off old debts, they also facilitate the raising of new debts.In fact, it can be considered a kind of grant, which can be used to make up for the shortage of other funds when the country is in urgent need.In the past, the UK has often used debt relief funds to pay off old debts and borrow new ones. As mentioned earlier, there are two methods of borrowing: advance payment and permanent interest payment.In fact, there are two methods between the two: one is a term annuity loan; the other is a lifetime annuity loan. During the days of King William and Queen Anne, the government generally borrowed money in the form of annuities, with longer or shorter terms.For example, in 1693, an Act of Parliament provided for a loan of £1,000,000 at an annuity of 14 per cent, to be repaid over sixteen years, with an annual annuity (interest) of £140,000. In 1691, there was an act of Parliament stipulating that borrowing one million pounds in the form of a lifetime annuity was actually very beneficial to creditors, but it was not fully borrowed at that time.The following year Parliament took steps to fully borrow the balance.For example, the 14% life annuity loan condition is stipulated to recover the principal within seven years. In 1695, the decree also stipulated that all those who purchased this annuity could exchange 63% of the price from the Ministry of Finance for a 196-year annuity.That is to say, £63 buys the difference between a 14 per cent lifetime annuity and a 14 per cent ninety-six year annuity.Although the purchase conditions were very favorable, not many people were willing to buy due to the unstable status of the government at the time.During the reign of Queen Anne, the government had borrowed many times, and adopted the method of life annuity, thirty-two-year, eighty-nine-year, ninety-eight-year and ninety-nine-year term annuity respectively. In 1719, owners of annuities with a term of thirty-two years enjoyed two preferential policies: one was that their annuities could be exchanged for shares of the South Sea Company with eleven-and-a-half-year annuities; the other was that unpaid amounts owed by the government could be discounted Equivalent shares of the South Sea Company. In 1720, other term annuities of different periods were basically aggregated together to form a fund.The long-term annuities payable by the government at that time amounted to six hundred and sixty-six thousand eight hundred and twenty-one pounds eight shillings three and a halfpence a year.As of January 5, 1777, the uncollected balance of the government was only £136,453 £12 shillings and eight pence. During the wars of 1739 and 1755, the government seldom borrowed on term or life annuities.The monetary value of a 98-year or 99-year annuity is basically the same as a perpetual annuity, so the same amount of money can be borrowed as a perpetual annuity.We know that those who are planning to finance their families are the main buyers of government bonds, but when they buy bonds, they are absolutely unwilling to buy bonds that are constantly declining in value.Therefore, although the intrinsic value of long-term annuity and permanent annuity are similar, not many people are willing to buy the former because it is easy to depreciate.The original creditors of the new debt always wanted to sell the bonds they had subscribed to earlier.A perpetual annuity is more transferrable than a long-term annuity, since its value remains constant as it is repaid by Parliament.Therefore, when the subscription prices are equal, most people are willing to buy permanent annuities instead of long-term annuities.During the two wars mentioned above, the original creditors of new debts could not only get the interest of term annuity or life annuity, but also get an additional bonus. As for how to grant lifetime annuities, the government has adopted the following two methods: one is the method of granting life-long annuities to individuals; the other is the method of granting life-long annuities to a group of people.In France, the second method is known as the Tontine method because it was invented by Tontine.In the case of the first method, if the annuitant dies, the state revenue also relieves this part of the burden.However, according to the Tonting Law, the burden of the state income can only be relieved after all the annuities are dead.That group of people, sometimes twenty or even thirty, of whom the last to die inherits the annuity of the first, and the last survivor inherits the annuity of all.In the case of using the same income as a mortgage loan, because the living person can inherit all the annuities in the Tonting method, when the amount is equal, it has greater value than the annuity that a single person can obtain, so the Tontine method is more valuable than the annuity obtained by a single person. The first method can borrow more money.Because everyone believes in their own luck, the lottery business came into being.It is precisely this kind of self-confidence that the selling price of the Dunting Annuity is generally higher than its actual value.We know that governments generally choose the method by which they can borrow the most money, rather than the method that will relieve the burden of state revenue the fastest.Therefore, when a government borrows in the form of an annuity, it generally uses the Tontine method. Annuities for life constitute a much greater public debt in France than in England.According to the memorandum submitted by the Bordeaux Chamber to the king in 1764, the total public debt of France totaled 2.4 billion livres, of which about 300 million livres were borrowed with life annuities, accounting for one-eighth of the total public debt.It is estimated that this annuity amounted to thirty millions of livres a year, nearly a quarter of the interest on the whole public debt (120 million livres).Although this calculation may not be correct, the value estimated by an important state agency should not be far from the real situation.The difference in the method of borrowing between England and France is not due to the different degrees of willingness of the two governments to relieve the burden of the state, but because of the different interests of the lenders. Everyone knows that the seat of the British government is the largest commercial city in the world.There, basically businessmen provide loans to the government, and the ultimate purpose of businessmen to provide loans is to increase their own business capital.Therefore, he would not lend to the government if he could not make a certain profit on the sale of new bonds.However, when he obtains a life annuity instead of a perpetual annuity, whether the life annuity is his own or someone else's, it is difficult to obtain a higher profit when this annuity is resold.Compared with purchasing your own lifetime annuity, no one is willing to pay the same price when purchasing someone else's lifetime annuity that is similar to your own age and health status.Therefore, when people sell their life annuities, they lose a little bit.For both the buyer and the seller, the life annuity of the third person is of the same value to both the buyer and the seller.However, since the real value of this third-person annuity has already begun to decrease when the annuity is obtained, it has been decreasing during its duration.Therefore, it is difficult for a lifetime annuity to be as easy to transfer as a permanent annuity. Relatively speaking, the seat of the French government is not a large commercial city.There, not all businessmen make loans to the government.When the government's funds are tight, it usually borrows from those who are related to finances, such as tax collectors, tax collectors, and palace bankers.Although these people have low status, they are also very proud because they are rich.They would rather live a single life than marry a woman of equal or even higher status.They have no family of their own, and they are unwilling to socialize with relatives on weekdays.For them, they only want to spend their lives in peace and have enough property.And, in France, there are more rich people who do not like to marry or live in a situation unsuitable for marriage than in England.For these bachelors who have no consideration for posterity, it is best to exchange property for a long-term income. The daily necessary expenses of modern governments are basically consistent with the regular income.Once a war breaks out, it is impossible for the state to immediately increase revenue in proportion to the increase in expenses.The first is that they are unwilling, because a sudden increase of huge taxes will hurt the feelings of the people and make them loathe war;Both of these difficulties are easily solved by borrowing money.Because after the government borrows, it only needs to increase a small amount of taxes to meet the needs of war expenses.Especially when the debt is borrowed with permanent interest payments, the government can get a lot of money without even increasing the tax of the people.Generally speaking, people who live in the capital of a great empire and those who are far away from the battlefield will not feel the inconvenience caused by the war. On the contrary, they will read the feats of their navy and army in newspapers as a kind of "enjoyment".For them, the entertainment would more or less make up for the losses they had incurred in paying wartime taxes.They were not even satisfied with the restoration of peace, because then their "enjoyment" would be gone, and the conquest and glory that war might bring. After peace was restored, most of the taxes raised during the war became security for the interest on the war debt, so they did not abate with the end of the war.After the old and new taxes have been paid for debt interest and necessary government expenses, there is still a surplus, and the remaining part will be transferred to the debt relief fund.However, what needs to be noted here is: 1. The fund is generally used for other purposes; 2. Even if the debt relief fund is not used for other purposes, it is generally not enough to pay off all war debts during peacetime.The sole purpose of imposing the new tax is to pay the interest guaranteed on the borrowing.Even if there is a surplus, the surplus is not much.So debt relief funds are often created because of a reduction in interest payable, not because new tax revenues exceed the amount of interest payable.For example, the debt relief fund in the Netherlands in 1655 and the debt relief fund in the Pope's territory in 1685 were formed by the reduction of interest.Therefore this fund is not sufficient to pay off the debt. In times of national peace, the government always finds it more convenient to embezzle debt-relief funds than to impose new taxes, in order to pay various special necessary expenses.Because no matter what kind of new tax is imposed, the people will oppose it.The more types of taxation and the heavier the tax amount, the stronger people's opposition to the new tax will be, and it will be more difficult to impose a new tax next time.When the people have been burdened with excessive taxes, unless they are forced to save the country because of war, the people can no longer bear new taxes.However, the temporary suspension of debt repayments will not cause immediate opposition to the people's pain.Therefore, misappropriating debt relief funds has often become the first choice to get rid of the current difficulties.However, the greater the public debt, the more dangerous will be the abuse of the debt relief fund, and the more necessary will be the study of its reduction; The bigger the debt relief fund is, the more often it is abused. Ever since the perpetual payment of interest was introduced in Great Britain, the reduction of the public debt in peace has been disproportionate to the increase of the public debt in war.Most of the present great public debt was also caused by the war which began in 1688 and ended in the Treaty of Riswick in 1697. As of December 31, 1697, the long-term and short-term government bonds of the United Kingdom totaled 21,515,742 pounds 13 shillings and eight and a half pence.Among them, a large part is borrowed in the form of short-term advances, and the other part is borrowed in the form of lifetime annuities.Therefore, before December 31, 1701, the government had paid a part of the public debt and paid a part to the treasury, which amounted to £5,121,041 and twelve shillings. Three quarters of a penny.It is very rare to repay so many public debts in such a short period of time.The remaining public debt at that time amounted to only £16,394,701 a shilling seven and a quarterpence. The war, however, begun in 1702 and ended by the Treaty of Utrecht, increased the public debt.By December 31, 1714, the total amount of the public debt was 53,681,076 pounds 5 shillings 6 1/12pence.Later, the fund of the South Sea Company was raised, and the amount of public debt was increased.Thus, on December 31, 1722, the amount of the public debt amounted to 55,282,978 pounds 1 shilling 3 5/6pence.Although debt repayments began in 1723, the speed of repayment was very slow. Until December 31, 1739, the total amount of public debt repaid was only 8,328,354 pounds, 17 shillings, 11 and 12 Three pennies.The remaining public debt amounted to 46,954,623 pounds 3 shillings 4 and 7/12pence. The Spanish War that began in 1739 and the French War that followed added to the public debt. After the war ended on December 31, 1748, with the Treaty of E. la Chapel, the British public debt was as high as £78,293,313 a shilling and ten quarters One penny.The public debt increased by these two wars amounted to £31,338,689 pounds 18 shillings 6 1/6pence.However, the amount of the public debt repaid during the above-mentioned seventeen years was only 8,328,354 pounds 17 shillings 11 and 3/12pence. During Perrin's administration, the interest rate on British public debt was reduced from 4% to 3%, and the increased debt relief fund repaid part of the public debt. In 1755 (before the latest war began) the long-term debt of Great Britain amounted to £72,289,673.When the war ended on January 5, 1763, the long-term public debt of Britain reached 122,603,336 pounds 8 shillings 2 and a quarter pence, of which unsecured public debt One thousand three hundred and ninety-two seven thousand five hundred and eighty-nine pounds two shillings and two pence.However, the costs of the war did not stop with the end of the war. On January 5, 1764, the long-term public debt of Great Britain had increased to £129,586,789 ten shillings and three-quarters pence, partly new bonds, partly It is a long-term public bond converted from an unsecured public bond.一位见识广博的作者在其著作《英国商业和财政考察》中提到，该年度和第二年度，无担保公债还剩有九百九十七万五千零一十七镑十二先令二又四十四分之十五便士。也就是说，在1764年，英国所有的公债达到了一亿三千九百五十一万六千八百零七镑二先令四便士。另外，1757年，采用终生年金举借新公债，国家对原始债权人的奖金数额，按照十四年年金估计，大概是四十七万二千五百镑；1761年和1762年，采用长期年金举借新公债，国家对原始债权人的奖金数额，按照二十七年半年金估计，大概是六十二万六千八百七十五镑。虽然佩兰对国事非常慎重，但是国家在经过七年和平时期之后，不但没有偿还六百万镑的旧债，反而在战争中举借了七千五百万镑以上的新债。 1775年1月5日，英国的长期公债一共是一亿二千四百九十九万六千零八十六镑一先令六又四分之一便士。除去一大笔皇室费用的债务后，无担保的公债是四百一十五万零二百三十六镑三先令十一又八分之七便士。上述两者一共是一亿二千九百一十四万六千三百二十二镑五先令六便士。按照这样计算，国家在十七年的和平年间所偿还的债务，一共只有一千零四十一万五千四百七十四镑十六先令九又八分之七便士。但是，国家并不是靠平时收入的节省来偿还这少数公债的，而更多的是靠外来的款项来偿还的。这些外来款项包括：三年来对土地税每镑增加一先令的税款；东印度公司为占领新的地区而向国家缴纳的二百万镑赔偿金；英格兰银行为更换特许状而缴纳的十一万镑；最近的战争所获得的款项等。其中，最近的战争所获得的款项就相当于负担战争的费用，它包括以下几项： 上述银行、东印度公司以及土地税增加所提供的数额，加上战争所获的数额（包括查特姆伯爵和克尔克拉弗特推算的余额），以及其他军费的剩余，必然会使外来款项的总额极大地超过五百万镑。所以在战争结束后，如果用国家经常收入的节余来偿还公债的话，那么每年平均下来还不到五十万镑。不过，在和平时期，减债基金因为下列因素而增加了。一是由于一部分公债的偿还和一部分终生年金的期满；二是利息率由百分之四降到百分之三。如果和平一直持续的话，那么减债基金有可能每年都拿出一百万镑来偿还公债，例如去年就偿还了一百万镑。然而现实是，皇室费用的债务还未付清，我们又开始卷入新的战争。这次新战争中所举借的新债数额，可能与国家平时收入的节余所能偿还的全部旧债数额一样多。因此，也就不可能幻想由国家经常收入的节余来偿还所有的公债了。 有作者说，欧洲各债务国尤其是英国，其公债可以说是一种大资本。这个资本可以进一步扩展商业和制造业、改良和开垦土地，从而取得比其他资本更好的效果。但是，这个作者忽视了下列一些情况，那就是原始债权人在贷款给政府之时，资本的性质就已经变为了收入，也就不再是用来维持生产性劳动，而是维持非生产性劳动了。并且，一般来说，政府在借款当年就把它消费完了，因此不可能再期待它能有什么生产作用。当然，对于债权人来说，他们收到了和借出资本等值的公债年金，这年金不但可以偿还他们的资本，使他们进行更大规模的商业和贸易，而且还能使他们卖出年金，或以年金作担保来借款。不过，他们新借入的资本，以前属于国家用来维持生产性劳动的；当这些新资本转到国家公债债权人手里时，对该国家来说它并不是新资本，只是用途的转化而已。因此，对债权人来说，借给政府的资本是有所偿的，而对国家来说，国家用以维持生产性劳动的资本从以前的两种变成一种了。 如果政府采取用年度赋税（未作借款担保的）来支付必要费用的方式，那么人民的一部分收入就会从维持一种非生产性劳动，变为维持另一种非生产性劳动。人民支付的税款，虽然大部分被消费在维持非生产性劳动上，但还是有一部分本来是可以由他们储蓄起来作为资本维持生产性劳动的。国家通过这种方式支付必要费用，虽然不会对现存的资本用途造成损害，却或多或少会阻碍新资本的进一步积蓄。如果国家采取借债的方式来支付必要费用，那么国家的一部分现有资本用途将会遭受损失，也就是说，以前用以维持生产性劳动的部分资本，将会转化用来维持非生产性劳动了。然而，这种情况下，国家征收的赋税比前一种情况下要轻，人民的负担也较轻，不过人民积蓄资本的能力却得到了提高。和前一种情况相比，借债在相当程度上对现存资本的用途不利，却不怎么妨碍新资本的积蓄。虽然社会一般资本由于政府的随意开支而遭受了损失，但是从人民的节约和勤劳中又得到了补偿。 需要指出的是，借债的优势只有在战争持续的时间内才能显示。例如，战争费用如果能从当年征收的赋税中支付，那么这种为战争而征收的赋税就不用继续到下一年。这种情况下，人们积蓄资本的能力在战时虽小，但在平时却很大。战争不一定会破坏旧资本的用途，但和平时期人们积蓄新资本的能力一定会提高。在战争持续时，由于战争带来了沉重的负担，人们都很厌烦战争。因此，政府为了要顺应民意，不会将战争维持太久。所以，一般来说，战争总是会很快结束。如前所述，战争给人们带来了繁重的负担，如果没有真实而确定的利益的话，人们是绝对不会主张战争的。所以，战争对人民积蓄能力的损害是比较少见的，即使有这种损害，持续的时间也不会太久。而平时（不需要借债时），人们积蓄能力很旺盛的时期却很长。 债务的增加，会伴随着赋税的增加。于是，平时的赋税制度对人们积蓄能力的损害，和战时差不多。目前，英国每年的平时收入为一千万镑以上。如果各种赋税既未被用来担保借款，又管理得当的话，即使发生最惨烈的战争，国家也不需要举借任何新债就可以支付战争的费用。然而，现在英国已经采取了不当的借债举措，因此平时人们收入所承受的负担和积蓄能力所遭受的损害，与战时不相上下了。 有一种说法认为，偿还公债利息，就好像将右手上的东西交给左手；所有的货币都没有流出国家，只是国内某一阶级的一部分收入转移到了另一阶级而已。国家并不会因此而更穷。这种说法完全是站在重商主义的角度上所说的。持这种说法的人还认为，全部公债都是来自本国人。这种说法也是不正确的，因为英国公债有很大一部分都是荷兰人和其他外国人的投资。就算全部公债都是来自本国，公债的弊端也不会因此消失。 无论是私人还是国家，土地和资本都是所有收入的两个来源。无论资本是用于农业、制造业还是商业上，都是用来负担生产性劳动工资的。这两种收入属于两个不同的人群支配：一是土地所有者；一是资本所有者或使用者。 土地所有者出于自身利益的考虑，会经常从事其他各种改良，例如修理或建筑佃户的房屋、建造和维持田庄的必要沟渠和围墙，从而保证土地的良好状态。然而，当土地税繁重、其他生活必需品税也很繁重时，不仅地主的收入会减少，而且其收入的真实价值也会减少。于是，地主将没有能力进行上述那些维持和改良，租地人也没有能力好好地耕作土地。最后，由于地主越来越困难，国家的农业也就趋于荒废了。 同样，当本国的生活必需品税繁重，资本所有者和使用者使用相同的资本，无法像在其他国家那样购到那么多的必需品和便利品时，他们就会将资本转移到其他国家。另外，如果大部分或全部的资本使用者由于赋税的征收而不断受到税务人员的烦扰，那么他们同样会打算移居他国。试想，一旦资本移走，那些依靠该资本支持的产业就将没落，国家的商业和制造业也将趋于荒废。 如果将土地和资本所产生的大部分收入由其所有者手中移转到国家的债权人手中，那么不久也会产生土地荒芜、资本外流的结果。虽然说国家债权人对于农业、制造业和商业的繁荣是有一定利害关系的，其中任何一个失败或衰退都会使各种税收的收入不足以支付他应得的年金或利息，但是仅仅就国家债权人这个身份来说，特定土地的良好状态、特定资本的良好经营，又是跟他是没有任何直接利益的。作为国家债权人，他既不明白也不会关注某一特定土地或资本。即使土地或产业荒废了，他也不知道或不关心，因为这不会对他造成什么直接影响。 曾经采用过举债制度的所有国家，现在都已逐渐衰弱了。意大利各共和国好像是最早采用这一方法的。例如，意大利各共和国中仅存的两个独立共和国——热那亚和威尼斯，都是因为举债而衰弱的。西班牙也采用了这种举债制度。也许是由于税制更为不明智吧，相对于意大利各共和国，它更加衰弱。十六世纪末以前，也就是在英格兰开始举借公债一百年以前，西班牙就已经负有沉重的债务。法国虽然自然资源丰富，但同样承受着债务的负担；荷兰共和国的情况则与热那亚和威尼斯差不多。所以说，英国又怎么可能在采取举债措施之后不受损害呢？ 的确，上述国家的税制都比英国要差，但我们必须明白的是，即使是最贤明的政府，在对所有适当纳税的对象征收以后，遇到紧急需要时也会采取不适当的措施。例如荷兰，它的政府很贤明，然而有时也只能像西班牙那样征收一些不适当的税收。的确，英国现行税制使得各产业都自由地向上发展，因此，即使发生战争需要最大的耗费，平时每个人的积蓄，也足以弥补政府的不足而负担这种费用。例如，最近这次战争，其费用可谓是英国历来战争中最高的了。但这次战争结束后，全国农业、商业和制造业还是和以前一样繁荣；维持各产业部门的资本，也还是和从前一样多。和平恢复之后，农业有了更大的改进，人民的财富和收入不断增长，国内各都市、各村落的房租收入也不断增加。消费以及生产的增加，又引起大部分旧税，尤其是国产税和关税的收入逐年增加。在半世纪以前，人们认为谁也无法承受的重担，目前的英国好像可以毫不费力地负担起来。但我们并不因为这样而盲目自信，认为英国可以负担任何重担。因为当国家收入的负担未减轻之时，英国又发生新的战争，那么迫切的形势可能会使英国的税制，变得像西班牙那样繁重。 当公债增大到一定程度时，国家就不可能公道地完全偿还了。即使国家收入上的负担完全解除了，那也是因为倒账解除的，也就是我们常常说的假偿还。假偿还，是指通过提高货币的名义价值的手段来偿还债务。比如，按照依议会法令或国王布告，将六便士的银币或二十枚六便士银币的名义价值提高为一先令或一镑，那么以前借入二十先令或约四盎司银的人，现在只须偿还二十枚银币或略少于二盎斯的银就可以偿还债务了。若按此方法还债，英国约一亿二千八百万镑的国债，就只需现币六千四百万镑即可。实际上，在这种偿还制度下，无论是国家债权人还是私人债权人，他们的每一镑都损失了十先令。 在大多数情况下，国家的债权人，不但得不到利益，反而还会遭受一大笔损失。虽然说国家的债权人如果用同一方式向自己的债权人偿还借款的话，多少可以弥补一些损失；然而，在多数国家，向政府提供贷款的人，大都是富人，他们一般都不会处在债务人的地位上。因此，这种损失并不能得到减轻。所以说，这种偿还方法不但没有使国家获益，反而给私人财产造成了一种最普遍的损失。在大多数情况下，勤劳节俭的债权人将会吃亏，而懒惰浪费的债务人却可以致富。于是，那些能使资本增值的人手中反而没有了资本，而那些懒惰浪费的人手中却有很多的资本。其实，如果国家可以像私人那样在必要时宣布破产，那么无论是对债务人的名誉还是对债权人利益的损害都是最轻的。然而国家隐瞒倒账的事实，采取这种偿还方式，可谓是最愚昧的了。 无论古今，只要国家在有必要的时侯，它都会采用这种隐瞒的倒账方法。在第一次罗马和迦太基战争结束时，罗马人将阿斯（当时计算其他铸币的标准）的价值，从含铜十二盎司，降低到含铜二盎司。用这种方法，共和国就只要偿还此前债务的六分之一就可以了。依我们的想象，这么巨大的倒账一定会导致极大的混乱，然而当时什么也没有发生。这是因为，和其他所有关于铸币的法律一样，该次贬值的法律也是由护民官提出、民会通过的。所以在当时，这项法律说不定还很得民心呢。和其他古代共和国一样，在罗马，穷人也是不断地向富人或有权势的人借债生活。富人或有权势的人为了在每年选举中获得选票，经常会以极高的利息向穷人提供贷款。由于这些债务慢慢累积成为了债务人不能偿付的巨债，于是，债务人只能被迫投票选举债权人推荐的候选人。虽然当时的法律严禁贿赂和收买，但在罗马共和国晚期，贫穷市民的生活资料主要就来源于候选人提供的报酬和元老院不时发放的谷物。为了摆脱债权人的控制，贫人不断要求债权人放弃对他们的债权，或要求制定新法案，即偿还一部分债务就算清偿。所以，将所有铸币价值降到其原值的六分之一的这种法律，正是一种最有利的新法案。在大多数情况下，富人或有权势的人为了满足人民的要求，只好同意取消债务和制定新法案。当然，他们之所以同意，除了上述原因之外，另一个主要原因是因为他们一般都是政府的主要领导者，也想借此来缓解国家的负担。用这种方法偿还债务，英国负担的一亿二千八百万镑的债务，就变为二千一百三十三万三千三百三十三镑六先令八便士了。在第二次罗马和迦太基战争期间，罗马人又对阿斯进行了两次贬值，一次是由含铜二盎司减到一盎司，一次是由一盎司减到零点五盎司，相当于其原值的二十四分之一。罗马的上述三次货币贬值如果是集中在一次进行的话，那么英国负担的一亿二千八百万的债务，一下子就变为五百三十三万三千三百三十三镑十六先令八便士了。就算英国负债再多，这种方法也能使债务马上得到清偿。 其实，所有国家都曾采取过上述方法，使铸币的价值或含银量降到比原值低很多的状态。为了实现相同的目的，国家有时会采用其他效果相同的方法。例如，在铸币中掺入大量的劣金，从而降低铸币的标准成色。按照现行的法定标准，每一镑银币只能掺入十八本尼威特劣金。如果掺入八盎司的话，一镑或二十先令银币的价值，就和现在的六先令八便士的价值一样。 这种降低货币标准成色的方法，与法国人直接提高货币名义价值的效果完全一样。不过，二者的不同是：直接提高货币名义价值的做法一般都是公开的，这种方法使较轻、较小的铸币和以前较重、较大的铸币价值一样；然而降低货币标准成色的做法大都是保密的，这种方法使造币局造出的铸币在重量、体积和外貌上和以前一样，但实际价值却不一样。例如，如果法国国王约翰想要采取降低铸币标准成色的方法偿还债务，那么造币局的所有官员都必须誓死保守秘密。虽然上述两种做法都是不正当的，但增大货币价值的做法是公然的不正当行为，而降低货币标准成色的做法却是隐蔽的不正当行为。因此，人们对后者的反感要比对前者的反感大得多。于是，直接提高货币名义价值之后，货币很少会在近期恢复以前的重量；然而降低货币标准成色过度之后，一般都会尽快地恢复以前的成色以平民愤。 在亨利八世末期和爱德华八世初期，英国同时采取了上述两种方法，即不但提高了货币的名义价值，而且还降低了货币的标准成色。在詹姆士六世初年，苏格兰也采取了同样的手段。当然，很多其他国家，也经常这么做。 英国国家收入在开支了必要费用之后的节余非常少，因此，除非国家收入极大地增加或国家支出极大地缩减，不然，基本上不可能依靠国家收入的节余来解除国家的负担。在前一章所提到的对关税和国产税制度改革，以及实施比现在更公平的土地税和房产税，也许可以在不增加多数人民负担的基础上，将这种负担平均分配给全体国民，从而极大地增加国家的收入。然而这种增加的收入，也不可能完全解除国家收入上的负担，或者说在下次战争发生时，国家还是要增加公债才能支付费用。 我们可以采取这样一个方式来增加收入，那就是将英国的税制推广到帝国所属的各地，不论那里居住的是英国人还是欧洲人。然而，这又是非常难以做到的。根据英国的宪法，各地方在议会中所占的议员席数，和地方纳税额要保持一定的比例。也就是说，如果将税制扩张到各属地，就意味着在议会中要按照同一比例增加他们的代表。这样大的变革，很有可能违背一些实力强大的私人的利益和大部分人民的固有偏见。不过，不可否认的是，这种理论如果仅仅是用来考察英国的税制在多大程度上可以应用于各属地，以及可以获得多少收入，而不考虑不列颠与各属地是否统一，那么这种理论是恰当的。说得难听点，它也只是一种乌托邦而已，但也不致没有用处。 英国的税收一共有土地税、印花税、各种关税及各种国产税四个主要部门。 就缴纳土地税的能力来说，爱尔兰和不列颠差不多，美洲和西印度殖民地则更强。没有负担什一税或救贫税的地主，比负担了这两税的地主更有能力缴纳土地税。相对于每镑征收五先令的土地税，在什一税以实物缴纳的情况下，地主的地租受损更严重。在大多数情况下，什一税一般要么是土地真实地租的四分之一以上，要么是偿还农业资本及其合理利润后的剩余部分。在不列颠和爱尔兰，除去所有俗人保管的财产，教会的全部什一税总额将超过六七百万镑。也就是说，如果不列颠或爱尔兰没有什一税，那么地主就能够多提供六七百万镑的土地税，且他们的负担也会减轻不少。与此相对，美洲没有什一税，因此地主缴纳土地税的能力自然很高。然而，美洲和西印度的土地一般都不出租给农民，所以那里没有地租簿作为征税依据。不过，在威廉和玛丽四年，不列颠的土地税也不是根据地租簿来定的，而是根据一种非常不正确的估价来定的。所以，美洲按这种估价方法征税也是可行的。要不然就要按照米兰公国和奥地利、普鲁土和沙廷尼亚等国领地那样，正确丈量土地、评价后再征税。 在各属地推行印花税基本上是没有困难的。在诉讼程序和动产、不动产移转合同形式差不多的各地方，这种税可以进行相同的征收。 如果将关税法推广到爱尔兰和各殖民地，并同时扩大贸易自由的话，将对这两地产生最大的利益。因为这样的话，将会完全消除现在抑制爱尔兰贸易的各种束缚，以及取消美洲产物间列举与非列举的区别。并且，现在菲尼斯特尔海角以北的各地，将会和以南的各地一样，对一些美洲产物开放市场。关税统一之后，大英帝国各地之间的贸易将和现在的沿海贸易一样自由。帝国将对各属地的产物都提供了一个巨大的国内市场。当市场扩大时，爱尔兰和各殖民地因增加关税遭受的损失也能立即得到补偿。 在英国各税中，只有国产税需要加以修改才能适应各属地的特殊情况。爱尔兰和不列颠的生产和消费性质相同，因此该税无须经过修改即可适用。然而，美洲与西印度和不列颠的生产和消费性质极为不同。因此必须对此税进行修改才能应用到这些地方，就像以前对英格兰的苹果酒、啤酒征收国产税时，需要对该税进行修改一样。 美洲的啤酒是由蜜糖制成的，和英国的啤酒不太一样，它占据了当地人民普通饮料的大部分。和英国啤酒一样，美洲的啤酒的存放时间也不长，因此不能在大酿造厂制造储存以待出售。于是，每个家庭都自己酿造自己消费。并且，各私人的家庭，不用像麦酒店主和以贩卖为业的酿酒家那样，遭受收税人员的访问检查。即使政府为了公平，认为应当对啤酒征收赋税，它也只能对其制造原料和原料的制造厂所征税。如果商业情形不许对这种啤酒征收国产税，那么可以在原料进口到殖民地时征收一定的进口税。例如，对于进口到美洲的蜜糖，除了英国议会征收的每加仑一便士外，可以对用其他殖民地的船舶进口到马萨诸塞特湾的蜜糖，每霍格彻德征收八便士的州税；对由北部各殖民地进口到南卡罗林那的蜜糖，每加仑征收五便士的州税。如果觉得这种方法不方便的话，还可以采取以下三种办法来解决。一是可以像英格兰那样，不征收麦芽税，各家庭按人数的多少缴纳一定的金额；二是像荷兰那样，各家庭按照成员的年龄和性别的区别，每年缴纳一些金额；三是像德柯尔提议的那样，按照英格兰所有消费品税的征收方法来征收（虽然这种方法对及时消费的东西不太适用，但在没有其他更好的方法的情况下，还是可以采用的）。 无论在哪里，砂糖、甜酒和烟草都不属于生活必需品，但都是普遍消费的对象，因此对它们征税是很适当的。如果英国和各殖民地实现了统一，那么对这些商品的征税可以采取以下措施。一是在其离开制造者或种植者之前，对其征税；二是如果这些商品存储在制造地的公共货栈，或者可能运往的帝国港口的公营货栈中，由其所有者和税务机关共同管理，那么在其交给消费者、国内零售商或出口商之前，可以不对其进行征税。而当其出口时，如果出口商保证一定是出口，则对其可以免税。实际上，假若英国和各殖民地实现了统一，那么英国税制所必须进行的一些修改，就主要是对这几种商品的征税了。 将这种税制扩展到帝国的各属地，到底能获得多少收入，是一个不可能得到确切答案的问题。爱尔兰有二百万以上的人口；根据某次美洲议会的报告，美洲十二个同盟州有三百万以上的人口（可能有一些夸张，我们可以假设北美洲和西印度各殖民地人口共不超过三百万）。我们知道，英国有八百万以下的人口，但根据英国的税制，英国每年可征收一千万镑的收入。如果按照这种比例，对于总共一千三百万的居民，就可以征收一千六百二十五万镑以上的收入了。当然，在这个假设的收入中，必须扣除爱尔兰和各殖民地日常政府经费的开支。按照1775年3月以前的两个财务年度统计的平均值，爱尔兰的行政费、军费以及公债利息，每年一共不超过七十五万镑。按照比较正确的计算，在现在的混乱开始之前，美洲和西印度主要殖民地的收入，共计十四万一千八百镑；其中没有包括马里兰、北卡罗林那和英国最近在大陆和岛屿上获得的领地的收入（可能有三四万镑）。为方便计算，我们暂且假设爱尔兰和各殖民地的必要行政费开支为一百万镑。用一千六百二十五万镑减去一百万镑，还剩余一千五百二十五万镑，基本上可以维持帝国的一般开支以及偿还公债利息了。 按照这种计算，现在英国的平时收入如果节约一百万镑，收入就可以节省下六百二十五万镑，用来偿还公债。又由于以前各年度偿还的公债不需要支付利息，因此一大笔减债基金不断地增加。减债基金的快速增加，在几年之后就足以偿还全部公债了，从而可以完全解除帝国的负担，恢复其活力。同时，人民也可以摆脱沉重的生活必需品税或制造原料税等各种赋税。穷苦的劳动人民也能过上较好的生活：由于他们的劳动价格降低了，生产出来的货物价格也降低了，于是货物的需要和生产货物的劳动需要增加了，劳动人民的人数也增加了。最后，他们的生活水平也逐渐提高了，消费水平也会不断提高，最终增加了消费品税的数额。 不过，按照英国的税制征收的收入，并不按照人口数增加的比例而增加。这是因为，各殖民地中有一些属地还从未承受过英国赋税的负担，在一定时期内，对这样的属地就应当放宽数额。另外，即使各地都严格按照税制征收，这些收入有时也不是按照人口数的比例增加的。这里有两方面的原因。一方面的原因是，贫穷地方的人民对需要支付关税和国产税的主要商品消费得较少。例如，苏格兰的底层人民，很少有饮用麦芽饮料的。虽然麦芽品质不同，麦芽税税率在英格兰和苏格兰有所不同，但两国漏税的程度应当说是差不多的。因此，在苏格兰，按人口数和税率比例来计算，麦芽、啤酒和淡色啤酒的国产税收入就会少于英格兰。另一方面的原因是，在居民稀少的地方，走私的机会很多。按人口比例计算，苏格兰对酿造所的征税和大部分关税要比英格兰少，不仅是因为被税商品消费的少，也是因为走私的多。和苏格兰相比，爱尔兰的底层人民更加贫穷。并且，爱尔兰大部分地方和苏格兰一样人口稀少。因此，按人口比例计算，爱尔兰走私活动和苏格兰一样容易，但其被税商品的消费比苏格兰更少，因此爱尔兰的关税比苏格兰的关税收入更少。与英格兰的底层白人的生活条件相比，美洲和西印度的底层白人生活得更好一些。对于奢侈品的消费，他们比英格兰人消费得多一些。虽然南美各殖民地和西印度群岛的大部分居民都是黑人（他们现在还是奴隶），他们的生活状况的确比苏格兰或英格兰穷人的处境还要差；但他们并没