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Subject Area: Political Theory
Subject Area: Law

Bentham to Arthur Young. - Jeremy Bentham, The Works of Jeremy Bentham, vol. 10 (Memoirs Part I and Correspondence) [1843]

Edition used:

The Works of Jeremy Bentham, published under the Superintendence of his Executor, John Bowring (Edinburgh: William Tait, 1838-1843). 11 vols. Vol. 10.

Part of: The Works of Jeremy Bentham, 11 vols.

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Bentham to Arthur Young.

“Dear Sir,—

Permit my ignorance to draw upon your science on an occasion that happens just now to be a very material one to me. I have a sort of floating recollection of a calculation, so circumstanced, either in point of authority or argument, as to carry weight with it, in which the total value of the landed property in this country (Scotland, I believe, included) was reckoned at a thousand millions, and that of the moveable property at either a thousand millions or twelve hundred millions. Public debt did not come, I believe, at least it ought not to come, into the account: it being only so much owed by one part of the proprietors of the 1,000,000,000 or the 1,200,000,000, to another.

“Upon searching your book on France, which was the source from which I thought I had taken the idea, I can find no calculation of the value of the moveable property, nor even of the immoveable, in an explicit form: on the contrary, in the instance of the immoveable, I find suppositions with which any such estimate appears to be incompatible. The Land-Tax at 4s. I find, you suppose, were it to be equal all over the country, (it is of England only, I believe, that you speak,) would be equivalent to as much as 8s.: on which supposition the rental (the tax at 4s. producing no more than 2,000,000) would amount to no more than £13,000,000, nor, consequently, the value at so many years purchase, say 28, to more than 364,000,000; or at 30 to 390,000,000; to which, in order to complete the calculation of the landed property of Great Britain, that of Scotland would have to be added:—

“1. A calculation, I should rather say the result of a calculation, of the value of the landed property of Great Britain, reckoned at [ ] years purchase,—(two prices, a peace price and a war price, could they be respectively of sufficient permanence to be ascertained, would be of use.)

“2. Do. of the value of the personal, i. e. moveable property of Great Britain.

“3. The amount of the population of Great Britain.”

To this letter he received the following brief reply:—

“Bradfield, October 5th, 1794.

“Dear Sir,—I take the rental of England to be twenty-four millions, exclusive of houses, and the annual product of timber, mines, &c.

“Houses,—twelve years’ purchase.

“No data strike me at present to discover the rental,—but these are questions I have not of late given my mind to.—I am, dear sir, faithfully yours.

“Apply to me on all occasions without apologies.”

Bentham wrote two letters to Charles Long of the Treasury,—one announcing, and the other accompanying his pamphlet, “Supply without Burthen.”*

[* ] Works, vol. ii. p. 583 et seq.