g 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