4,054,549 3,226,307 32,263,070
1889-90 7,734,678 5,057,708 2,676,970 26,769,700
1899-1900 8,664,500 6,980,000 1,684,500 16,845,000

Averaged Balances for 90 years 315,603,470
Add, Actual Balances, 1900-09 16,214,000

Net Payments, in 99 years 331,817,470
Deduct Drawings, deficit of 1909-10 2,357,500

Net Payments, in 100 years 329,459,970
Add, Actual Balance, 1910-11 321,000

Net Balances paid by Ireland to Great Britain, 1809-1911 329,780,970

What has become of Sir David Barbour's argument in favour of the
existing fiscal system? He admitted that Ireland was overtaxed by two
millions and three-quarters. But he showed, it will be remembered, that
if not only the revenue, but the expenditure and contribution to
Imperial services had all been in proportion to Ireland's real taxable
capacity of one-twentieth, she would have been a loser by a
million.[117] Ireland, therefore, he argued, had certainly no grievance,
while Great Britain received the substantial, though not strictly
sufficient, sum of two millions as Ireland's contribution to Imperial
expenses.

Let us apply the same reasoning to the present situation. Ireland, by
hypothesis, is "overtaxed" by three millions,[118] but if not only the
revenue, but the expenditure and contribution to Imperial services of
Ireland were all in proportion to her real taxable capacity, which we
may estimate now at one-twenty-fifth, we find that she would be a loser
by five millions. Her "true" revenue from all sources _ought_ on this
supposition to be L6,605,900; it _is_ L10,032,000. Her local expenditure
_ought_ to be L2,875,540; it _is_ L11,344,500. Her contribution to
Imperial services _ought_ to be L3,730,360; it _is_ a minus quantity of
L1,312,500. Sir David Barbour's reasoning, then, leads us to this
astounding paradox, that Ireland, while overtaxed by three millions,
gains five millions by the arrangement. Moreover, whether we accept Sir
David Barbour's reasoning or not, it is a fact that to-day Ireland,
which contributed to Imperial services five and a half millions in 1860,
and two millions in 1894, now, so far from contributing anything, costs
a million and a quarter more than she brings in. This, certainly, was
not a result he either anticipate