the proportion of Income Tax payers and of persons possessing property paying Death Duties is relatively to the total population smaller than in the United Kingdom as a whole.  If, therefore, for the sake of the present calculations the mean of two proportions—­i.e. one-twenty-seventh deducible from the Income Tax and Death Duty contributions is assumed, we employ a figure exceptionally favourable to Ireland.  The financial statement on the next page showing the 1886 scheme applied to present conditions has been drawn up on this basis.  The revenue is here assumed to come in at the average rate of the last two years (1909-10 and 1910-11) and the expenditure is taken as that of 1910-11.

The state of the Irish Exchequer under the foregoing scheme would be indeed a parlous one.  It would start with a deficit of L3,200,000, and with a prospective immediate increase by about L450,000 on account of the Insurance Act.  The actual budget deficit would thus be about L3,650,000.  The Imperial Parliament would collect about L7,794,000, and after deducting L5,346,000 would hand back to the Irish Exchequer the difference of L2,458,000.  The revenues upon which the Chancellor in the Irish Parliament could rely would be, therefore, L6,366,000.  Out of this an expenditure of L9,562,000 would have to be met.  The postal services would probably not stand any increased charges; there is left, therefore, only L5,211,000 of free revenue, and only L2,753,000 under the unrestricted control of the Irish Parliament.  With such resources it would be obviously impossible to make good a deficit of L3,206,000 by any increase of taxation.  It must not be overlooked, also, that the effect of crediting Ireland with Customs and Excise as “collected” instead of as “contributed” is practically to make the Irish Parliament a further free gift of nearly L2,000,000.

A totally different scheme accompanied the Home Rule Bill of 1893 as introduced.  The principal features of the new scheme were as follows:—­

1.  Customs, excise, and postage to be imposed by the Imperial Parliament.

2.  Excise and postage to be collected and managed by the Irish Parliament.

3.  Customs to be collected and retained by the Imperial Parliament in view of contribution to Imperial services.

4.  Excise duties collected in Ireland on articles consumed in Great Britain to be handed over to Imperial Exchequer.

5.  If Excise duties be increased the yield of the excess duties to be handed over to the Imperial Exchequer.

6.  If Excise duties be reduced and Irish revenue diminished, the deficiency to be made good to Irish revenue.

7.  Two-thirds of the cost of the Constabulary to be repaid to the Imperial Exchequer.