3ET MO111 2/ J ON THE LOCAL TAXATION OF THE CITY OF DUBLIN. 137 J/ r. Michael Cullen, again called in; and Examined. ARE any of the powers vested in the Commissioners of Paving and Lighting of the city of Dublin by the 47th of the late king, deemed inconvenient and oppressive to the householders?— Yes, I apprehend they are; I will state them to the Com- mittee. The 39th section of the Act gives the Commissioners a power to value dead walls and vacant spaces of ground for the purposes of the Act, although the walls should inclose a yard or ground belonging to or adjoining a house or tene- ment, for every yard, running measure, of such dead wall or void space, at a rate not exceeding 35. per yard, which is considered a great hardship upon many persons in the city who reside in corner houses, or other houses subject to this inconve- nience, for which they also pay tax for the front next the street, and for the rear also, which may happen to be in stable- lanes. A house, for instance, of 25s. ministers money, would pay for the front 5/. 12 s. 6cl. which is the utmost they have a right to charge, and they always do charge it. One half would be charged for the stable- lane, which would be 216 s. 3^/.; and if they happened to have a hundred feet at the side it would be 113 s. 4(/., which would subject that house to more than 10/. a year for tax. The tax upon void spaces, or building- ground, is also considered very oppressive. There are many in the city of Dublin which are for building purposes, which continue unoccupied, so much so, that I have been told, and I believe the fact to be so, that the Paving Board have inclosed some ground that remained in their possession, as a pledge for the tax, and expenses of inclosing the ground. Owners of lodging- houses are also liable to a penalty of 5 /. for not registering their places of abode when they do not reside in the house, although the tax may be distrained for or recovered by action or civil bill. I have also heard the tax complained of, as giving to the Commissioners an unreasonable and unnecessary power to compel the owners of dead walls and of void spaces of ground to scrape, cleanse, sweep, and wash the footways, gutters, or water channels once a day; and it is also considered an infringement on the property of landlords to give the tenant, who has no dust- hole or yard, a power of deducting any fine imposed upon him for throwing dirt into the street out of his rent, by which means the amount of rent reserved may be absorbed ten times over in cases where large old houses, without any rere to them, are let at small rents to several tenants, occupying single rooms or tenements in it. There is another circumstance which is considered sill more oppressive : By the 103d section of the Act, landlords are compelled to make dust- holes, or forfeit 201, although the want of rere, or other circumstances, may make it impossible to do so. Is the system adopted by the Paving Board complained of by the householders as calculated unnecessarily to increase the taxation ?— Yes, I think it is ; especially in consequence of the work not being performed by contract, which it is supposed would save considerably in the expenditure, and for the keep of horses, the use of carts, & c. and the purchase of those and other articles used in the scavengering de- partment. The Board is also complained of as creating an unnecessary interference in matters which could be done by the parishes, and as being a waste and wanton expenditure of the funds raised by the tax, inasmuch as the expense of the Board itself appears to absorb about one third of the gross revenue, or what would pave and light nearly one third of the whole city. Have you had any opportunity of ascertaining whether the householders of Dublin derive benefit from the attendance of coal- meters?— So far as the observations I have made extend, I apprehend the public derive no benefit whatever from them. Have you ever bought coals at the ship ?— Yes, I have often purchased coals on board ; and very frequently the measurer has been absent, and when on board I have considered that his presence was rather injurious to my interest than otherwise. For what reason ?— If I had been left to watch it myself I should have had an opportunity of doing myself justice, whereas his presence served rather to sanction frauds than to be a check upon them. Did you ever make a statement that their measure was not correct ?— Yes, very often, and of the manner of filling them, and of the inattention of the measurers to the interest of the purchasers. Did he refuse to give you justice ?— He has so far refused that he did not satisfy me at all. Did you make a complaint to the public authorities ?— No, I never made any complaint of it to the public authorities. Are you aware of the manner in which coal is sold in London?— I believe they 549. ARE Mr. Michael Cullen. ^ ' ( 23 May.) I • 1 P