5. What is the duty on 10 hogsheads of molasses, each hogs head gauging 150 gallons gross, the actual wants being 5 gallons to each hogshead, and the cost of the molasses 25 cents per gallon; duty 20 per cent. ad valorem? Ans. $72.50, duty.

6. What are the net weight and duty, at 30 per cent. ad valorem, on 13 boxes of sugar, weighing gross 450 pounds each; actual tare 15 per cent., and the cost of the sugar being 8 cents per pound? Ans. 4972 lbs., net weight; $119.34, duty.

7. What is the duty on an invoice of woollen goods, which cost in Liverpool 1376 £ sterling, at 30 per cent. ad valorem ; the pound sterling being $ 4.84? Ans. $ 1997.95+.

8. What is the duty on an invoice of goods, which cost in Paris $2340, at 80 per cent. ad valorem?

Ans. $1872.

ASSESSMENT OF TAXES.

226. A Tax is a sum of money assessed by government for public purposes, on property, and in most States on persons. Taxes may be either direct or indirect.

A Direct Tax is one imposed on the income or property of an individual.

An Indirect Tax is one imposed on the articles for which the income or property is expended.

A Poll or Capitation Tax is one without regard to property, on the person of each male citizen, liable by law to assessment. A person so liable is termed a poll.

Real Estate is immovable property, such as lands, houses, &c. Personal Property is all other property, such as money, notes, cattle, furniture, &c.

The method of assessing taxes is not precisely the same in all the States, yet the principle is virtually the same.

The following is the law regulating taxation in Massachusetts.

226. What is a tax? A direct tax? An indirect tax? What is real estate? Personal property? What is a poll or capitation tax? What is a poll? Is the method of assessing taxes the same in all the States?

"The assessors shall assess upon the POLLS, as nearly as may be, one sixth part of the whole sum to be raised; but the whole poll tax assessed in any one year upon any individual for town, county, and state purposes, except highway taxes separately assessed, shall not exceed two dollars; and the residue of such whole sum to be raised shall be apportioned upon property;" that is, on the real and personal estate of individuals which is taxable. (General Statutes, p. 78, as amended, 1862.)

227. To assess a town or other tax.

Ex. 1. The tax to be assessed on a certain town is $2200. The real estate of the town is valued at $ 60000, and the personal property at $ 30000. There are 400 polls, each of which is taxed $1.00. What is the tax on $1.00? What is A's tax, whose real estate is valued at $2000, and his personal property at $1200, and who pays for 2 polls?

OPERATION.

$1.00 X 400 = $ 400, amount assessed on the polls.

=

$2200 $400 $1800, amount to be assessed on the property. $60000+ $30000 = $90000, amount of taxable property. $1800 $90000 = $0.02, tax on $1.00.

$2000 X .02 $1200 X .02

=

=

$40, A's tax on real estate.

$24, A's tax on personal property. $1.00 X 2 = $2, A's tax on 2 polls. $40+$24+$2 = $66, amount of A's tax.

Hence, in assessing taxes, it is necessary to have an inventory of the taxable property, and, if a levy on the polls is to be included, there should be also a complete list of taxable polls. Having these, we then

Multiply the tax on each poll by the number of taxable polls, and the product subtracted from the whole sum to be raised, will give the.SUM

TO BE RAISED ON THE PROPERTY.

The sum to be raised on property divided by the whole taxable property, will give THE SUM TO BE PAID ON EACH DOLLAR OF PROPERTY TAXED. Each man's taxable property, multiplied by the number denoting the sum to be paid on $1, with his poll tax added to the product, will give

THE AMOUNT OF HIS TAX.

EXAMPLES FOR PRACTICE.

2. The town of L is taxed $3600. The real estate of the town is valued at $560,000, and the personal property at $ 152,500. There are 600 polls, each of which is taxed $1.25. What is the per cent. or tax on $1.00? and what is B's tax,

226. The law regulating taxation in Massachusetts ? assessing taxes?

- 227. The rule for

whose real estate is valued at $4100, and his personal property at $1800, he paying for four polls?

Ans. $.004, tax on $1; $28.60, B's tax.

3. What is the tax of a non-resident, having property in the same town, worth $15800 ? Ans. $63.20.

4. What is D's tax, who pays for 3 polls, and whose real estate is valued at $40000, and his personal property at $ 23600? Ans. $258.15.

228. The assessing of taxes may be facilitated by the use of a table, which can be easily made after finding the tax on $ 1.

Ex. 1. A tax of $3900 is to be assessed on the town of P. The real estate is valued at $ 840000, and the personal property at $210000; and there are 500 polls, each of which is taxed $ 1.50. What is the assessment on $1? Ans. $.003. Having found the tax on $1 to be $.003, before proceeding to make the assessment on the inhabitants of the town, we find the tax on $2, $ 3, &c., and arrange the numbers as in the following

2. What is E's tax, by the table, whose property is valued at

$ 1860, and who pays 3 polls?

Ans. $10.08.

We find in the table the tax on $1000, and then on $800, and then on $ 60, and to these sums add the tax on the 3 polls, at $1.50 each, for the

answer.

228. How may the operation of assessing taxes be facilitated? How is the above table formed?

3. What is F's tax, whose real estate is valued at $ 6535, and his personal property at $ 3175, and who pays for 6 polls? Ans. $38.13.

4. What is Mrs. G's tax, who has property to the amount of $ 7980? Ans. $23.94.

5. If H pays for 2 polls, and has property to the amount of $ 4790, what is his tax? Ans. $17.37. 6. M's real estate is valued at $9280, and his personal property at $3600; what is his tax, if he pays for 4 polls?

Ans. $44.64,

EQUATION OF PAYMENTS.

229. Equation of Payments is the process of finding the average or mean time when the payment of several sums, due at different times, may all be made at one time, without loss either to the debtor or creditor.

230. When the several sums have the same date.

Ex. 1. John Jones owes Samuel Gray $100; $20 of which is to be paid in 2 months, $ 40 in 6 months, $ 30 in 8 months, and $10 in 12 months; what is the average time for the payment of the whole sum? Ans. 6mo. 12da.

The interest of $20 for 2 mo. is the same as the interest of $1 for 40 mo.; and of $40 for 6 mo., the same as of $1 for 240 mo.; and of $30 for 8 mo., the same as of $1 for 240 mo.; and of $10 for 12 mo., the same as of $1 for 120 mo. Hence, the interest of all the sums to the time of payment, is the same as the interest of $1 for 40+240 +240 +120 640 mo. Now, if $1 require 640 mo. to gain a certain sum, $20 + $ 40 +$30 +$10 $100 will require

==

229. What is equation of payments? - 230. Why in the example do we

multiply the $20 by 2?

6 mo. 12 da., the average or mean

of 640 mo.; and 640 mo. 100
time for the payment of the whole. Hence the

RULE.

Multiply each payment by its own time of credit, and divide the sum of the products by the sum of the payments.

NOTE 1. This is the rule usually adopted by merchants, but it is not perfectly correct; for if I owe a man $200, $100 of which I am to pay down, and the other $100 in two years, the equated time for the payment of both sums would be one year. It is evident that, for deferring the payment of the first $100 for 1 year, I ought to pay the amount of $100 for that time, which is $106; but for the other $100, which I pay a year before it is due, I ought to pay the present worth of $100, which is $94.33 and $106+ $94.33 $200.33; whereas, by the mercantile method of equating payments, I only pay $ 200.

=

NOTE 2.- - When a payment is to be made down it has no product, but it must be added with the other payments in finding the average time.

EXAMPLES FOR PRACTICE.

2. John Smith owes a merchant in Boston $1000, $250 of which is to be paid in 4 months, $ 350 in 8 months, and the remainder in 12 months; what is the average time for the payment of the whole sum? Ans. 8mo. 18da.

3. A gentleman purchased a house and lot for $1560, of which is to be paid in 3 months, in 6 months, in 8 months, and the remainder in 10 months; what is the average time of payment? Ans. 7 months.

4. Samuel Church sold a farm for $4000; $1000 of which is to be paid down, $1000 in one year, and the remainder in 2 years; but he afterwards agreed to take a note for the whole amount; for what time must the note be given?

Ans. 15 months.

5. A wholesale merchant in Boston sold a bill of merchandise to the amount of $5000 to a retail merchant of Exeter, N. H.; he is to pay of the money down, of the remainder in 6 months,

of what then remains in 9 months, and the rest at the end of the year. If he wishes to pay the whole at once, what will be the average time of payment? Ans. 6mo. 27da.

231. When the several sums have different dates.

Ex. 1. Purchased of James Brown, at sundry times, and on

231. The rule for equation of payments? Is the rule perfectly correct? Explain why it is not. When a payment is to be made down, what is to be done with it?