NEW RIVER
COMPANY

v.

LAND TAX COMMISSIONERS FOR HERTFORD.

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Hertford is to contribute 41,5087. 10s. 9 d., and the city of London 123,3997. 68. 7d. towards the land tax. By s. 4, all the lands, tenements and hereditaments, &c., whatsoever, lying within the respective districts into which Great Britain was apportioned, and all persons, bodies politic and corporate, having any lands, are to be equally charged with a pound rate towards the sum imposed upon such respective districts. By the 57th section, all and any persons having any shares in the New River are to be assessed by the Commissioners for the city of London, and the tax is to be paid by the governor or the treasurer or receiver, to such person as the said Commissioners should appoint. From time to time various shareholders redeemed the land tax on their shares. The New River commences in Hertfordshire, and runs for three miles through the parish of A. in that county. The river, as it existed in 1798, has never been redeemed from land tax except as aforesaid. The Company have since that time purchased land in Hertfordshire, the land tax on the whole of which, with the exception of two roods, and ten perches, has been redeemed. On part of the land so purchased, the land tax of which had been redeemed, there are two wells, from the sale of the water of which the Company derive a profit :

Held: First, that no other land tax is payable upon the property or the New River Company as it existed in 1798, than that imposed by the 57th section, and consequently that the river is not taxable in Hertfordshire.

Secondly: That as to the property since purchased, the land tax of which had not been redeemed, that such property continues to be taxable in Hertfordshire.

:

Thirdly That the Company are not liable to be assessed to the land tax in respect of the springs inasmuch as the redemption of the land tax on the land on which the wells stand relieved the land and all its natural productions from any further tax, though possibly at the time of such redemption it might not have been known that such springs existed.

A RULE had been obtained in this Court on the part of the Governor and Company of the New River, under the 1 & 2 Vict. c. 58, s. 2, calling upon the Commissioners of Land Tax for the division in the county of Hertford, in which the parish of Great Amwell is situated, and also on the Commissioners of Land Tax acting for the city of London, to show cause why a writ of prohibition should not issue to restrain them from assessing or levying any land tax upon that portion of the New River which is situate in the parish of Great Amwell, or the said Governor and Company in respect thereof. On the hearing of this rule the Court considered that the facts should be brought before it in the shape of a special case; and accordingly, after writ issued and without pleadings, the following case was stated for the opinion of the Court.

By charter of his Majesty King James the First, dated June 21, 1619: After reciting that by certain Acts of Parliament, the mayor, commonalty and citizens of the city of London, had liberty and were enabled to bring a fresh stream of water or New River to London from the springs of Chadwell and Amwell and other springs in the county of Hertford, and that the whole, entire and sole profit, commodity and advantage of the said New River had been assigned to and vested in Sir Hugh Myddelton and others, who had covenanted with his Majesty that he and his successors should have one moiety of such benefit, profit and commodity; the said Governor and

COMPANY
v.

LAND TAX
COMMIS-

HERTFORD.

Company were incorporated for the purpose of maintaining the NEW RIVER said New River, and were empowered to hold lands, tenements, rents and hereditaments, &c. And by the said charter, his said Majesty did give and grant unto the said Governor and Com- SIONERS FOR pany and their successors the said New River cut and stream with the appurtenances, and all manner of profits, advantages and commodities thereof, or by reason thereof in any sort to be made, raised or gotten: to have, hold and enjoy the said New River cut or stream, and premises, with the appurtenances, to the said Governor and Company and their successors for ever; and to be holden of the said King, his heirs, &c., as of his manor of East Greenwich in the county of Kent, in free and common socage, by fealty and not in chief, nor by knight service and did, by the said charter, ordain that the said Governor and Company, and their successors, should well and sufficiently maintain, repair, preserve and scour the said New *River and stream, and all the banks and bridges of and belonging to the same as then it was; and that the said. Governor and Company and their successors might lawfully alter and change the said New River or cut, in, by and through any of the grounds or soil of the King, his heirs and successors, without any impeachment or impediment whatever.

The moiety belonging to the parties interested was divided into 36 shares, and the moiety belonging to his Majesty was afterwards conveyed by his Majesty to Sir Hugh Myddelton and divided into 36 shares, which were distributed amongst various proprietors. Such shares have been decided to be and have been treated in fact as real estate. (The case then set out parts of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections, and the 4th and 57th sections of the 38 Geo. III. c. 5 (1).)

After the coming into operation of the 38 Geo. III., on the 5th of February, 1799, the Commissioners of Land Tax for the city of London made the assessment for land tax to the amount of 3,600l. in manner following (that is to say): "Upon all and every person and persons having any share or shares or interest in the New River."

From time to time, since the year 1799, divers proprietors of shares in the Company have redeemed the land tax upon their shares, and the land tax has been from time to time. thenceforth assessed by the Commissioners of Land *Tax for the city of London, in respect of the residue of the shares whereof the land tax has not been redeemed, and the assessment for the year 1853 and for the year 1854, were made in the words following:

(1) The 3rd section has since been repealed (35 & 36 Vict. c. 63).—J. G. P.

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The sums from time to time assessed have always formed part of the sum of 123,3991. 6s. 7d., directed to be levied in the city of London.

Part of the undertaking and works has always consisted of a reservoir occupying a space of about 5 acres of land, situate in Clerkenwell in the county of Middlesex, but such reservoir and land have never been assessed to the land tax in the county of Middlesex or otherwise, unless it was included in the foregoing assessments.

The New River passes through the parish of Great Amwell, in the county of Hertford, to the extent of three miles in length, and the Company have never, until the *making of the rate hereinafter mentioned, been assessed to the land tax in respect of the New River in the parish of Great Amwell, or in any other parish or place through which the New River passes, or elsewhere, unless by the assessments herein before set out they have been so assessed in London; but the Commissioners of Land Tax acting for the division in which the said parish of Great Amwell is situate, have by the assessment made by them on the 19th of August, 1854, for the parish of Great Amwell, charged the Company to the land tax for that parish in respect of so much of the New River as is situate in that parish, in manner following:

EX

.

The land tax assessment for 1854 in the parish of Great Amwell was a new and revised assessment, made in consequence of the defects of the previous assessment, which omitted not only the New River but other properties, as, for instance, the vicar of the parish for his tithes and the owners of all the houses but one at Hertford Heath.

The original bed of the New River in the parish of Great Amwell, with the addition thereto gained by accretion previous to 1799, has not been redeemed from land tax any further or otherwise than herein appears, but the width has been further increased since the year 1799 by the purchase of adjoining lands which now form part of the bed of the river and the banks thereof, and the said river, including the banks, now occupies about 15 acres of land in the parish, the full annual value whereof, for ordinary purposes, does not exceed 60l., but the whole of the land purchased, except *two roods and ten perches, was redeemed from land tax before the 19th of August, 1854.

In part of the land purchased by the Company in the parish. of Great Amwell are two powerful wells, the water of which they raise and pour into the New River (1). The Company supply seventeen of the inhabitants of the parish with water, which water was supplied from the New River previous to the acquisition of the said wells, but has since been supplied from the said wells. The water rents received by the Company from the inhabitants of the parish of Great Amwell, amount to 121. 15s. per annum.

The amount of 500l. at which the said Governor and Company have been assessed was at the rate of 2001. a mile, which would make the amount of the assessment 600l. Deduction has been made in respect of such land purchased as has been redeemed from land tax.

The Company have for several years been assessed to the poor rate of the parish of Great Amwell in 600l., which amount was confirmed by the Court of Quarter Sessions on an appeal by the Company, and has ever since been acquiesced in by them.

(1) It was admitted that these wells stood upon that part of the purchased

R.R.VOL. CXV.

property, the land tax upon which had
been redeemed.

30

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NEW RIVER
COMPANY

v.

LAND TAX
COMMIS-

HERTFORD.

The whole length of the New River, from its spring in the country to its terminus in Clerkenwell, is 37 miles.

The net profits of the Company, with rents of real estates SIONERS FOR and other sources of income for the year 1854, divided amongst the shareholders, amounted to the sum of 60,912l., of which sum about 45,000l. was exclusively for profits from the said. river.

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The Court is to be at liberty to draw any inference of fact which a jury might have done.

The questions for the opinion of the Court are:

First. Whether that part of the New River passing through and situate within the said parish of Great Amwell, or any portion thereof, is rateable to the land tax in the county of Hertford ?

Secondly. If so rateable, to what extent and upon what principle is the same rateable?

Byles, Serjt., (with whom was Field), argued for the plaintiffs (1):

The questions in this case arise under the 4th and the 57th sections of the 38 Geo. III. c. 5. By the scheme of taxation contained in that Act, (sect. 2), a gross sum is to be raised from the several counties, &c., in England, Wales and Berwickupon-Tweed, in certain proportions. A certain fixed sum is assessed upon the city of London, and another such sum on the county of Hertford. By the 57th section "all and every person and persons having any share or shares or interest in any fresh stream or running water, brought to the north parts of London, commonly called "the New River," or in the Thames waterworks, or in Marylebone, or in Hampstead waterworks, or in any office or stock for insuring of houses in case of fire, or in any lights, or in the stock or stocks for printing of books, in or belonging to the house called the King's printing house, shall pay for the same the sum of four shillings for every twenty shillings of the full yearly value thereof, towards the said sum hereby charged upon England, Wales and Berwick-upon-Tweed; and they and all Companies of merchants in London * * shall be assessed by the Commissioners nominated and appointed for the said city, &c., for their respective shares and interests as aforesaid, &c.; and the same shall be paid by the governors or the respective treasurers or receivers of the said river, waters and waterworks, and of the said offices and stocks respectively, ** and be deducted at and out of their next *dividend."

(1) April 29. Before Pollock, C. B., Martin, B., and Channell, B.