§ MR. CAMERONsaid, he would beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Whether, under the thirty-eighth section of the Customs and Inland Revenue Duties Bill, a farmer who enters upon a new farm at Whitsunday, or who engages a shepherd at that term, would be liable in the one case for the Duty on the Dogs of his shepherds which had been paid for already by his predecessor on the 1st of January in the same year, and in the other case for the Duty upon the incoming as well as the outgoing shepherd; and whether he considers that any loss or inconvenience to the Public Service would arise if the period of exemption from Duty were extended to Dogs under twelve months of age?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER, in reply, said the tax on dogs was payable on the 1st of January by the hirer or employer of the shepherd at the time, and when paid it went to the benefit of the shepherd, just as if he had paid it himself. Having been paid, no further tax would be payable until the next 1st of January, and therefore a farmer entering on a new farm would not be liable to the duty on dogs paid by his predecessor, nor would a person engaged as shepherd be liable to the Revenue for the duty due by his employer. It would be very inconvenient to extend the exemption from six months to twelve, as it would lead to various evasions of the tax.