The Totall of the New-buildings from 1656. to 1677. is about Ten Thousand.

The Total from 1620. to 1656. was about Seven Thousand Five Hundred.

Their value at one years Rent about Seventy Thousand Pound if it had been Collected.

Though the particular makes the number but 6646, and the Sum but 57606 Pound, some Parishes being wanting.

AS there has been great mistakes about the Damage and Nusance by the Increase of New-building in the Suburbs; so by this we may see the mistake to be as great about their number and value; some reporting their number to be Twenty Thousand, [...] Thirty [...]; though it is very plain to any man that con [...]iders that their number cannot be much above Ten Thousand, for that the Total of all the [...]ies, both New and Old, both in the City, [...] the Bills of Mortality are not Threescore Thousand [...]

That this is true, and that the number from 1656. to 1677. [...] much exceed Ten Thousand, will appear by co [...]ring the Increase of the Burials from 1620. to 1656. with the particular of the New-houses Built within that [...]

The Number of the Houses, as appears before, were about Seaven Thousand Five Hundred; now the Inhabitants that lived in those New-built houses made the Increase of the Burials within that space of time, Three Thousand; which by computing the Medium, is the Increase of two Burials for every five Houses that were Built: So that the Increase of Two Thousand Five Hundred Houses, raise the Burials One Thou­sand.

And if we examine the Increase of the Burials from 1656. to 1677. we shall find them to be about Four Thousand, which being but a Fourth more then were from 1620. to 1656. The New-houses since that time cannot be reckoned above a Fourth, which makes the Total now about Ten Thousand.

And this way of Calculation, though it may not exactly discover the particular number of Houses, yet it is sufficient to prove there can be no mistake of Thousands in the Account; for that the Inhabitants of Two or Three Thousand Houses would have added a visible Increase to the Burials.

And to further justifie this Computation, it agrees very well with the Calculation made by the Ingenious Mr. Grant, both of the Total num­ber of the Inhabitants within the Bills of Mortality, and his probable guess, that about three in One hundred die, allowing twelve Inhabi­tants to every House one with another, which no man I suppose will dispute.

This will apparently confute that wild conjecture of some, who report that there is Three Thousand Five Hundred New-houses in St. Martins Parish, when the Burials of that Parish are not above Eighteen Hundred in a year: So that the Total of New and Old in that Parish cannot be above Four Thousand Five Hundred, and therefore it is probable that the Account of 1780. now given in is very true.

The conjectures of many concerning the value of these Houses, that they will make twenty pound a Year one with another, and raise two or three hundred thousand pound, are as false as about the number of them.

For ten thousand Houses will not raise above fifty thousand pound, it being the half years value at ten pound a year one with another, which is the most they can be reckoned at.

As will plainly appear from the account of the value of those seven thousand five hundred Houses, which did not amount to Seventy thousand pound at a whole years value, as appears by the Duplicates in the Exchequer; they not making one with another ten pound a year.

Now the great Houses in the Piazza, Lincolnes-In-fields, and Queen-street, were equal in value to these twenty two Houses in St. James Square, or Bloomesbury Square, or other places; and are more in number of that sort of Houses then have been built since.

Besides the middle sort of Houses in the Streets of Covent-Garden, Long-Acre, Clare-Market, Old-Southampton-Buildings, and other places have equall'd both the number and value of Leicester-Fiolds, Bleemesbury, York-Buildings, Essex-Buildings and the rest. And the number of the small Houses at four or five pound per Annum since 1656. are much greater.

So that upon enquiry, it is plain, that the Houses that were built before 1656. were equal in value to what have been built since. And therefore it is not probable that a Tax upon the New-foundations can raise above Fifty Thousand Pound, which considered with the Charge of collecting it, and the loss of his Majesties Customes upon Timber, Boards, Wainscot and Iron, being not less then Ten Thousand Pound per Annum, which will be occasioned by the discouraging of Building, will not bring in Thirty Thousand pounds clear into the Exchequer, if it were possible to make the Law so that all might be Collected.

But not to mention how hard the purchasers of New Houses, will believe such a Law to be, having paid a valuable consideration for them, and offended no Law.

Nor how severe the Work-men builders will think they are dealt with, to be punished for exercising their lawful Trades.

Nor how partial it will be to those that built since 1656. that have already paid a years value.

Nor to mention what the owners of the great Houses that have been altered. think, not being allowed the 500 l. a year, which their Houses yielded before; since they pay for improvement by the building of their Gardens.

Nor what in general all those sufferers will think, who believe they have done good service to the Nation by Building.

The Law will have this peculiar disadvantage, it will be impossible so to word it, as to comprize all mens interests, so as to raise that Mo­ney as shall be designed by it. For after the Commissioners of Olivers Act had set four years, they did not pay in twenty thousand pound in­to the Exchequer of the 70000 l. that was returned upon the Duplicates.