“Apremios are of three degrees: The first consists in an increase on the tax of 5 per cent.; the second consists in the seizure and afterwards the sale at public auction of chattel and live stock, besides a further increase of 7 per cent.; the third consists in the seizure and sale at public auction of real estate, besides a further increase of 9 per cent.
“These rules embody many details. They are obscure and complicated. According to them, long proceedings are made against morose taxpayers, a characteristic of Spanish bureaucracy.”
The two tables which follow show the face value of the tax receipts placed in the hands of the Spanish Bank for a series of years and the actual amounts collected. They have been carefully compiled by the author from official sources and are believed to be reliable:
| TABLE I.——FACE VALUE OF TAX RECEIPTS HANDED TO SPANISH BANK FOR COLLECTION | ||||||
| Years. | City Property. | Rural Real Estate. | Taxes on Professions, Trades, etc. | Minor Taxes. | Total. | |
| 1886-87 | $ 2,520,061.51 | $ 507,739.70 | $ 1,963,778.53 | $ 249,071.76 | $ 5,240,651.50 | |
| 1887-88 | 2,565,834.77 | 472,909.25 | 2,090,306.46 | 257,577.35 | 5,386,627.83 | |
| 1888-89 | 2,633,491.17 | 510,456.81 | 2,030,542.86 | 141,876.76 | 5,316,367.60 | |
| 1889-90 | 2,451,866.27 | 393,938.19 | 1,895,638.08 | 136,604.67 | 4,878,047.21 | |
| 1890-91 | 2,498,060.52 | 693,323.04 | 2,027,435.32 | 117,792.37 | 5,336,611.25 | |
| 1891-92 | 2,093,492.10 | 386,578.79 | 1,654,306.58 | 108,604.87 | 4,242,982.34 | |
| 1892-93 | 1,989,290.65 | 784,943.09 | 2,452,044.86 | 131,650.37 | 5,357,928.97 | |
| 1893-94 | 1,889,814.97 | 804,838.90 | 2,183,355.47 | 214,191.07 | 5,092,200.41 | |
| 1894-95 | 1,884,766.87 | 814,006.33 | 2,297,452.23 | 167,096.27 | 5,163,321.70 | |
| 1895-96 | 1,905,731.44 | 823,609.47 | 2,073,581.75 | 104,731.51 | 4,907,654.17 | |
| 1896-97 | 2,060,263.25 | 880,946.21 | 1,995,542.42 | 105,453.12 | 5,042,205.00 | |
| 1897-98 | 1,924,866.65 | 811,470.78 | 1,609,094.32 | 85,163.40 | 4,430,595.15 | |
| $26,417,540.17 | $ 7,884,766.50 | $24,273,078.88 | $ 1,819,813.52 | $60,395,193.13 | ||
| TABLE II.—— ACTUAL AMOUNT OF TAXES COLLECTED BY THE SPANISH BANK | ||||||
| Years. | City Property. | Rural Real Estate. | Taxes on Professions, Trades, etc. | Minor Taxes. | Total. | |
| 1886-87 | $2,275,853.10 | $468,245.88 | $1,662,664.91 | $249,071.76 | $4,655,835.65 | |
| 1887-88 | 2,347,957.42 | 436,222.17 | 1,716,689.28 | 257,577.35 | 4,758,446.22 | |
| 1888-89 | 2,380,545.54 | 466,897.68 | 1,705,509.13 | 141,876.91 | 4,694,829.26 | |
| 1889-90 | 2,227,503.12 | 363,222.63 | 1,576,865.82 | 136,615.59 | 4,304,207.16 | |
| 1890-91 | 2,227,217.01 | 619,271.48 | 1,695,196.40 | 117,792.36 | 4,659,477.25 | |
| 1891-92 | 1,851,515.43 | 345,743.88 | 1,391,013.56 | 108,604.87 | 3,696,877.74 | |
| 1892-93 | 1,789,106.74 | 717,760.37 | 1,996,761.13 | 131,650.37 | 4,635,278.61 | |
| 1893-94 | 1,728,234.60 | 722,572.96 | 1,842,921.66 | 214,191.07 | 4,507,920.29 | |
| 1894-95 | 1,703,327.71 | 684,296.62 | 1,870,617.89 | 167,096.27 | 4,425,338.49 | |
| 1895-96 | 1,594,158.79 | 371,845.50 | 1,468,294.18 | 104,731.51 | 3,539,029.98 | |
| 1896-97 | 1,523,368.43 | 224,870.98 | 1,412,890.84 | 105,453.12 | 3,226,583.37 | |
| 1897-98 | 1,140,230.12 | 89,661.98 | 1,062,686.71 | 85,163.40 | 2,377,742.21 | |
| $22,789,018.01 | $5,510,612.13 | $19,402,111.51 | $1,819,824.58 | $49,521,566.23 | ||
The following table is compiled from the totals of the detailed tables above, and shows the amount of the taxes collected by the Bank of Spain and the amount and percentage of delinquent taxes in each year for twelve years. It is probable that the amount for the half of the present fiscal year is relatively greater:
| TAX RECEIPTS HANDED TO SPANISH BANK FOR COLLECTION | ||||
| Years. | Face Value. | Actual Amount Collected. | Total Delinquent Taxes. | Percentage of Delinquent Tax Each Year. |
| 1886-87 | $5,240,651.50 | $4,655,835.65 | $584,815.85 | 11.16 |
| 1887-88 | 5,386,627.83 | 4,758,446.22 | 628,181.61 | 11.66 |
| 1888-89 | 5,316,367.60 | 4,694,829.26 | 621,538.34 | 11.69 |
| 1889-90 | 4,878,047.21 | 4,304,207.16 | 573,840.05 | 11.76 |
| 1890-91 | 5,336,611.25 | 4,659,477.25 | 677,134.00 | 12.69 |
| 1891-92 | 4,242,982.34 | 3,696,877.74 | 546,104.60 | 12.87 |
| 1892-93 | 5,357,928.97 | 4,635,278.61 | 722,650.36 | 13.49 |
| 1893-94 | 5,092,200.41 | 4,507,920.29 | 584,280.12 | 11.47 |
| 1894-95 | 5,163,321.70 | 4,425,338.49 | 737,983.21 | 14.29 |
| 1895-96 | 4,907,654.17 | 3,539,029.98 | 1,368,624.19 | 27.88 |
| 1896-97 | 5,042,205.00 | 3,266,583.37 | 1,775,621.63 | 35.21 |
| 1897-98 | 4,430,595.15 | 2,377,742.21 | 2,052,852.94 | 46.33 |
| Total | $60,395,193.13 | 49,521,566.23 | $10,873,626.90 | 18.04 |