But although Pitt and Castlereagh ostensibly carried out the principle of separate fiscal systems, they laid the foundations for a fiscal amalgamation which was disastrous to Ireland.  Since his Commercial Propositions of 1785, Pitt had never abandoned the idea of obtaining from Ireland an obligatory annual contribution to Imperial services based on some fixed principle.  By Clause 7 of the Act of Union he achieved his aim.  It was settled that for twenty years Ireland should contribute in the proportion of 1 to 71/2 (or 2 to 15)—­that is, that Great Britain should pay 15/17, or 88.24 per cent., of common Imperial expenses, including the charge for debt contracted for Imperial services, and Ireland 2/17, or 11.76 per cent.  Nobody now denies that this ratio was grossly unjust to Ireland.  It took no account of the relative pre-Union Debts; it took no account of the tribute of nearly four millions paid in rents to absentee English proprietors; it was based on superficial deductions from inadequate and misleading data, and the Act was hardly passed before its absurdity became manifest.  Fifteen years of almost incessant war followed the Union.  Ireland, even by raising taxation to the highest possible point, was unable to pay her contribution without contracting a Debt colossal in proportion to her resources.  While Great Britain only doubled her Debt, and paid 71 per cent. of her expenses out of current taxation, the Irish Debt quadrupled, and in 1817 reached the portentous total of L112,634,773; while only 49 per cent. of Irish expenditure was paid for out of revenue.  Here is a little table which shows the effect upon Ireland of Clause 7 of the Act of Union: 

Five Years.               Average            Average
Revenue.          Expenditure. 
L                  L
{ 1785-1790             1,246,000          1,247,000
Before Union —–­{ 1790-1795             1,340,000          1,646,000
{ 1795-1800             2,100,000          4,601,000

{ 1801-1806             3,643,000          7,270,000
After Union  —–­{ 1806-1811             4,885,000          9,061,000
{ 1811-1816             5,927,424         13,188,000

The scandal could no longer be overlooked.  It was impossible to raise the Irish taxes.  Their yield was already showing signs of diminishing.  But the Act of Union had provided for the situation which had arisen.  One of the sections of the famous Clause 7 enacted that if and when the separate Debts of the two countries should reach the proportion of their respective Imperial contributions, Parliament might, if it thought fit, declare that all future expenses of the United Kingdom should be defrayed indiscriminately by equal taxes imposed on the same articles in both countries, “subject only to such exemptions and abatements in favour of Ireland as circumstances may appear from time to time to demand.”  The framers of this section had anticipated that the English Debt would sink to the level of the Irish